Ford vehicles with one to five years on the road are fetching higher resale values during the first quarter of 2010 compared to the same period last year, according to the latest North American Dealers Association auction data.

In a news release, the Dearborn, Michigan-based carmaker reported that its car fleet gained 23 percent year-over-year improvement in resale value, outpacing the industry average by 4 percentage points.

“Ford products have outperformed the overall market, especially in the increasingly important segments of compact cars, midsize cars and crossover vehicles,” said Tom Webb, chief economist at Manheim Consulting. Webb cited the 2010 Ford Taurus, which he said sells 50 percent higher at auction than the 2009 Taurus after one year in service.

Meanwhile, Ford also reported that warranty repair rates have declined by 40 percent globally in the past three years, claiming that Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles now have the “fewest number of defects of any full-line manufacturer.”

Ford reported Tuesday its best quarterly performance in six years with a profit of $2.1 billion. According to the New York Times, the last time Ford earned a quarterly operating profit of $2 billion was in 2004, when it sold nearly 17 million cars in the U.S. Ford expects to sell less than 12 million this year.