Ford 2003 Annual Report Download - page 104

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102 FORD MOTOR COMPANY
MANAGEMENT’S FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND REPORT OF INDEPENDENT AUDITORS
MANAGEMENT’S FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Management is responsible for the preparation of the Company’s financial statements and the other financial information in
this report. This responsibility includes maintaining the integrity and objectivity of financial records and the presentation of the
Company’s financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles.
The Company maintains an internal control structure intended to provide, among other things, reasonable assurance that its
records include the transactions of its operations in all material respects and to provide protection against significant misuse or
loss of Company assets. Management believes that the internal control structure meets these objectives. The internal control
structure is supported by careful selection and training of qualified personnel, written policies and procedures that communicate
details of the internal control structure to the Company’s world-wide activities, and by a staff of internal auditors who employ
thorough auditing programs.
The Company’s financial statements have been audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, independent auditors. Their audit was
conducted in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards, which included consideration of the Company’s internal
control structure. The Report of Independent Auditors appears below.
The Board of Directors, acting through its Audit Committee composed solely of directors who are independent of the Company,
is responsible for determining that management fulfills its responsibilities in the financial control of operations and the preparation
of financial statements. The Audit Committee appoints the independent auditors, subject to ratification by the stockholders.
It meets regularly with management, internal auditors, and the independent auditors. The independent auditors and internal
auditors have full and free access to the Audit Committee and meet with it to discuss their audit work, the Company’s
internal controls, and financial reporting matters.
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT AUDITORS
To the Board of Directors and Stockholders
Ford Motor Company:
In our opinion, the accompanying consolidated balance sheet and the related consolidated statements of income, of stock-
holders’ equity and of cash flows present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of Ford Motor Company and its
subsidiaries at December 31, 2003 and 2002, and the results of their operations and their cash flows for each of the three years
in the period ended December 31, 2003 in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of
America. In addition, in our opinion, the accompanying sector balance sheet and the related sector statements of income and of
cash flows, presented for purposes of additional analysis, present fairly, in all material respects, the information set forth therein
when read in conjunction with the related consolidated financial statements. The consolidated and sector financial statements
(collectively, the “financial statements”) are the responsibility of the Company’s management; our responsibility is to express an
opinion on these financial statements based on our audits. We conducted our audits of these financial statements in accordance
with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of America, which require that we plan and perform the audit to
obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes exam-
ining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, assessing the accounting
principles used and significant estimates made by management, and evaluating the overall financial statement presentation.
We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
As discussed in Note 1 to the financial statements, on January 1, 2003, the Company adopted Statement of Financial
Accounting Standards (“SFAS”) No. 148, “Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation — Transition and Disclosure.” As
discussed in Note 13 to the financial statements, on July 1, 2003, the Company adopted Financial Accounting Standards
Board Interpretation No. 46, “Consolidation of Variable Interest Entities, an Interpretation of ARB No. 51.” As discussed
in Note 7 to the financial statements, on January 1, 2002, the Company adopted SFAS No. 142, “Goodwill and Other
Intangible Assets.” As discussed in Note 3 to the financial statements, on January 1, 2002, the Company adopted SFAS
No. 144, “Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets.”
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Detroit, Michigan
March 10, 2004
Don R. Leclair
Group Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
William Clay Ford, Jr.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
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