In the 1940s, Ford ran a famous billboard with an outstretched hand and a crystal ball, with the caption, "There's A Ford in Your Future."

	Ford Peter Horbury, Ford Motor Co. executive director of design, North America. Click photo for larger image.

Today, it's Peter Horbury who has a hand in shaping Ford's future.

Mr. Horbury, executive director of Design, North America, oversees the design, strategy and execution of all Ford, Lincoln and Mercury products in North America.

He previously had been Ford's Premier Automotive Group executive director of design, responsible for overseeing design, strategy and processes for Aston Martin, Jaguar, Lincoln and Volvo.

Before working at Ford, he had been design director of Volvo Car Corp., where he was instrumental in creating and implementing stylish new design language for the current range of Volvo products, including the XC90 SUV and the Volvo Safety Concept Car.

The native of Alnwick, Northumberland, U.K., received his master's degree in automotive design from the Royal College of Art in 1974, and an undergraduate degree from Newcastle-upon-Tyne College of Art and Industrial Design in 1972.

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Question: How critical an element is styling now?

Answer: When cars start to become equally reliable and equally competent in other aspects, then the differentiator between brands has to be the way that it looks.

Q: Where do you think Ford should be heading with its designs?

A: I feel we should be pursuing a very bold American look to our cars. When I worked for Volvo, I was selling Volvo and Sweden to the world. It's easier now to be designing American cars for American customers on American soil. So I think we should reflect American values and characteristics in our designs.

Q: Why is Ford taking so much criticism for some of its designs these days?

A: We are an American car company. When our vehicles reflect that in style, like Mustang did, it works and customers come knocking on our door.

When we lose that American quality, perhaps by seeking a more Germanic or Far Eastern look, it tends to be less honest to Ford and the Ford brand. That's where concentration on being bold and American will help ensure that we will attract customers in the future.

Q: Some say that we are either in a renaissance period now with automotive styling and design or we are entering one. What do you think?

A: I think we are. The cars that are really successful these days in France, Germany, Italy, Japan and here as well are those that are true to their country of origin in their sense of style and design. The French lost their way during the 1980s, for instance, but now they've got it back and they are making truly French cars. And they're selling. It's the same with Italy. The successful Italian designs are the ones that look Italian.

But in Germany, in some cases you can see how one or two of the German companies are losing their way because they're not being true to their own identity. They're trying to please too many people, and in doing so they have lost the disciplined approach to design, which is one of the things that had made German companies as successful as they have been.

Q: That brings us to what's happening at your own company. Ford has been doing a lot of commercials, advertising and speeches about "American" and "bold." What can we expect from Ford?

A: We've been working very, very hard to get that message out.

There are several distinctive characteristics of America in history and culture. One is optimism and a belief that life will only get better. People came here from Europe and elsewhere with a sole intent of improving themselves and their lives.

If we can turn that feeling of optimism into sheet metal, we will have winning designs. We want to exemplify the openness of America.

Q: So how will you express that openness and optimism in design at Ford?

A: Remember the Ford Super Chief [a concept truck at this year's North American International Auto Show]? The sheet metal on that had a particular curvature to it that was quite substantial. There were no sharp lines. Paper folds to a sharp line. If you put sharp lines in a design, you give the impression that it is made out of something that's not very substantial.

The Super Chief had a bold brow in the front where the nameplate "Super Chief" appeared. The sheet metal curved around and there was a substantial amount of sheet metal coming around the sides from the top. All of that created the confident look that the Super Chief was built, and not made, as we say.

Q: What will you do to differentiate between Ford and Mercury?

A: Mercury represents a particular opportunity to satisfy a group of customers who are following a very new kind of lifestyle that's very contemporary -- we call it metro cool. You see it in magazines like Metropolitan Home.

If you look around, lots of people are moving back into the cities in places like New York, Chicago and Detroit. You won't find a farmhouse look in those new buildings in those cities. You'll see new and interesting materials like granite and lighter woods

So, that's what Mercury will be all about -- metro cool. We already have had a degree of success with metro cool with our Milan and our Mariner. In the Mariner there's a completely different set of materials used in the interior. You won't get a Mercury Mariner customer into a Ford Escape, and vice versa.

Q: And what about Ford? Where's it heading?

A: The Ford brand exemplifies a lust for life -- it goes back to American Bold. That's what Ford will be all about. I think we can use the word "tough" here. Tough isn't aggressive, but it is confident. We must make people feel they are being taken care of in their Ford. The cars will look as though they have been built solidly, from one piece. They will look as though they can take care of you if you need it.

Q: And what's Lincoln to be all about ?

A: Lincoln, I think, is an established brand. People have really made it in America and they have bold dreams and they've achieved them or more. But these people want to buy American as they reward themselves with luxury. That's the Lincoln customer.

For auto shows back in 2000, we had concept cars that resembled the 1961 Lincoln. But in designing future Lincolns, we looked at a number of Lincolns through the ages, not just the ones from the 1960s. I don't want to do a retro design that causes people to say, "Oh, that looks like a '61 Lincoln." I want people to say, "I can see that's a Lincoln, but don't ask me why." That's enough for me.

Q: So how soon will we start seeing this dramatic shift?

A: To be honest, you're already seeing it. The Ford Mustang is a good example on the road. That's no European or Japanese car; that's a truly American sports car.

I think the upcoming Ford Edge [it comes out this fall] is another example. It has a solid look, like it was hewn out of one solid material.