FORD OF EUROPE STRENGTHENS MARKET SHARE IN 2008 AND TAKES NUMBER TWO POSITION

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• In 2008, Ford of Europe increased its full year market share by 0.1 percentage points to 8.6 per cent versus 2007
• Total market share increased in 15 out of 19 markets; ten out of 19 markets had sales gains in 2008 compared with 2007, despite difficult industry conditions
• Ford now established as the second best-selling brand in Europe
• New Fiesta was best-selling model in the UK in November and December, and is already second best-selling Ford model in Europe
• Ford remains market leader in UK, makes consistent market share gains in Germany, and is best-selling passenger car brand in Spain

COLOGNE, January 14, 2009 – A strong product range, led by the brand-new, award-winning Fiesta, allowed Ford of Europe to consolidate its market position in 2008 and firmly establish Ford as Europe's second best-selling vehicle brand, despite the difficult economic conditions.

The company increased its market share in 15 of its main 19 European markets. Even with a deep industry decline in traditionally strong Ford markets like the UK and Spain, Ford of Europe increased its full year 2008 market share slightly across its main 19 markets by 0.1 percentage points to 8.6 per cent.

In particular the new Fiesta is proving a hit with customers: only two months after going on sale in late 2008, more than 61,000 new Fiestas have been sold in the main 19 European markets, making it the second best selling Ford car behind the Focus.

As soon as it went on sale in the UK, it became the best-selling car for both November and December.

"I am pleased that Ford has been established solidly as Europe's second best selling brand. This is clear recognition of our strong product portfolio which puts us in a better position than many," said Ingvar Sviggum, Vice President, Marketing, Sales and Service, Ford of Europe.

"We are particularly delighted that the new Fiesta has got off to such a strong start. It has already become our second best-selling model in Europe, and it was the best-selling model industry-wide for November and December in the UK. This gives us real confidence that the Ford brand will emerge even stronger when the economy rebounds. With our newly introduced small and fuel-efficient Fiesta and Ka models we are in a great position for when that happens", Sviggum added.

December Sales Down, Market Share Stable
In December 2008, Ford of Europe sold 90,500 vehicles across its 19 European markets. This was down 19.7 per cent versus December 2007, a reduction of 22,200 units.

However, Ford's market share in these countries remained stable versus the same month the previous year. Contrary to the overall industry trend, the company increased sales in four of its 19 main European markets: France, Portugal, Finland and Switzerland.

Across its 51 European markets, Ford sold 118,300 vehicles, down 25.6 per cent versus the same month last year.

Top selling Ford models in the 19 main European markets were the Focus (20,300), new Fiesta (18,600) and Transit (10,500). In France, the Fiesta, S-MAX and C-MAX were the best-selling imported vehicles in their segments.

Among other sales highlights for the month, three of the company's five biggest markets achieved market share gains:

• Despite a challenging economic environment, Ford improved its share in Spain for December by 0.4 percentage points to 8.1 per cent
• In Italy, market share increased by 0.8 percentage points to 7.5 per cent
• Market share in France rose by 0.6 percentage points to 5.3 percent.

Ford of Britain confirmed its market-leadership again with a 16.7 per cent December share, down 0.7 percentage points from December 2007, and Ireland, where market share soared by 15.9 percentage points to 21.4 per cent in Decemberhad the highest market share within the Ford of Europe sales organisation.

Ford of Europe Established as Second Best-Selling Brand in 2008
With an 8.6 per cent market share, Ford in its main 19 European markets established a solid position as Europe's second best-selling brand in 2008.

Sales volume, however, was down for the full year in these 19 markets by 7.4 per cent compared to the same period in 2007. This compares to a 7.6 per cent overall decline for the industry. In total, Ford sold 1,443,800 vehicles in total, and 10 out of these 19 markets had sales gains in 2008 compared with 2007, despite the difficult industry conditions.

Ford sales in the European Direct Markets were at 80,500 in the full year 2008, a 23.6 per cent increase over 2007. Across all of its 51 European markets, the company sold 1,783,500 units in 2008, down 6.1 per cent when compared to the same period in 2007.
Ford's popularity among private retail customers in the UK made Britain the company's top performing market throughout the year, selling 406,100 vehicles in 2008 and giving it a market share of 16.4 per cent.

Germany had a strong year, characterised by consistent market share gains. Ford sold 241,400 vehicles there (an increase of 6,200 units or up 2.7 per cent versus 2007), lifting its full year market share by 0.3 percentage points to 7.0 per cent.

In France, with the help of a government scrappage scheme, Ford boosted sales by 6.6 percentage points to 142,600 vehicles, raising its market share by 0.3 percentage points, to 5.3 per cent.

For the first time since 1995, Ford was the best-selling passenger car brand in Spain, with a market share of 9.2 per cent. The Ford Focus was Spain's best-selling car for the year.

Although sales in Italy fell to 190,300 (a reduction of 33,700 units), Ford remained the country's leading imported automotive brand and, despite a weak close to the year in Russia, 2008 full year sales there improved by 6.0 percentage points to 185,200.

"In a difficult economic environment, we were able to improve our overall market share last year thanks to the strongest product line-up in our history, and the early success of our new Fiesta" said John Fleming, Ford of Europe Chairman and CEO. "We believe this strength is a key factor in helping us to deal with the challenge of the deep economic crisis for as long as it lasts, and will allow us to take full advantage of an upturn in demand when it does arrive."