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Henry Ford made the first patent Ford automobile, the quadricycle in 1896. He then actually incorporated the Ford motor company in 1903. They're now a company known pretty well for anti-consumer behaviour, and automotive-typical practices like marked up parts sharing that probably started in the late 1990's.
Anti-Consumer Practices
Ford have been known recently for being the maker of America's most recalled vehicles. CEO Jim Farley recently said "no more recalls", and at least in Europe, that's been enforced by selling engines that break themselves and sometimes catch fire doing it, with the only recall being to fix the fire part. Ford have filed dangerous patents and have managed to find a way in the 2020's to make a software update go so wrong it bricks a vehicle.
Ford also have made some, luckily not realised patents for systems like one that feeds ads to distract the driver of their automobiles, and another patent for a system to annoy the owner of, restrict access to and then repossess or destroy vehicles where the owner "has defected" on finance payments.
Samcrac's 2024 video mini-series on his Aston Martin shows the pettiness and stupidity of either Ford or Aston Martin, but certainly Ford's design of needing a VIN-and-vehicle-specific "Car Configuration File" they (and now Aston Martin as its own corporate entity) only have control of to turn a Volvo C30's ECU into one for an exotic Aston Martin, is a bit ridiculous, and the fact Aston Martin wouldn't simply give Samcrac the simple file without attaching $15,000 in overpriced and completely unneeded repairs, is even worse.
Footnote from the author
I live in the EU. Why does this company not understand we do not want more dropshipped Volkswagen ID4's carrying the nameplates of once actually good cars? There are two of those now (The "Capri" and "Explorer"), and something else that's very similar (the "Mustang" Mach-E). We don't want more shoddily designed compact SUV's made by another manufacturer, and it's proven competing with yourself is stupid and in the end, you won't win doing that.