Ford plans to offer two models with a self-parking function at the Detroit auto show next month, the Wall Street Journal reports, in the continuing effort to woo buyers with new technology. But the company's image among investors remains tarnished, as billionaire Kirk Kerkorian confirmed yesterday that he sold his remaining shares in the automaker.
While Detroit enjoys a strong reputation among truck buyers, car buyers have largely fled to foreign models, with about half of car shoppers refusing to even consider the Big Three. Ford is counting on technological innovations, including the Sync function developed with Microsoft to manage in-car entertainment and the 41 mile-per-gallon Ford Fusion hybrid, to make them “cool in the customers’ minds,” a Ford executive said.
(More Detroit stories.)