Ford will use its quarterly earnings press conference on Thursday to announce a plan to convert three of its U.S. assembly plants from trucks to cars, according to a published report. What’s more, Ford will also put to rest rumors about the demise of the Mercury brand with the announcement of a renewed focus on small cars.
Mercury will become an “integral” part of Ford ’s small car strategy, according to the International Herald Tribune. Rather than killing the brand, Ford will redefine it, making it something more than a collection of rebadged Fords, sources to the newspaper say.
By 2010, a large portion of Ford’s line will consist of vehicles currently being developed for the European market, the report claims. As widely expected, the Fiesta will be the first Euro model brought to America. It’s not known if the Fiesta and the six other European models bound for the U.S. market will wear Mercury or Ford badges.
With three U.S. pickup and SUV plants bound for retooling, the number of truck assembly facilities will shrink from eight to five of the company’s 14 North American locations. Among the plants that will drop trucks for cars is the so-called Michigan Truck plant in Wayne, Michigan, which builds the Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator . It’s unclear if those models will be discontinued, or if the plant will split its duties between trucks and cars.
Lastly, Ford is expected to boost production of the hot-selling Focus, and re-tool two V8 engine plants in order to boost V6 and I4 output.
