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Online Voting Begins for Ford Customer Service Divison's Second Annual Funny Car Design Contest to Support Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation

[image: MC-QL_NewsReleaseHeader.jpg]
 *
* *FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*



*ONLINE Voting begins for Ford Customer Service Division’s SECOND ANNUAL
FUNNY CAR DESIGN CONTEST TO SUPPORT juvenile diabetes research foundation*



·        Voting for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) design
that will be featured on the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Shelby Mustang Funny Car
begins Thursday, July 2, and is open until Friday, August 14.



·        The public is invited to visit www.jdrf.org/ford to make a donation
for their favorite car design. The top five donation-earning designs will be
judged and narrowed down to one.  The winning design will be featured at the
NHRA Carolinas Nationals in Concord, NC on September 18.



 DEARBORN, Mich., July 2, 2009 – It’s okay to vote early and vote often… at
least when the voting helps out a good cause.



Starting today, and running through August 14, the public is invited to
visit www.jdrf.org/ford, view more than 200 paint scheme designs and vote
for their favorite children’s design by making a monetary donation to JDRF,
all as part of Ford Customer Service Division’s second annual Funny Car
Design Contest.



The top five donation-earning designs will go in front of a panel of judges
and narrowed down to one.  The winning design will be featured on
Motorcraft/Quick Lane sponsored Mustang Shelby driven by Bob Tasca III
during the NHRA Carolinas Nationals in Concord, NC, on Sept. 18-20.



For the past month, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) children
have taken their crayons, markers and paintbrushes to a blank canvas in the
shape of the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Shelby Mustang Funny Car.  Their goal –
see their design come to life on Tasca’s Shelby Mustang Nitro funny car in
September.



“We had some amazing designs last year and I think the JDRF children have
really raised the bar for this year’s contest,” said Darryl Hazel, Ford
Customer Service Division president. “All of us at Ford are really excited
for this year’s program and are ready to go online to vote.  We are honored
to have this partnership with JDRF to help them raise awareness and a cure
for Type 1 diabetes.”



The winning designer will be selected on August 17, 2009. They will be
invited to the NHRA Carolinas Nationals in Concord, NC, with his or her
parents for an official unveiling of their paint scheme, and a chance to
spend time with the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Racing team and see their design
run during qualifying sessions for the race.



Last year’s winner was Samuel Millard, a six-year-old resident of
Greenville, Texas, and member of the Greater Dallas Chapter of the Juvenile
Diabetes Research Foundation. Millard and his family were special guests at
the NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis where his design appeared on Tasca’s
Ford Shelby Mustang Nitro Funny Car. Last year’s contest drew 306 designs
and help raise awareness and more than $84,000 for JDRF.



Diabetes affects more Ford families than any other disease.  Ford Motor
Company has raised more than $27 million for JDRF since the grassroots
campaign started in 1998.



*About Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF)*

JDRF is the leading charitable funder and advocate of type 1 (juvenile)
diabetes research worldwide. The mission of JDRF is to find a cure for
diabetes and its complications through the support of research. Type 1
diabetes is a disease, which strikes children suddenly and requires multiple
injections of insulin daily or a continuous infusion of insulin through a
pump. Insulin, however, is not a cure for diabetes, nor does it prevent its
eventual and devastating complications, which may include kidney failure,
blindness, heart disease, stroke, and amputation.



Since its founding in 1970 by parents of children with type 1 diabetes, JDRF
has awarded more than $1.3 billion to diabetes research, including more than
$156 million in FY2008.  In FY2008, the Foundation funded 1,000 centers,
grants and fellowships in 22 countries. http://www.jdrf.org


About Motorcraft

Motorcraft® offers a complete line of original equipment-approved parts that
are recommended and approved by Ford Motor Company. From routine maintenance
to underhood and powertrain repairs, Motorcraft parts offer exceptional
value with the highest quality and right fit at competitive prices.
Motorcraft parts are available locally and are backed nationwide by Ford
Motor Company's Service Parts Limited Warranty. For more information, visit
www.motorcraft.com
.


*About Quick Lane *

Quick Lane® provides automotive quick services for all makes and models.
Quick Lane's® nationwide network of over 500 facilities provides the
convenience of an aftermarket company (no appointment necessary, service
while you wait, evening and weekend hours, competitive prices) with the
confidence of a major automotive manufacturer (quality parts,
factory-trained technicians).  Quick Lane® is a registered trademark of Ford
Motor Company. For more information, visit
*www.quicklane.com
*.

* *

*About Ford Motor Company*

Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn,
Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles across six continents.   With
more than 213,000 employees and about 90 plants worldwide, the company’s
wholly owned brands include Ford, Lincoln, Mercury and Volvo. The company
provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company.  For more
information regarding Ford’s products, please visit
www.ford.com
.


Motorcraft/Quick Lane Racing On the Web

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/MQL_Racing

Facebook: http://tinyurl.com/MotorcraftQuickLaneRacing

Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/motorcraftquicklaneracing/





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*MEDIA CONTACT:*

*Susan Pollack*

*Motorcraft/Quick Lane *Tire & Auto Center

313.203.7162 | 313.434.6912

spollack@pcgcampbell.com

www.twitter.com/MQL_Racing