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Ford Investment Enterprises Corporation Names Don Thornton

26 February 1999

Don Thornton Named Director of Governmental and Business Liaison For Ford Investment Enterprises Corporation

    DEARBORN, Mich., Feb. 26 -- Don Thornton has been named
director of Governmental and Business Liaison for Ford Investment Enterprises
Corporation (FIECo), according to Ross Roberts, president of FIECo, a
subsidiary of Ford Motor Company .
    In that position, Thornton will be responsible for ongoing communication
activities with dealers, trade associations and governmental units.  He
retains the title of chief executive officer of the Tulsa Auto Collection.
    "We're pleased that Don Thornton will serve as FIECo's point person in our
relationship with various units of government as well as to our vital business
interests," Roberts said.  "Thornton brings a wealth of knowledge from his
years in the retail side of the business -- plus he has an intimate knowledge
of the Auto Collection concept by virtue of being the first Auto Collection
CEO."
    Prior to becoming CEO of the Tulsa Auto Collection in June 1998, Thornton
was President of Don Thornton Ford in Tulsa.
    He joined the automotive retail business in 1963 in Greensboro, North
Carolina as a salesperson at Greensboro Ford, after finishing a three year
tour of duty as a Captain with the United States Air Force and working as a
stockbroker for three years.  He held a variety of other positions within the
dealership including used vehicle manager, finance and insurance manager and
new vehicle manager.  In 1966 Thornton became the general sales manager of
Maher Brothers Ford in Dallas.
    Thornton opened Don Thornton Ford in Tulsa in 1971.  He has won Ford Motor
Company's Distinguished Achievement Award for Quality for 11 consecutive
years, has been named by Time magazine as one of the top ten dealers in the
nation, and led the state of Oklahoma in new Ford retail sales for seven of
the last nine years.
    A native of Wilmington, North Carolina, Thornton graduated from the
University of North Carolina in 1955 with a bachelor of science degree in
business administration.  He and wife Barbara have three daughters.