CarMK.com

DEARBORN, Mich.,, May 29, 2009 -- SUMMARY:
  --  Current owners of early-launched 2010 vehicles equipped with Ford
SYNC now can visit www.syncmyride.com and download and
      install the latest application - Traffic, Directions and Information
      (TDI) - at home for no additional cost
  --  SYNC TDI connects a customer's Bluetooth-enabled cell phone to Ford's
      Service Delivery Network voice portal delivering turn-by-turn driving
      directions, real-time traffic, business searches and favorite news,
      sports and weather - all through simple voice commands
  --  Eligible customers can download this latest SYNC application similar
      to the way they would download a song from an online media store such
      as Apple's iTunes
  --  TDI will be available on all 2010 Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles
      equipped with SYNC, including the all-new Ford Taurus, which arrives
      in dealerships this summer

  --  SYNC, when available as an option, retains its retail price of $395,
      and includes a GPS receiver new for the 2010 model year; TDI services
      come with no monthly subscription fees for the first three years of
      vehicle ownership

  CONTEXT / BACKGROUND:

Consumers continue to be fascinated with upgradeable, take-it-with-you
technology. It started with Portable Navigation Devices (PNDs), which
showed incredible promise due to their affordability and convenience. But
then came the PC-like Smartphone, which bundled cell phone, Internet,
navigation and other must-have data services, and consumers fell in love
all over again.

But despite their affordability, popularity of PNDs is decreasing.
According to iSuppli Corporation, a market research and consulting firm
specializing in electronic value chains, PND’s share of device shipments
will decline to 30 percent by 2011 from about 50 percent in 2007.

Meanwhile, navigation-enabled mobile devices such as Smartphones will
grow to account for 36 percent of total navigation system shipments by
2011. But even Smartphones don’t offer customers in-vehicle integration and
control of navigation capabilities. That’s where Ford steps in.

The latest Ford SYNC application, Traffic, Directions and Information
(TDI), ties together the advantages of both technologies, brings in even
more options, and offers it in an affordable, widely available package.
SYNC TDI leverages a customer’s existing mobile phone; includes an
integrated GPS receiver to connect customers to real-time turn-by-turn
driving directions, traffic reports and business searches; offers extra
features and applications such as favorite news, sports and weather; and
provides seamless voice-control of all these functions while in the vehicle
- at no subscription cost for the first three years of vehicle
ownership.

  IMAGES:  Available at www.media.ford.com

  DETAILS:

Current owners of early-launched 2010 Ford Mustang, Fusion, Fusion
Hybrid, Lincoln MKZ, and Mercury Milan and Milan Hybrid vehicles equipped
with Ford SYNC now can visit www.syncmyride.com and download the latest
application – Traffic, Directions and Information – at no cost.

Eligible vehicles must be equipped with SYNC, but not equipped with
Ford’s voice-activated navigation system. These vehicles are outfitted
with the supporting GPS receiver needed to run SYNC with Traffic,
Directions and Information.

The SYNC application is an industry standout, where most add-on
applications or services for consumer electronics, such as iPhones, have a
fee attached.

Easy Downloading

Eligible vehicle owners can download the free software from
www.syncmyride.com to a USB drive and then upload the application to their
vehicle via the SYNC system’s USB port in their car. Customers also can
have the application installed at their local Ford or Lincoln Mercury
dealership.

The online download can be found in the Update & Customize section on
www.syncmyride.com and is simple to complete, just like grabbing a online
song for your digital music player. Once the software is downloaded to the
USB drive, in-car installation takes about 10 minutes. The vehicle must be
running to begin, and users will receive two completion messages – one
approximately 60 seconds into the process and another 5-10 minutes later -
for proper installation.

Once the upload is complete, customers must reinsert their USB drive
back into their computer to report successful installation on
www.syncmyride.com, and then log back into their SYNC account to activate
the application.

A Voice Command Away

Ford has partnered with Microsoft and other recognized companies -
INRIX, TeleNav, TellMe, M/A-COM and Airbiquity – to enable the new Traffic,
Directions and Information voice-activated services to seamlessly connect
to real-time data via a customer’s Bluetooth-enabled phone – no integrated
touch-screen navigation system or unsightly suction-cupped PND
required.

