Tom Ford has become one of the fashion industry’s greatest icons, and his line of sunglasses is a testament in design and craftsmanship to this much deserved status.

Ford van servicing is now much cheaper, for those in the know.

Thanks to European legislation, you no longer have to be tied to high Ford van service costs, dictated by your local dealer.

In October 2003 new European legislation affecting the motor industry came into force called “Block Exemption Regulation” 14002002 (BER), and this now means that you can book your next Ford van service online and save up to 50% on what you might pay at your local Ford van dealer.

Before the law changed it was difficult to have new vans within their warranty period serviced outside a franchised dealer. If you wanted to shop around for the best prices on Ford van servicing, your hands were tied.

The change in the law now gives every van owner the freedom to service their van away from the main dealers, and still have their warranty protected.

Thousands of Ford van owners have now taken advantage of their new right and reduced their Ford van serving costs, whilst benefiting from the convenience of booking with national car service providers such as Service A Van.

Service A Van is a leading online van servicing network that prides itself on the quality of its Ford van servicing, their customer service and transparent pricing. Because the company is not tied to any particular van manufacturer, they are able to service any make of vehicle and compete freely in the market, on a like-for-like.

Every vehicle is rigorously serviced according to the manufacturer?s servicing schedule, using genuine recommended parts fitted by qualified technicians. This means that every Ford van service fulfils the warranty criteria and there is no compromise on the servicing standards of a main dealer.

Companies like Service A Van, who fulfil the warranty criteria when servicing your Ford, are able to maintain your service book, just as main dealer can ? thereby protecting your warranty and helping you to maximise the resale value of your Ford van.

Of course, booking direct with a national car servicing network has its own advantages:

In 1892 Henry Ford completed his first gasoline engine, born on a farm in the area of Dearborn, Michigan 29 years earlier Henry had just fulfilled his first vision. He had been experimenting with gasoline engines as a hobby in his spare time while working at the Detroit Edison Company. His engineering career intrigued him and he found great satisfaction in his accomplishment.

After spending “too much” time on the automobile the Detroit Edison Company felt it best that he resigned and perused his dream. He sold his fist car believing that he could build another lighter than the first. He used the proceeds to buy more materials.

Around 1899 he was later able to find private investors who were willing to spend their money creating the Detroit Automobile Company. He did like the fact that he was not a majority share holder of the company because he couldn’t make the final decisions. When ever he mentioned mass production and lower pricing in order to penetrate their target market he was out voted. So he left.

Ford Motor Corporation is Founded

Henry wouldn’t give up on his vision. He had come so close to seeing fleets of cars rolling out of the companies shop he was heart broken but angry. So he started work in a shed where he developed his four-cylinder 80-horsepower race cars. He named them the 999 and the Arrow. Through several victories Henry was able to spread the Ford name and new interest in his vision.

He raised $28,000 of capital from friends, family, and acquaintances and on June 16, 1903 the Ford Motor Company was born. Henry Ford started producing the Model A, a eight-horsepower two-cylinder automobile. 1,708 of these gorgeous Model A’s were made in just under a year.

Ford Gets Sued

Seeing the success of the Ford Motor business the giant consortium called the Licensed Association of Automobile Manufacturers file a law suit against the Ford Motor on the grounds that Ford was infringing on their rights which were pertect by their patent. The patent was issued to George B. Selden in 1895 and in Henry’s opinion it was void. He took the companies proceeds from the Model A and fought the battle out in court.

Ford Motor Expands

Despite the law suit the Ford motor business moves forward and moved to a bigger manufacturing plant on Piquette and Beaubien Streets still residing in Detroit. They also saw benefits in expanding yet a again in 1904 to a plant in Canada in Walkerville, Ontario.

Henry’s fascination with naming his cars after the alphabet grew, he and his engineers had a Model N, a Model K, a Model A, and a Model T. After Henry’s death naming the vehicles after letters in the alphabet ceased. However, at this time the Model N sold for $500 and was intended to be their high production low profit car. The Model K sold for $2,500 and was the six-cylinder luxury sedan of its day. The Model T had yet to be created.

The Model K was a sore subject for Henry Ford. Because it failed to sell in the numbers expected his partner Alexander Malcolmson resigned. Alexander had helped to found the company in 1903 and it hurt Henry to the core. Henry bought Alexander’s share in the company bringing Henry’s shares to 58.5 percent. What he had been dreaming of since he resigned form the Detroit Automobile Company. Henry then later replaced John S. Gray the president of the company with him self. Ford felt someone with the understanding of the cars and the people could be a better president and leader of the company than a Detroit Banker.

