Ford Motor Co (F) SEC Annual Report (10-K) for 2015

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, DC 20549

FORM 10-K

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

313-322-3000

(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

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* In addition, shares of Common Stock of Ford are listed on certain stock exchanges in Europe.

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:   None.

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.   Yes   R   No   o

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes   o     No   R

Indicate by check mark if the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes   R    No   o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).   Yes   R    No   o

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K (§229.405 of this chapter) is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant's knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company.  See definitions of "large accelerated filer," "accelerated filer," and "smaller reporting company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.   Large accelerated filer R      Accelerated filer o      Non-accelerated filer o Smaller reporting company o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act).   Yes   o    No   R

As of June 30, 2015, Ford had outstanding 3,899,403,544 shares of Common Stock and 70,852,076 shares of Class B Stock.  Based on the New York Stock Exchange Composite Transaction closing price of the Common Stock on that date ($15.01 per share), the aggregate market value of such Common Stock was $58,530,047,195.  Although there is no quoted market for our Class B Stock, shares of Class B Stock may be converted at any time into an equal number of shares of Common Stock for the purpose of effecting the sale or other disposition of such shares of Common Stock.  The shares of Common Stock and Class B Stock outstanding at June 30, 2015 included shares owned by persons who may be deemed to be "affiliates" of Ford.  We do not believe, however, that any such person should be considered to be an affiliate.  For information concerning ownership of outstanding Common Stock and Class B Stock, see the Proxy Statement for Ford's Annual Meeting of Stockholders currently scheduled to be held on May 12, 2016 (our "Proxy Statement"), which is incorporated by reference under various Items of this Report as indicated below.

As of February 4, 2016, Ford had outstanding 3,898,661,179 shares of Common Stock and 70,852,076 shares of Class B Stock.  Based on the New York Stock Exchange Composite Transaction closing price of the Common Stock on that date ($11.53 per share), the aggregate market value of such Common Stock was $44,951,563,394.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

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FORD MOTOR COMPANY

ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K

For the Year Ended December 31, 2015

Table of Contents

(continued)

PART I.

ITEM 1. Business.

Ford Motor Company was incorporated in Delaware in 1919.  We acquired the business of a Michigan company, also known as Ford Motor Company, which had been incorporated in 1903 to produce and sell automobiles designed and engineered by Henry Ford. We are a global automotive and mobility company based in Dearborn, Michigan. With about 199,000 employees and 67 plants worldwide, our core business includes designing, manufacturing, marketing, financing, and servicing a full line of Ford cars, trucks, SUVs, and electrified vehicles, as well as Lincoln luxury vehicles. At the same time, we are aggressively pursuing emerging opportunities through Ford Smart Mobility, our plan to be a leader in connectivity, mobility, autonomous vehicles, the customer experience, and data and analytics. We provide financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company LLC ("Ford Credit").

In addition to the information about Ford and our subsidiaries contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2015 ("2015 Form 10-K Report" or "Report"), extensive information about our Company can be found at http://corporate.ford.com , including information about our management team, our brands and products, and our corporate governance principles.

The corporate governance information on our website includes our Corporate Governance Principles, Code of Ethics for Senior Financial Personnel, Code of Ethics for the Board of Directors, Code of Corporate Conduct for all employees, and the Charters for each of the Committees of our Board of Directors.  In addition, any amendments to our Code of Ethics or waivers granted to our directors and executive officers will be posted on our corporate website.  All of these documents may be accessed by going to our corporate website, or may be obtained free of charge by writing to our Shareholder Relations Department, Ford Motor Company, One American Road, P.O. Box 1899, Dearborn, Michigan 48126-1899.

Our recent periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, are available free of charge at http://shareholder.ford.com . This includes recent Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and Current Reports on Form 8-K, as well as any amendments to those Reports.  Recent Section 16 filings made with the SEC by the Company or any of our executive officers or directors with respect to our Common Stock also are made available free of charge through our website.  We post each of these documents on our website as soon as reasonably practicable after it is electronically filed with the SEC. Our reports filed with the SEC also may be found on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov .

The foregoing information regarding our website and its content is for convenience only and not deemed to be incorporated by reference into this Report nor filed with the SEC.

OVERVIEW

Segments.   We review and present our business results in two sectors:  Automotive and Financial Services.  Within these sectors, our business is divided into reportable segments (referred to herein as "segments," "business units," or "regions") based on the organizational structure that we use to evaluate performance and make decisions on resource allocation, as well as availability and materiality of separate financial results consistent with that structure.

The reportable segments within our Automotive and Financial Services sectors at December 31, 2015 were as described in the table below:

AUTOMOTIVE SECTOR

General

Our vehicle brands are Ford and Lincoln.  In 2015, we sold approximately 6,635,000 vehicles at wholesale throughout the world.  See "Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" ("Item 7") for discussion of our calculation of wholesale unit volumes.

Substantially all of our vehicles, parts, and accessories are sold through distributors and dealers (collectively, "dealerships"), the substantial majority of which are independently owned.  At December 31, 2015, the approximate number of dealerships worldwide distributing our vehicle brands was as follows:

We do not depend on any single customer or a few customers to the extent that the loss of such customers would have a material adverse effect on our business.

In addition to the products we sell to our dealerships for retail sale, we also sell vehicles to our dealerships for sale to fleet customers, including commercial fleet customers, daily rental car companies, and governments.  We also sell parts and accessories, primarily to our dealerships (which in turn sell these products to retail customers) and to authorized parts distributors (which in turn primarily sell these products to retailers). We also offer extended service contracts.

The worldwide automotive industry is affected significantly by general economic conditions over which we have little control.  Vehicles are durable goods, and consumers have latitude in determining whether and when to replace an existing vehicle.  The decision whether to purchase a vehicle may be affected significantly by slowing economic growth,

geopolitical events, and other factors (including the cost of purchasing and operating cars and trucks and the availability and cost of financing and fuel).  As we have seen in the United States and Europe, in particular, the number of cars and trucks sold may vary substantially from year to year.  Further, the automotive industry is a highly competitive business that has a wide and growing variety of product offerings from a growing number of manufacturers.

Our wholesale unit volumes vary with the level of total industry demand and our share of that industry demand.  Our wholesale unit volumes also are influenced by the level of dealer inventory.  Our share is influenced by how our products are perceived in comparison to those offered by other manufacturers based on many factors, including price, quality, styling, reliability, safety, fuel efficiency, functionality, and reputation.  Our share also is affected by the timing and frequency of new model introductions.  Our ability to satisfy changing consumer preferences with respect to type or size of vehicle, as well as design and performance characteristics, affects our sales and earnings significantly.

As with other manufacturers, the profitability of our business is affected by many factors, including:

Our industry has a very competitive pricing environment, driven in part by industry excess capacity, which is concentrated in Europe and Asia but affects other markets because much of this capacity can be redirected to other markets. The decline in the value of the yen during the past four years also has contributed significantly to competitive pressures in many of our markets. For the past several decades, manufacturers typically have given price discounts and other marketing incentives to maintain market share and production levels.  A discussion of our strategies to compete in this pricing environment is set forth in the "Overview" section in Item 7.

Competitive Position.   The worldwide automotive industry consists of many producers, with no single dominant producer. Certain manufacturers, however, account for the major percentage of total sales within particular countries, especially their countries of origin.  Key competitors with global presence include Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, General Motors Company, Honda Motor Company, Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, PSA Peugeot Citroen, Renault-Nissan B.V., Suzuki Motor Corporation, Toyota Motor Corporation, and Volkswagen AG Group.

Seasonality.   We generally record the sale of a vehicle (and recognize revenue) when it is produced and shipped or delivered to our customer (i.e., the dealership).  See the "Overview" section in Item 7 for additional discussion of revenue recognition practices.

We manage our vehicle production schedule based on a number of factors, including retail sales (i.e., units sold by our dealerships to their customers at retail) and dealer stock levels (i.e., the number of units held in inventory by our dealerships for sale to their customers). Historically, we have experienced some seasonal fluctuation in the business, with production in many markets tending to be higher in the first half of the year to meet demand in the spring and summer (typically the strongest sales months of the year).  

Raw Materials.   We purchase a wide variety of raw materials from numerous suppliers around the world for use in production of our vehicles.  These materials include base metals (e.g., steel, iron castings, and aluminum), precious metals (e.g., palladium), energy (e.g., natural gas), and plastics/resins (e.g., polypropylene).  We believe we have adequate supplies or sources of availability of raw materials necessary to meet our needs.  There always are risks and uncertainties with respect to the supply of raw materials, however, which could impact availability in sufficient quantities to meet our needs.  See the "Overview" section of Item 7 for a discussion of commodity and energy price trends, and "Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk" ("Item 7A") for a discussion of commodity price risks.

Backlog Orders.   We generally produce and ship our products on average within approximately 20 days after an order is deemed to become firm.  Therefore, no significant amount of backlog orders accumulates during any period.

Intellectual Property.   We own or hold licenses to use numerous patents, copyrights, and trademarks on a global basis. Our policy is to protect our competitive position by, among other methods, filing U.S. and international patent applications to protect technology and improvements that we consider important to the development of our business.  We have generated a large number of patents, and expect this portfolio to continue to grow as we actively pursue additional technological innovation.  We have approximately 38,500 active patents and pending patent applications globally, with an average age for patents in our active patent portfolio of just over five years.  In addition to this intellectual property, we also rely on our proprietary knowledge and ongoing technological innovation to develop and maintain our competitive position.  Although we believe these patents, patent applications, and know-how, in the aggregate, are important to the conduct of our business, and we obtain licenses to use certain intellectual property owned by others, none is individually considered material to our business.  We also own numerous trademarks and service marks that contribute to the identity and recognition of our Company and its products and services globally.  Certain of these marks are integral to the conduct of our business, a loss of any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

Warranty Coverage, Field Service Actions, and Customer Satisfaction Actions.   We provide warranties on vehicles we sell.  Warranties are offered for specific periods of time and/or mileage, and vary depending upon the type of product and the geographic location of its sale.  Pursuant to these warranties, we will repair, replace, or adjust all parts on a vehicle that are defective in factory-supplied materials or workmanship during the specified warranty period.  In addition to the costs associated with this warranty coverage provided on our vehicles, we also incur costs as a result of field service actions (i.e., safety recalls, emission recalls, and other product campaigns), and for customer satisfaction actions.

For additional information regarding warranty and related costs, see "Critical Accounting Estimates" in Item 7 and Note 27 of the Notes to the Financial Statements.

Industry Volume, Market Share, and Wholesales

Our industry volume, market share, and wholesale unit volume in each region and in certain key markets within each region during the past three years were as follows:

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FINANCIAL SERVICES SECTOR

Ford Motor Credit Company LLC

Our wholly-owned subsidiary Ford Credit offers a wide variety of automotive financing products to and through automotive dealers throughout the world.  The predominant share of Ford Credit's business consists of financing our vehicles and supporting our dealers.  Ford Credit earns its revenue primarily from payments made under retail installment sale and lease contracts that it originates and purchases; interest rate supplements and other support payments from us and our subsidiaries; and payments made under dealer financing programs.

