New Ford Auto Plant for Mexico?

[rmc523]

They didn't have any plans until now.

 

My point was you complained they didn't have any expansion plans a few days ago prior to this announcement. Ok, fair enough....I could let that slide, as I think some of us agree we'd like to see some expansion. But then now that they announce plans for expansion via a new plant, you now complain they're doing too much.

Edited January 15, 2016 by rmc523

[pcsario]

Whatever is sent there, should also make sense to be sold locally and exported to LA as well.

 

Other than C-class vehicles --and perhaps the EcoSport-- the next most obvious candidate for Mexico is the Ranger platform.

 

That would be my guess from a cost-risk-benefit POV.

Edited January 16, 2016 by pcsario

[akirby]

Doesn't the Argentina plant already cover Latin America? A U.S. plant could cover Mexico and Canada.

[Biker16]

 

My point was you complained they didn't have any expansion plans a few days ago prior to this announcement. Ok, fair enough....I could let that slide, as I think some of us agree we'd like to see some expansion. But then now that they announce plans for expansion via a new plant, you now complain they're doing too much.

 

I can see where you are Coming From.

 

It can appear contradictory to say Grow, then I say it's too much.

 

I see Ford's Position in MAP, as being one where they (AFAIK) sacrificed flexibility for marginal productivity improvements.

 

There is no world I can foresee that building a plant as large as MAP in mexico and expect a different result, unless it's able to build more products than MAP could. Products like the Focus, C-max, MKc and Escape.

 

V

V

V

 

Which is Really hard to do on Line that is moving 75-85 JPH. which is how you get a factory to produce 350,000 units per year. unless that plant has more than one line

[Edstock]

Um, why bother? What, precisely, is the point of all this? 2009 was 7 years ago, that was then, and this is now. Ford has changed, the market has changed. Move on.

 

A little slow are we? I couldn't care less about being banned, I'm even dissapointed about the lack of veredict right now.

Nick is free to answer whatever he wants to the higher ups. Let me be perfectly clear about this: I don't feel scared or threatened at all, I've been LAUGHING at RJ ever since he lost it over this, it's always the same thing and shows how just fragile his little word is. The perfect example of someone who likes to dish it out (mhlm, diesels, Lutz, etc.), but can't take anything himself.

HE does want to kick me out, and has for a while, because he realizes that's the only recourse he has left to somehow "get back at me" and feel better about his miserable life. Can't do shit about "One Ford",can't also do shit to fix his life. All he has is his little sanctuary, this place. His self-steem is based around being a mod in a small internet forum, which he uses, like a child, as his personal sandbox, and eternally derails threads to turn them into buddy-buddy chatrooms. He's your 30+ year old virgin fuck, who gets zero action outside, of any social kind, as explained by his daily 24/7 presence. He is someone who got owned by those he hates most, by life, and by the own company he claims to love, but hasn't supported in over 10 years.

- He was owned by Mulally.
- He was owned by Fields.
- He was owned by Kuzak.
- He was owned by Mays.

No one at FNA is siding with his vision of what Ford should be. The future is kinetic, the future will be based on FOE-inspired looks for the next 10 years. He was wrong about everything he minimized others for. There's no 11.5k Fiesta coming out of the gate, nor was Horbury replaced with another Horbury... duh. So yeah, I can see where his rage is coming from. I guess I would also attempt to cover the sun with a finger if I was in his position, problem is... he realizes I already won and there's really NOTHING he can argue or do anymore, besides banning me out of frustration.

From now on, no matter what he attempts to do, if he succeeds or not against me, I already won. I'm not P71. I don't own a Panther. The Mondeo will live on. CD3 will die. Red white and bold is dead. Next? Maybe I will buy the FOE-inspired kinetic Taurus, or the future FOE-inspired kinetic Fusion, maybe the FOE-inspired kinetic next-gen Kuga or Edge. Haven't made up my mind. We're easily talking about a 10 year lifecycle for "One Ford" when everything is said and done, which I'll enjoy --tremendously-- outside, as the true Ford fan that I am.

Long after I'm gone, voluntarily "or not", I'll finally be enjoying the Ford I enviosioned long ago. Others? Well... they'll continue to lie to themselves about having "fixed" reality with my departure, just like they're doing with P71's, while elsewhere --almost daily recently-- someone will continue to have his usual meltdowns every time something related to One Ford is discussed.

So, everyone who doesn't like it, talk or do whatever you want, I'm already putting this as my sig. Just be fully aware I'll enjoy the ride all along, and it will last far more than the time it takes to write a post, or push someone into pressing a red button.

 

For your added enjoyment . . .

 

[jpd80]

I suspect that Ranger-Everest-Bronco will go to MAP and account for around two shifts to start off

with every likelihood that sales across US, Canada and Mexico blow production to three shifts.

Even at two shifts, the higher ofATPs of Ranger products make them more profitable than Focus/C-Max.

 

And then we have the new Mexican plant for next gen Focus, Fiesta, hopefully a better Ecosport

and if all three can generate North American sales of 30K/mth, then all will be well.

 

So then perhaps TC and a TC pick Up would be better served going to CUAP to keep the production

costs under control and on a single unique line to permit as much variation as possible

Edited January 16, 2016 by jpd80

[pcsario]

LMAO... sorry I've sigs turned off, wouldn't have remembered otherwise. Let me see if I can disable it for that post as well.

