Ford Motor Co. has teamed with Best Buy to promote its new Sync technology at Best Buy Mobile stores.

The partnership is in an effort to build brand awareness for Ford?s Sync in more than 30 stores in Texas throughout the month. Nationwide expansion is planned for next year.

?Partnering with a retailer like Best Buy is a good fit because Ford Sync is one of the leaders in automotive technology and Best Buy is one of the leaders in consumer electronic stores,? said Andrew Rebhun, cross vehicle alliances manager at Ford, Dearborn, MI. ?Partnering with a reliable brand like Best Buy helps us continue to leverage our platform amongst the tech-seeking individual.

?Best Buy is a great resource for us to use from a consumer electronics standpoint,? he said. ?We did research, checked into the brand and the equity is obviously very trusted.

"This was a really good opportunity, especially as they were just launching their mobile store product.?

Ford is one of three surviving U.S. automakers with brands such as Ford, Lincoln, Mercury and Volvo. It was the only one of the Big Three car companies not to take government funds during the bailout process earlier this year and in 2008. 

Best Buy Mobile, an offshoot of electronics giant Best Buy, is a retailer of mobile devices and accessories.

Ford?s Sync technology is designed to integrate with mobile devices to provide emergency, diagnostic and informational services.

Best Buy Mobile will offer trained associates to assist with Ford Sync education, training and phone compatibility tests.

Consumers visiting the Best Buy stores in Texas will be able to experience live Sync demos and Ford, Lincoln and Mercury customer clinics.

The demos will show consumers how their mobile devices can interact with Sync?s voice-activated system and customer clinics will help new Ford customers improve their understanding of the capabilities.

Best Buy will include Ford Sync mobile phone compatibility results in its monthly Best Buy Mobile Buyer's Guide to identify which of the latest mobile devices work with the technology.

Ratings are based on tests conducted by Best Buy?s Geek Squad.

Sync features include voice dialing via the synced contact list, voice control of MP3 devices, 911 assistance when an air bag is deployed or the emergency fuel pump is activated, a vehicle health report that gives customers the ability to monitor their automobile and voice traffic notifications, information and directions.

Mr. Rebhun said that Ford is targeting a wide range of consumers, especially ones who want to remain up to date on the latest technology.

?Obviously we have a lot of consumers who buy new cars and one of the biggest challenges for them is they don?t have latest and greatest cell phones,? Mr. Rebhun said.

?Some consumers come in with phones three to four years old, so Best Buy helps leverage the platform by showing what phones can use the Sync system to the utmost of its capabilities,? he said.