As a result of these financing activities, Ford Credit has a large portfolio of finance receivables and operating leases which it classifies into two portfolios- "consumer" and "non-consumer."  Finance receivables and operating leases in the consumer portfolio include products offered to individuals and businesses that finance the acquisition of our vehicles from dealers for personal and commercial use.  Retail financing includes retail installment sale contracts for new and used vehicles and direct financing leases for new vehicles to retail and commercial customers including leasing companies, government entities, daily rental companies, and fleet customers. Finance receivables in the non-consumer portfolio include products offered to automotive dealers. Ford Credit makes wholesale loans to dealers to finance the purchase of vehicle inventory (i.e., floorplan financing), as well as loans to dealers to finance working capital and improvements to dealership facilities, finance the purchase of dealership real estate, and finance other dealer vehicle programs.  Ford Credit also purchases receivables generated by us and our subsidiaries, primarily related to the sale of parts and accessories to dealers, receivables from Ford-related loans, and certain used vehicles from daily rental fleet companies.

Ford Credit does business in the United States and Canada through business centers. Outside of the United States, Europe is Ford Credit's largest operation. Ford Credit's European operations are managed through its United Kingdom-based subsidiary, FCE Bank plc ("FCE"). Within Europe, FCE's largest markets are the United Kingdom and Germany, representing 67% of FCE's finance receivables and operating leases.

The following table shows Ford Credit's financing shares of new Ford and Lincoln vehicles sold in the United States and new Ford vehicles sold in Europe, as well as its wholesale financing shares of new Ford and Lincoln vehicles acquired by dealers in the United States (excluding fleet) and new Ford vehicles acquired by dealers in Europe:

See Item 7 and Notes 5, 6, and 7 of the Notes to the Financial Statements for a detailed discussion of Ford Credit's receivables, credit losses, allowance for credit losses, loss-to-receivables ratios, funding sources, and funding strategies. See Item 7A for discussion of how Ford Credit manages its financial market risks.

We routinely sponsor special retail and lease incentives to dealers' customers who choose to finance or lease our vehicles from Ford Credit.  In order to compensate Ford Credit for the lower interest or lease payments offered to the retail customer, we pay the value of the incentive directly to Ford Credit when it originates the retail finance or lease contract. These programs increase Ford Credit's financing volume and share.  See Note 2 of the Notes to the Financial Statements for information about our accounting for these programs.

On April 30, 2015, we entered into an Amended and Restated Relationship Agreement with Ford Credit, pursuant to which, if Ford Credit's managed leverage for a calendar quarter were to be higher than 11.5:1 (as reported in its most recent periodic report), Ford Credit could require us to make or cause to be made a capital contribution to it in an amount sufficient to have caused such managed leverage to have been 11.5:1.  No capital contributions have been made pursuant to this agreement.  The agreement also limits to $3 billion the amount Ford Credit may borrow under our Third Amended and Restated Credit Agreement dated as of April 30, 2015. In a separate agreement with FCE, Ford Credit also has agreed to maintain FCE's net worth in excess of $500 million; no payments have been made pursuant to that agreement.

GOVERNMENTAL STANDARDS

Many governmental standards and regulations relating to safety, fuel economy, emissions control, noise control, vehicle recycling, substances of concern, vehicle damage, and theft prevention are applicable to new motor vehicles, engines, and equipment manufactured for sale in the United States, Europe, and elsewhere. In addition, manufacturing and other automotive assembly facilities in the United States, Europe, and elsewhere are subject to stringent standards regulating air emissions, water discharges, and the handling and disposal of hazardous substances. The most significant of the standards and regulations affecting us are discussed below:

Vehicle Emissions Control

U.S. Requirements – Federal Emission Standards. The federal Clean Air Act imposes stringent limits on the amount of regulated pollutants that lawfully may be emitted by new vehicles and engines produced for sale in the United States. In 2014, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") finalized new "Tier 3" regulations that phase in increasingly stringent motor vehicle emission standards beginning with the 2017 model year; compliance with these standards could be challenging. Compliance with automobile emission standards depends in part on the widespread availability of high-quality and consistent automotive fuels that the vehicles were designed to use. Fuel variables that can affect vehicle emissions include ethanol content, octane ratings, and the use of metallic-based fuel additives, among other things. There are various ongoing regulatory and judicial proceedings related to fuel quality at the national and state level, and the outcome of these proceedings could affect vehicle manufacturers' warranty costs as well as their ability to comply with vehicle emission standards.

U.S. Requirements – California and Other State Emission Standards. Pursuant to the Clean Air Act, California may establish its own unique vehicle emission standards; the California standards can also be adopted by other states. The California Air Resources Board ("CARB") has adopted "LEV III" standards, which took effect with the 2015 model year and impose increasingly stringent tailpipe and evaporative emissions requirements for light and medium duty vehicles. Thirteen states, primarily located in the Northeast and Northwest, have adopted the LEV III standards.

The California vehicle emissions program also includes requirements for manufacturers to produce and deliver for sale zero-emission vehicles ("ZEVs"). The current ZEV regulations mandate substantial annual increases in the production and sale of battery-electric, fuel cell, and plug-in hybrid vehicles, particularly for the 2018–2025 model years. By the 2025 model year, approximately 15% of a manufacturer's total California sales volume will need to be made up of such vehicles. Compliance with ZEV rules could have a substantial adverse effect on our sales volumes and profits. We are concerned that the market and infrastructure in California may not support the large volume of advanced-technology vehicles that manufacturers will be required to produce, especially if gasoline prices remain relatively low . We also are concerned about enforcement of the ZEV mandate in other states that have adopted California's ZEV program, where the existence of a market for such vehicles is even less certain. CARB conducts periodic reviews of its upcoming ZEV requirements, taking into account factors such as technology developments and market acceptance. Ford and the industry will be active participants in such reviews, with the goal of ensuring that ZEV requirements are feasible and not excessively burdensome.

European Requirements. European Union ("EU") directives and related legislation limit the amount of regulated pollutants that may be emitted by new motor vehicles and engines sold in the EU. Stringent new Stage 6 emission standards took effect for vehicle registrations starting in September 2014, with a second phase beginning in September 2017.  These standards will drive the need for additional diesel exhaust after-treatment, which will add cost and potentially impact the diesel CO 2 advantage.  The European Commission has also proposed new Real Driving Emission (RDE) rules, which will require manufacturers to conduct on-road emission tests using portable emission analyzers. These on-road emission tests will complement the laboratory-based tests. During the initial phase, which started in January 2016, the RDE tests are used for monitoring purposes. Beginning in September 2017, manufacturers will have to reduce the divergence between the regulatory limit that is tested in laboratory conditions and the values of RDE tests ("conformity factors"). The additional costs associated with conducting the RDE tests and complying with the conformity factors are expected to be significant.

Other National Requirements. Many countries, in an effort to address air quality concerns, are adopting previous versions of European or United Nations Economic Commission for Europe ("UN-ECE") mobile source emission regulations. Some countries have adopted more advanced regulations based on the most recent version of European or U.S. regulations; for example, China adopted emission regulations for large cities based on European Stage V emission standards. Korea and Taiwan have adopted very stringent U.S.-based standards for gasoline vehicles and European-based standards for diesel vehicles. Although these countries have adopted regulations based on UN-ECE or U.S. standards, there may be some unique testing provisions that require emission-control systems to be redesigned for

these markets. Canadian criteria emissions regulations are aligned with U.S. Tier 2 requirements. In July 2015, the Canadian federal government amended the On-Road Vehicle and Engine Emission Regulations and the Sulphur in Gasoline Regulations to align Canadian emission standards with the U.S. Tier 3 regulations discussed above.

Not all countries have adopted appropriate fuel quality standards to accompany the stringent emission standards adopted. This could lead to compliance problems, particularly if on-board diagnostic or in-use surveillance requirements are implemented.

Brazil and Chile have introduced stringent emission and on-board diagnostic standards based on the European Stage 5 standards for light duty vehicles and Stage V standards for heavy duty vehicles.  In Brazil, more stringent on-board diagnostic standards for diesel light duty vehicles will be introduced in 2017. Argentina is phasing in European Stage 5 standards for all new light duty vehicle registrations by 2017 and European Stage V standards for heavy duty vehicles by 2018.

Global Developments. In September 2015, the EPA and CARB announced that they were investigating a major competitor in connection with its alleged use of "defeat devices" in hundreds of thousands of light-duty diesel vehicles. The announcement triggered similar investigations of the competitor by regulators in other countries. Defeat devices are elements of design (typically embedded in software) that improperly cause the emission control system to function less effectively during normal on-road driving than during an official laboratory emissions test, without justification. They are prohibited by law in many jurisdictions, including the United States and Europe. We do not use defeat devices in our vehicles.

The investigations by the EPA and CARB of our competitor have led to increased scrutiny of automakers' emission testing by regulators around the world. The EPA began carrying out additional non-standard tests as part of its vehicle certification program, following an announcement in September 2015. The EU accelerated efforts to finalize its RDE testing program as described above. Several European countries, including France and Germany, are conducting non-standard emission tests and meeting with manufacturers to discuss the results.

Vehicle Fuel Economy and Greenhouse Gas Standards

U.S. Requirements – Light Duty Vehicles .  Federal law requires that light duty vehicles meet minimum corporate average fuel economy ("CAFE") standards set by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ("NHTSA"). Manufacturers are subject to substantial civil penalties if they fail to meet the CAFE standard in any model year, after taking into account all available credits for the preceding three model years and expected credits for the five succeeding model years. The law requires NHTSA to promulgate and enforce separate CAFE standards applicable to each manufacturer's fleet of domestic passenger cars, imported passenger cars, and light duty trucks.

The EPA also regulates vehicle greenhouse gas ("GHG") emissions under the Clean Air Act. Because the vast majority of GHGs emitted by a vehicle are the result of fuel combustion, GHG emission standards effectively are fuel economy standards. Thus, it is necessary for NHTSA and EPA to coordinate with each other on their fuel economy and GHG standards, respectively, to avoid potential inconsistencies.

In 2010, EPA and NHTSA jointly promulgated regulations establishing the "One National Program" of CAFE and GHG regulations for light duty vehicles for the 2012-2016 model years. In 2012, EPA and NHTSA jointly promulgated regulations extending the One National Program framework through the 2025 model year. These rules require manufacturers to achieve, across the industry, a light duty fleet average fuel economy of approximately 35.5 mpg by the 2016 model year, 45 mpg by the 2021 model year, and 54.5 mpg by the 2025 model year. Each manufacturer's specific task depends on the mix of vehicles it sells. The rules include the opportunity for manufacturers to earn credits for technologies that achieve real-world CO 2 reductions, and fuel economy improvements that are not captured by EPA fuel economy test procedures. Manufacturers also can earn credits for GHG reductions not specifically tied to fuel economy, such as improvements in air conditioning systems.

The One National Program standards become increasingly stringent over time, and they will be difficult to meet if fuel prices remain relatively low and market conditions do not drive consumers to purchase electric vehicles and other highly fuel-efficient vehicles in large numbers. The rules provide for a midterm evaluation process under which, by 2018, EPA and NHTSA will re-evaluate their standards for model years 2022–2025 in order to ensure that those standards are feasible and optimal in light of intervening events. We are particularly concerned about the commercial feasibility of meeting the 2022–2025 model year GHG and CAFE standards, and therefore the midterm evaluation process is very important to Ford and the auto industry. Ford's ability to comply with the 2022–2025 model year standards remains unclear because of the many unknowns regarding technology development, market conditions, and other factors so far

into the future. We intend to be an active participant in the midterm evaluation process for these standards. Our concern about the feasibility of the fuel economy and GHG standards also extends to some of the pre-2022 model year standards, which are not covered by the midterm evaluation.

