The end-of-year sales race is heating up early this year and Detroit's automakers are pouring on discounts in an effort to increase market

share, trim bloated inventories and boost sales figures, according to the Detroit News.

On Nov. 11, Ford Motor Co. raised the stakes by slashing financing on its all-new 2004 F-150 pickup, a vehicle it had been selling with a minimum of rebates. But the automaker couldn't risk a drop in sales for the crucial truck in the cutthroat U.S. car and truck market, according to the News. In addition to cutting the financing rates by 2 percentage points on the F-150, pushing the interest rate on a 60-month loan down to 2.9 percent, Ford also broadened a $1,000 "loyalty bonus" to include owners of all Ford products and owners of competing full-sized trucks.

The moves came in response to aggressive discounts by arch-rival GM, the News said. And the closer GM gets to Dec. 31 without meeting sales goals, the more incentives consumers can expect, said Sean McAlinden, an economist at the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor. "The economy outside of Michigan looks really good right now and the Big Three want to start getting some of that," McAlinden said. "But there are some terrible market share forecasts floating around Detroit right now and GM will be pushing

everything it can to get its sales."

DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group, which had been resisting the pressure to match GM and Ford's

discount, is now jumping headlong into the rebate game, according to the News. Chrysler

extended an enhanced lease program to include the new $35,000 Crossfire sports car, dropping monthly payments to as low as $399.