The Assembly Line is Born

By 1908 Ford released its Model T. After expanding his plant to meet production demands they were able to make more than 10,000 by 1909. More than 15 million Model T’s would be produced through 1927. With his controlling stock shares Henry Ford was able to vote all other plans of action down and put his Assembly Line idea into action.

Henry knew as a engineer himself and while watching the workers that there were specific tasks that need to be done, with each task using a specific tool. He then conceived that he each worker were to do one specific job using one tool in a consistent time frame he could increase efficiency. Or that was his hypothesis he was dying to test.

Automobile parts were moved along the line on a conveying belt with each worker doing his or her task to the part as it came to them on the belt until it came to the end of the line finished. This made slower workers have to speed up and gave better time estimates for completion dates by being able to control the rate at which the workers did their jobs. This moving assembly line was installed in the Highland Park assembly plant and made production of the Model T eight times faster than had been.

Ford Wins Patent Law Suit

After eight years of legal battling the Supreme Court in 1911 finally rule the Selden patent void and the way was open for many other automobile companies to compete for market share. The heavy weight that was on the Ford motor business of having to pay licensing fees to the Selden syndicate was lifted.

World War I

April 1917, Ford Motor gave its loving attention to the war effort. During World War I produced large quantities of automobiles, trucks, and ambulances, as well as Liberty airplane motors, Whippet tanks, Eagle submarine chasers, and munitions.

Henry Ford officially retired in 1918 and named his son Edsel president and gave him controlling interest in the company’s stock. Henry didn’t feel retired he liked to direct and give recommendations to Edsel about company market strategy. He also enjoyed creating a tractor he named the Fordson (thank goodness it wasn’t named Model Z). He apparently published a journal of sort called the Dearborn Independent.

Buy Outs and Greater Expansion

By the end of World War I Ford Motor Corporation was looking to expand and integrate many of its assembly plants; consolidating resources, lowering waste, and shipping prices. There was some disagreement with the other share holders and both Henry and Edsel decided to solve the situation with money. Again Henry found himself buying stock from his investors to further the vision he had passed on to his son. The multi-million dollar facility had an integrated steel mill of what was then considered to be of substantial capacity. The plant was named the River Rouge facility.

Since the release of the innovative Ford S-MAX at the 2006 Geneva Motor Show, the Ford Motor Company has received more than 30,000 orders and has already distributed about 9,000 individual units of the Ford S-MAX in selected areas in Europe.

“We are delighted with the response to the new S-MAX from customers and the media. This confirms our belief that customers want innovative solutions to their driving needs. With 5+2 seats, a wide choice of engines and expressive styling, the S-MAX offers motorists a fresh approach that is proving hugely popular,” said Stephen Odell, Vice President of Ford of Europe.

“The fact the S-MAX is drawing new customers also demonstrates the broad appeal of the Ford brand. Ford delivers great-looking, well-engineered cars and driving enjoyment without compromises. That’s what the S-MAX is all about,” he added.

Built with quality Ford parts like Ford headlights, the S-MAX is the very first vehicle to feature Ford’s innovative “kinetic design” styling, which Ford engineers describe as “expressing energy in motion”. With the kinetic design, The S-MAX emphasizes its dynamic driving capabilities in an emotional way. One of the major selling features of the Ford S-MAX is the “FoldFlatSystem”. This unique design enables the third and second row seats to completely fold flat into the floor. Because of the small third row seats, Ford classifies the S-MAX as “5+2″, which means that the rear seats are only for occasional use and can be replaced with sliding cargo trays.

According to Ford, the most popular model in the S-MAX Series is the Titanium model. Almost 50 percent of the customers had ordered this model. The Titanium model is equipped with a 1.8-liter Duratorq TDCi I4 engine that allows the S-MAX to accelerate from 0-60 mph in more than 11 seconds. Like the Ford Focus, the Ford S-MAX is also equipped with Ford’s Intelligent Protection System, including the new driver’s knee airbag, driver and passenger front airbags, side airbags and front seatbelt pyrotechnic pre-tensioners, and the standard anti-lock braking system with electronic brake force distribution.

The production of the new Ford S-MAX was first started last April 2006, and until now, S-MAX models are exclusively built at Ford’s Genk plant located in Belgium.

It is no secret that Ford Motor Company is exerting extra efforts to be back in the automotive spotlight. Earlier, Ford launched its Bold Moves, the automaker’s advertising strategy that is made up of several episodes and product launches.

