Ford Motor Company (commonly known asFord) is an Americanmultinational automobile manufacturer headquartered inDearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded byHenry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobiles and commercial vehicles under theFord brand, and luxury cars under itsLincoln brand. The company is listed on theNew York Stock Exchange and is controlled by theFord family. They have minority ownership but a plurality of the voting power.[3][5]
Ford introduced methods for large-scale manufacturing of cars and large-scale management of an industrial workforce using elaborately engineered manufacturing sequences typified by movingassembly lines. By 1914, these methods were known around the world asFordism. Ford's former UK subsidiariesJaguar andLand Rover, acquired in 1989 and 2000, respectively, were sold to the Indian automakerTata Motors in March 2008. Ford owned the Swedish automakerVolvo from 1999 to 2010.[6] In the third quarter of 2010, Ford discontinued theMercury brand, under which it had marketed upscale cars in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the Middle East since 1938.[7]
Ford is the second-largest U.S.-based automaker, behindGeneral Motors, and thesixth-largest in the world, behindToyota,Volkswagen Group,Hyundai Motor Group,Stellantis, and General Motors, based on 2022 vehicle production.[8] The company went public in 1956 but the Ford family, through specialClass B shares, retain 40 percent of the voting rights.[3][9] During the2008–2010 automotive industry crisis, the company struggled financially but did not have to be rescued by the federal government, unlike the other two major US automakers.[10][11] Ford Motors has since returned to profitability,[12] and was the eleventh-ranked overall American-based company in the 2018Fortune 500 list, based on global revenues in 2017 of $156.7 billion.[13] In 2023, Ford produced 4.4 million automobiles, and employed about 177,000 employees worldwide. The company operates joint ventures in China (Changan Ford), Taiwan (Ford Lio Ho), Thailand (AutoAlliance Thailand), and Turkey (Ford Otosan). Ford owns a 32% stake in China'sJiangling Motors.[14][15]
TheHenry Ford Company was Henry Ford's first attempt at a car manufacturing company and was established on November 3, 1901. This became theCadillac Motor Company on August 22, 1902, after Ford left with the rights to his name.[16] In 1903, the Ford Motor Company was launched in a converted factory, with $28,000, equivalent to $980,000 in 2024, in cash from twelve investors, most notablyJohn andHorace Dodge, who later founded theDodge Brothers Motor Vehicle Company.
The first president was not Ford, but local bankerJohn S. Gray, who was chosen in order to assuage investors' fears that Ford would leave the new company the way he had left its predecessor. During its early years, the company produced just a few cars a day atits factory on Mack Avenue and later at itsfactory on Piquette Avenue inDetroit,Michigan. Groups of two or three men worked on each car, assembling it from parts made mostly by supplier companies contracting for Ford. Within a decade the company led the world in the expansion and refinement of theassembly line concept, and Ford soon brought much of the part production in-house, viavertical integration.
Henry Ford was 39 years old when he founded the Ford Motor Company, which became one of the world's largest and most profitable companies. It has been in continuous family control for over 100 years, and is one of the largest family-controlled companies in the world.[17]
Between 1903 and 1908, Ford produced the ModelsA, B, C, F, K, N, R, and S. Hundreds or a few thousand of most of these were sold per year. In 1908, Ford introduced the mass-producedModel T, which totaled millions sold over nearly 20 years. In 1927, Ford replaced the T with theModel A, the first car with safety glass in the windshield.[19] Ford launched thefirst low-priced car with a V8 engine in 1932.[20]
In an attempt to compete with General Motors' mid-priced Pontiac, Oldsmobile, and Buick, Ford created the Mercury in 1939 as a higher-priced companion car to Ford. Henry Ford purchased the Lincoln Motor Company in 1922,[21] in order to compete with such brands as Cadillac and Packard for the luxury segment of the automobile market.[22]
In 1929, Ford was contracted by the government of theSoviet Union to set up theGorky Automobile Plant in Russia initially producing Ford Model A and AAs, thereby playing an important role in theindustrialization of that country and consequently the Soviet war effort duringWorld War II.[23] To that end, in 1944, Stalin wrote a letter to theU.S. Chamber of Commerce stating that Henry Ford was "one of the world's greatest industrialists".[24]
The creation of a scientific laboratory in Dearborn, Michigan, in 1951, doing unfettered basic research, led to Ford's involvement insuperconductivity research. In 1964, Ford Research Labs made a key breakthrough with the invention of a superconducting quantum interference device orSQUID.[26]
Ford offeredthe Lifeguard safety package from 1956, which included such innovations as a standard deep-dish steering wheel, optional front, and, for the first time in a car, rear seatbelts, and an optional padded dash.[27] Ford introduced child-proof door locks into its products in 1957, and, in the same year, offered the first retractable hardtop on a mass-produced six-seater car.[28]
In late 1955, Ford established the Continental division as a separate luxury car division. This division was responsible for the manufacture and sale of the famousContinental Mark II. At the same time, theEdsel division was created to design and market that car starting with the 1958 model year. Due to limited sales of the Continental and the Edsel disaster, Ford merged Mercury, Edsel, and Lincoln into "M-E-L," which reverted to "Lincoln-Mercury" after Edsel's November 1959 demise.[28]
With the 1980s, Ford introduced several highly successful vehicles around the world. During the 1980s, Ford began using the advertising slogan, "Have you driven a Ford, lately?" to introduce new customers to their brand and make their vehicles appear more modern. In 1990 and 1994, respectively, Ford also acquiredJaguar Cars andAston Martin.[32] During the mid-to-late 1990s, Ford continued to sell large numbers of vehicles, in a boomingAmerican economy with a soaring stock market and low fuel prices.[33]
With the dawn of the new century, legacyhealth care costs, higher fuel prices, and a faltering economy led to falling market shares, declining sales, and diminished profit margins. Most of the corporate profits came from financing consumer automobile loans throughFord Motor Credit Company.[34]
21st century
By 2005, both Ford andGM's corporate bonds had been downgraded to junk status[35] as a result of high U.S. health care costs for anaging workforce, soaring gasoline prices, eroding market share, and an overdependence on decliningSUV sales. Profit margins decreased on large vehicles due to increased "incentives" (in the form of rebates or low-interest financing) to offset declining demand.[36] In the latter half of 2005, Chairman Bill Ford asked newly appointed Ford Americas Division PresidentMark Fields to develop a plan to return the company to profitability. Fields previewed the plan, namedThe Way Forward, at the board meeting of the company on December 7, 2005, and it was unveiled to the public on January 23, 2006. "The Way Forward" included resizing the company to match market realities, dropping some unprofitable and inefficient models, consolidating production lines, closing 14 factories and cutting 30,000 jobs.[37]
Ford moved to introduce a range of new vehicles, including "Crossover SUVs" built onunibody car platforms, rather than morebody-on-frame chassis. In developing the hybrid electric powertrain technologies for theFord Escape Hybrid SUV, the company licensed similar Toyota hybrid technologies[38] in order to avoid patent infringements.[39] Ford announced[when?] that it would team up with electricity supply companySouthern California Edison (SCE) to examine the future ofplug-in hybrids in terms of how home and vehicle energy systems will work with the electrical grid. Under the multimillion-dollar, multi-year project, Ford is to convert a demonstration fleet ofFord Escape Hybrids into plug-in hybrids, and SCE is to evaluate how the vehicles might interact with the home and the utility's electrical grid. Some of the vehicles are to be evaluated "in typical customer settings", according to Ford.[40][41]
William Clay Ford Jr., great-grandson of Henry Ford (and better known by his nickname "Bill"), was appointed executive chairman in 1998, and also became chief executive officer of the company in 2001, with the departure ofJacques Nasser, becoming the first member of the Ford family to head the company since the retirement of his uncle,Henry Ford II, in 1982. Ford sold motorsport engineering companyCosworth toGerald Forsythe andKevin Kalkhoven in 2004, the start of a decrease in Ford's motorsport involvement. Upon the retirement of president and chief operations officer Jim Padilla in April 2006, Bill Ford assumed his roles as well. Five months later, in September, Ford namedAlan Mulally as president and CEO, with Ford continuing as executive chairman.
