Ford Teams With UPS on Delivery Tracking

Ford Motor said it will work with a unit of United Parcel Service to cut nearly in half the time it takes vehicles to move from the assembly line to the dealership. The partnership with UPS Logistics Group eventually will let car buyers use the Internet to track a new vehicle through the delivery process, the way they now can track packages. When implemented sometime in March, the system should reduce the average time a new vehicle is in transit from 14 or 15 days to eight or nine, Ford said. The partnership plans to begin the program with Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles in the West and Southwest. Financial terms of the partnership were not disclosed. On the New York Stock Exchange, Ford’s shares fell $1.19 to close at $48.63. Shares of UPS tumbled $3.13 to close at $58.25, also on the NYSE.