Bold Moves, the online documentary of Ford, includes the Way Forward plan. The latter is designed to convey the essence of building Ford vehicles. The documentary also shows Ford’s programs aimed at guiding its workers who are about to lose their job due to find new employment.

“The documentary will present a picture of a company that is committed to revitalization through our people, products, improved quality and costs, and a laser-sharp focus on the customer,” said Mark Fields, Ford’s President of the Americas. “Each episode will provide evidence that it’s not business as usual at the Ford Motor Company and that ‘Change or Die’ is not a sound bite. It’s the way we’re approaching our future.”

According to Mary Lou Quesnell, director of Ford Brand DNA, “Over time, the body of work we are creating will tell a compelling story about bold products, bold leadership and Ford’s customer focus. We will provide both sides of the conversation and let America watch Ford’s turnaround as it happens.”

Bold Moves is produced by JWT Detroit and JWT New York. Said production is directed by Radical Media Inc., a famed New York-based production company. The latter has already established its name in making quality documentaries. In fact, it was given the highly-acclaimed Academy Award in its previous production.

Part of Bold Moves is the introduction of striking vehicle lineup to revive its charisma and lure more car enthusiasts. Its new lineup includes the rear-wheel drive Fusion, C1-based Focus, Fiesta, and the Mustang. Auto parts Ford Focus are subjected to several enhancements. Consequently, Ford Fiesta performance parts and Ford Mustang parts accessories are painstakingly tested to pave way to powerful vehicles that bear the automaker’s unmistakable quality and performance.

Other Ford brands will also have empowered vehicle lineup. Lincoln will maintain the production of MKZ/Zephyr and Town Car. Mercury, on one hand, will be offering Montego, Milan, and Meta-one.

Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader, is expected to exceed its sales by 100.8 percent this year. This anticipated figure is estimated on a year on year basis. The 2006 lineup of Ford is dominated by S-Max and Focus.

S-Max, a large MPV from Ford, was introduced this year for the European auto market at Geneva Motor Show. The vehicle became an instant hit in said territory. In fact, it was later on awarded the Car of the Year title in Europe. S-Max is the very first vehicle of Ford to feature the “kinetic design” styling.

Ford’s kinetic design conveys energy in motion. Moreover, said feature can be found in the new S-Max. Another major pull of S-Max is its “FoldFlatSystem.” Said feature allows the second and third-row seats to fold flat into the floor. These features make all-new S-Max one of the most stunning and exciting vehicles to hit China roads.

You only have to look at Ford S-MAX. Its bold ‘kinetic design’ offers function, space and flexibility alongside head turning ‘wow factor’ and dynamic drivability. This winning formula is what’s made Ford S-MAX such a success in Europe,” said Martin Smith, Executive Design Director for Ford of Europe and the man behind

Ford Focus is also a stunner in China. Said car has established a star performer reputation in its own right. Ford Focus auto parts boast their quality, performance and style. Now in the new model, the automaker added 5-door hatchback and station wagon variations. These new variations are designed to move ahead of auto market demand.

Ford also announced a new investment in China. This investment is all about the launching of Ford Research and Engineering Center, which will be situated in Nanjing, China. The establishment will support product development of Ford’s worldwide operations. Said establishment will also contribute significantly to the development of the China auto market.

“The Ford Research and Engineering Center represents another major milestone for Ford as it strengthens its manufacturing blueprint in China. It will offer a winning combination that leverages Ford’s global expertise in research and engineering in addition to building China’s leading local talent. It will also work with Technical Development Centers at Ford Motor’s joint ventures in China to support product development and procurement,” said Mei Wei Cheng, Chairman and CEO of Ford Motor (China) Ltd.

Ford Motor Co. will be entertaining significant upgrades or replacements for its future vehicle lineup. Fresh Ford lineup is expected by 2010. Also, 70 percent of 2008 lineup will also showcase updates from previous projections.

“We’re really excited about it,” said Mulally, Ford CEO. “There’s no reason why we can’t really build cars and trucks that people really do prefer.” Ford is obviously facing murky future due to its declining sales in the previous years. This is the very reason why the automaker is making all it can to assuage its ailing condition.

Ford celebrates its 104th year in the auto industry. However, the red date will not be celebrated pompously because of the dilemma and challenges that the automaker is facing. Ford lost $7 billion through September last year. Further, it is also expecting a decline in vehicle sales, worse financial results and negative cash flow this year.