In December 2006, the company raised its borrowing capacity to about $25 billion, placing substantially all corporate assets as collateral.[42] Chairman Bill Ford has stated that "bankruptcy is not an option".[43] Ford and theUnited Auto Workers, representing approximately 46,000 hourly workers in North America, agreed to a historic contract settlement in November 2007 giving the company a substantial break in terms of its ongoing retiree health care costs and other economic issues. The agreement included the establishment of a company-funded, independently runVoluntary Employee Beneficiary Association (VEBA) trust to shift the burden of retiree health care from the company's books, thereby improving its balance sheet. This arrangement took effect on January 1, 2010. As a sign of its currently strong cash position, Ford contributed its entire current liability (estimated atUS$5.5 billion as of December 31, 2009) to the VEBA in cash, and also pre-paidUS$500 million of its future liabilities to the fund. The agreement also gave hourly workers the job security they were seeking by having the company commit to substantial investments in most of its factories.
The automaker reported the largest annual loss in company history in 2006 of $12.7 billion,[44] and estimated that it would not return to profitability until 2009.[45] However, Ford surprisedWall Street in the second quarter of 2007 by posting a $750 million profit. Despite the gains, the company finished the year with a $2.7 billion loss, largely attributed to finance restructuring atVolvo.[46] On June 2, 2008, Ford sold its Jaguar and Land Rover operations toTata Motors for $2.3 billion.[47][48]
During congressional hearings held in November 2008 at Washington D.C., Ford's Alan Mulally stated that "We at Ford are hopeful that we have enough liquidity. But we also must prepare ourselves for the prospect of further deteriorating economic conditions". He went on to state that "The collapse of one of our competitors would have a severe impact on Ford" and that Ford Motor Company supported both Chrysler and General Motors in their search for government bridge loans during the2008–2010 automotive industry crisis.[49][50] Together, the three companies presented action plans for the sustainability of the industry. Mulally stated that "In addition to our plan, we are also here today to request support for the industry. In the near-term, Ford does not require access to a government bridge loan. However, we request a credit line of $9 billion as a critical backstop or safeguard against worsening conditions as we drive transformational change in our company".[51] GM and Chrysler received government loans and financing throughT.A.R.P. legislation funding provisions.[52]
On December 19, the cost ofcredit default swaps to insure the debt of Ford was 68 percent of the sum insured for five years, in addition to annual payments of 5 percent. That meant $6.8 million paid upfront to insure $10 million in debt, in addition to payments of $500,000 per year.[53] In January 2009, Ford reported a $14.6 billion loss in the preceding year, a record for the company. The company retained sufficient liquidity to fund its operations. Through April 2009, Ford's strategy ofdebt-for-equity exchanges erased $9.9 billion in liabilities (28% of its total) in order to leverage its cash position.[54] These actions yielded Ford a $2.7 billion profit in fiscal year 2009, the company's first full-year profit in four years.[55] In 2012, Ford's corporate bonds were upgraded from junk to investment grade again, citing sustainable, lasting improvements.[56]
On October 29, 2012, Ford announced the sale of its climate control components business, its last remaining automotive components operation, to Detroit Thermal Systems LLC for an undisclosed price.[57] On November 1, 2012, Ford announced thatCEO Alan Mulally would stay with the company until 2014. Ford also named Mark Fields, its president of operations in the Americas, as its new chief operating officer[58] Mulally was paid a compensation of over $174 million in his previous seven years at Ford since 2006. The generous amount has been a sore point for some workers of the company.[59]
In April 2016, Ford announced a plan to modernize its Dearborn engineering and headquarters campuses through a ten-year building project. The result would see the number of Ford employees working in these areas doubling, to 24,000. During construction, some 2000 of the employees were relocated out of the campus to a temporary location in a disused section of the local shopping mall.[60] Facilities would also be altered to allow ride-sharing and electric and self-driving vehicles.[61] Estimates of the construction cost were $1.2 billion.[62]
The historic, once abandonedMichigan Central Station was purchased by Ford Motor Company in May 2018 and is expected to undergo a significant four-year renovation.
On January 3, 2017, FordCEO Mark Fields announced that in a "vote of confidence" because of the pro-business climate being fostered in part byPresident-electDonald Trump, Ford had canceled plans to invest $1.6 billion in a new plant in Mexico to manufacture theFord Focus; instead, the company would invest $700 million inMichigan, which it planned to use to create 700 new jobs. The Focus would now be manufactured in the existing plant in Mexico.[63]
Also in 2017, Ford began development of a new mixed-use urban campus inthe Corktown neighborhood of Detroit, with its purchase, renovation, and occupation of The Factory at Michigan and Rosa Parks. The new site was expected to have a major focus on the development ofautonomous vehicle andelectric vehicle technology.[64] Ford later began buying up other parcels of land in Corktown including a very high-profile purchase ofMichigan Central Station which is planned to become the hub of their Corktown campus, and the adjacentRoosevelt Warehouse.[65] Ford expects to move 2,500 of its employees, roughly 5 percent of its southeast Michigan workforce, to the campus with space for an additional 2,500 entrepreneurs, technology companies and partners.[66] Bill Ford envisioned the first-floor concourse of the train station to be a public gathering place with retail outlets and restaurants.[67] In February 2017, Ford Motor Co. acquired majority ownership ofArgo AI, a self-driving car startup.[68]
In May 2017, Ford announced cuts to its global workforce amid efforts to address the company's declining share price and to improve profits. The company is targeting $3 billion in cost reduction and a nearly 10% reduction in the salaried workforce in Asia and North America to enhance earnings in 2018.[69][70] Jim Hackett was announced to replace Mark Fields as CEO of Ford Motor. Mr. Hackett most recently oversaw the formation of Ford Smart Mobility, a unit responsible for experimenting with car-sharing programs, self-driving ventures and other programs aimed at helping Ford better compete withUber,Alphabet Inc. and other tech giants looking to edge in on the auto industry.[71][72]
On April 25, 2018, Ford announced that it would discontinue passenger cars in the North American market in the next four years, except for the Mustang, due to declining demand and profitability.[73] The Focus Active, a crossover SUV based on the newly unveiled fourth-generation Focus, was also intended to be marketed in the United States. Due to the vehicle being manufactured in China, Ford later announced that it would not release the Focus Active in the United States, due totariffs imposed by the Trump administration on Chinese exports.[74][75]
In March 2020, the DetroitUnited Auto Workers union announced that after discussion with the leaders ofGeneral Motors, Ford, andFiat Chrysler Automobiles, the carmakers would partially shut down factories on a "rotating" basis to mitigate theCOVID-19 pandemic.[76] On March 24, representatives of Ford announced that production in the US, Canada, and Mexico would not resume on March 30 as originally planned, amid the further coronavirus pandemic spread.[77] In the first quarter of 2020, Ford's sales dropped by 15%, entailing the loss of $2 billion.[78]
With the change in the demand for the sport vehicles, on January 6, 2021, Ford reported a sales fall of 9.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 542,749 vehicles, compared to 601,862 in 2019.[79] In April 2021, Ford said that it would provide COVID-19 vaccines for its employees, who were to obtain them at the company; at the beginning the vaccination program would be in southeast Michigan, Missouri and Ohio, but it was to be expanded later on to other locations.[80]