If the agencies seek to impose and enforce fuel economy and GHG standards that are misaligned with market conditions, we likely would be forced to take various actions that could have substantial adverse effects on our sales volume and profits. Such actions likely would include restricting offerings of selected engines and popular options; increasing market support programs for our most fuel-efficient cars and light trucks; and ultimately curtailing the production and sale of certain vehicles such as high-performance cars, utilities, and/or full-size light trucks, in order to maintain compliance.

California has asserted the right to regulate motor vehicle GHG emissions, and other states have asserted the right to adopt the California standards. With the adoption of the federal One National Program standards discussed above, California and the other states have agreed that compliance with the federal program would satisfy compliance with any purported state GHG requirements for the 2012–2025 model years. This avoids a patchwork of potentially conflicting federal and state GHG standards. Should California and other states ever renew their efforts to enforce state-specific motor vehicle GHG rules, this would impose significant costs on automotive manufacturers.

U.S. Requirements – Heavy Duty Vehicles. EPA and NHTSA have jointly promulgated GHG and fuel economy standards on heavy duty vehicles (generally, vehicles over 8,500 pounds gross vehicle weight rating). In our case, the standards primarily affect our heavy duty pickup trucks and vans, plus vocational vehicles such as shuttle buses and delivery trucks. EPA and NHTSA are expected to finalize new rules in 2016 setting GHG and fuel economy standards for these vehicles, covering model years 2019–2027. As the heavy-duty standards increase in stringency, it may become more difficult to comply while continuing to offer a full lineup of heavy duty trucks.

European Requirements. In December 2008, the EU approved regulation of passenger car CO 2 emissions beginning in 2012 that limits the industry fleet average to a maximum of 130 grams per kilometer ("g/km"), using a sliding scale based on vehicle weight. This regulation provides different targets for each manufacturer based on the respective average vehicle weight for its fleet of vehicles. Limited credits are available for CO 2 off-cycle actions ("eco-innovations"), certain alternative fuels, and vehicles with CO 2 emissions below 50 g/km. A penalty system will apply for manufacturers failing to meet targets, with fees ranging from € 5 to € 95 per vehicle per g/km shortfall in the years 2012–2018, and € 95 per g/km shortfall beginning in 2019. Pooling agreements between different manufacturers are possible, although it is not clear that these will be of much practical benefit under the regulations. Starting in 2020, an industry target of 95 g/km has been set. Other non-EU European countries are likely to follow with similar regulations. For example, Switzerland has introduced similar rules, which began phasing-in starting in July 2012 with the same targets (which likely also will include a 2020 target of 95 g/km), although the industry average emission target is significantly higher. We face the risk of advance premium payment requirements if, for example, unexpected market fluctuation within a quarter negatively impact our average fleet performance.

In separate legislation, "complementary measures" have been mandated, including requirements related to fuel economy indicators, and more-efficient low-CO 2 mobile air conditioning systems. The EU Commission, Council and Parliament have approved a target for commercial light duty vehicles to be at an industry average of 175 g/km (with phase-in from 2014–2017), and 147 g/km in 2020; it is likely that other European countries, like Switzerland, will implement similar rules but under even more difficult conditions. This regulation also provides different targets for each manufacturer based on its respective average vehicle weight in its fleet of vehicles. The final mass and CO 2 requirements for "multi-stage vehicles" (e.g., our Transit chassis cabs) are fully allocated to the base manufacturer (e.g., Ford) so that the base manufacturer is fully responsible for the CO 2 performance of the final up-fitted vehicles. The EU proposal also includes a penalty system, "super-credits" for vehicles below 50 g/km, and limited credits for CO 2 off-cycle eco-innovations, pooling, etc., similar to the passenger car CO 2 regulation.

The United Nations has a project underway to develop a new technical regulation for passenger car emissions and CO 2. This new world light duty test procedure ("WLTP") is focused primarily on better aligning laboratory CO 2 and fuel consumption figures with customer-reported figures. The introduction of WLTP in Europe is likely to require updates to CO 2 labeling as early as 2018 and could increase certain consumer label values. Costs associated with new or incremental testing for WLTP could be significant. The European Commission continues to apply political pressure for mandatory WLTP testing for regulated emissions and CO 2 starting in September 2017. The European Commission has assured equivalent stringency to the existing fleet average rules for each automobile manufacturer if the 2020 fleet average targets are required to be measured on WLTP instead of under the current European New European Driving Cycle ("NEDC") requirements.

Some European countries have implemented or are considering other initiatives for reducing CO 2 vehicle emissions, including fiscal measures and CO 2 labeling. For example, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands, among others, have introduced taxation based on CO 2 emissions. The EU CO 2 requirements are likely to trigger further measures. To limit GHG emissions, the EU directive on mobile air conditioning currently requires the replacement of the current refrigerant with a lower "global warming potential" refrigerant for new vehicle types, and for all newly registered vehicles starting in January 2017. A refrigerant change adds considerable costs along the whole manufacturing chain.

Other National Requirements. The Canadian federal government has regulated vehicle GHG emissions under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, beginning with the 2011 model year. The standards track the U.S. EPA GHG regulations for the 2012–2016 model years. In October 2014, the Canadian federal government published the final changes to the regulation for light duty vehicles, which maintain alignment with U.S. EPA vehicle GHG standards for the 2017–2025 model years. The final regulation for 2014–2018 heavy duty vehicles was published in February 2013. In October 2014, the Canadian federal government published the Notice of Intent to regulate heavy duty vehicles and engines for model year 2019 and beyond, which tracks U.S. EPA standards.

Mexico adopted fuel economy/CO 2 standards, based on the U.S. One National Program framework, that took effect in 2014.

Many Asia Pacific countries (such as Australia, China, India, South Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam) are developing or enforcing fuel efficiency or labeling targets. For example, South Korea has set fuel efficiency targets for 2020, with incentives for early adoption. China published standards for Stage IV fuel efficiency targets for 2016–2020. The fuel efficiency targets will impact the cost of vehicle technology in the future.

In South America, Brazil introduced a voluntary vehicle energy-efficiency labeling program, indicating fuel consumption rates for all light-duty vehicles. Brazil has required inclusion of emission classification on fuel economy labels since January 2016. Brazil also published a new automotive regime establishing a minimum absolute CAFE value as a function of Fleet Corporate Average Mass for 2017 light duty vehicles with a spark ignition engine in order to qualify for industrialized products tax reduction. Additional tax reductions are available if further fuel efficiency improvements are achieved. A severe penalty system will apply to qualified manufacturers failing to meet fuel efficiency requirements for the 2013–2017 sales period. Brazil reduced import tax on electric and hybrid cars. The tax rate, which was 35%, will vary from zero to 7%, depending on a vehicle's energy efficiency. Chile introduced a tax based on urban fuel consumption and NOx emission for light and medium vehicles beginning in late 2014. In general, fuel efficiency targets may impact the cost of technology of our models in the future.

In the Middle East, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia introduced new light duty vehicle fuel economy standards, which are patterned after the U.S. CAFE standard structure, with fuel economy targets following the design of the U.S. 2012–2016 fuel economy standards. The standards became effective on January 1, 2016 and will be fully phased in by the end of 2017.

Vehicle Safety

U.S. Requirements. The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 (the "Safety Act") regulates vehicles and vehicle equipment in two primary ways. First, the Safety Act prohibits the sale in the United States of any new vehicle or equipment that does not conform to applicable vehicle safety standards established by NHTSA. Meeting or exceeding many safety standards is costly, in part because the standards tend to conflict with the need to reduce vehicle weight in order to meet emission and fuel economy standards. Second, the Safety Act requires that defects related to motor vehicle safety be remedied through safety recall campaigns. A manufacturer is obligated to recall vehicles if it determines the vehicles do not comply with a safety standard. Should we or NHTSA determine that either a safety defect or noncompliance issue exists with respect to any of our vehicles, the cost of such recall campaigns could be substantial.

Other National Requirements. The EU and many countries have established vehicle safety standards and regulations, and are likely to adopt additional or more stringent requirements in the future. The European General Safety Regulation introduced United Nations Economic Commission for Europe ("UN-ECE") regulations, which will be required for the European Type Approval process. EU regulators also are focusing on active safety features such as lane departure warning systems, electronic stability control, and automatic brake assist. Globally, governments generally have been adopting UN-ECE based regulations with minor variations to address local concerns. Any difference between North American and UN-ECE based regulations can add complexity and costs to the development of global platform vehicles, and we continue to support efforts to harmonize regulations to reduce vehicle design complexity while providing a common level of safety performance; several recently launched bilateral negotiations on free trade can potentially contribute to this goal. New safety and recall requirements in China, India, and Gulf Cooperation Council countries also

may add substantial costs and complexity to our global recall practice. In South America, additional safety requirements are being introduced or proposed in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Uruguay, influenced by The New Car Assessment Programme for Latin America and the Caribbean ("Latin NCAP"), which may be a driver for similar actions in other countries. In Canada, regulatory requirements are currently aligned with U.S. regulations. However, recent amendments to the Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety Act have introduced broad powers to the Minister of Transport to order manufacturers to submit a notice of defect or non-compliance when the Minister considers it would be in the interest of safety.

EMPLOYMENT DATA

The approximate number of individuals employed by us and entities that we consolidated as of December 31, 2015 and 2014 was as follows (in thousands):

__________________________

The year-over-year increase in employment primarily reflects hiring in North America to support product-led growth initiatives and increased vehicle production.

Substantially all of the hourly employees in our Automotive operations are represented by unions and covered by collective bargaining agreements.  In the United States, approximately 99% of these unionized hourly employees in our Automotive sector are represented by the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America ("UAW" or "United Auto Workers").  Approximately 1.5% of our U.S. salaried employees are represented by unions.  Many non-management salaried employees at our operations outside of the United States also are represented by unions.

In 2015, we entered into a four-year collective bargaining agreement with the UAW covering approximately 53,000 employees in the United States. The terms of the agreement provide us with opportunities to improve our productivity and put us on common footing with our domestic competitors regarding labor cost structure. Overall, including the ratification and lump sum bonuses, our U.S. labor costs are expected to increase by less than 1.5% a year during the term of the agreement.

In 2015, we also entered into collective bargaining agreements (covering wages, benefits and/or other employment provisions) with unions in Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, India, Mexico, New Zealand, Romania, Taiwan, Thailand and the United Kingdom.

In 2016, we will negotiate collective bargaining agreements (covering wages, benefits and/or other employment provisions) with unions in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Romania, Russia, South Africa, Taiwan and Thailand.

ENGINEERING, RESEARCH, AND DEVELOPMENT

We engage in engineering, research, and development primarily to improve the performance (including fuel efficiency), safety, and customer satisfaction of our products, and to develop new products.  Engineering, research, and development expenses for 2015, 2014, and 2013 were $6.7 billion, $6.7 billion, and $6.2 billion, respectively.  

ITEM 1A. Risk Factors.

We have listed below (not necessarily in order of importance or probability of occurrence) the most significant risk factors applicable to us:

Decline in industry sales volume, particularly in the United States, Europe, or China, due to financial crisis, recession, geopolitical events, or other factors.   Because we, like other manufacturers, have a high proportion of relatively fixed structural costs, relatively small changes in industry sales volume can have a substantial effect on our cash flow and profitability. If industry vehicle sales were to decline to levels significantly below our planning assumption, particularly in the United States, Europe, or China, due to financial crisis, recession, geopolitical events, or other factors, such as occurred during 2008 and 2009, our financial condition and results of operations would be substantially adversely affected. For discussion of economic trends, see the "Overview" section of Item 7.