To return to the right track, Ford is sticking with its Way Forward turnaround plan that will eliminate a total of 44,000 salaried and hourly jobs and will close 16 plants. Also, the automaker aims to freshen up its lineup. With said turnaround plan, Ford is expecting to gain small profit by 2009. To get through the hard times, the automaker ventures in a $25.45-billion financing deal that uses nearly all its assets. According to some critics, if the gamble won’t pay off, Ford might eventually file for bankruptcy.

Mulally said Ford is making great progress toward integrating its engineering systems around the world, which are used to design and manufacture new products. He also suggested that Ford would have a deal to sell its ultra-luxury brand Aston Martin by the end of 2007.

When asked about the Ford-Toyota talk, Mullaly answered, “I’ve learned a lot from them.” He added that the top executives have talked about a variety of mutual interests “especially advanced technologies.” Mulally noted, “Despite the numbers, last year was a year of significant progress for us. It’s like building a house. We built the foundation last year.”

Ford is also stepping up incentives on top-selling vehicles to generate more momentum for this year. Ford is also busy promoting Edge, Mustang, Escape and the F-Series. The automaker is also absorbed in 0 percent financing on auto parts for Ford Escape and Mercury Mariner. Escape and Mariner are set to be replaced with a redesigned version in the future. In addition, Ford is offering low lease specials on certain F-150s. Owner-loyalty discounts, for one, offers discount range of $500 and $3,000 on certain models. Auto parts for 1992 Ford F-150 have established a well-defined reputation for decades now.

It sure looks like the Taurus will once again rise at Ford. This was after Ford CEO Mulally expressed his fascination for the Taurus. As a matter of fact, he even rented one just to check how well it drives. Mulally said that he was a fan of the Taurus 20 years ago when he studied the production system of the car which was then a part of the project he was doing for Boeing. But he said, “I haven?t had time to do the deep dive on why we stopped investing in Taurus, but I’d like to?the Ford Five Hundred should have been the new Taurus.”

A day after Mulally made such statement, Ford Division?s new Marketing Chief, Barry Engle was already complaining about the Fusion claiming that it?s a name that is unpopular to at least 30% of buyers in the mid-size car segment. Engle further stated why not rename the Fusion and turn it into a Taurus, “I don?t know why we invest hundreds of millions of dollars in a name over 20 years and then walk away from it.?

Ford?s ?ghosts of the past?

Ford has discontinued and remodeled several car models yet many of Ford?s own executives can?t seem to shake off the ?ghosts of the past?. CEO Mulally finds it funny, saying that he was still looking for his Lincoln Zephyr to drive. He has forgotten that they have dropped the Zephyr in favor of the MKZ for this year?s model. Ford analyst Chief George Pipas has also referred to the Zephyr in the recent sale?s call but corrected himself.

Ford Taurus Facts

The Ford Taurus was a mid-size front wheel drive car and was manufactured by Ford Motor Company in North America. It was introduced in December 1986 as a replacement for the Fairmont-based rear-wheel drive LTD model. During its launch, the Taurus design became a milestone for both Ford and the whole American automotive industry. An approximately 7.5 million units of Taurus were sold.

The peak years for the Ford Taurus were between 1992 and 1996 where it was best-selling car in the US. It eventually lost its best-seller status with the arrival of Toyota Camry in 1997. The production for the Taurus ended on October 27, 2006 but fortunately, Ford Taurus parts are continuously being manufactured.

Ford has replaced the Taurus with three cars namely: the Ford Five Hundred which is a large crossover SUV version, the Ford Freestyle in replacement of the Taurus wagon, and the Ford Fusion which is a midsize car that is much closer in size to the Taurus. Ford is hoping that the three cars which they introduce in place of the Taurus will be able to cover the market that it has left.

President of Ford Motor Corporation’s Americas group, Mark Fields recently told employees that he will no longer use the company’s jet for his weekly commute to Florida. It should be noted that Fields has been criticized in recent months when he called out to all Ford employees to sacrifice and added that they will be eliminating more than 40,000 jobs and reduce employee benefits to reduce costs.

He was recently surprised by a local television news reporter outside his home in Delray Beach, Florida, who was asking him to explain how he could reconcile his costly travel expenses with his calls for sacrifice from Ford employees.

Ford spokesman Tom Hoyt has confirmed Field’s decision. He said that according to Fields the whole controversy about him is just a scheme to divert attention away from more important issues like Ford’s efforts to turnaround its North American automobile business.

According to Hoyt, “He doesn’t want this or any other issue to distract the team. This was Mark’s decision. The company supported his commitment to his family.” Hoyt further stressed that the decision was entirely Fields’.

