New Bronco and Ranger

[blksn8k]

Looks like Trump has inadvertently forced at least someone to confirm that Ford is planning to build and sell these vehicles here again. In response to Trump's attacks on Ford during the first debate a UAW member made this comment to The Detroit Free Press:



"I think Trump needs to get his facts straight," said Bill Johnson, plant chairman for UAW Local 900, which represents workers at the Wayne plant. "He is absolutely beating up on Ford for doing what everybody else has already done."



Johnson was at the plant in March 2011 when Gov. Rick Snyder and Mulally celebrated an overhaul that transformed it from a truck plant that built SUVs to a plant that could make a profit producing small cars.



"We hate to see the products go to Mexico, but with the Ranger and the Bronco coming to Michigan Assembly that absolutely secures the future for our people a lot more than the Focus does," Johnson said.



Ford has yet to confirm any of this themselves but at least someone has sort of said what has been rumored for months. Now we need Ford to make this official and show us some damned pre-products prototypes or concepts or something. They have to exist with production only two years away. I would really like to see aluminum bodies and the 2.7L Ecoboost V6 as an option. The current global Ranger has been in production since 2011 or there abouts and is due for a major overhaul anyway.

 

[John G]

I'm glad that they plan to build small pickups and SUVs on that assembly line, but I think it's not completely new news. Maybe Ford hadn't confirmed it, but it was widely known.



Here's an industry traderag story on this, which says it was already known August 2015 that Ford planned to do this:

 

[blksn8k]

I have been following this saga since the beginning. The sad part is that Ford has yet to confirm any of this. Seems the only people who are willing to say anything are members of the UAW. Not saying it won't happen but until Ford makes an official announcement nothing is guaranteed. It seems a little too convenient that this was supposedly part of the last UAW contract which was signed last year. That contract covers the next four years. Based on all the rumors production may not start until the current contract expires which would seem to leave a great big out if Ford decides not to do it. Ford is in business to make a profit and if selling the Ranger here in two or three or however many years from now jeopardizes profits from the F-150 that cannot be recouped they could still say "Sorry folks, there is no viable business case for building and selling the Ranger or Bronco in the US". :sad: