Ford announced on Wednesday that it will be spending $550 million to convert its Michigan Assembly Plant from a large SUV factory to a fully modern, and flexible, global small car plant. The Michigan Assembly Plant was one of the most profitable plants of the late 1990s, building the Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator .
However, times have changed and Ford will now be using the Michigan Assembly Plant to build its next-generation Ford Focus small car. Ford’s new global Focus will begin rolling off the assembly line next year, with a battery-electric variant slated to enter production in 2011. The 2011 BEV Focus – which will also be built at the Michigan Assembly Plant — will be Ford’s first all-electric passenger car.
“We’re changing from a company focused mainly on trucks and SUVs to a company with a balanced product lineup that includes even more high-quality, fuel-efficient small cars, hybrids and all-electric vehicles,†said Mark Fields, Ford ’s president of The Americas. “As customers move to more fuel-efficient vehicles, we’ll be there with more of the products they really want.â€
The investment will also secure the jobs of 3,200 Ford workers. Some workers will be transferred from Ford’s Wayne Assembly Plant.
In all, Ford will convert three of its truck and SUV plants – including the Michigan Assembly Plant – to produce the company’s next-generation of small cars. One of those, Cuautitlan Assembly in Mexico, will begin producing the Ford Fiesta next year.
