Ford pledges to go small and green
Ford trucks has announced plans to transform its North American manufacturing and vehicle line-up to be smaller and greener.
Starting in December this year, Ford is planning to convert three of its truck and SUV plants into small car production facilities. By 2011, two of the company’s assembly plants will also be converted to small cars.
“While we have no intention of giving up our longtime truck leadership, we are creating a new Ford in North America on a foundation of small, fuel-efficient cars,” says Mark Fields, president of Ford in America.
The plant conversions will support Ford’s strategy to introduce six of its successful European small cars into the North American market. This will include the Ford Fiesta, which has just launched an ECOnetic model in the UK.
The ECOnetic version of the Fiesta claims to do 76.3 mpg with CO2 emissions of 98 g/km – exempting it from UK road tax. The savings come courtesy of a stripped down version of the model – lowered suspension, low resistance tyres and low friction oil.
Ford is also expanding production of its fuel-efficient EcoBoost V-6 and four-cylinder engines, as well as its hybrid vehicles. Production of two new hybrid models – the 2010 Ford Fusion and the Mercury Milan – is scheduled to begin in December.
