Customer Satisfaction and Quality

Quality and customer satisfaction together are the central mission of all of our employees. We track our progress in achieving this mission through a combination of internal and external measurements that assess how we are doing and where we can improve. In 2007 and 2008, we saw an improvement in both the internal and external measurements.

Our primary internal measure of quality and customer satisfaction is the Global Quality Research System (GQRS). In 2007, initial quality ratings – which measure our customers' impressions of their new vehicles after having driven them for three months – were equal to Toyota and closing in on Honda in the U.S. In the first quarter of 2008, Ford's domestic brands improved another 8 percent in initial quality ratings, making the quality of our vehicles equivalent to both Honda and Toyota. Five of our vehicles also ranked as segment leaders for top quality and customer satisfaction: the Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 won top quality for sports cars, the Ford Taurus won top customer satisfaction for large cars, the Ford Sport Trac won top customer satisfaction for a medium traditional utility, the Mercury Milan won top quality for midsize car, and the Lincoln Navigator won top quality and top customer satisfaction for large premium utility. A total of 15 Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles were ranked in the top three of their respective segments for either quality, customer satisfaction or both. Overall, 36 out of 40 Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, Volvo and Mazda nameplates improved in quality in the first quarter of 2008 versus 2007.

Specific measures of quality and customer satisfaction by operating region are detailed in this section.