You can bet that citizens of Detroit– or more generally the state of Michigan– hope their fate is similar to that of Ford (F). Just a few years ago, Ford was heading down the path to bankruptcy and failure. Its CEO was one of the big automakers who pleaded before Congress on national television to save the industry. Although Ford had the best finances out of those three companies, it still was in bad shape. Today, Ford has regained much of the traction it lost.

This is embodied in Ford’s quest to regain its trademark blue logo, which it had to give to the banks as collateral in order to secure a $23.5 billion loan. Under the conditions of the loan, in order to regain its trademark it had to be deemed investment quality by two different agencies. With the recent upgrade to investment quality by Moody’s, Ford now has complete control over all of its assets, including the blue logo. In short, Ford is no longer burdened by its debt.

Now that it is no longer mired in bureaucracy and red tape, Ford has really shifted its attention toward the future. Specifically, it is focusing heavily on electric and environmentally conscious vehicles. Due in part to stricter emissions standards, Ford plans to triple the production of its EcoBoost vehicles that cut emissions by about 15%. Additionally, it plans to extend the EcoBoost technology from five vehicles to ten, diversifying its product line.To continue reading, click here.