In March 2022, Ford announced that it would restructure the company into three separate divisions. Ford Model E is to focus on electric vehicles; Ford Blue is to focus on internal combustion vehicles; and the existing commercial division is to be rebranded as Ford Pro, to focus on vehicle distribution and service.[81][4] In August 2022, Ford announced it planned layoffs of roughly 3,000 employees and contract workers, confirming earlier reporting. The cuts would mostly affect divisions in the US, Canada, and India, which Jim Farley said would allow the company to prepare for the future of electric, software-heavy vehicles.[82][83]
In February 2023, Ford announced that it was going to cut 3,800 jobs across Europe, with the job cuts mainly focusing on their German and British workforce. Ford will be cutting 2,300 jobs from Germany, 1,300 from the United Kingdom, and an additional 200 jobs in the rest of Europe, according to the head of Ford Germany, Martin Sander. The cuts will mainly be done to the company's engineers.[84] Ford also announced during the year that their electric vehicle business had lost $3 billion before taxes over the past two years and will lose a similar amount in 2023 as the company looks to significantly invest in Electric Technology. The Ford Model E is expected to be profitable by 2026.[85]
In April 2023, United Kingdom ministers approved Ford'sBlueCruise technology. Because of this assisted driving technology, Ford drivers can now legally take their hands off the wheel on certain roads. Its top speed is 129 km/h (80 mph). BlueCruise uses sensors and cameras to regulate the car's speed and to keep track of speed limits and road signs. It also monitors and keeps a safe distance from other vehicles. It also comes equipped with an eye-tracking system. If the driver stops looking at the road then the car will gradually reduce its speed. This technology will initially be offered in Ford's 2023 model of the electric Mustang Mach-E SUV. According to Thatcham Research, an automotive research company, this model is not a self-driving car. It is classified as a level 2 or partial automation assistance system. This means that technology controls two or more driving aspects but still requires human driver control in cases of emergencies. The driver is still legally responsible for accidents.[86] In August 2024Pennsylvania State Police filed charges against a driver that killed two men while using BlueCruise.[87]
In November 2024, Ford announced that it would cut 800 jobs in the UK and 2,900 in Germany to try to reduce costs.[88]
Logo history
1903
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1912 variant
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Corporate affairs
Business trends
The key trends for the Ford Motor Company are (as of the financial year ending December 31):[89]
Jim Farley succeededJim Hackett as the chief executive officer of the company in August 2020; he previously served as Ford's chief operating officer. Hackett stayed in the company as an advisor until the second quarter of 2021.[94]
Ownership
Ford is mainly owned by institutional investors, who own around 60% of shares. The largest shareholders in December 2023 were:[95]
The Ford Philanthropy, formerly known as the Ford Motor Company Fund (also known as Ford Fund, not affiliated with theFord Foundation), based in Dearborn, Michigan, is the philanthropic arm of the Ford Motor Company.[96] Established in 1949[97] byHenry Ford II,[citation needed] the organization is a nonprofit corporate foundation[98] financed by contributions from Ford Motor Company. In 2017, it contributed $63 million[99] to various causes[96] with a focus on education, driving safely and community building.
The Ford Driving Skills for Life program is a driver safety program aimed at teens that were developed together with the Governors Highway Safety Association and safety experts.[100] The Ford Volunteer Corps allows Ford employees and retirees to sign up for volunteering work on local projects in more than 40 countries.[101] The organization invests $18 million annually in education in the United States and around the world, but accepts applications only from nonprofit organizations registered in the U.S.[102] Education programs and scholarships include Alan Mulally Engineering Scholarship, Ford Blue Oval Scholars Program, Ford College Community Challenge (Ford C3), Ford Driving Dreams Tour, Ford Fund/Detroit Free Press Journalism Scholarship, Ford Next Generation Learning (Ford NGL), Grants to Individuals Program, HBCU Community Challenge, Smithsonian Latino Center Young Ambassadors Program, and William Clay Ford Automotive Design Scholarship.
On April 29, 2024, the Ford Fund announced its official name has changed to Ford Philanthropy.[103]
FordWorks Program
Ford Motor Company created the FordWorks program in 2016[104][105] with the aim to bring people with disabilities back into the workforce.[106] It was the first automotive program to focus on bringing people with autism in the workforce in the US. They targeted people with autism[104][105] but have expanded their criteria to people with other disabilities.[106] Ford has partnered with Upbound to broaden their hiring under the FordWorks program.[106]
Ford has had manufacturingoperations worldwide, including in the United States, Canada, Mexico, China, India, the United Kingdom, Germany, Turkey, Brazil, Argentina, Australia, and South Africa. Ford also helped the Soviet Union to construct Russian automakerGAZ.
North America
In May 2010, Ford reported that its sales increased 23% for the month, and that 37% of its sales came from fleet sales.[108] In June 2010, sales to individual customers at dealerships increased 13% while fleet sales rose by 32%.[109] In the first seven months of 2010, fleet sales of Ford for the same period rose 35% to 386,000 units while retail sales increase 19%.[110] Fleet sales account for 39 percent of Chrysler's sales and 31 percent for GM's.[110]
The Ford Research Center inAachen, Germany, photographed in 2006
At first,Ford in Germany andFord in Britain built different models from one another until 1965, when theFord Transit and later theFord Escort and theFord Capri became common to both companies. In 1970, theFord Taunus and theFord Cortina came into production with a common base construction, both models being produced inleft hand drive andright hand drive. Later on, the models became identical and the respective models right- and left-hand-drive exclusively. Rationalisation of model ranges meant that production of many models in the UK switched to elsewhere in Europe, including Belgium and Spain as well as Germany. TheFord Sierra replaced the Taunus and Cortina in 1982, drawing criticism for its radical aerodynamic styling, which was soon given nicknames, the "Jellymould" and "The Salesman's Spaceship".
Ford'sDunton Technical Centre inLaindon, United Kingdom, the largest automotive research and development facility in the country,[111] pictured in 2006
In February 2002, Ford ended car production in the UK. It was the first time in 90 years that Ford cars had not been made in Britain, although production of theTransit van continued at the company'sSouthampton facility until mid-2013, engines atBridgend andDagenham, and transmissions atHalewood. Development of European Ford is broadly split betweenDunton in Essex (powertrain, Fiesta/Ka, and commercial vehicles) andCologne (body, chassis, electrical, Focus, Mondeo) in Germany. Ford also produced theThames range of commercial vehicles, although the use of this brand name was discontinued with the introduction of theFord Transit in 1965. Elsewhere in continental Europe, Ford assembles the Mondeo,Galaxy,S-Max[112] andKuga[113] in Valencia (Spain), Fiesta in Cologne (Germany), Focus inSaarlouis (Germany), Ecosport[114] andPuma[115] inCraiova (Romania).
Ford also owns a joint-venture production plant in Turkey.Ford Otosan, established in the 1970s, manufactures theTransit Connect compact panel van as well as the "Jumbo" and long-wheelbase versions of the full-size Transit. This new production facility was set up nearKocaeli in 2002, and its opening marked the end of Transit assembly in Genk.
Another joint venture plant nearSetúbal in Portugal, set up in collaboration withVolkswagen, formerly assembled theGalaxy people-carrier as well as its sister ships, theVW Sharan andSEAT Alhambra. With the introduction of the third generation of the Galaxy, Ford has moved the production of the people-carrier to the Genk plant, with Volkswagen taking over sole ownership of the Setúbal facility.
Its 1959Anglia two-door saloon was one of the most quirky-looking small family cars in Europe at the time of its launch, but buyers soon became accustomed to its looks and it was hugely popular with British buyers in particular. It was still selling well when replaced by the more practicalEscort in 1967.
The third incarnation of the Ford Escort was launched in 1980 and marked the company's move from rear-wheel-drive saloons to front-wheel-drive hatchbacks in the small family car sector.