Decline in Ford's market share or failure to achieve growth. To maintain competitive economies of scale and grow our global market share, we must grow our market share in fast-growing newly developed and emerging markets, particularly in our Asia Pacific region and our Middle East & Africa region, as well as maintain or grow market share in mature markets. Our market share in certain growing markets, such as China, is lower than it is in our mature markets. A significant decline in our market share in mature markets or failure to achieve growth in newly developing or emerging markets, whether due to capacity constraints, competitive pressures, protectionist trade policies, or other factors, could have a substantial adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Lower-than-anticipated market acceptance of Ford's new or existing products or services. Although we conduct extensive market research before launching new or refreshed vehicles and introducing new services, many factors both within and outside our control affect the success of new or existing products and services in the marketplace.  Offering vehicles and services that customers want and value can mitigate the risks of increasing price competition and declining demand, but products and services that are perceived to be less desirable (whether in terms of price, quality, styling, safety, overall value, fuel efficiency, or other attributes) can exacerbate these risks.  The success of Ford Smart Mobility, our plan for connectivity, mobility, autonomous vehicles, the customer experience, and data and analytics, likewise depends on many factors, including the amount of capital we invest, advancements in technology, regulatory changes, and other factors that are difficult to predict that may significantly affect the future of mobility.  With increased consumer interconnectedness through the internet, social media, and other media, mere allegations relating to quality, safety, fuel efficiency, corporate social responsibility, or other key attributes can negatively impact our reputation or market acceptance of our products or services, even where such allegations prove to be inaccurate or unfounded.

Market shift away from sales of larger, more profitable vehicles beyond Ford's current planning assumption, particularly in the United States. A shift in consumer preferences away from larger, more profitable vehicles at levels beyond our current planning assumption could result in an immediate and substantial adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations. Although we have a balanced portfolio of small, medium, and large cars, utilities, and trucks with competitive fuel efficiency, a shift in consumer preferences away from sales of larger, more profitable vehicles at levels greater than our current planning assumption-whether because of spiking fuel prices, a decline in the construction industry, government actions or incentives, or other reasons-still could have a substantial adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

An increase in or continued volatility of fuel prices, or reduced availability of fuel . An increase in fuel prices, continued price volatility, or reduced availability of fuel, particularly in the United States, could result in weakening of demand for relatively more-profitable large cars, utilities, and trucks, while increasing demand for relatively less-profitable small vehicles. Continuation or acceleration of such a trend beyond our current planning assumption, or volatility in demand across segments, could have a substantial adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Continued or increased price competition resulting from industry excess capacity, currency fluctuations, or other factors. The global automotive industry is intensely competitive, with manufacturing capacity far exceeding current demand. According to the December 2015 report issued by IHS Automotive, the global automotive industry is estimated to have had excess capacity of about 31 million units in 2015. Industry overcapacity has resulted in many manufacturers offering marketing incentives on vehicles in an attempt to maintain and grow market share; these incentives historically have included a combination of subsidized financing or leasing programs, price rebates, and other incentives. As a result, we are not necessarily able to set our prices to offset higher costs of marketing incentives, commodity or other cost increases, or the impact of adverse currency fluctuations, including pricing advantages foreign competitors may have because of their weaker home market currencies. Continuation of or increased excess capacity could have a substantial adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, commodity prices, and interest rates. As a resource-intensive manufacturing operation, we are exposed to a variety of market and asset risks, including the effects of changes in foreign currency exchange rates, commodity prices, and interest rates. These risks affect our Automotive and Financial Services sectors. We monitor and manage these exposures as an integral part of our overall risk management program, which recognizes the unpredictability of markets and seeks to reduce potentially adverse effects on our business. Nevertheless, changes in currency exchange rates, commodity prices, and interest rates cannot always be predicted or hedged. In addition, because of intense price competition and our high level of fixed costs, we may not be able to address such changes even if foreseeable. As a result, substantial unfavorable changes in foreign currency exchange rates, commodity prices, or interest rates could have a substantial adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. See "Overview" to Item 7 and Item 7A for additional discussion of currency, commodity price, and interest rate risks.

Adverse effects resulting from economic, geopolitical, or other events. With the increasing interconnectedness of global economic and financial systems, a financial crisis, natural disaster, geopolitical crisis, or other significant event in one area of the world can have an immediate and devastating impact on markets around the world. For example, the financial crisis that began in the United States in 2008 quickly spread to other markets; natural disasters in Japan and Thailand during 2011 caused production interruptions and delays not just in Asia Pacific but other regions around the world; and episodes of increased geopolitical tensions or acts of terrorism have at times caused adverse reactions that may spread to economies around the globe.

Concerns persist regarding the sustainability of the European currency area ("euro area") and of the larger European Union, which includes the United Kingdom. The pending decision by the U.K. electorate on whether to remain in the European Union has exacerbated concerns regarding the overall stability of the European Union, given the diverse economic and political circumstances of individual euro area countries. If a country within the euro area were to default on its debt or withdraw from the euro currency, or-in a more extreme circumstance-the euro currency were to be dissolved entirely, the impact on markets around the world, and on Ford's global business, could be immediate and significant. The exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union would have less extreme but still significant implications. Such scenarios-or the perception that such developments are imminent-could adversely affect the value of our euro- and pound-denominated assets and obligations. In addition, such developments could cause financial and capital markets within and outside Europe to constrict, thereby negatively impacting our ability to finance our business, and also could cause a substantial dip in consumer confidence and spending that could negatively impact sales of vehicles. Any one of these impacts could have a substantial adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

In addition, we have operations in various markets with volatile economic or political environments and are pursuing growth opportunities in a number of newly developed and emerging markets. These investments may expose us to heightened risks of economic, geopolitical, or other events, including governmental takeover (i.e., nationalization) of our manufacturing facilities or intellectual property, restrictive exchange or import controls, disruption of operations as a result of systemic political or economic instability, outbreak of war or expansion of hostilities, and acts of terrorism, each of which could have a substantial adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. Further, the U.S. government, other governments and international organizations could impose additional sanctions that could restrict us from doing business directly or indirectly in or with certain countries or parties, which could include affiliates.

Economic distress of suppliers that may require Ford to provide substantial financial support or take other measures to ensure supplies of components or materials and could increase costs, affect liquidity, or cause production constraints or disruptions. The automotive industry supply base experienced increased economic distress due to the sudden and substantial drop in industry sales volumes beginning in 2008. Dramatically lower industry sales volume made existing debt obligations and fixed cost levels difficult for many suppliers to manage, increasing pressure on the supply base. As a result, suppliers not only were less willing to reduce prices, but some requested direct or indirect price increases as well as new and shorter payment terms. At times, we have had to provide financial assistance to key suppliers to ensure an uninterrupted supply of materials and components. In addition, suppliers may continue to exit certain lines of business or close facilities due to economic concerns, management turnover, or other reasons. In such cases, we generally experience additional costs associated with transitioning to new suppliers. Each of these factors could have a substantial adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Work stoppages at Ford or supplier facilities or other limitations on production (whether as a result of labor disputes, natural or man-made disasters, tight credit markets or other financial distress, production constraints or difficulties, or other factors). A work stoppage or other limitation on production could occur at Ford or supplier facilities for any number of reasons, including as a result of disputes under existing collective bargaining agreements with labor unions or in connection with negotiation of new collective bargaining agreements, or as a result of supplier financial distress or other production constraints or difficulties, or for other reasons. Recent examples of situations that have affected industry production to varying degrees include: supplier financial distress due to reduced production volumes during the economic downturn in 2008–2009; capacity constraints as suppliers that restructured or downsized during the downturn work to satisfy growing industry volumes; short-term constraints on production as consumer preferences shift more fluidly across vehicle segments and features; and the impact on certain suppliers of natural disasters during 2011. As indicated, a work stoppage or other limitations on production at Ford or supplier facilities for any reason (including but not limited to labor disputes, natural or man-made disasters, tight credit markets or other financial distress, or production constraints or difficulties) could have a substantial adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Single-source supply of components or materials. Many components used in our vehicles are available only from a single supplier and cannot be re-sourced quickly or inexpensively to another supplier (due to long lead times, new contractual commitments that may be required by another supplier before ramping up to provide the components or materials, etc.). In addition to the general risks described above regarding interruption of supplies, which are exacerbated in the case of single-source suppliers, the exclusive supplier of a key component potentially could exert significant bargaining power over price, quality, warranty claims, or other terms relating to a component.

Labor or other constraints on Ford's ability to maintain competitive cost structure. Substantially all of the hourly employees in our Automotive operations in the United States and Canada are represented by unions and covered by collective bargaining agreements. We negotiated a four-year agreement with the UAW in 2015 and will negotiate a new agreement with Unifor (formerly the Canadian Auto Workers Union) in 2016.  Although we have negotiated transformational agreements in recent years, these agreements provide guaranteed wage and benefit levels throughout the contract term and some degree of income security, subject to certain conditions. As a practical matter, these agreements may restrict our ability to close plants and divest businesses. A substantial number of our employees in other regions are represented by unions or government councils, and legislation or custom promoting retention of manufacturing or other employment in the state, country, or region may constrain as a practical matter our ability to sell or close manufacturing or other facilities.

Substantial pension and postretirement health care and life insurance liabilities impairing liquidity or financial condition. We have defined benefit retirement plans in the United States that cover many of our hourly and salaried employees. We also provide pension benefits to non-U.S. employees and retirees, primarily in Europe. In addition, we and certain of our subsidiaries sponsor plans to provide other postretirement benefits ("OPEB") for retired employees (primarily health care and life insurance benefits). See Note 12 of the Notes to the Financial Statements for more information about these plans. These benefit plans impose significant liabilities on us that are not fully funded and will require additional cash contributions, which could impair our liquidity.

Our qualified U.S. defined benefit pension plans are subject to Title IV of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA"). Under Title IV of ERISA, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation ("PBGC") has the authority under certain circumstances or upon the occurrence of certain events to terminate a qualified underfunded pension plan. One such circumstance is the occurrence of an event that unreasonably increases the risk of unreasonably large losses to the PBGC. Although we believe it is unlikely that the PBGC would terminate any of our plans, in the event that our qualified U.S. pension plans were terminated at a time when the liabilities of the plans exceeded the assets of the plans, we would incur a liability to the PBGC that could be equal to the entire amount of the underfunding.

If our cash flows and capital resources were insufficient to fund our pension or OPEB obligations, we could be forced to reduce or delay investments and capital expenditures, suspend dividend payments, seek additional capital, or restructure or refinance our indebtedness.

Worse-than-assumed economic and demographic experience for postretirement benefit plans (e.g., discount rates or investment returns). The measurement of our obligations, costs, and liabilities associated with benefits pursuant to our postretirement benefit plans requires that we estimate the present value of projected future payments to all participants. We use many assumptions in calculating these estimates, including assumptions related to discount rates, investment returns on designated plan assets, and demographic experience (e.g., mortality and retirement rates). To the extent actual results are less favorable than our assumptions, there could be a substantial adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations. For discussion of our assumptions, see "Critical Accounting Estimates" in Item 7 and Note 12 of the Notes to the Financial Statements.

