Mulally told reporters the advantage Ford’s new vehicles will keep over Chrysler and General Motors, its fellow American counterparts, in the coming year 2010. Ford has made modest gains in its sales and market share while its Detroit counterparts were bailed out by government aid to avoid falling into bankruptcy.

For 2009, Ford started out with about $27 billion in debt mainly due to the worst recession to hit the American and global economy since the Great Depression. Mulally said his company has repaid $10 billion of its debt during the past year and has sold over $1.6 billion worth of its stocks. He adds that the automaker is poised to accelerate its debt payments as it aims to achieve profitability in 2011.

Ford mortgaged all of its assets in 2006 to be able to borrow $23.5 billion worth of funds. These loans have helped the company avoid filing for Chapter 11 and the government aid that its competitors, GM and Chrysler, needed to stay afloat.

“Everybody knows how fast we are getting back to profitability and free cash flow,” Mulally said. “Then we’ll just accelerate the improvements to the balance sheet.”

In November of 2009, Ford reported a profit of nearly one billion dollars during the third quarter of 2009 and forecasted that the company will continuously make gains in 2010 up to 2011. The borrowing and improved cash position have allowed Ford to revamp its product lineup and keep it fresh to tackle the rigors of this continuing recession, while also battling international automakers like Toyota for the industry market share. Mullaly made his statements at the town of Wayne in Detroit where the new factory for the new European version of the Focus compact car is located.