The use of Ford corporate jet for his private travel was not just a personal whim on the part of Fields’ but rather included in the compensation agreement when he was promoted to head of Ford’s Americas group in 2005. In order to fulfill his role at Ford, Fields and his family have had to relocate several times to allow him to give Ford his undivided attention during the week while avoiding disruptions for his wife and children.

In place of the company jet, Fields will be using a commercial carrier to continue his weekly commute from south Florida where his family lives.

About Mark Fields

Mark Fields is President of Ford Motor Corporation’s Americas group and an executive of the FoMoCo manufacturer of quality Ford parts. As head of the Americas division, Fields was tasked to develop Ford’s “The Way Forward” plan a program developed to repair the ailing automaker. He directly reports to Allan Mulally, Ford’s CEO for all matters that concern the company.

Mark Fields was born in Brooklyn, New York but grew up in Paramus, New Jersey. He holds an economic degree from Rutgers University and worked for IBM prior to attaining an MBA at Harvard Graduate School of Business. He was recruited by Ford in 1989 and moved up the ranks becoming the youngest person ever to run a major Japanese company when placed him in charge of Mazda Motor Corporation in 1998.

In the year 2002 Mark Fields became chairman of the Premier Automotive Group, Ford’s luxury units which include Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo Cars. By 2005 he returned to the United States to head the Americas division of Ford.

When Mark Field was 45 years old he was named business unit chief of Ford Motor’s operations in Americas. It was in December 14, 2006 when Ford CEO Mulally announced the promotion of Mark Fields as President of Ford Motor Corporation’s Americas group.

Ford is currently facing some troubles in its operations. It might be doing fairly well overseas but is having very poor operations in the United States.

Latest reports say that Ford?s Volvo vehicle may be bought by German automaker BMW. According to Merrill Lynch, Ford could sell its premium brands, which also include Jaguar and Land Rover, at an estimated cost of $9 billion.

With $18.2 billion as the cost of US operations for the first three months this year, ford lost almost $3 billion. Revenue of $12 billion for the first quarter was achieved on its overseas units which include South America, Europe, and Asia. Operating income of $251 million was also achieved. And if the operations of the premium group are added, their revenue would rise to $20 billion and operating income could reach $400 million.

Part of the US arm of the company is many of Ford’s legacy problems with its units. Majority are on retirement, pension, and health-care costs. And most of the company?s debt is in its financial services operation. Ford?s balance sheet depicted $137 billion of the $167 billion.

DaimlerChrysler (DCX) has just halted its US operations. There is really no other way to look at the sale of Chrysler to minimize Cerberus fund operation.

It is about time that Ford should do the same. According to an article in Business Week, Alan Mulally, the company?s new CEO, is having some difficulty at present as regards to Ford?s fixed management structure. Restructuring the company may solve some of that.

Shareholders, including the Ford family, could earn something. This could be another benefit of Ford’s breaking off international operations. In the first three months in the current year, BMW has reached the revenue of an estimated $16 billion. The company, however, was good in terms of profit as well as its stock.

The UAW would have very little bargaining power this Fall Season due to the very little left for Ford in America beyond union contracts, debt, and continuously declining revenue.

Ford has to be strong or else they will not be able to make it. Both the management and its employees need to focus in immediately solving this problem.

About Ford Motor Company

An American multinational corporation, Ford Motor Company, based on the worldwide vehicle sales, is the third largest automaker in the world. Maker of quality Ford oxygen sensor, Ford ranked seventh as an American-based company in the 2007 Fortune 500 list. This was based on the company?s global revenues of $160.1 billion. Ford produced about 6.6 million automobiles and employed about 280,000 employees to its nearly 100 plants and facilities around the world in 2006.

Founded by Henry Ford in June 16, 1903, the company now has several global brands. These include Lincoln and Mercury of the US, Jaguar and Land Rover of the UK, and Volvo of Sweden. The company also owns Mazda?s one-third controlling interest.

About BMW

BMW is the abbreviation for Bayerische Motoren Werke or Bavarian Motor Works, in English. This German company is an independent manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles. With the English company slogan “The Ultimate Driving Machine”, BMW is from where the MINI and Rolls-Royce car brands came. It was also the owner of the Rover.

About DaimlerChrysler

DaimlerChrysler AG is a German car corporation and the fifth largest car manufacturer all over the world. It manufactures trucks and automobiles. It also provides financial services through its DaimlerChrysler Financial Services arm. The major stake in aerospace group EADS is also owned by the company.

Established in 1998, DaimlerChrysler was formed when Mercedes-Benz manufacturer Daimler-Benz of Baden-W