Figo Drives New Sales Records for Ford in India

NEW DELHI, April 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --

• Ford India sales for the month of March more than tripled year-over-year, rising 203 percent, and nearly tripled from the previous month

• Overwhelming popularity of Figo helps set company sales records in first month of availability, with over 10,000 orders booked

• Robust customer demand and growing order bank point towards continuing success for Figo

• Ford India continues to focus on enhancing its low cost of ownership experience for customers

The all-new Ford Figo has received more than 10,000 orders less than one month after it went on sale, a new Ford India record.  In response to the strong demand, Ford India will launch a second production shift at its plant in Chennai.

The Figo's popularity helped Ford India's overall March sales more than triple from the same month a year ago, rising an impressive 203 percent to 9,478 units. The exceptional March performance, which also included strong sales of Ford Ikon, Ford Fiesta, and Ford Endeavour, were nearly triple Ford India's February sales, increasing 194 percent.  

"We are delighted at the initial response to Figo, and are incredibly proud to have struck such a positive chord with Indian consumers," said Michael Boneham, president and managing director of Ford India. "The launch of Figo is the start of a transformed Ford in India, and a true reflection of our commitment to delivering world-class products that allow Indian customers to feel the difference.''

Part of Ford's US$500-million investment in India, Figo was designed and engineered with Indian customers in mind – including months of exhaustive customer clinic research and thorough testing in both simulated and actual road evaluations.

Aimed squarely at more than 70 percent of the country's new vehicle market, Figo has significantly bolstered Ford's competitive position. This has been one of the best launch response and volumes achieved in the first month of sale by manufacturers in India's automotive history.

The Figo is one of the more than 20 new vehicles Ford is introducing globally in 2010.  The new cars, trucks and SUVs, which offer class-leading fuel economy, quality, safety and technology, represent substantially more new or freshened product by volume than was introduced in 2009.

During the course of this journey, more than 900,000 people visited the Ford Figo homepage www.fordfigo.in to know more about the car and spent and average of over 8 minutes on the website. In addition, thousands of people joined Ford Figo communities across social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter.  

"As we remain committed to redefining the Ford brand in India, we expect this momentum to continue," said Boneham. "Factors such as the initial price of the car, fuel efficiency and cost of maintenance are critical in determining affordability for a new car buyer. Indian customers are confirming that Figo solidly delivers on all of these."

With longer intervals of key maintenance components due to better durability, competitive cost of the parts and the short time required for vehicle servicing, Figo is placed among the leaders in scheduled service over a 5 year/100,000 kilometre period.

As part of ongoing efforts to demonstrate its competitive cost of ownership, Ford India recently announced the opening of 28 dealerships in India, bringing the total number of Ford outlets to 164 facilities in 97 cities. The company plans to expand to 200 facilities by the end of the year.  

About Ford Motor Company

Established in 1995, Ford India is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F), a global automotive industry leader. Ford India manufactures and distributes automobiles and engines made at its modern integrated manufacturing facilities, at Maraimalai Nagar, near Chennai. With more than 3,000 employees, the company's models include the Ikon, Endeavour and the Fiesta. For more information, visit www.india.ford.com

SOURCE Ford Motor Company