FORD has launched a global crackdown on a worldwide counterfeit parts industry thought to be worth almost £2billion a year.

Alistair Fergusson, manager of Ford's Western Hemisphere Parts Brand Protection Group, said: 'Piracy not only defrauds manufacturers: it can also threaten lives because many illegal parts are life and limb components of inferior quality and reliability. Working closely with national and international law enforcement bodies, we will continue to crack down very strongly on counterfeiting, wherever it occurs in the world.'