Ford has launched the lease-sharing program it announced earlier this year, starting with three dealerships in Austin, Texas. It's called Ford Credit Link and it's sort of similar to a friends and family plan from a cellular carrier, but for sharing a car.
Having your own car is nice. But most of the time, your car sits in a parking space, not being driven. Some companies think the answer is not owning a car at all, but renting one instead. But Ford has a new idea — sharing a car lease between multiple "self-organized groups."
There's a gadget that plugs into the car and allows co-lessees to reserve drive time, check vehicle status, keep up with maintenance, communicate with each other, view their account, and make payments. Ford envisions a variety of different types of users, from college students to coworkers to roommates.
Ford is launching a special, Austin-based ad campaign with the tagline "Is it shareable?" No word on expansion plans, but if successful, it's easy to see how Ford Credit Link might be offered as a purchase option across the country.