The fourth-generation Escort was produced from 1990 until 2000, although its successor—theFocus—had been on sale since 1998. On its launch, the Focus was arguably the most dramatic-looking and fine-handling small family cars on sale and sold in huge volumes right up to the launch of the next-generation Focus at the end of 2004.
The 1982Ford Sierra—replacement for the long-running and massively popularCortina andTaunus models—was a style-setter at the time of its launch. Its ultramodern aerodynamic design was a world away from a boxy, sharp-edged Cortina, and it was massively popular just about everywhere it was sold. A series of updates kept it looking relatively fresh until it was replaced by the front-wheel-driveMondeo at the start of 1993.
The rise in popularity of small cars during the 1970s saw Ford enter the mini-car market in 1976 with itsFiesta hatchback. Most of its production was concentrated atValencia in Spain, and the Fiesta sold in huge figures from the very start. An update in 1983 and the launch of an all-new model in 1989 strengthened its position in the small car market.
On October 24, 2012, Ford announced that it would close itsGenk assembly plant in eastern Belgium by the end of 2014.[118]
In 2015, Ford announced that it took control ofFord Sollers, Ford's joint venture with Russian companySollers.[119][120]
In September 2018, at the IAA Commercial Vehicles show in Hannover, Germany, Ford introduced an electric tractor-trailer concept vehicle dubbed the F-Vision, which would have Level 4 autonomous driving capability.[121]
On March 1, 2022, Ford announced that it was suspending itsSollers joint venture operation in Russia, in response to the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[122][123] On October 26, 2022, Ford sold its 49 percent share in the joint venture, and exited the Russian market,[124] adding that it retains the option to buy them back within a 5-year period "should the global situation change".[125]
East and Southeast Asia
Ford formed its first passenger-vehicle joint venture in China in 2001, six years behind GM and more than a decade after VW. It has spent as of 2013[update] $4.9 billion to expand its lineup and double production capacity in China to 600,000 vehicles. This includes Ford's largest-ever factory complex in the southwestern city of Chongqing. Ford had 2.5% of the Chinese market in 2013, while VW controlled 14.5% and GM had 15.6%, according to consultant LMC Automotive. GM outsells Ford in China by more than six-to-one.[126] Ford's presence in Asia has traditionally been much smaller, confined to Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, the Philippines, and Taiwan, where Ford has had a joint venture withLio Ho since the 1970s. Ford began assembly of cars in Thailand in 1960, but withdrew from the country in 1976, and did not return until 1995 when it formed a joint venture withMazda called Auto Alliance.[127] Now based in the Bo-win Sub District of the Sriracha District inChonburi, the factory still produces passenger automobiles. The factory, built in 1941 in Singapore, was soon taken over by the Japanese during the war and was the site of a surrender of the British to the Japanese, at thefactory site which is now a national monument in Singapore.On April 30, 2013, Ford Motor Co. launched their car and pickup truck line inMyanmar. Previously, heavy importation taxes had stifled imported car purchases in Myanmar, but due to currency reform, lifting of previous import restrictions, and the abolishment ofshadow currency, Myanmar's car market had grown in demand.[128]
Ford decided to shut down their entire operations inIndonesia, including their dealer network by second half of 2016. Since 2016, Ford operation in Indonesia has been taken over by RMA Group. RMA Group would resume the distribution new Ford cars in 2020, 4 years since last Ford left Indonesian market[129][130]
South Korea
In 1967, Ford partnered with the South Korean companyHyundai, and at the new factory inUlsan, South Korea, built the EuropeanFord Cortina until 1974 when Hyundai introduced their all-newHyundai Pony in 1975. Ford then developed a relationship with Korea's oldest car manufacturerKia which built vehicles co-engineered withMazda, later selling theFord Festiva from 1988 to 1993, and theFord Aspire from 1994 to 1997 for export to the United States. With the acquisition of a stake in Japanese manufacturerMazda in 1979, Ford began selling Mazda'sFamilia andCapella as theFord Laser andTelstar throughout the region, replacing the European-sourced Escort and Cortina. From 1989 to 1996, Kia imported theMercury Sable from Ford in the U.S. and sold them in South Korea as the Kia Sable. Though the Sable was branded and marketed as a Kia, it retained the Mercury badges and emblem. Ford lost their Kia interest to Hyundai in 1998 after the1997 Asian financial crisis. Kia had declared bankruptcy in 1997; in 1998,Hyundai Motor Company acquired 51% of the company, outbidding Ford which had owned an interest in Kia Motors since 1986.[131] After subsequent divestments,[132] Hyundai Motor Company owns less than 50% of the company but remains Kia's largest stakeholder.
As of 2020[update], Ford sells the Explorer, Mondeo, and Mustang,[133] as well as the Lincoln Aviator, Continental, Corsair, MKZ, and Nautilus in South Korea.[134]
South and West Asia
Ford India began production in 1998 atChennai,Tamil Nadu, with its Ford Escort model, which was later replaced by the locally producedFord Ikon in 2001. It has since added the Fusion, Fiesta, Mondeo and Endeavour models to its product line.
On March 9, 2010, Ford launched its first made-for-India compact car. Starting at₹349,900, theFigo was Ford's first car designed and priced for the mass Indian market.[135] On July 28, 2011, Ford India signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the State ofGujarat for the construction of an assembly and engine plant inSanand and planned to invest approximatelyUS$1 billion on a 460-acre site.[136] In 2019, the company andMahindra & Mahindra formed a joint venture to develop, market and distribute Ford-branded vehicles in India.[137] In September 2021 Ford India announced plans to shut down both its assembly plants. The company said that it intends to maintain its parts and service network.[138]
Ford's market presence in the Middle East has traditionally been small, partly due to previous Arab boycotts of companies dealing with Israel. Ford and Lincoln vehicles are currently marketed in ten countries in the region.[139] Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates are the biggest markets. Ford also established itself in Egypt in 1926 but faced an uphill battle during the 1950s due to the hostile nationalist business environment.[140] Ford's distributor in Saudi Arabia announced in February 2003 that it had sold 100,000 Ford and Lincoln vehicles since commencing sales in November 1986. Half of the Ford and Lincoln vehicles sold in that country wereFord Crown Victorias.[141] In 2004, Ford sold 30,000 units in the region, falling far short of General Motors' 88,852 units andNissan Motors' 75,000 units.
South America
Ford assembly plant in General Pacheco, Argentina, as seen in the 1960s
In South America, Ford's primary operations are inBrazil,Argentina, and Ford Andina[142] (Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela). Ford employs over 18,000 people and operates seven assembly or other plants in the region.[143] In 1987, Ford Brasil and Ford Motor Argentina merged their operations with the Brazilian and Argentine operations ofVolkswagen Group, forming a new joint-venture company calledAutolatina with a shared model range.[144] Autolatina was dissolved in 1995.[144]
In early 2021, Ford's Brazil branch announced it would completely cease production in the country over the course of a few months.[145]
Africa
In Africa, Ford's market presence has traditionally been strongest in South Africa and neighbouring countries, with only trucks being sold elsewhere on the continent. Ford in South Africa began by importing kits from Canada to be assembled at its facility inPort Elizabeth; the company later sourced its models from the UK and Australia, with local versions of the Ford Cortina including the XR6, with a 3.0 V6 engine, and aCortina-based 'bakkie' or pick-up, which was exported to the UK. In the mid-1980s Ford merged with a rival company, owned byAnglo American, to form theSouth African Motor Corporation (Samcor).[146]
Following international condemnation ofapartheid, Ford divested from South Africa in 1988, and sold its stake in Samcor, although it licensed the use of its brand name to the company.[147] Samcor began to assemble Mazdas as well, which affected its product line-up and saw the European Fords like the Escort and Sierra replaced by theMazda-based Laser[148] andTelstar.[149] Ford bought a 45 per cent stake inSamcor following the demise of apartheid in 1994, and this later became, once again, a wholly owned subsidiary, the Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa. Ford now sells a local sedan version of the Fiesta (also built in India and Mexico), and the Focus. The Falcon model from Australia was also sold in South Africa, but was dropped in 2003; the Mondeo, after briefly being assembled locally, was dropped in 2005. The Mondeo was later reintroduced in 2015, badged as theFusion, but was dropped in 2017.[150]
The Ford Research and Innovation Center in Palo Alto was first opened in 2012, and in January 2015, announced plans to significantly expand its operations.[151][152][153][154]
Ford has the position of chief futurist in charge of forecasting which was started in 2019 by Sheryl Connelly, and is currently held by Jennifer Brace.[155][156]
Ford established a manufacturing facility in the port city of Yokohama in February 1925, where Model T vehicles were assembled using importedknock-down kits.[157] The factory subsequently produced 10,000 Model A's up to 1936. Production ceased in 1940 as a result of political tensions between Japan and the United States.
