NEWS and VIEWS

October 1, 2008

To the Ford Dealer Network:

One hundred years ago Henry Ford wrote, “I will build a motor car for the great multitude. It will be so low in price that no man making a good salary will be unable to own one.” In an age where automobiles were the exclusive playthings of the rich, it was an audacious statement.

Yet our great-grandfather did exactly that. And the product with which he did it – the Ford Model T – became a staple of history books. Together with the television and the personal computer, it became a 20^th-century product that absolutely and conclusively changed the world. Within a few years of its introduction, one out of every two cars in the world was a Model T. Looking back on it, the moving assembly line on which it was built, and the middle-class workers who built it, Will Rogers said of his friend, Henry Ford, “… he certainly didn’t leave us where he found us.”

Families all over the world have stories about the toughness and dependability of their “Tin Lizzie,” which in most cases was the first car anyone in their family had ever owned. It was a product of unpaved roads, utterly reliable under all sorts of conditions. Little wonder that, a full century after it was introduced, the Model T still attracts collectors and aficionados.

We’re proud of that and we’re also proud that the Ford Motor Company of today is committed to the creation of world-changing products. One of these is Ford’s next global car, the Ford Fiesta, scheduled for North American release in 2010. Like the Model T, the Fiesta will be affordable, efficient and fun to drive. And like the Model T, it will set the tone for its times.

No great company rests upon its laurels. But at moments such as this, it’s good to reflect back on a world-changing product. And it’s better still to know that we – as a company and as an industry are poised to do it all over again.

Today, isn’t just about celebrating the Model T it is also about celebrating you, the extended Ford family, who have helped us achieve this great milestone. Thank you for supporting Ford Motor Company as our dealer body, our partners and as our family, helping to make our world-class lineup of cars and trucks available to our customers.

Thank you for more than 100 years of your dedication as an outstanding dealer body. Thank you for carrying the Ford banner and displaying so proudly, the Ford oval in your communities. We hope you join us today for a brief moment and reflect on our amazing heritage while look to the future of carrying Ford’s legacy forward – delivering smart, affordable transportation to the masses.

We wish you all the best as we head down the road together, into the next 100 years.

Sincerely,
Edsel B. Ford II
Board Director
Ford Motor Company