REITZLE RUMORS HEATING UP
The man Ford brought in to run its own luxury-brand group may be on the
way out. The latest in a series of rumors has Wolfgang Reitzle, head of
Ford's Premier Automotive Group, ditching the second-largest automaker to
join a German engineering firm, Reuters reports. Reitzle, who left BMW
after the company's labor unions blocked him from the chairmanship, joined
Ford in 1999. If Reitzle leaves, he forfeits a $5 million bonus for
staying on through 2005. Other sources from within Ford suggest that
Lincoln Mercury may soon be reoriented, away from the PAG and back under
the Ford car-development team in Dearborn.
The man Ford brought in to run its own luxury-brand group may be on the
way out. The latest in a series of rumors has Wolfgang Reitzle, head of
Ford's Premier Automotive Group, ditching the second-largest automaker to
join a German engineering firm, Reuters reports. Reitzle, who left BMW
after the company's labor unions blocked him from the chairmanship, joined
Ford in 1999. If Reitzle leaves, he forfeits a $5 million bonus for
staying on through 2005. Other sources from within Ford suggest that
Lincoln Mercury may soon be reoriented, away from the PAG and back under
the Ford car-development team in Dearborn.