Ford shows electric vehicles on car-less Mackinac Island

Mackinac Island is famous as a place where cars aren't allowed, but Ford Motor Co. managed to get permission to bring over a pair of vehicles that it hopes represent the future of transportation.

The Dearborn-based company staged a photo op between Executive Chairman Bill Ford Jr. and Gov. Jennifer Granholm Thursday during the Mackinac conference. Ford was displaying a plug-in hybrid-electric Escape sport-utility vehicle and a battery-electric Focus small car to be built at its assembly plant in Wayne in 2011.

Speaking with reporters, Ford said the company was pleased with its recent performance but isn't taking any pleasure watching its competitors struggle. Chrysler could emerge from bankruptcy as soon as Friday, General Motors is expected to file Chapter 11 on Monday and key supplier Visteon, which Ford spun off in 2000, filed for bankruptcy reorganization today.

"It's been our biggest concern all along," Ford said of suppliers. "There's no question the Obama administration and the (auto) task force understands it's a huge issue, and I think they've done a good job in their planning for all the eventualities to help the supply base...

"It breaks my heart the effect it has on people. From a business standpoint, Ford and all the major Visteon customers are helping provide the debtor-in-possession financing. So from a business standpoint, I think we should be fine."

Ford also reiterated that the company intends to avoid having to accept government loans. He noted the company recently raised $1.4 billion through an offering of 300 million shares of common stock, "which was a really strong signal that we could do that in this kind of market," he said. "We are financing ourselves and we'll continue to do so."

He said U.S. auto sales have remain mostly unchanged for the past few months.

"We're forecasting not a huge change going forward," Ford said. "I think it's prudent for us to be conservative. "Our market share has been going up, which we feel really good about, and we've kept our production in line with demand really I think very well for the last couple of years.

"You don't see us having enormous stocks out in the marketplace so we don't have to do huge incentives."

Granholm said the vehicles showed Ford's commitment to weaning the nation off its dependency on foreign oil.

"Michigan right now is at the cusp of this ability to move us forward, not just as a state but as a nation. That's very exciting," the governor said. "It's going to take a little bit of time, but it's very exciting."