Hertz Becomes Wholly Owned Subsidiary of Ford Motor Company

    DEARBORN, Mich., March 9 Ford Motor Company
announced that the merger of The Hertz Corporation with a Ford
subsidiary became effective today.  As a result, Hertz is now an indirect,
wholly owned subsidiary of Ford.
    Ford reached an agreement with Hertz in January to acquire the remaining
18.5 percent of Hertz Class A common stock it did not already own at a price
of $35.50 per share.  A tender offer for the shares expired March 2, and
resulted in about 19.3 million of the approximately 20 million publicly traded
shares of Hertz Class A common stock being purchased.
    The New York Stock Exchange has advised Ford it will suspend trading in
Hertz on Monday, March 12.
    Ford Motor Company is the world's second largest automaker, with
approximately 345,000 employees on six continents.  Its automotive brands
include Aston Martin, Ford, Jaguar, Land Rover, Lincoln, Mazda, Mercury and
Volvo.  Its automotive-related services include Ford Credit, Quality Care, and
Hertz.
    The Hertz Corporation, based in Park Ridge, N.J., is the world's largest
car rental company and also operates a leading equipment rental business.
Hertz operates in 143 countries from approximately 6,500 locations.