After World War II, Ford did not have a presence in Japan, as the Ford facility was appropriated by the Japanese Government until 1958 when property was returned as a possession of the Ford Motor Company and became aresearch and development location for Ford partnerMazda. In 1979, Ford acquired a 24.5% ownership stake in Mazda, and in 1982, Ford and Mazda jointly established a sales channel to sell Ford products in Japan, including vehicles manufactured in North America, at a dealership calledAutorama (Japanese). The Autorama sales channel was renamed Ford Sales of Japan in 1997.[158]
Vehicles sold atAutorama locations were the North American assembled Ford Explorer, Probe (1989–1998), Mustang, Taurus (1989–1997), Thunderbird (1990–1993), Lincoln Continental, and Lincoln LS. Ford products manufactured in Europe that were sold in Japan were theFord Mondeo,Ka,Focus,Focus C-MAX,Fiesta, and theGalaxy. Mazda manufactured Ford vehicles in Japan and sold them as Fords at the Autorama locations. They were theFord Telstar (Mazda Capella),Laser,Festiva,Festiva Mini Wagon,Ixion (Mazda Premacy),Freda (Mazda Bongo Friendee),Spectron (Mazda Bongo), and commercial trucks J80 and the J100 (Mazda Bongo truck).
Ford increased its shareholding in Mazda to 33.4% in 1996, but as of July 2016[update], it is listed at 11%.[159] Ford did sell a small range of vehicles in Japan; as of October 2010[update], the Ford Mustang, Escape, Explorer (and Explorer pickup truck),Ford Kuga,Lincoln Navigator,Lincoln MKX, and more recently, theFord Ecosport were available in Japan. As of February 2016[update], Ford no longer maintains a regional office in Minato, Tokyo, Japan, and sales of new cars in Japan have ended.[160][161]
Oceania
Frank Delandro Authorised Ford dealer, Crows Nest, Sydney, 1936Ford FG X Falcon (Australia) (2014–2016; 2014 model shown)The Ford stamping plant inGeelong, Victoria, Australia. It closed in 2016.
In Australia and New Zealand, the popularFord Falcon (1960–2016) had long been considered the average family car and is considerably larger than the Mondeo, Ford's largest car sold in Europe. Between 1960 and 1972, the Falcon was based on a U.S. model of the same name, but since then has been entirely designed and manufactured in Australia until 2016, occasionally being manufactured in New Zealand. Like itsGeneral Motors rival, theHolden Commodore, the Falcon used a rear-wheel-drive layout. High-performance variants of the Falcon running locally built engines produce up to 362 hp (270 kW). Aute (short for "utility", known in the U.S. aspickup truck) version is also available with the same range of drivetrains. In addition, Ford Australia sold highly tuned limited-production Falcon sedans andutes through its performance car division,Ford Performance Vehicles until it closed in 2014.
In Australia, the Commodore and Falcon had traditionally outsold all other cars and constituted over 20% of the new car market. In New Zealand, Ford was second in market share in the first eight months of 2006 with 14.4%.[162] More recently, Ford has axed its Falcon-based LWB variant of its lineup– the Fairlane and LTD ranges. Ford discontinued the Fairlane in 2007 and LTD in 2008. Ford had announced that their Geelong engine manufacturing plant would be shut down between 2013 and 2016. They had earlier announced local manufacturing of the Focus small car starting from 2011, but instead decided to import the model from Ford's plant inThailand.[163]
In Australia, the Laser was one ofFord Australia's most successful models and was manufactured in Ford'sHomebush West plant from 1981 until the plant's closure in September 1994. It outsold theMazda 323, despite being almost identical to it because the Laser was manufactured in Australia and Ford was perceived as a local brand.[164] According to research carried out byFord Australia in 1984, a third of Laser buyers were unaware that the Ford model was based on theMazda 323.[165]
In New Zealand, theFord Laser andTelstar were assembled alongside theMazda 323 and626 until 1997, at the Vehicle Assemblers of New Zealand (VANZ) plant inWiri,Auckland.[166] TheSierra wagon was also assembled in New Zealand, owing to the popularity ofstation wagons in that market.[167]
The scheduled closure of Ford's Australian manufacturing base in 2016 was confirmed on May 23, 2013. Headquartered in the Victorian suburb of Broadmeadows, the company had registered losses worth AU$600 million over the five years prior to the announcement. It was noted that the corporate fleet and government sales that account for two-thirds of large, local car sales in Australia are insufficient to keep Ford's products profitable and viable in Australia. The decision will affect 1200 Ford workers—over 600 employees in Geelong and more than 500 in Broadmeadows—who will lose their jobs by October 2016. The closure of Ford's plants in Norlane Geelong and Broadmeadows Melbourne occurred on October 7, 2016.[168]
Ford Mustangs of various years on display at Wenceslas Square, Prague, Czech Republic in 2019. The vehicle is a popular model sold in many countries.
Ford Motor Company sells a broad range of automobiles under the Fordmarque worldwide, and an additional range of luxury automobiles under theLincoln marque in the United States. The company has sold vehicles under a number of other marques during its history. TheMercury brand was introduced by Ford in 1939, continuing in production until 2011 when poor sales led to its discontinuation.[169] In 1958, Ford introduced theEdsel brand, but poor sales led to its discontinuation in 1960. In 1985, theMerkur brand was introduced in the United States to market products produced by Ford of Europe; it was discontinued in 1989.
In November 2008, it reduced its 33.4%controlling interest inMazda of Japan to a 13.4% non-controlling interest.[174] On November 18, 2010, Ford reduced their stake further to just 3%, citing the reduction of ownership would allow greater flexibility to pursue growth in emerging markets. Ford and Mazda remain strategic partners through exchanges of technological information and joint ventures, including an American joint venture plant inFlat Rock, Michigan calledAuto Alliance.[175] In 2015, Ford sold its remaining 3% stake in Mazda.[176]
Ford sold the United Kingdom-basedJaguar andLand Rover companies and brands toTata Motors of India in March 2008.
On April 25, 2018, Ford announced that it planned to phase out all but one of its North American automobile models (theMustang will be the sole surviving model) to focus primarily on pickup trucks and SUVs. Ford had also planned to introduce an "Active" crossover version of the next-generationFocus, but canceled those plans due to tariff issues between the United States and China.[177]
Trucks
An advertisement for the 1939 Ford V-8 pick-up truckAn advertisement for the 1961 Ford H-Series truck2023Ford F-150 Lightning
Ford has produced trucks since 1908, beginning with theFord Model TT, followed by theModel AA, and theModel BB. Countries where Ford commercial vehicles are or were formerly produced include Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada (also badged asMercury), France, Germany, India, Netherlands, Philippines, Spain (badgedEbro too), Turkey, UK (badged alsoFordson andThames), and the United States.
