Ford

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Ford

Basic information
Founded	1903
Type	Public
Industry	Automotive
Official website	https://ford.com/

The Ford Motor Company was founded in 1903 by Henry Ford in Detroit, Michigan. With the introduction of a moving assembly line, Ford drastically reduced the cost and time of automobile production, making cars affordable for the masses and transforming industrial production globally. It is one of the oldest and largest automobile manufacturers, one of the "Big Three" American automakers, alongside General Motors (GM) and Stellantis (formerly Chrysler).

Consumer protection summary

Privacy

• Collects sensitive personal information from multiple sources, including data from the vehicle itself, data from the connected mobile app, and data obtained during the vehicle's purchase.
• Data collected includes purchase history, financial information, coarse and precise location data, contact information, identifiers (e.g., VIN, account ID), user-generated content (e.g., voice recordings from smart features), search and browsing history for advertising purposes, usage data, sensitive information (under "Inferences"), diagnostics, and more.
• Aggregates data from external sources as well, including users' social media posts.
• Privacy policy is designed to prevent quickly searching for important terms.
• It is unclear how long data is retained.
• According to CCPA Metrics from 2023, there were 96 requests for data to be deleted, and 7 of these requests were denied.

Anti-consumer practices

Patents regarding consumer data

Ford has obtained patents for systems unrelated to the primary functions of driving that can collect data on the consumer. One patented system can serve advertisements based on the driver's conversations, while another patented system pertaining to vehicle repossession enables the restricting access to vehicles (e.g. if their owners have missed car payments). Ford has responded to the controversy surrounding these patents by stating that possessing these patents is not necessarily an indication of new product plans. However, the development of such systems may negatively impact consumers' overall trust in the company, and lead them to be more wary of accepting sales terms.

Engineering practices

Various Ford models' engine designs use a rubber belt, rather than a metal chain, to transmit power to the engine's oil pump. This belt operates submerged in the crankcase engine oil, and can degrade and fail prematurely, potentially causing a sudden loss of vehicle oil pressure. Ford has also knowingly released transmission systems in the Fiesta and Focus models that have had multiple issues: loss of forward power from a stop, loss of power when in top gear at constant speed, sudden unintended acceleration, and loss of power when the transmission is shifting between gears. A Ford user has also reported that a software update resulted in their vehicle being rendered unusable ("bricked").

Ford has a notable history of manufacturing America's most recalled vehicles, setting the record for most recalls issued in 2021, 2022, and 2023. This may be partially attributable to Ford's large market share; a large amount of recalls is not uncommon for large companies. However, it may also indicate that Ford doesn't meet the production quality of other manufacturers.