Oct. 11--Ford Motor Co. Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally spoke Friday about the decision, during the middle of a sweeping economic crisis, to replace retiring Chief Financial Officer Don Leclair with Lewis Booth.

QUESTION: Why are you making this change in management right now?

ANSWER: Well, Don's had a great career and we decided we can accommodate his retirement now. We have a great succession plan with Lewis Booth able to join the team.

Q: Was Leclair under a lot of stress in the current environment? Why leave now?

A: Again, he's had a great career. We're all working hard.

He stated he wanted to spend a little more time with his family and, you know, relax a little bit. And that's pretty understandable.

Q: Your share price is close to $2. Do you think shareholders are acting rationally in their assessment of Ford stock? Why are Ford shares worth buying?

A: I think the consumer confidence has really been hurt and that's why we're seeing the response across the stock market, not just Ford.

To your other point, I think clearly that the response we've gotten over the last several years about our plan to focus on the Ford brand and leverage our global assets, be in all of the markets, move to common platforms, the whole One Ford strategy has been appreciated by everybody.

I haven't heard anybody saying that we're not doing the right things for the long term. But really we have a hair-trigger strategy with the economy.

Q: What is your assessment of your cash position for the next 12 to 18 months?

A: I think we're being very disciplined in our cash management. ... We went to the market early, over a year and half ago, and we decided to borrow enough and also have a cushion in case the economy degraded even further. And in hindsight, that was very prudent.

Q: Credit availability seems to be a big issue for your suppliers, your consumers. How concerned are you about your consumers' ability to get credit to buy cars and trucks?

A: Well, I think we are very concerned about the availability of credit not just from the automobile purchaser, but the availability of credit for our economic system.

Banks to banks and banks to industry, everything has tightened down, and so the biggest concern here is that it will contribute to a slowing economy, which will hurt all of us. ... I have a lot of faith in the secretary of the Treasury and the Fed and their fiscal and monetary policy.

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