Restriction on use of tax attributes from tax law "ownership change."   Section 382 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code restricts the ability of a corporation that undergoes an ownership change to use its tax attributes, including net operating losses and tax credits ("Tax Attributes").  At December 31, 2015, we had Tax Attributes that would offset more than $15 billion of taxable income.  For these purposes, an ownership change occurs if 5 percent shareholders of an issuer's outstanding common stock, collectively, increase their ownership percentage by more than 50 percentage points over a rolling three-year period. In 2015, we renewed for an additional three-year period our tax benefit preservation plan (the "Plan") to reduce the risk of an ownership change under Section 382. Under the Plan, shares held by any person who acquires, without the approval of our Board of Directors, beneficial ownership of 4.99% or more of our outstanding Common Stock could be subject to significant dilution. The renewal is subject to shareholder approval at our annual meeting in May 2016.

The discovery of defects in vehicles resulting in delays in new model launches, recall campaigns, or increased warranty costs. Meeting or exceeding many government-mandated safety standards is costly and often technologically challenging, especially where standards may be in tension with the need to reduce vehicle weight in order to meet government-mandated emissions and fuel-economy standards. Government safety standards also require manufacturers to remedy defects related to vehicle safety through safety recall campaigns, and a manufacturer is obligated to recall vehicles if it determines that the vehicles do not comply with a safety standard. In addition, the introduction of new and innovative features and technology to our vehicles could increase the risk of defects or customer dissatisfaction. In 2014 and 2015, there was an unprecedented increase in the number of vehicles involved in safety recalls by manufacturers in the United States. The increase reflects NHTSA's continued expansion of its definition of safety defects under the Safety Act. In addition, NHTSA's enforcement strategy shifted to a significant increase in civil penalties levied and the use of consent orders requiring direct oversight by NHTSA of certain manufacturers' safety processes, a trend that could continue. Should we or government safety regulators determine that a safety or other defect or a noncompliance exists with respect to certain of our vehicles prior to the start of production, the launch of such vehicle could be delayed until such defect is remedied. The costs associated with any protracted delay in new model launches necessary to remedy such defects, or the cost of recall campaigns or warranty costs to remedy such defects in vehicles that have been sold, could be substantial. These recall and warranty costs could be exacerbated to the extent they relate to global platforms. Furthermore, launch delays or recall actions also could adversely affect our reputation or market acceptance of our products as discussed above under " Lower-than-anticipated market acceptance of Ford's new or existing products or services ."

Increased safety, emissions, fuel economy, or other regulations resulting in higher costs, cash expenditures, and/or sales restrictions. The worldwide automotive industry is governed by a substantial amount of government regulation, which often differs by state, region, and country. Government regulation has arisen, and proposals for additional regulation are advanced, primarily out of concern for the environment (including concerns about the possibility of global climate change and its impact), vehicle safety, and energy independence. For example, as discussed above under "Item 1. Business - Governmental Standards," in the United States the CAFE standards for light duty vehicles are 35.5 mpg by the 2016 model year, 45 mpg by the 2021 model year, and 54.5 mpg by the 2025 model year; EPA's parallel CO 2 emission regulations impose similar standards. California's ZEV rules also mandate steep increases in the sale of electric vehicles and other advanced technology vehicles beginning in the 2018 model year. In addition, many governments regulate local product content and/or impose import requirements as a means of creating jobs, protecting domestic producers, and influencing the balance of payments.

In recent years, we have made significant changes to our product cycle plan to improve the overall fuel economy of vehicles we produce, thereby reducing their GHG emissions. There are limits on our ability to achieve fuel economy improvements over a given time frame, however, primarily relating to the cost and effectiveness of available technologies, consumer acceptance of new technologies and changes in vehicle mix, willingness of consumers to absorb the additional costs of new technologies, the appropriateness (or lack thereof) of certain technologies for use in particular vehicles, the widespread availability (or lack thereof) of supporting infrastructure for new technologies, and the human, engineering, and financial resources necessary to deploy new technologies across a wide range of products and powertrains in a short time. The current fuel economy, CO 2 , and ZEV standards will be difficult to meet if fuel prices remain relatively low and market conditions do not drive consumers to purchase electric vehicles and other highly fuel-efficient vehicles in large numbers.

The U.S. government has initiated an enforcement action against a major competitor in connection with its alleged use of "defeat devices" in hundreds of thousands of light duty diesel vehicles. The emergence of this issue has led to increased scrutiny of automaker emission testing by regulators around the world. This may lead to new regulations, more stringent enforcement programs, requests for field actions, and/or delays in regulatory approvals. The cost to comply with existing government regulations is substantial and additional regulations or changes in consumer preferences that affect vehicle mix could have a substantial adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations. For more discussion of the impact of such standards on our global business, see the "Governmental Standards" discussion in "Item 1. Business" above. In addition, a number of governments, as well as non-governmental organizations, publicly assess vehicles to their own protocols. The protocols could change aggressively, and any negative perception regarding the performance of our vehicles subjected to such tests could reduce future sales.

Unusual or significant litigation, governmental investigations, or adverse publicity arising out of alleged defects in products, perceived environmental impacts, or otherwise. We spend substantial resources ensuring that we comply with governmental safety regulations, mobile and stationary source emissions regulations, and other standards. Compliance with governmental standards, however, does not necessarily prevent individual or class actions, which can entail significant cost and risk. In certain circumstances, courts may permit tort claims even where our vehicles comply with federal and/or other applicable law. Furthermore, simply responding to actual or threatened litigation or government investigations of our compliance with regulatory standards, whether related to our products or business or commercial relationships, may require significant expenditures of time and other resources. Litigation also is inherently uncertain, and we could experience significant adverse results. In addition, adverse publicity surrounding an allegation may cause significant reputational harm that could have a significant adverse effect on our sales.

A change in requirements under long-term supply arrangements committing Ford to purchase minimum or fixed quantities of certain parts, or to pay a minimum amount to the seller ("take-or-pay" contracts). We have entered into a number of long-term supply contracts that require us to purchase a fixed quantity of parts to be used in the production of our vehicles. If our need for any of these parts were to lessen, we could still be required to purchase a specified quantity of the part or pay a minimum amount to the seller pursuant to the take-or-pay contract, which could have a substantial adverse effect on our financial condition or results of operations.

Adverse effects on results from a decrease in or cessation or clawback of government incentives related to investments. We receive economic benefits from national, state, and local governments in various regions of the world in the form of incentives designed to encourage manufacturers to establish, maintain, or increase investment, workforce, or production. These incentives may take various forms, including grants, loan subsidies, and tax abatements or credits. The impact of these incentives can be significant in a particular market during a reporting period. For example, most of our manufacturing facilities in South America are located in Brazil, where the state or federal governments have historically offered, and continue to offer, significant incentives to manufacturers to encourage capital investment, increase manufacturing production, and create jobs. As a result, the performance of our South American operations has been impacted favorably by government incentives to a substantial extent. In Brazil, however, the federal government has levied assessments against us concerning our calculation of federal incentives we received, and certain states have challenged the grant to us of tax incentives by the state of Bahia, including a constitutional challenge of state incentives that is pending in Brazil's Supreme Court. A decrease in, expiration without renewal of, or other cessation or clawback of government incentives for any of our business units, as a result of administrative decision or otherwise, could have a substantial adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations. See Note 2 of the Notes to the Financial Statements for discussion of our accounting for government incentives, and "Item 3. Legal Proceedings" for a discussion of tax proceedings in Brazil and the potential requirement for us to post collateral.

Inherent limitations of internal controls impacting financial statements and safeguarding of assets. Our internal control over financial reporting and our operating internal controls may not prevent or detect misstatements or loss of assets because of inherent limitations, including the possibility of human error, the circumvention or overriding of controls, or fraud. Effective internal controls can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to financial statement accuracy and safeguarding of assets.

Cybersecurity risks to operational systems, security systems, or infrastructure owned by Ford, Ford Credit, or a third-party vendor or supplier. We are at risk for interruptions, outages, and breaches of: (i) operational systems (including business, financial, accounting, product development, consumer receivables, data processing, or manufacturing processes); (ii) facility security systems; and/or (iii) in-vehicle systems or mobile devices. Such cyber incidents could materially disrupt operational systems; result in loss of trade secrets or other proprietary or competitively sensitive information; compromise personally identifiable information of customers, employees, or others; jeopardize the security of our facilities; and/or affect the performance of in-vehicle systems. A cyber incident could be caused by malicious third parties using sophisticated, targeted methods to circumvent firewalls, encryption, and other security defenses, including hacking, fraud, trickery, or other forms of deception. The techniques used by third parties change frequently and may be difficult to detect for long periods of time. A significant cyber incident could impact production capability, harm our reputation and/or subject us to regulatory actions or litigation.

Failure of financial institutions to fulfill commitments under committed credit and liquidity facilities. Under our Third Amended and Restated Credit Agreement dated as of April 30, 2015 and as further amended (the "revolving credit facility"), we are able to borrow, repay, and then re-borrow up to $13.4 billion. Certain of our subsidiaries have standby or revolving credit facilities on which they depend for liquidity. If the financial institutions that provide commitments under the revolving credit facility, our subsidiaries' standby or revolving credit facilities, or other committed credit facilities were to default on their obligation to fund the commitments, these facilities would not be available to us, which could substantially adversely affect our liquidity and financial condition. For discussion of our Credit Agreement, see "Liquidity and Capital Resources" in Item 7 and Note 13 of the Notes to the Financial Statements.

Inability of Ford Credit to access debt, securitization, or derivative markets around the world at competitive rates or in sufficient amounts, due to credit rating downgrades, market volatility, market disruption, regulatory requirements, or other factors. Ford Credit's ability to obtain unsecured funding at a reasonable cost is dependent on its credit ratings or its perceived creditworthiness. Ford Credit's ability to obtain securitized funding under its committed asset-backed liquidity programs and certain other asset-backed securitization transactions is subject to having a sufficient amount of assets eligible for these programs, as well as Ford Credit's ability to obtain appropriate credit ratings and, for certain committed programs, derivatives to manage the interest rate risk. Over time, and particularly in the event of any credit rating downgrades, market volatility, market disruption, or other factors, Ford Credit may reduce the amount of receivables it purchases or originates because of funding constraints. In addition, Ford Credit may be limited in the amount of receivables it purchases or originates in certain countries or regions if the local capital markets, particularly in developing countries, do not exist or are not adequately developed. Similarly, Ford Credit may reduce the amount of receivables it purchases or originates if there is a significant decline in the demand for the types of securities it offers or Ford Credit is unable to obtain derivatives to manage the interest rate risk associated with its securitization transactions. A significant reduction in the amount of receivables Ford Credit purchases or originates would significantly reduce its ongoing profits and could adversely affect its ability to support the sale of Ford vehicles.