From the 1940s to the late 1970s, Ford'sFord F-Series was used as the base for light trucks for the North American market.
Most of these ventures are now extinct. The European one that lasted longest was the lorries arm ofFord of Britain, which became part of theIveco group in 1986. Ford had a minority share in the new company and Iveco took over sales and production of theFord Cargo range.[178] Ford's last significant European truck models were theTranscontinental and the Cargo. At the end of 1996, Ford sold the rights to its heavy trucks division to theFreightliner Trucks division of Daimler AG, with Ford producing the Cargo, Louisville, and Aeromax, through the 1998 model year. During the 1998 model year, Freightliner began production of its own versions of Ford-developed trucks in St. Thomas, Ontario, launching theSterling truck brand.[179][180] Slotted between Freightliner and Western Star, Sterling trucks were produced through 2009.
Line of heavy trucks made by Ford for the North American market:
For 1999, Ford briefly withdrew from production of medium-duty trucks. For the 2001 model year, the company entered into a joint venture withNavistar International (the supplier of diesel engines for 1-ton F-Series trucks), namedBlue Diamond Truck Company LLC.[181] As part of the joint venture, sharing a common truck chassis, the two companies would produce medium-duty (Class 6–7) trucks in a Navistar facility in Mexico, with each manufacturer supplying its own powertrain and bodywork, with theFord F-650/F-750 Super Duty andInternational 4000/DuraStar sharing an assembly line. In 2006, the joint venture debuted the Ford LCF/International CityStar.[182] Using a modified F-Series chassis adopted to fit a Mazda Titan cab, the LCF was a low-cab forward truck that was sold through 2009.[183]
In Europe, Ford manufactures theFord Transit jumbo van, which is classed as a Large Goods Vehicle and has a payload of up to 2,265 kg; there are options of a panel van, pickup or chassis cab. The Ford Transit is also available as a light van called theFord Transit Connect and theFord Ranger pickup is available.[184]
Buses
A Ford B700 bus chassis, with a body byThomas Built
Ford manufactured complete buses in the company's early history, but today the role of the company has changed to that of asecond stage manufacturer. In North America, theE-Series is still used as a chassis for small school buses and theF-650 is used in commercial bus markets. In the 1980s and 1990s, the medium-dutyB700 was a popular chassis used by school bus body manufacturers includingThomas Built,Ward, andBlue Bird, but Ford lost its market share due to industry contraction and agreements between body manufacturers. Older bus models included:
Prior to 1936, Ford buses were based on truck bodies:
In 1936, Ford introduced theFord Transit Bus, a series of small transit buses with bodies built by a second party. Originally a front-engine design, it was modified to a rear-engine design in 1939. About 1,000 to 1,200 of the original design were built, and around 12,500 of the rear-engine design, which was in production until 1947[185] (rebranded as the Universal Bus in 1946).
Rear-engine Transit Bus chassis model numbers:[186]
09-B/19-B City transit bus – 1939–1941
19-B/29-B City transit bus – 1941–1942
49-B/79-B City transit bus – 1944–1947
69-B City transit bus – 1946–1947
29-B City transit bus – 1946–1947
72-T transit bus – 1944–1945
After 1946 the Transit City bus was sold as theUniversal Bus with the roof changed from fabric/wood to all-metal:
Following World War II and from the 1950s onwards, Ford lost out toGeneral Motors.[186] This led to the end of transit buses for Ford in North America.
B500 or B-series – 1950–1990s based on Ford F-series truck chassis used by school bus body manufacturers
In Europe, Ford manufactures theFord TransitMinibus which is classed in Europe as a Passenger Carrying Vehicle and there are options of 12-, 15-, or 17-seaters.[187] In the past, European models included:
EM
N-138
D series buses (Australia)
Tractors
A Ford N series tractor
The "Henry Ford and Son Company" began makingFordson tractors in Henry's hometown of Springwells (later part ofDearborn), Michigan, from 1907 to 1928, from 1919 to 1932, atCork, Ireland, and between 1933 and 1964 atDagenham, England, later transferred toBasildon. They were also produced inLeningrad beginning in 1924.
Ford reentered the tractor market in 1939 with theFord N-series tractors. The Ford 8N, introduced in 1947, became the most popular tractor of all time in North America. Production of the N line of models ended in 1952.
TheFord NAA tractor was introduced as an entirely new model in 1953. It was a replacement for the Ford N-Series tractors. Larger than the 8N, with a four-cylinder engine, and streamlined styling.
In 1986, Ford expanded its tractor business when it purchased the Sperry-New Holland skid-steer loader and hay baler, hay tools and implement company fromSperry Corporation and formed Ford-New Holland which bought outVersatile tractors in 1988. This company was bought byFiat in 1993 and the name changed from Ford New Holland to New Holland.New Holland is now part ofCNH Global.
Ford'sFoMoCo parts division sells aftermarket parts under theMotorcraft brand name. It has spun off its parts division under the nameVisteon.[citation needed]
Arie Luyendyk's record-setting Ford Cosworth-powered IndyCar from 1996
IndyCars with Ford engines first competed in 1935 using aproduction-based Ford V8 in the Miller-Ford racer.[190][191] Apushrod Ford V8 raced with Lotus in 1963, and Ford's first Indy win was in 1965 with aDOHC V8.[192][193] Ford motors, including the Ford-sponsoredDFX engine developed byCosworth, have won theIndianapolis 500 eighteen times.[194] On May 12, 1996,Arie Luyendyk, while driving an IndyCar powered by a Ford Cosworth XB engine, broke theIndianapolis 500 records for fastest qualification lap (237.498 mph; 382.216 km/h) and fastest qualification four-lap average (236.986 mph; 381.392 km/h).[195][196] These speed records still stand as of 2022[update].[197]
Formula Ford
Formula Ford, conceived in the UK in 1966, is an entry-level type offormula racing with wingless single-seater cars. Many of today's formula racing drivers started their car racing careers in this category.
Ford was heavily involved inFormula One for many years and supplied engines to a large number of teams from 1967 until 2004. These engines were designed and manufactured byCosworth, the racing division that was owned by Ford from 1998 to 2004. Ford-badged engines won 176 Grands Prix between 1967 and 2003 for teams such asTeam Lotus andMcLaren. Ford entered Formula One as a constructor in 2000 under theJaguar Racing name, after buying theStewart Grand Prix team which had been its primary 'works' team in the series since 1997. Jaguar achieved little success in Formula One, and after a turbulent five seasons, Ford withdrew from the category after the2004 season, selling both Jaguar Racing (which becameRed Bull Racing) and Cosworth (toGerald Forsythe andKevin Kalkhoven).[198]
Ford has announced that it will return to Formula One in 2026 following a partnership withRed Bull Powertrains, supplying power units to Red Bull Racing and their second teamRacing Bulls.[199]
In March 1951, the Henri Loos and Henri Berney broke the cross-Africa record of theAlgiers-Cape Town Rally with a 1950 Ford V8, from Cape Town to Paris.[203][204][205]
TheFord Mustang has arguably been Ford's most successful sports car.Jerry Titus won the 1965 SCCA Pro B National Championship with a Mustang and the model went on to earn Ford the SCCATrans-Am Championship title in both 1966 and 1967. Ford won the Trans-Am Championship again in 1970 withParnelli Jones andGeorge Follmer drivingBoss 302 Mustangs forBud Moore Engineering. Ford took the 1985 and 1986IMSA GTO Championship with Mustangs driven byJohn Jones andScott Pruett before returning to Trans-Am glory with a championship in 1989 withDorsey Schroeder. Ford dominated Trans-Am in the 1990s withTommy Kendall winning championships in 1993, 1995, 1996, and 1997 withPaul Gentilozzi adding yet another title in 1999. In 2005 the Ford Mustang FR500C took the championship in the RolexKoni Challenge Series in its first year on the circuit. In 2007, Ford added a victory in the GT4 European Championship. 2008 was the first year of the Mustang Challenge for the Miller Cup, a series that pits a full field of identical factory-built Ford Mustang race cars against each other. Also, in 2008, Ford won the manufacturers championship in theKoni Challenge Series and HyperSport drivers Joe Foster and Steve Maxwell won the drivers title in a Mustang GT.
