Ford to support car-sharing with program for buyers

New York - Ford Motor is launching a test program for customers in six US cities and London to lease their cars in the growing car-sharing market.

Ford said the pilot program - Peer-2-Peer Car Sharing - will be offered to thousands customers, who will be able to sign up to rent their Ford Credit-financed vehicles to other pre-screened drivers for short-term use, helping them to offset their monthly car payments.

"Consumers tell us they are interested in sharing the costs of vehicle ownership, and this program will help us understand how much that extends to customers who are financing a Ford vehicle," said David McClelland, Ford Credit vice president of marketing.

"As most vehicles are parked and out of use much of the time, this can help us gauge our customers' desires to pick up extra cash and keep their vehicles in use."

The pilot program will be run in the California cities of Berkeley, Oakland and San Francisco; Portland, Oregon; Chicago and Washington, as well as in the British capital, through November.

In the United States, customers will participate in the car sharing company Getaround, while customers in London will connect through easyCar.

Ford said research showed more than half of millennials, the coveted target of marketers, say they are open to sharing cars with others.

California taxi-hailing service Uber has become the star of the ride-sharing culture, with its independent drivers using their own cars to provide rides as an alternative to traditional taxis.