Ford to renew 90% of its vehicle lineups by 2012

Ford Motor Co plans to renew up to 90 percent of its vehicle lineups in its three biggest business regions by 2012 to maintain a focus on product development while it also works to reduce debt, a top executive said on Thursday.

Ford, which expects to be at least break-even in 2011, also is on pace to reduce structural costs by $14 billion to $15 billion by the end of 2009, from 2005, Chief Financial Officer Lewis Booth said during an appearance at an industry conference.

The product replacement program would replace or refresh 70 percent to 90 percent of the lineups in the three regions: North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, and Africa, he said at the Center For Automotive Research annual conference.

"It is significantly faster," Booth told reporters. "Part of that is the competitive environment that results in shorter life cycles, but within that we are going to be more competitive than we have been in the past."

Booth said protecting Ford's vehicle pipeline was a critical priority for the automaker, which is also committed to addressing a high level of debt on its balance sheet.

The only large U.S. automaker not to undergo a government guided restructuring this year, Ford reduced debt in its automotive business by $10.1 billion in the first half of the year through cash buybacks and debt-for-equity swaps.

Ford also raised $1.6 billion in an equity offering in May and received Energy Department approval for up to $5.9 billion of loans through 2011 to support retooling of factories to build more fuel efficient vehicles.

Booth acknowledged that General Motors and Chrysler emerged from bankruptcies with comparatively cleaner balance sheets than Ford has, but said the automaker has other edges on its rival, including goodwill of customers, uninterrupted product plans and management continuity.

"I think that is going to show as we go forward as you see us continue to introduce these great cars at an increasingly faster rate because we haven't been interrupted by things other than our business," Booth said.

Ford has aimed to reduce the number of vehicle platforms it uses globally and the complexity of its offerings to trim costs. The automaker has launched a Fiesta global car and is adopting the same strategy with its Focus compact.

The Fiesta already is being sold in Europe and Asia and will be sold in North America beginning in the first half of 2010. The next generation of the Focus is due to be produced in North America later in 2010.