Ford andMichelin teamed up to provide custom-engineered tires for theFord Performance vehicle lineup.Ford Performance director Dave Pericak said: "That confidence extends from our upcoming racing effort at Le Mans in 2016 with the all-newFord GT, to the Ford Performance vehicle lineup, including theShelby GT350 and F-150 Raptor".[206]
Ford has branched out intodrifting with the introduction of the new model Mustang. Most noticeable is the Turquoise and Blue Falken Tires Mustang driven byVaughn Gittin, Jr., (A.K.A. "JR") that produces 750 RWHP (Rear Wheel Horsepower).
Environmental initiatives
Flexible fuel vehicles
The Ford Focus Flexifuel was the firstE85flexible fuel vehicle commercially available in the European market.
Flexible fuel vehicles are designed to operate smoothly using a wide range of availableethanol fuel mixtures—from pure gasoline tobioethanol-gasoline blends such asE85 (85%ethanol and 15% gasoline) orE100 (neathydrous ethanol) in Brazil. Part of the challenge of successful marketing alternative and flexible fuel vehicles in the U.S. is the general lack of establishment of sufficientfueling stations, which would be essential for these vehicles to be attractive to a wide range of consumers. Significant efforts to ramp up production and distribution ofE85 fuels are underway and expanding.[207]
Electric drive vehicles
This section needs to beupdated. The reason given is: this section did not include newer electric and hybrid models. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(January 2021)
In 2004, Ford and Toyota agreed a patent-sharing accord that granted Ford access to certain hybrid technology patented by Toyota; in exchange, Ford licensed some of its own patents to Toyota.[208][209][210] In 2004, Ford introduced theEscape Hybrid. With this vehicle, Ford was third to the automotive market with ahybrid electric vehicle and the first hybrid electricSUV to market. This was also the first hybrid electric vehicle with aflexible fuel capability to run onE85.[211] The Escape's platform mateMercury Mariner was also available with the hybrid-electric system in the 2006 model year—a full year ahead of schedule. The similarMazda Tribute will also receive a hybrid-electric powertrain option, along with many other vehicles in the Ford vehicle line.
In 2005, Ford announced a goal to make 250,000 hybrids a year by 2010, but by mid-2006 announced that it would not meet that goal, due to excessively high costs and the lack of sufficient supplies of the hybrid-electric batteries and drivetrain system components.[212] Instead, Ford has committed to accelerating development of next-generation hybrid-electric power plants in Britain, in collaboration with Volvo. This engineering study is expected to yield more than 100 new hybrid-electric vehicle models and derivatives.
In September 2007, Ford announced a partnership withSouthern California Edison (SCE) to examine howplug-in hybrids will work with the electrical grid. Under the multimillion-dollar, multi-year project, Ford will convert a demonstration fleet ofFord Escape Hybrids into plug-in hybrids, and SCE will evaluate how the vehicles might interact with the home and the utility's electrical grid. Some of the vehicles will be evaluated "in typical customer settings", according to Ford.[40][41]
On June 12, 2008,USDOE expanded its own fleet of alternative fuel and advanced technology vehicles with the addition of a Ford Escape Plug-In Hybrid Flex-Fuel Vehicle. The vehicle is equipped with a 10-kilowatt (13 hp)lithium-ion battery supplied byJohnson Controls-Saft that stores enough electric energy to drive up to 30 miles (48 km) at speeds of up to 40 mph (64 km/h).[213] In March 2009, Ford launched hybrid versions of theFord Fusion Hybrid and theMercury Milan Hybrid in the United States, both as 2010 models.[214]
Bill Ford was one of the first top industry executives to make regular use of abattery electric vehicle, aFord Ranger EV, while the company contracted with theUnited States Postal Service to deliver electric postal vans based on the Ranger EV platform. Ford discontinued a line of electricRangerpickup trucks and ordered them destroyed, though it reversed in January 2005, after environmentalist protest.[222] The all-electric pickup truck leased 205 units to individuals and 1,500 units to fleets in the U.S. from 1998 to 2002.[223][224]
From 2009 to 2011, Ford offered theFord TH!NK car. Ford ended production and ordered all the cars repossessed and destroyed, even as many of the people leasing them begged to be able to buy the cars from Ford. After an outcry from the lessees and activists in the U.S. and Norway, Ford returned the cars to Norway for sale.[225] Four hundred and forty units were leased in the U.S. from 1999 until 2003.[224]
In 2017, Ford CEO Mark Fields announced that the company would invest $4.5 billion in further development of plug-in electric vehicles by 2020.[226]
In October 2017, Ford announced its Team Edison battery electric vehicle group to lead the company's renewed efforts into the EV market, which had plans for a small 300-mile range SUV by 2020.[233] The new team will be headquartered in Detroit and have offices in Europe and Asia.[234]
On November 17, 2019, theMustang Mach-E was introduced which later went on sale December 2020 as a 2021 model.[235][236] The Mustang Mach-E is assembled atCuautitlán Assembly inCuautitlán Izcalli, Mexico.[237] According to former Ford CEO Jim Hackett, assembling the vehicle in Mexico allows Ford to make a profit from the first vehicle, unlike other electric vehicles. In June 2022, the CFO of Ford announced that the Mustang Mach-E was no longer profitable due to increases in the cost of raw materials.[238]
PresidentJoe Biden test driving theF-150 Lightning prototype at Ford's Rouge Electric Vehicle Center, Dearborn, Michigan.
On May 19, 2021, Ford revealed a new electric pickup truck, theF-150 Lightning.[239] The first F-150 Lightning was manufactured on April 18, 2022, with first delivery in the US on May 26.[240] Ford adjusted its 2024 production plans for the F-150 Lightning, cutting them in half from an anticipated 3,200 weekly units to around 1,600 weekly units due to sales below expectations.[241] In 2022, Ford began manufacturing its E-Transit electric cargo vans at its plant in Kansas City, Missouri.[242]
As the result of 2019 Ford-VW global alliance cooperation agreement,[243] Ford began developing electric vehicles for the European market using theVolkswagen Group MEB platform along with batteries supplied by Volkswagen. The first Ford product based on the MEB is theFord Explorer EV, which was introduced in March 2023. It is produced in theCologne plant in Germany, which previously manufactured theFiesta small car.[244] In August 2023, Ford delayed the Explorer EV deliveries to 2024 due to new battery regulations.[245]
In March 2022, Ford increased its focus in battery electric vehicles by establishing Ford Model E, a division for Ford's electric vehicle business. Ford Model E is expected to be profitable by 2026, and the company said the division "should be seen as astartup".[81][4][85] In June 2022, Ford announced its intention to restructure its dealership model, including building ane-commerce platform where customers can buy electric vehicles at non-negotiable prices in an effort to matchTesla"s profit margins.[246] Ford also stated in June 2022 that it planned to spend $3.7 billion to hire 6,200 union workers to staff several assembly plants in Michigan, Ohio and Missouri in a bid to sell 2 million electric vehicles annually by 2026.[246]
In May 2023, Ford announced its plans to integrate theNorth American Charging System (NACS) system into their electric vehicles, following Tesla's decision toopen and rename its proprietary charging standard to NACS. Newly built Ford electric vehicles after 2024 will have native NACS charging ports on the vehicle. Existing Ford electric models will be able to connect to the NACS system and its chargers by use of an adapter. Both will thus have access to the extensive NACScharging network with more than 12,000 chargers in North America.[247]
Hydrogen
Ford also continues to studyfuel cell-powered electric powertrains and has demonstrated hydrogen-fueledinternal combustion engine technologies, as well as developing the next-generation hybrid-electric systems. Compared with conventional vehicles,hybrid vehicles and/or fuel cell vehicles decrease air pollution emissions as well as sound levels, with favorable impacts upon respiratory health and decrease ofnoise health effects.
