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Ford plans next generation of cars

Thursday, 21 January 2010

THE next-generation Ford Focus revealed at the North American International Auto Show recently has delivered on the company’s promise to offer more cars to suit all tastes. Up to 10 new models will be built on the global C-segment platform, which replaces three platforms currently in production regionally. By 2012, the new platform will account for more than two million units of volume, providing Ford with an opportunity to offer to customers around the world an array of new technologies and product features usually reserved for premium vehicles. “Ford’s new C-sized family will be the strongest demonstration yet of how we’re harnessing the company’s global resources to deliver real customer benefits,” said Derrick Kuzak, Ford’s group vice president of Global Product Development. “The next-generation Focus is our C-segment flagship, offering technology you don’t expect in a C-car, feature content you would not expect in a C-car, and craftsmanship, materials and interior quietness you would not expect in a C-car. The scale we’re generating makes it possible to deliver all that.” Globally, Ford expects its C-car volumes to double, from about one million units in 2008 to more than two million by 2012. The new Focus is expected to be sold in 122 countries around the world. The new Ford Focus will reach aggressively to achieve scale, with production beginning almost simultaneously in Europe and North America in late 2010 and vehicles set to reach dealerships in the first quarter of 2011, including Ireland. One in four vehicles sold worldwide is a C-segment vehicle. C-cars are the heart of the European car market, a mainstay in Asia-Pacific and growing in importance in the Americas.