New e-mail scam - this one offering a deal on a new Ford!

Here's the text of an e-mail I received today which is an obvious scam:

"Dear Mr/Ms,

Due to the World Economy Recession, Ford Motor Company, Inc undergo a statistic fall in Sales and result in a drastic financial crisis this last season.

The Government has given us the opportunity to bounce back on our feet, but unfortunately we have not achieved the fund necessary.Therefore, we offer you the opportunity to purchase a very good Auto at 35% discount of the price. We decided to pull the sales of 1.000 cars at a very low price for us to aquire the capital needed to bounce back in business and to use this medium to increase the scale of our valued customers.

The payment shall be made in installments through the bank at 1 month after signing the contract.The first payment for all documents necessary and lawyer is made within five work days or you have the opportunity to get 10% discount if you pay 100% payment.We will send you: the FORD SALES AGREEMENT between Seller and Buyer, and our payment department will contact you with the invoice to buy with confidence using our Payment Protection.The vehicle will be delivered to your location. It will be shipped within 5 days after the payment will be cleared the bank.

The shipping is free of charge and the vehicle is fully insured for damage during the transportation, inspection process and prior to the physical sale.You will have 7 days to inspect the vehicle upon delivery. You have the option to use an independent Inspection Authority to make sure that the vehicle is as described.If the vehicle is not as described or not passes your inspection, the vehicle will be collected and you will be fully refunded. Refund requests are processed within 3 days.

If you are interested in this offer please fill out the application form, A representative will contact you about this application within two business day.

Thanks for your understanding and we hope to serve you better.Sincerely,Jeffrey

K Thompson
Sales Director
Ford Motor Company
P.O. Box 6248
Dearborn, MI 48126
info@fordssistance.com"

Of course, if you fill out the form, they get your personal information, subjecting you to identity theft or other problems.

While I have not confirmed with Ford Motor Company that this is a scam, I do know a few things that make me think its a scam.

1. Ford is the only one of the American automakers that is actually making money. In fact, it was just announced that their recent profits were in the $2 Billion range (yes, with a B).

2. Ford is the only one of the American automakers that did not take any stimulus funds from the government.

3. Usually, Ford execs such as a sales director would have at least a third grader's grammar, unlike the fool that wrote this e-mail.

Fortunately for consumers, most scammers are as inept as whoever wrote this e-mail, making their attempted scams as easy to spot as this one. Also, if you are ever not sure if an e-mail you get is a scam or not (or if you get a "forward" that you just want to debunk), go to www.snopes.com, which will tell you if the e-mail is for real or not. While you are checking out snopes.com, I'm going to use the millions I have been told I won in the European lottery to buy something better than a discounted Ford.