Ford to Expand Michigan Factory for Electric F-150 -- Update
September 17 2020 - 1:15PM
Dow Jones News
By Mike Colias
Ford Motor Co. is expanding its largest and oldest factory to
make electric pickup trucks, a high-profile manufacturing
investment in a key battleground state where jobs remain a focus on
the campaign trail.
Ford will spend about $700 million to expand its River Rouge
plant, adding 300 jobs at the sprawling, century-old complex a few
miles from the company's Dearborn, Mich., headquarters, the company
said Thursday.
By mid-2022, Ford will begin making battery-powered versions of
the F-150 pickup, its flagship vehicle and major source of its
bottom line.
During an event at the factory Thursday, Ford's top executives
underscored the company's commitment to American manufacturing. The
message comes a week after President Trump and Democratic
presidential nominee Joe Biden touted their jobs records during
dueling campaign stops in Michigan.
"We can't have a strong economy, or a strong democracy, without
a strong manufacturing base," Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford
said. "This is not and should not be a political issue. But it does
have to be a national mission."
Such job announcements became a focal point during the last
election campaign, when Mr. Trump criticized auto makers for
overseas production, including blasting Ford for plans to build a
small-car plant in Mexico. Ford later backed away from the project,
citing market demands but also Mr. Trump's "pro-growth" strategies
for business.
In an advertising campaign for this fall, Ford plans to play up
its status as the top producer of vehicles in the U.S., executives
said.
Ford builds more vehicles in America than General Motors Co.,
even though GM sells more in the country. GM and Fiat Chrysler
Automobiles NV each build more vehicles in Mexico than Ford,
according to data from research firm Ward's Intelligence.
Kumar Galhotra, Ford's president of the Americas and
international markets, said having a heavier U.S. factory presence
in the U.S., rather than Mexico, where labor is cheaper, results in
a substantial profitability gap with rivals. He wouldn't quantify
the disparity.
The electric F-150 will be more powerful and accelerate faster
than its gas-powered trucks, and be as much as 40% less costly to
maintain, company executives said.
Electric vehicles require less routine maintenance -- they don't
need oil changes, for example.
In addition to the electric truck, Ford is starting production
at the Rouge plant of a new version of the regular F-150, the
pickup's first redesign since 2014.
The electric model will go on sale around the same time other
electric pickups will be hitting the market, many from companies
that have been in existence for less time than a lot of F-150
pickups on the road today.
Electric-vehicle leader Tesla Inc. is planning a
futuristic-looking Cybertruck. Other upstarts include Rivian
Automotive and Bollinger Motors, both Michigan-based startups; and
Ohio's Lordstown Motors Corp. has electric pickups in the
works.
Another newcomer, Phoenix-based Nikola Corp., is also building
an electric and hydrogen-powered pickup with assistance from
GM.
Nikola came under scrutiny following allegations by a short
seller that the company made misleading claims, drawing
investigations from U.S. securities regulators and the Justice
Department, people familiar with the matter have said. Nikola has
said the claims are false.
For decades, Ford, GM and Fiat Chrysler have dominated the U.S.
market for big, brawny pickup trucks, used by contractors and
ranchers to haul equipment and weekend warriors to tow boats.
Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. have tried to crack the
big-truck market but haven't put much of a dent in Detroit's
lead.
Ford and GM have responded to the electric-truck newcomers with
a two-pronged approach, readying their own plug-in trucks while
also joining with startups.
Ford has invested $500 million in Rivian and is working on a
future electric vehicle based on the Rivian's technology, while
also developing the plug-in F-150.
GM is working on an electric pickup truck based on its own
technology. The company on Wednesday said it would build the
mechanical guts of its future electric vehicles in house, including
motors and transmissions, adopting a vertically integrated approach
similar to that of Tesla.
Write to Mike Colias at Mike.Colias@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
September 17, 2020 13:00 ET (17:00 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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