Final Reseach Paper Research Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Final Reseach - Research Paper Example Ford Mustang, Lincoln, Mercury, Volvo and the pickup trucks are some of the most popular automotive brands of the company. Even before the financial crisis struck the global economy, the automobile industry in general and Ford Motors in particular was incurring heavy losses in billions due to their inappropriate and untimely strategy of bringing luxurious and pricey cars to the market. Ford experienced a decline of 34% in its car sales in late 2008 as banks employed aggressive techniques for credit approval after the increasing statistics of loan defaults. Since automobile industry was already in financial trouble in 2006, the added credit tightening and increased fuel costs served a major set back to the industry as many suppliers struggled to breakeven (Millward, 2008). In the face of calamitous situation many automobile dealers had to sell out or close down their operations to avoid further losses For the past 100 years, the Ford Motors has been a strong runner up to the General Motors and a stable base for the U.S economy even though it went through troublesome times especially in 1950s when Henry Ford was in the last years of his life and also in 1970s and 1980s when the sudden outburst of Japanese imports posed a serious threat to the company’s profitability, survival and brand image. The 1990s were good years for the company as their pickup trucks, sports cars and minivans became the demand of the century while the Taurus became one of the most prominent passenger cars (Baki, 2004). In 1999 the company bought Volvo adding it to its list of European brands which included Aston Martin and Jaguar. Ford Motors formed the Premier Automotive group in 2000 when it bought Land Rover, expecting a surge in profitability and sales. The impact of the financial crisis on the automobile industry especially Ford Motors and