The simple voice command, “Services” gets the driver started, with the
MicroSoft TellMe voice portal interpreting this request and ready to route
it to the appropriate network partner.

Users who say “Traffic,” for example, literally can receive personalized
traffic reports based on best-in-class content from INRIX, a company that
gathers real-time speeds, directions and locations from nearly 1 million
commercial trucks and cars driving America’s roadways.

In a text message sent to the user’s phone and broadcast over the
vehicle’s audio system in real-time, drivers get the location and severity
of accidents or new road construction causing areas of heavy
congestion.

Drivers requesting directions can use a variety of search criteria
including a 14-million-plus business directory to find their destination,
be it a favorite coffee shop or the location of a business meeting. Drivers
can say “Search near me” or the name of the business and then say “Connect
me,” “directions” or “text me the info.”

If a user answers “directions,” a turn-by-turn route is downloaded from
partner Telenav and is spoken to the user over the vehicle’s audio system
and displayed on the central information display near the radio. All
directions incorporate real-time traffic information therefore always
providing the best route to the driver.

With this new SYNC application, drivers can also personalize and
categorize their favorite media topics, such as sports, weather and news
using voice commands or through www.syncmyride.com. Users, for example,
can personalize:

  --  Sports reports featuring scores and highlights for any professional or
      college team
  --  Current weather conditions and forecasts based on city, state or zip
      code

  --  News of all types - entertainment, business, top stories and
      technology

The new capabilities are in addition to SYNC applications that 2010
vehicle owners already have been enjoying including hands-free,
voice-activated cell phone and digital media player integration as well as
the security and convenience applications 911 Assist and Vehicle Health
Report.

Service Delivery Network

SYNC TDI is built on the Ford Service Delivery Network, a plug-and-play
architecture that gives customers the ability to use a mobile device they
are comfortable with – in this case a simple Bluetooth-enabled cell phone -
to access best-in-class offerings from the mobile electronics industry.

This network also gives Ford the power to mirror successful online
digital stores, delivering value-add SYNC applications and updates through
friendly and familiar software delivery methods – something no other
automaker can claim.

More importantly, the network makes these applications and services
available to a wider range of customers and products. Customers that
purchase more entry-level vehicles like the Ford Focus, where a navigation
systems is not an available option, can now enjoy integrated capabilities
such as turn-by-turn navigation through the affordable SYNC system.

The concept of building a flexible, upgradeable service delivery network
that takes the latest and greatest from the electronics world and
appropriately applies it to the car has made SYNC a technological
differentiator for Ford – and a market success. There are now 1 million
SYNC-equipped Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles on the road.

The upcoming full launch of SYNC TDI on nearly all 2010 model year Ford,
Lincoln and Mercury vehicles will build on that momentum, with internal
studies showing that roughly 1 in 5 non-Ford owners saying they would be
much more likely to consider a Ford, Lincoln or Mercury product because of
the breadth of features offered with this latest SYNC application.

And Ford’s aggressive plan to further expand SYNC’s capabilities, as
well as the way drivers interface with their vehicles, will continue to
parallel the fast-paced world of consumer electronics.

QUOTES:

“SYNC with Traffic, Directions and Information is a ‘killer app’ that
demonstrates the plug-and-play capability of the Ford Service Delivery
Network. We can continue to give customers continuous access to the
best-of-breed services without having to touch the vehicle or inconvenience
the owner – and we can do it economically, helping us fulfill our vision of
making connectivity affordable for millions. “

                                                          - Doug VanDagens,
                                 Director/Ford Connected Service Solutions

“Working with our partners, we are replicating the electronics
industry’s speed to market with groundbreaking technologies, while creating
a truly rich driving environment where there is no compromise – where
everything you expect will be at your fingertips or voice command,
integrated into your drive with minimal distraction.”

                                                          - Jim Buczkowski,
                            Director/Ford Electronics Systems Engineering

  About Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in
Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles across six
continents. With about 205,000 employees and about 90 plants worldwide,
the company’s automotive brands include Ford, Lincoln, Mercury and Volvo.
The company provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company.
For more information regarding Ford’s products, please visit
www.ford.com.

Go to www.media.ford.com for news releases, high-resolution photos />First Call Analyst:
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