Higher-than-expected credit losses, lower-than-anticipated residual values, or higher-than-expected return volumes for leased vehicles. Credit risk is the possibility of loss from a customer's or dealer's failure to make payments according to contract terms. Credit risk (which is heavily dependent upon economic factors including unemployment, consumer debt service burden, personal income growth, dealer profitability, and used car prices) has a significant impact on Ford Credit's business. The level of credit losses Ford Credit may experience could exceed its expectations and adversely affect its financial condition and results of operations. In addition, Ford Credit projects expected residual values (including residual value support payments from Ford) and return volumes for the vehicles it leases. Actual proceeds realized by Ford Credit upon the sale of returned leased vehicles at lease termination may be lower than the amount projected, which would reduce the profitability of the lease transaction. Among the factors that can affect the value of returned lease vehicles are the volume of vehicles returned, economic conditions, and quality or perceived quality, safety, fuel efficiency, or reliability of the vehicles. Actual return volumes may be higher than expected and can be influenced by contractual lease-end values relative to auction values, marketing programs for new vehicles, and general economic conditions. Each of these factors, alone or in combination, has the potential to adversely affect Ford Credit's profitability if actual results were to differ significantly from Ford Credit's projections. See "Critical Accounting Estimates" in Item 7 for additional discussion.

Increased competition from banks, financial institutions, or other third parties seeking to increase their share of financing Ford vehicles. No single company is a dominant force in the automotive finance industry. Most of Ford Credit's bank competitors in the United States use credit aggregation systems that permit dealers to send, through standardized systems, retail credit applications to multiple finance sources to evaluate financing options offered by these sources. Also, direct on-line or large dealer group financing options provide consumers with alternative finance sources and/or increased pricing transparency. All of these financing alternatives drive greater competition based on financing rates and terms. Competition from such institutions and alternative finance sources could adversely affect Ford Credit's profitability and the volume of its retail business. In addition, Ford Credit may face increased competition on wholesale financing for Ford dealers.

New or increased credit regulations, consumer or data protection regulations, or other regulations resulting in higher costs and/or additional financing restrictions. As a finance company, Ford Credit is highly regulated by governmental authorities in the locations in which it operates, which can impose significant additional costs and/or restrictions on its business.  In the United States, for example, Ford Credit's operations are subject to regulation, supervision, and licensing under various federal, state, and local laws and regulations, including the federal Truth-in-Lending Act, Consumer Leasing Act, Equal Credit Opportunity Act, and Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Congress also passed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act ("Dodd-Frank Act") in 2010 to reform practices in the financial services industries, including automotive financing and securitizations. The Dodd-Frank Act directs federal agencies to adopt rules to regulate the consumer finance industry and the capital markets and, among other things, gives the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ("CFPB") broad rule-making and enforcement authority for a wide range of consumer financial protection laws that regulate consumer finance businesses, such as Ford Credit's retail automotive financing business. Exercise of these powers by the CFPB may increase the costs of, impose additional restrictions on, or otherwise adversely affect companies in the automotive finance business. For example, in March 2013, the CFPB issued a bulletin recommending that indirect vehicle lenders, a class that includes Ford Credit, take steps to monitor and/or impose controls over dealer discretionary pricing. Effective August 31, 2015, the CFPB has authority to supervise and examine the largest nonbank automotive finance companies, such as Ford Credit, for compliance with consumer financial protection laws.

In addition, the Dodd-Frank Act provides that a nonbank financial company could be designated a "systemically important financial institution" by the Financial Stability Oversight Council and thus be subject to supervision by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.  Such a designation would mean that a nonbank finance company such as Ford Credit, in effect, could be regulated like a bank with respect to capital and other requirements, but without the benefits of being a bank-such as the ability to offer Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC") insured deposits.

The Dodd-Frank Act also creates an alternative liquidation framework under which the FDIC may be appointed as receiver of a nonbank financial company if the U.S. Treasury Secretary (in consultation with the President of the United States) determines that the company is in default or danger of default and the resolution of the company under other applicable law (e.g., U.S. bankruptcy law) would have serious adverse effects on the financial stability of the United States. The FDIC's powers under this framework may vary from those of a bankruptcy court under U.S. bankruptcy law, which could adversely impact securitization markets, including Ford Credit's funding activities, regardless of whether Ford Credit ever is determined to be subject to the Dodd-Frank Act's alternative liquidation framework.

In some countries outside the United States, some of Ford Credit's subsidiaries are regulated banking institutions and are required, among other things, to maintain minimum capital and liquidity. In many other locations, governmental authorities require companies to have licenses in order to conduct financing businesses. Compliance with these laws and regulations imposes additional costs on Ford Credit and affects the conduct of its business. Additional regulation could add significant cost or operational constraints that might impair Ford Credit's profitability.

ITEM 1B.   Unresolved Staff Comments.

None.

ITEM 2. Properties.

Our principal properties include manufacturing and assembly facilities, distribution centers, warehouses, sales or administrative offices, and engineering centers.

We own substantially all of our U.S. manufacturing and assembly facilities. Our facilities are situated in various sections of the country and include assembly plants, engine plants, casting plants, metal stamping plants, transmission plants, and other component plants. About half of our distribution centers are leased (we own approximately 50% of the total square footage, and lease the balance). A substantial amount of our warehousing is provided by third-party providers under service contracts. Because the facilities provided pursuant to third-party service contracts need not be dedicated exclusively or even primarily to our use, these spaces are not included in the number of distribution centers/warehouses listed in the table below. The majority of the warehouses that we operate are leased, although many of our manufacturing and assembly facilities contain some warehousing space. Substantially all of our sales offices are leased space. Approximately 98% of the total square footage of our engineering centers and our supplementary research and development space is owned by us.

In addition, we maintain and operate manufacturing plants, assembly facilities, parts distribution centers, and engineering centers outside of the United States. We own substantially all of our non-U.S. manufacturing plants, assembly facilities, and engineering centers. The majority of our parts distribution centers outside of the United States are either leased or provided by vendors under service contracts.

We and the entities that we consolidated as of December 31, 2015 use eight regional engineering, research, and development centers, and 67 manufacturing plants as shown in the table below:

Included in the number of plants shown above are plants that are operated by us or our consolidated joint ventures that support our Automotive sector. The significant consolidated joint ventures and the number of plants each owns are as follows:

In addition to the plants that we operate directly or that are operated by our consolidated joint ventures, additional plants that support our Automotive sector are operated by unconsolidated joint ventures of which we are a partner.  These plants are not included in the number of plants shown in the table above.  The most significant of the automotive unconsolidated joint ventures are as follows:

The facilities described above are, in the opinion of management, suitable and adequate for the manufacture and assembly of our and our joint ventures' products.

The furniture, equipment, and other physical property owned by our Financial Services operations are not material in relation to the operations' total assets.

ITEM 3.  Legal Proceedings.

The litigation process is subject to many uncertainties, and the outcome of individual matters is not predictable with assurance. See Note 27 of the Notes to the Financial Statements for discussion of loss contingencies. Following is a discussion of our significant pending legal proceedings:

PRODUCT LIABILITY MATTERS

We are a defendant in numerous actions in state and federal courts within and outside of the United States alleging damages from injuries resulting from (or aggravated by) alleged defects in our vehicles. In many, no monetary amount of damages is specified, or the specific amount alleged is the jurisdictional minimum. Our experience with litigation alleging a specific amount of damages suggests that such amounts, on average, bear little relation to the actual amount of damages, if any, that we will pay in resolving such matters.

In addition to pending actions, we assess the likelihood of incidents that likely have occurred but not yet been reported to us; we also take into consideration specific matters that have been raised as claims but have not yet proceeded to litigation. Individual product liability matters which, if resolved unfavorably to the Company, likely would involve a significant cost would be described herein. Currently there are no such matters to report.

ASBESTOS MATTERS

Asbestos was used in some brakes, clutches, and other automotive components from the early 1900s. Along with other vehicle manufacturers, we have been the target of asbestos litigation and, as a result, are a defendant in various actions for injuries claimed to have resulted from alleged exposure to Ford parts and other products containing asbestos. Plaintiffs in these personal injury cases allege various health problems as a result of asbestos exposure, either from component parts found in older vehicles, insulation or other asbestos products in our facilities, or asbestos aboard our former maritime fleet. We believe that we are being targeted more aggressively in asbestos suits because many previously-targeted companies have filed for bankruptcy, or emerged from bankruptcy relieved of liability for such claims.

Most of the asbestos litigation we face involves individuals who claim to have worked on the brakes of our vehicles. We are prepared to defend these cases, and believe that the scientific evidence confirms our long-standing position that there is no increased risk of asbestos-related disease as a result of exposure to the type of asbestos formerly used in the brakes on our vehicles. The extent of our financial exposure to asbestos litigation remains very difficult to estimate and could include both compensatory and punitive damage awards. The majority of our asbestos cases do not specify a dollar amount for damages; in many of the other cases the dollar amount specified is the jurisdictional minimum, and the vast majority of these cases involve multiple defendants, sometimes more than one hundred. Many of these cases also involve multiple plaintiffs, and often we are unable to tell from the pleadings which plaintiffs are making claims against us (as opposed to other defendants). Annual payout and defense costs may become significant in the future.

ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS

We have received notices under various federal and state environmental laws that we (along with others) are or may be a potentially responsible party for the costs associated with remediating numerous hazardous substance storage, recycling, or disposal sites in many states and, in some instances, for natural resource damages. We also may have been a generator of hazardous substances at a number of other sites. The amount of any such costs or damages for which we may be held responsible could be significant.

We have two environmental legal proceedings to which a governmental authority is a party and in which we believe there is the possibility of monetary sanctions in excess of $100,000:

Notices of Violation to Ford Chicago Assembly Plant and Dearborn Truck Plant .  On August 17, 2015, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (the "EPA") issued a notice of violation to our Chicago Assembly Plant and on December 26, 2015 the EPA issued a notice of violation to our Dearborn Truck Plant.  The EPA alleges that the plants violated several requirements related to their air permits.  Monetary sanctions, if any, have not yet been determined.

CLASS ACTIONS

In light of the fact that very few of the purported class actions filed against us in the past have ever been certified by the courts as class actions, in general we list those actions that (i) have been certified as a class action by a court of competent jurisdiction (and any additional purported class actions that raise allegations substantially similar to an existing and certified class), and (ii) likely would involve a significant cost if resolved unfavorably to the Company. At this time, we have no such purported class actions filed against us.

OTHER MATTERS

Brazilian Tax Matters.   Two Brazilian states and the Brazilian federal tax authority currently have outstanding substantial tax assessments against Ford Brazil related to state and federal tax incentives Ford Brazil receives for its operations in the Brazilian state of Bahia.  All assessments have been appealed to the relevant administrative court of each jurisdiction.  For each assessment, if we do not prevail at the administrative level, we plan to appeal to the relevant state or federal judicial court, which would likely require us to post significant collateral in order to proceed. Our appeals with one state and the federal tax authority remain at the administrative level. In the other state, where two cases are pending, we have appealed to the judicial court and to date we have not been required to post collateral.

Transit Connect Customs Ruling. On March 8, 2013, U.S. Customs and Border Protection ("CBP") ruled that Transit Connects imported as passenger wagons and later converted into cargo vans are subject to the 25% duty applicable to cargo vehicles, rather than the 2.5% duty applicable to passenger vehicles. As a result of the ruling, CBP is requiring Ford to pay the 25% duty upon importation of Transit Connects that will be converted to cargo vehicles, and is seeking the difference in duty rates for prior imports. Our protest of the ruling within CBP was denied and we filed a challenge in the U.S. Court of International Trade ("CIT"). A decision by CIT may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. If we prevail, we will receive a refund of the contested amounts paid, plus interest. If we do not prevail, CBP would recover the increased duties for prior imports, plus interest, and might assert a claim for penalties.

