Ford may earn $1.62B in Q2 on pricier cars

Ford Motor Co. may report adjusted second-quarter profit of $1.62 billion tomorrow as Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally's overhaul of the lineup lets the company charge more for new models.

The second-largest U.S. automaker's redesigned 2010 Taurus is selling for $6,300 more than last year's model. And buyers paid an average of $30,309 for all Ford vehicles in June as they splurged on extras like heated seats and upgraded electronics, up 14 percent from five years ago, according to automotive researcher Edmunds.com.

"On the Taurus, we're finding that people like them pretty well loaded up so we're not ordering them stripped down anymore," said Jack Kain, a Ford dealer in Versailles, Kentucky. "People are pre-sold on Ford when they come in here and they're getting all the bells and whistles."

Analysts have raised projections on Ford's adjusted quarterly profit to an average 41 cents a share from 39 cents on July 6, based on 12 estimates. The company had an operating loss of $638 million, or 21 cents a share, a year earlier, excluding a gain from debt reductions.

Higher net prices added $1 billion to Ford's pretax earnings in the first quarter. The better lineup helped the Dearborn, Michigan-based company's revenue per vehicle continue to rise in the second quarter even with a $400 increase in incentives per vehicle, Joseph Amaturo, an analyst for Buckingham Research Group, said in a July 13 research note.