Ford has launched the production ofhydrogen-powered shuttle buses, using hydrogen instead of gasoline in a standardinternal combustion engine, for use at airports and convention centers.[248] At the 2006Greater Los Angeles Auto Show, Ford showcased a hydrogen fuel cell version of its Explorer SUV. The Fuel cell Explorer has a combined output of 174 hp (130 kW). It has a large hydrogen storage tank which is situated in the center of the car taking the original place of the conventional model's automatic transmission. The centered position of the tank assists the vehicle reach a notable range of 350 miles (563 km), the farthest for a fuel cell vehicle so far. The fuel cell Explorer the first in a series of prototypes partly funded by theUnited States Department of Energy to expand efforts to determine the feasibility of hydrogen-powered vehicles. The fuel cell Explorer is one of several vehicles with green technology being featured at the L.A. show, including the 2008 Ford Escape Hybrid, PZEV emissions compliant Fusion and Focus models and a 2008 Ford F-Series Super Duty outfitted with Ford's clean diesel technology.
Increased fuel efficiency
In July 2008, Ford Motor Company announced that it would accelerate its plans to produce more fuel-efficient cars, changing both its North American manufacturing plans and its lineup of vehicles available in the United States. In terms of North American manufacturing, the company planned to convert three existing pickup truck and sport utility vehicle (SUV) plants for small car production, with the first conversion at its Michigan Truck Plant. In addition, Ford's assembly plants near Mexico City, Mexico, and in Louisville, Kentucky, were to be converted from pickups and SUVs to small cars, including the Ford Fiesta, by 2011. Ford then also planned to introduce to North America six of its European small vehicles, including two versions of the Ford Fiesta, by the end of 2012.[249]
Ford of Europe developed theECOnetic programme to address the market and legislative need for higherfuel efficiency and lower CO2 emissions. As opposed to thehybrid engine technology used in competitor products such as theToyota Prius, ECOnetic improves existing technology. Using lower-consumingDuratorq TDCi diesel engines, and based on a combination of improved aerodynamics, lower resistance, and improved efficiency, theFord Fiesta was the lowest-emitting mass-produced car in Europe[250] while the2012 Ford Focus ECOnetic will have better fuel consumption than the Prius or theVolkswagen GolfBlueMotion.[251] ECOnetic is not presently planned to be sold in North American due to current perceived lower consumer demand.[252]
Ford has challenged University teams to create a vehicle that is simple, durable, lightweight, and comes equipped with a base target price of only $7,000. The students fromAachen University created the "2015 Ford Model T".[253][254]
In 2000, under the leadership of the current Ford chairman, William Clay Ford, the company announced[255] a planned 25 percent improvement in the average mileage of its SUVs—to be completed by the 2005calendar year. In 2003, Ford announced that competitive market conditions and technological and cost challenges would prevent the company from achieving this goal.[256]
For the 2007 model year, Ford had thirteen U.S. models that achieve 30 miles per gallon or better (based on the highway fuel economy estimates of the EPA) and several of Ford's vehicles were recognized in the EPA and Department of Energy Fuel Economy Guide for best-in-class fuel economy. Ford claimed to have eliminated nearly three million pounds of smog-forming emissions from their U.S. cars and light trucks over the 2004 to 2006 model years.[257] However, the United States Environmental Protection Agency has linked Ford to 54Superfund toxic waste sites, twelve of which have been cleaned up and deleted from the list.[258]
As part of a renovation of theFord River Rouge Complex, in 2010 Ford unveiled a 10.4-acre (42,000 m2) living roof covering part of the Dearborn Truck plant, consisting ofsedum, a low-growing groundcover. The sedum retains and cleanses rainwater and moderates the internal temperature of the building, saving energy.[259]
In 2016, Ford announced a ten-year renovation plan for its Dearborn campus.[260] The plan features consolidation of office and lab spaces in to fewer and much larger buildings, which will be built toLEED standards, and will feature extensive use of wetlands and park spaces.[261][262] The new campus features new multi-story parking decks with solar power-generating roofs,[263] and a new natural gas power plant. The DTE Ford Central Energy Plant is a 34MW combined heat-and-power plant which features a high efficiency design and LEED Gold buildings.[264]
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Dempsey, Mary A. "Fordlandia'Michigan History 1994 78(4): 24–33. Ford's rubber plantation in Brazil
Flink, James.America Adopts the Automobile, 1895–1910 MIT Press, 1970
Foster, Mark S. "The Model T, The Hard Sell, and Los Angeles Urban Growth: The Decentralization of Los Angeles During the 1920s."Pacific Historical Review 44.4 (November 1975): 459–84
Halberstam, David.The Reckoning (1986) detailed reporting on decline of the auto industry.online; also
Jacobson, D. S. "The Political Economy of Industrial Location: the Ford Motor Company at Cork 1912–26." Irish Economic and Social History [Ireland] 1977 4: 36–55. Ford and Irish politics
Lacey, Robert "Ford: The Men and the Machine" (Heinnemann, London) 0 414 401027 (1986)
Levinson, William A.Henry Ford's Lean Vision: Enduring Principles from the First Ford Motor Plant, 2002;ISBN1-56327-260-1
Kuhn, Arthur J.GM Passes Ford, 1918–1938: Designing the General Motors Performance-Control System. Pennsylvania State University Press, 1986
Magee, David.Ford Tough: Bill Ford and the Battle to Rebuild America's Automaker (2004)
Maxton, Graeme P. and John Wormald,Time for a Model Change: Re-engineering the Global Automotive Industry (2004)
May, George S.A Most Unique Machine: The Michigan Origins of the American Automobile Industry Eerdman's, 1975
Maynard, Micheline.The End of Detroit: How the Big Three Lost Their Grip on the American Car Market (2003)
McIntyre, Stephen L. "The Failure of Fordism: Reform of the Automobile Repair Industry, 1913–1940:Technology and Culture 2000 41(2): 269–299. repair shops rejected flat rates
Nevins, Allan.Ford: the Times, the Man, the Company (vol 1 1954)online
Nevins, Allan, and Frank Hill.Ford: Expansion and Challenge 1915-1933 (vol 2, 1957)online
Nevins, Allan.Ford: Decline and rebirth, 1933-1962 (vol 3, 1963)online
Studer-Noguez; Isabel.Ford and the Global Strategies of Multinationals: The North American Auto Industry Routledge, 2002
Tedlow, Richard S. "The Struggle for Dominance in the Automobile Market: the Early Years of Ford and General Motors"Business and Economic History 1988 17: 49–62. Ford stressed low price based on efficient factories, but GM did better in oligopolistic competition by including investment in manufacturing, marketing, and management
Thomas, Robert Paul. "The Automobile Industry and its Tycoon"Explorations in Entrepreneurial History 1969 6(2): 139–157. argues Ford did NOT have much influence on US industry
Watts, Steven.The People's Tycoon: Henry Ford and the American Century (2005)
Wilkins, Mira and Frank Ernest Hill,American Business Abroad: Ford on Six Continents Wayne State University Press, 1964
Williams, Karel, Colin Haslam and John Williams, "Ford versus 'Fordism': The Beginning of Mass Production?"Work, Employment & Society, Vol. 6, No. 4, 517–555 (1992), stress on Ford's flexibility and commitment to continuous improvements.
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