ITEM 4.   Mine Safety Disclosures.

Not applicable.

ITEM 4A. Executive Officers of Ford.

Our executive officers are as follows, along with each executive officer's position and age at February 1, 2016:

____________

Each of the officers listed above, except for John Casesa, has been employed by Ford or its subsidiaries in one or more capacities during the past five years.  Prior to joining Ford in March 2015, John Casesa was Senior Managing Director of Guggenheim Partners, where he led the firm's automotive investment banking activities since 2010.

Under our by-laws, executive officers are elected by the Board of Directors at an annual meeting of the Board held for this purpose or by a resolution to fill a vacancy.  Each officer is elected to hold office until a successor is chosen or as otherwise provided in the by-laws.

PART II.

ITEM 5. Market for Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities.

Our Common Stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange in the United States, and on certain stock exchanges in Belgium and France.

The table below shows the high and low sales prices for our Common Stock, and the dividends we paid per share of Common and Class B Stock, for each quarterly period in 2015 and 2014:

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As of February 4, 2016, stockholders of record of Ford included approximately 137,858 holders of Common Stock and 34 holders of Class B Stock.

In March 2015, we announced a modest anti-dilutive share repurchase program to offset the dilutive effect of share-based compensation granted in 2015. The plan authorized repurchases of up to 8.5 million shares of our Common Stock. We completed the program in July 2015.  

ITEM 6. Selected Financial Data.

On December 31, 2015, we adopted a change in accounting method for certain components of expense related to our defined benefit pension and OPEB plans (see Note 1 of the Notes to the Financial Statements). We have applied the change in accounting method retrospectively to periods covered in this Report, and the amounts below reflect this change. The following table sets forth selected financial data for each of the last five years (dollar amounts in millions, except for per share amounts):

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ITEM 7.  Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

OVERVIEW

Revenue

Our Automotive sector's revenue is generated primarily by sales of vehicles, parts, and accessories; we generally treat sales and marketing incentives as a reduction to revenue. Revenue is recorded when all risks and rewards of ownership are transferred to our customers (generally, our dealers and distributors). For the majority of sales, this occurs when products are shipped from our manufacturing facilities. This is not the case, however, with respect to vehicles produced for sale to daily rental car companies that are subject to a guaranteed repurchase option. These vehicles are accounted for as operating leases, with lease revenue and profits recognized over the term of the lease. Proceeds from the sale of vehicles at auction are recognized in revenue at the time of sale.

Most of the vehicles sold by us to our dealers and distributors are financed at wholesale by Ford Credit. Upon Ford Credit originating the wholesale receivable related to a dealer's purchase of a vehicle, Ford Credit pays cash to the relevant legal entity in our Automotive sector in payment of the dealer's obligation for the purchase price of the vehicle. The dealer then pays the wholesale finance receivable to Ford Credit when it sells the vehicle to a retail customer.

Our Financial Services sector's revenue is generated primarily from interest on finance receivables, net of certain deferred origination costs that are included as a reduction of financing revenue, and such revenue is recognized over the term of the receivable using the interest method. Also, revenue from operating leases is recognized on a straight-line basis over the term of the lease. Income is generated to the extent revenues exceed expenses, most of which are interest, depreciation, and operating expenses.

Transactions between our Automotive and Financial Services sectors occur in the ordinary course of business. For example, we offer special retail financing and lease incentives to dealers' customers who choose to finance or lease our vehicles from Ford Credit. The estimated cost for these incentives is recorded as revenue reduction to Automotive sales at the later of the date the related vehicle sales to our dealers are recorded or the date the incentive program is both approved and communicated. In order to compensate Ford Credit for the lower interest or lease rates offered to the retail customer, we pay the discounted value of the incentive directly to Ford Credit when it originates the retail finance or lease contract with the dealer's customer. Ford Credit recognizes the amount over the life of retail finance contracts as an element of financing revenue and over the life of lease contracts as a reduction to depreciation. See Note 1 of the Notes to the Financial Statements for a more detailed discussion of transactions and payments between our Automotive and Financial Services sectors.

Costs and Expenses

Our income statement classifies our Automotive total costs and expenses into two categories: (i) cost of sales, and (ii) selling, administrative, and other expenses. We include within cost of sales those costs related to the development, manufacture, and distribution of our vehicles, parts, and accessories. Specifically, we include in cost of sales each of the following: material costs (including commodity costs); freight costs; warranty, including product recall and customer satisfaction program costs; labor and other costs related to the development and manufacture of our products; depreciation and amortization; and other associated costs. We include within selling, administrative, and other expenses labor and other costs not directly related to the development and manufacture of our products, including such expenses as advertising and sales promotion costs.

Certain of our costs, such as material costs, generally vary directly with changes in volume and mix of production. In our industry, production volume often varies significantly from quarter to quarter and year to year. Quarterly production volumes experience seasonal shifts throughout the year (including peak retail sales seasons, and the impact on production of model changeover and new product launches). As we have seen in recent years, annual production volumes are heavily impacted by external economic factors, including the pace of economic growth and factors such as the availability of consumer credit and cost of fuel.

As a result, we analyze the profit impact of certain cost changes holding constant present-year volume and mix and currency exchange, in order to evaluate our cost trends absent the impact of varying production and currency exchange levels. We analyze these cost changes in the following categories:

While contribution costs generally vary directly in proportion to production volume, elements within our structural costs category are impacted to differing degrees by changes in production volume. We also have varying degrees of discretion when it comes to controlling the different elements within our structural costs. For example, depreciation and amortization expense largely is associated with prior capital spending decisions. On the other hand, while labor costs do not vary directly with production volume, manufacturing labor costs may be impacted by changes in volume, for example when we increase overtime, add a production shift or add personnel to support volume increases. Other structural costs, such as advertising or engineering costs, do not necessarily have a directly proportionate relationship to production volume. Our structural costs generally are within our discretion, although to varying degrees, and can be adjusted over time in response to external factors.

We consider certain structural costs to be a direct investment in future growth and revenue. For example, increases in structural costs are necessary to grow our business and improve profitability as we expand around the world, invest in new products and technologies, respond to increasing industry sales volume, and grow our market share.

Automotive total costs and expenses for full-year 2015 was $134.5 billion. Material and commodity costs make up the largest portion of our Automotive total costs and expenses, representing in 2015 about two-thirds of the total amount. Of the remaining balance of our Automotive costs and expenses, the largest piece is structural costs. Although material costs are our largest absolute cost, our margins can be affected significantly by changes in any category of costs.

Key Economic Factors and Trends Affecting the Automotive Industry

Currency Exchange Rate Volatility. The U.S. Federal Reserve raised its policy interest rate in December 2015, for the first time since 2006, and the resulting shifts in capital flows have contributed to downward pressure on several emerging market currencies. In some cases that pressure is aggravated by low commodity prices, high inflation, or unstable policy environments. Additionally, the yen and euro have depreciated as a result of monetary policy easing by the Bank of Japan and European Central Bank.  The weak yen, in particular, adds significant potential downward pressure on vehicle pricing across many markets globally.  In most markets, exchange rates are market-determined, and all are impacted by many different macroeconomic and policy factors, and thus likely to remain volatile.  However, in some markets, exchange rates are heavily influenced or controlled by governments.

Excess Capacity. According to IHS Automotive, an automotive research firm, the estimated automotive industry global production capacity for light vehicles of about 119 million units exceeded global production by about 31 million units in 2015.  In North America and Europe, two regions where a significant share of industry revenue is earned, excess capacity as a percent of production was an estimated 7% and 22%, respectively, in 2015. In China, the auto industry also witnessed excess capacity at 54% of production in 2015, as manufacturers competed to capitalize on China's future market potential. According to production capacity data projected by IHS Automotive, global excess capacity conditions could continue for several years at an average of about 33 million units per year during the period from 2016 to 2020.

Pricing Pressure. Excess capacity, coupled with a proliferation of new products being introduced in key segments, will keep pressure on manufacturers' ability to increase prices.  In North America, the industry restructuring of the past few years has allowed manufacturers to better match production with demand, although Japanese and Korean manufacturers also have capacity located outside of the region directed to North America.  In the future, Chinese and Indian manufacturers are expected to enter U.S. and European markets, further intensifying competition.  Over the long term, intense competition and excess capacity will continue to put downward pressure on inflation-adjusted prices for similarly-contented vehicles in the United States and contribute to a challenging pricing environment for the automotive industry.  In Europe, the excess capacity situation was exacerbated by weakening demand and the lack of reductions in existing capacity, such that negative pricing pressure is expected to continue for the foreseeable future.

Commodity and Energy Price Changes. The price of oil has continued to decline in early 2016, after averaging under $50 per barrel in 2015, as global supply remains strong despite the ongoing price pressures. Other commodity prices also have declined recently, but over the longer term prices are likely to trend higher given expectations for global demand growth.

Vehicle Profitability. Our financial results depend on the profitability of the vehicles we sell, which may vary significantly by vehicle line. In general, larger vehicles tend to command higher prices and be more profitable than smaller vehicles, both across and within vehicle segments. For example, in North America, our larger, more profitable vehicles had an average contribution margin that was about 135% of our total average contribution margin across all vehicles, whereas our smaller vehicles had significantly lower contribution margins. Government regulations aimed at reducing emissions and increasing fuel efficiency may increase the cost of vehicles by more than the perceived benefit to the consumer. Given the backdrop of excess capacity, these regulations could dampen contribution margins. As we execute our One Ford plan, we are working to create best-in-class vehicles on global platforms that contribute higher margins, and offering a more balanced portfolio of vehicles with which we aim to be among the leaders in fuel efficiency in every segment in which we compete.

Increasing Sales of Smaller Vehicles . Like other manufacturers, we are increasing our participation in newly-developed and emerging markets, such as Brazil, Russia, India, and China, in which vehicle sales are expected to increase at a faster rate than in most mature markets. The largest segments in these markets are small vehicles (i.e., Sub-B, B, and C segments). To increase our participation in these fast-growing markets, we are significantly increasing our production capacity, directly or through joint ventures. Although we expect positive contribution margins from higher small vehicle sales, one result of increased production of small vehicles may be that, over time, our average per unit margin decreases because small vehicles tend to have lower margins than medium and large vehicles.

Trade Policy. To the extent governments in various regions erect or intensify barriers to imports, or implement currency policy that advantages local exporters selling into the global marketplace, there can be a significant negative impact on manufacturers based in markets that promote free trade.  While we believe the long-term trend is toward the growth of free trade, we have noted with concern recent developments in a number of regions.  In Asia Pacific, for example, the recent dramatic depreciation of the yen significantly reduces the cost of exports into the United States, Europe, and other global markets by Japanese manufacturers.  Over a period of time, the emerging weakness of the yen can contribute to other countries pursuing weak currency policies by intervening in the exchange rate markets.  This is particularly likely in other Asian countries, such as South Korea.  As another example, government actions in South America to incentivize local production and balance trade are driving trade frictions between South American countries and also with Mexico, resulting in business environment instability and new trade barriers.  We will continue to monitor and address developing issues around trade policy. 

Other Economic Factors. During 2015, mature market government bond yields and inflation were lower than expected, and there is a rising risk of persistent disinflation and, in some markets, even outright deflation. The lower levels of inflation and interest rates were unexpected partially because they have occurred against a backdrop of loose monetary policy and high levels of mature market deficits and debt. The eventual implications of higher government deficits and debt, with potentially higher long-term interest rates, may still drive a higher cost of capital over our planning period.  Higher interest rates and/or taxes to address the higher deficits also may impede real growth in gross domestic product and, therefore, vehicle sales over our planning period.

