According to a source with access to Nikkei Net Insider, we've heard FoMoCo CEO Alan Mulally asked for and was granted a meeting this past week with ToMoCo Chairman of the Board Fujio Cho. According to NNI,

"The Wednesday morning edition reported that the meeting took place in Tokyo and was held at F's request. The meeting is considered as a first step in the exploration of a potential partnership. F EVP Mark Fields also attended the meeting. Mulally may visit Japan again in Jan to meet with Toyota executives."

Aww, that's adorable — they even let Fields tag along. I totally bet he had to sit at the kiddie table with Dr. Toyoda's grandchildren while Alan did the heavy lifting on a potential partnership. The kiddies more than likely spent the entire lunch pulling on Mark's mullet and throwing food at him to see if it would stain his KMart shirts. – Ray Wert

Related:
We're #3! We're #3! Ford Expects To Surrender #2 Spot To Toyota In 2007 [internal]

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