For additional information on our assessment of the business environment, refer to the "Outlook" section below.

Trends and Strategies

The traditional global automotive industry achieves around $2.3 trillion in revenue per year. Today, our share of this is about 6%. At the same time, transportation services , which includes services such as mass transit, taxis, and ride sharing, totals about $5.4 trillion in revenue annually, and is expected to grow in the next 15 years. Yet, we and our auto industry competitors receive virtually none of the revenue from those transportation services. That is about to change. We see being an auto company and a mobility company as a significant opportunity, and we are very serious about investing in, innovating in, and leading in both.

Strengthening Today's Business. We are strengthening and investing in our core business of designing, developing, manufacturing, marketing, financing, and servicing cars, trucks, SUVs, and electrified vehicles. Having completed the launch of 16 new vehicles globally in 2015, we are planning another active product year in 2016 with 12 global product launches, including the new F-Series Super Duty, Ford GT, and Lincoln Continental. We will add more electrified products for Ford and Lincoln, including the new Focus Electric, which features all-new DC fast-charge capability delivering an 80% charge in an estimated 30 minutes and a projected 100-mile range. Through 2020, we plan to invest $4.5 billion in electrified vehicle solutions. Strengthening our business includes restructuring the parts that have no reasonable prospect for profitability or are no longer relevant for the future we see for ourselves.

Pursuing Emerging Opportunities. At the same time that we are strengthening our core business, we are pursuing emerging opportunities through Ford Smart Mobility, our plan to be a leader in connectivity, mobility, autonomous vehicles, the customer experience, and data and analytics. We will have more to say concerning Ford Smart Mobility throughout the year, but a few of the highlights so far include:

Our Three Priorities. As we strengthen our core business and prepare for emerging opportunities, we are staying focused on three priorities:

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

On December 31, 2015, we adopted a change in accounting method for certain components of expense related to our defined benefit pension and OPEB plans (see Note 1 of the Notes to the Financial Statements). We have applied the change in accounting method retrospectively to periods covered in this Report, and the amounts below reflect this change.

TOTAL COMPANY

Our net income attributable to Ford Motor Company was $7.4 billion or $1.84 per share of Common and Class B Stock in 2015, an increase of $6.1 billion or $1.53 per share from 2014.

Our pre-tax results and net income were as follows:

Net income includes certain items ("special items") that we have grouped into "Pension and OPEB Remeasurements," "Personnel and Dealer-Related Items," and "Other Items" to provide useful information to investors about the nature of the special items. The first category includes pension and OPEB remeasurement gains and losses. These gains and losses, generally recognized in the fourth quarter, are not reflective of our underlying Automotive business results. The second category includes items related to our efforts to match production capacity and cost structure to market demand and changing model mix and therefore helps investors track amounts related to those activities. The third category includes items that we do not generally consider to be indicative of our ongoing operating activities, and therefore allows investors analyzing our pre-tax results to identify certain infrequent significant items that they may wish to exclude when considering the trend of ongoing operating results.

As detailed in Note 24 of the Notes to the Financial Statements, we allocate special items to a separate reconciling item, as opposed to allocating them among the operating segments and Other Automotive, reflecting the fact that management excludes these items from its review of operating segment results for purposes of measuring segment profitability and allocating resources among the segments.

The following table details Automotive sector special items in each category:

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Our tax special items of $205 million and $1.9 billion in 2015 and 2014, respectively, primarily reflect the tax associated with our pre-tax special items. Our tax special item of $116 million in 2013 reflects the tax associated with our pre-tax special items, offset by a favorable increase in deferred tax assets related to investments in our European operations and the release of valuation allowances held against U.S. state and local deferred tax assets.

The following table shows our earnings per share on a diluted basis for full year 2015:

Discussion of Automotive sector, Financial Services sector, and total Company results of operations below is on a pre-tax basis and excludes special items unless otherwise specifically noted. References to records by Automotive segments-North America, South America, Europe, Middle East & Africa, and Asia Pacific-are since at least 2000 when we began reporting specific business unit results.

Results by Segment. The chart below shows our 2015 Company pre-tax results by Automotive business unit, along with Other Automotive which is mainly net interest expense, and our Financial Services sector.

We achieved a record Company full-year pre-tax profit of $10.8 billion in 2015. Collectively, our operations outside of North America were profitable and every business unit, with the exception of South America, was profitable in 2015. In Europe, we earned $259 million, reflecting the progress of our Transformation Plan announced in 2012. Asia Pacific had its best-ever annual profit. North America and Ford Credit continued to deliver benchmark profitability. And as shown below the chart, all business units improved compared to 2014.

AUTOMOTIVE SECTOR

Definitions and calculations used in this report include:

In general, we measure year-over-year change in Automotive pre-tax operating profit for our total Automotive sector and reportable segments using the causal factors listed below, with net pricing and cost variances calculated at present-year volume and mix and exchange:

2015 Compared with 2014

The charts on the following pages detail 2015 key metrics and the change in 2015 pre-tax results compared with 2014 by causal factor for our Automotive sector and its segments.

Shown above are the key market factors and financial metrics for our Automotive business for full year 2015. Our Automotive operating margin of 6.8 percent was the highest since at least the 1990s. Each of the key metrics improved compared to 2014:

• Wholesale volume was up 5%,

• Automotive revenue was up 4%, or 9% at constant exchange,

• Automotive operating margin was up 2.2 points or nearly 50%, and

• Record full year Automotive pre-tax profit, at $8.8 billion, was up 60%.

Global industry volume, estimated at 89.5 million units, was up 1.4 million units from a year ago. Our global market share, at 7.3%, was up two-tenths of a percentage point with gains in South America and Europe.

As shown above, our full year Automotive pre-tax profit improved by $3.3 billion. The improvement was driven by $7.4 billion of favorable market factors, reflecting the success of our new product launches, our Asia Pacific growth strategy, as well as industry growth in North America and Europe. Cost increases were mainly product-related costs and manufacturing and engineering expense that supported our growth in 2015, and will support further growth in 2016 and beyond.

Total costs and expenses. For 2015 and 2014, total costs and expenses, including special items, for our Automotive sector were $134.5 billion and $136.8 billion, respectively, a difference of $2.3 billion. The detail for the change is shown below (in billions):

North America had an outstanding year, with each of North America's key metrics improving compared with a year ago. We delivered substantial top-line growth, operating margin at 10.2%, and full year pre-tax profit of $9.3 billion-up 26%.

The North America industry volume improved compared with a year ago; the U.S. industry volume totaled 17.8 million units, up 1 million units. U.S. market share was flat compared to last year. In addition, although not shown above, U.S. retail share increased one-tenth of a percentage point to 13.0% driven by strong demand for our newest products, including F-150 and Mustang.

Favorable volume and mix and higher net pricing drove North America's pre-tax profit higher than a year ago. Higher costs, including a one-time ratification bonus in Other related to the UAW agreement in the fourth quarter, and unfavorable exchange were partial offsets.

With the 16 global product launches last year, we expect about 45% of our wholesales in 2016 to be from products that we launched since January 2015.

We achieved our highest annual sales in the United States since 2005. Ford remained the best-selling vehicle brand in the United States and Ford F-Series was the best-selling vehicle in the United States for the 34th straight year.

Wholesale volume, revenue, and operating margin were each lower than a year ago, reflecting the continued deterioration of the business environment in South America. Despite the tough conditions, South America's pre-tax loss for the full year was reduced by $332 million, or 29%, compared to last year.

The South America industry volume, at 4.2 million units, was down 1.1 million units. Most of this was in Brazil.

Ford's market share in South America, at 9.6%, was up seven-tenths of a percentage point reflecting our strong performance in Brazil with the all-new Ka.

The full year pre-tax loss in South America was less severe than a year ago, reflecting higher net pricing and market share, partially offset by lower industry.

Our team in the region continues to work on all areas of the business to counter the effects of the difficult business environment and position ourselves to be able to recover quickly once conditions begin to improve.

With the exception of revenue, which was impacted adversely by the strong U.S. dollar, all metrics for the full year were better than a year ago.

The Europe industry volume was 600,000 units higher compared to a year ago, more than explained by the improvement in the Europe 20 markets. Our total Europe market share in the region was up five-tenths of a percentage point to 7.7%, reflecting the strength of EcoSport and Mondeo and geographic mix.

In 2015, Ford became Europe's best-selling commercial vehicle brand, reflecting the strength of our renewed Transit line-up and Ranger as well as our dedicated dealer network support.

In Europe, our full year pre-tax profit was $259 million, up over $850 million compared to a year ago. The improvement in Europe reflects favorable market factors and improved costs flowing through to the bottom line, partially offset by unfavorable exchange and the consolidation of Ford Sollers, our joint venture in Russia. Returning to profitability in 2015 reflected the progress of our Transformation Plan announced in 2012.

Our pre-tax results and operating margin improved from a year ago, reflecting higher net pricing offset by lower volume. Wholesale volume and revenue declined compared to a year ago.

The industry volume for the region was flat and our market share declined one-tenth of a percentage point due to industry growth in markets in which we do not participate. Market share was higher compared to 2014 in the major markets in which we do participate.

In Asia Pacific, we had our best year yet as we continue to execute our growth strategy.

Asia Pacific achieved record volume, revenue, operating margin, and pre-tax profit in 2015, mainly reflecting the strength of our new products, including the all-new three-row Edge, Figo, Everest, Lincoln MKX, Taurus, and new Ranger.

Our China joint ventures contributed $1.5 billion to pre-tax profit in 2015, reflecting our equity share of the unconsolidated joint ventures' after-tax earnings; this was $234 million higher than last year.

The industry volume for the region was 40.5 million units, up 800,000 units from a year ago, more than explained by an increase in the China industry volume. For the full year, both our Asia Pacific regional market share of 3.5% and our China market share of 4.5% were the same as a year ago.

Asia Pacific delivered an outstanding year with a record pre-tax profit of $765 million, up 29% from a year ago. Favorable volume was driven by strong industry in China, where we were able to leverage the government incentive program with our strong line-up of vehicles with 1.6L or smaller engines. Higher mix reflected the strength of our new products, highlighted by the performance of the locally produced all-new three-row Edge. Higher structural cost was a partial offset to the improvement, as we continue to invest for further growth in the region.

2014 Compared with 2013

The charts on the following pages detail 2014 key metrics and the change in 2014 pre-tax results compared with 2013 by causal factor for our Automotive sector and its operating segments-North America, South America, Europe, Middle East & Africa, and Asia Pacific.

As shown above, full-year wholesale volume was about equal to 2013. Automotive sector revenue was lower than in 2013 by 3%, more than explained by lower volume from consolidated operations and unfavorable exchange. Operating margin, at 4.6%, and pre-tax profit, at $5.5 billion, were also lower.

Lower pre-tax profit was driven by the Americas; all other business units improved. Higher costs, including warranty, unfavorable exchange, and lower volume, including product launch effects and supplier parts shortages, more than explain the decline. Higher net pricing was a partial offset.

Total costs and expenses. For 2014 and 2013, total costs and expenses, including special items, for our Automotive sector were $136.9 billion and $127.9 billion, respectively, a difference of $9 billion. The detail for the change is shown below (in billions):