 

Anyway, Argentina is a small volume plant. This could be a way to consolidate production.

 

Between this new plant and Cuautitlan, we're talking about, what? 650k units of capacity?

 

That's why I think we're talking about Ford's C and Ranger platforms.

[jpd80]

LMAO... sorry I've sigs turned off, wouldn't have remembered otherwise. Let me see if I can disable it for that post as well.

 

Anyway, Argentina is a small volume plant. This could be a way to consolidate production.

 

Between this new plant and Cuautitlan, we're talking about, what? 650k units of capacity?

 

That's why I think we're talking about Ford's C and Ranger platforms.

Wasn't there an issue a few years back regarding Mexico exporting products to South America,I hea

rd that a lot of that was blocked by South America to promote its own local production.

 

There's lots of up sides to this news, mostly for the knock on effect of more production volume

and getting products in the right plants with the right cost base.

[jpd80]

Does any of this link in with Ford's latest announcement regarding four (4) new as in extra Uitlities?

 

Could this be the reason that Focus gets moved out to Mexico and a whole new plant there is justified?

[Edstock]

Doesn't Ford have an assembly plant in Brasil?

[jpd80]

Doesn't Ford have an assembly plant in Brasil?

Yes but it's not part of NAFTA or Asia Pacific Agreement.

[probowler]

I think we can all agree here that Ford clearly has no vision or direction going forward and is making up moves as they go....

 

This is clearly a desperation move to jump aboard emerging trends that Ford has too long ignored and downplayed.

[pcsario]

South America has different production standards/needs, that's why it's rare to see a Brazilian import in the US. Most products are built with a regional business case in mind, and others follow global standards because they also reach 1st world markets and so on.

 

When it comes to Ford, SA also tends to work on a different schedule. IIRC, they were just getting the MK2 Euro Focus in ~2010. The current gen/look just started production last year, their Kinetic Fiesta arrived almost two years later than ours (which was already late compared to Europe) and so on.

 

Ford Brazil unfortunately centers a lot on cost cutting and their input is one of the main reasons why the EcoSport ended up being panned everywhere. It had to be designed around their budget. Too much, IMO.

 

Yes, there was a trade deficit issue with Brazil. It wasn't limited to Ford, though. Still, with the exception of Brazil, most Ford plants in SA are low volume. Judging by the Fiesta, it seems Ford wants to consolidate production plants.

 

So again, we end up where we began. 325k (Cuautitlan) + 350k (New plant) = 675k.

 

We know the Focus platform is involved, we know the Ranger and four new SUVs are coming, so... if it isn't that, how would you fill that production capacity? Almost 700k Focus and EcoSports a year, with most of them going to the US?

[blazerdude20]

South America has different production standards/needs, that's why it's rare to see a Brazilian import in the US. Most products are built with a regional business case in mind, and others follow global standards because they also reach 1st world markets and so on.

 

When it comes to Ford, SA also tends to work on a different schedule. IIRC, they were just getting the MK2 Euro Focus in ~2010. The current gen/look just started production last year, their Kinetic Fiesta arrived almost two years later than ours (which was already late compared to Europe) and so on.

 

Ford Brazil unfortunately centers a lot on cost cutting and their input is one of the main reasons why the EcoSport ended up being panned everywhere. It had to be designed around their budget. Too much, IMO.

 

Yes, there was a trade deficit issue with Brazil. It wasn't limited to Ford, though. Still, with the exception of Brazil, most Ford plants in SA are low volume. Judging by the Fiesta, it seems Ford wants to consolidate production plants.

 

So again, we end up where we began. 325k (Cuautitlan) + 350k (New plant) = 675k.

 

We know the Focus platform is involved, we know the Ranger and four new SUVs are coming, so... if it isn't that, how would you fill that production capacity? Almost 700k Focus and EcoSports a year, with most of them going to the US?

Focus, eco sport, fiesta and TC would be my guess. Meeting demand for all of North America it probably isn't too far off. Especially if Lincoln does add a premium compact sedan and/or smaller SUV.

[jpd80]

Ford was looking at freeing up 250K to 300K capacity alone at MAP

but with this New Mexican plant, that doubles the capacity available.

That is a huge jump in growing capacity after years of doing the opposite.

 

Just thinking that's a huge shift in strategy and indicates increased optimism

To carry that extra production. Knowing Ford, it will want to capitalise on those

cost savings by running those Mexican plants as hard as possible by filling each

of them with products that can be flexed and running at least two or three shifts

if possible.. It's staggering to imagine products across MAP, CUAP & SLP

 

But am I getting ahead of things here, would Ford start out with one or two shifts

at each plant and let demand build from there?

Edited January 17, 2016 by jpd80

[Biker16]

South America has different production standards/needs, that's why it's rare to see a Brazilian import in the US. Most products are built with a regional business case in mind, and others follow global standards because they also reach 1st world markets and so on.

 

When it comes to Ford, SA also tends to work on a different schedule. IIRC, they were just getting the MK2 Euro Focus in ~2010. The current gen/look just started production last year, their Kinetic Fiesta arrived almost two years later than ours (which was already late compared to Europe) and so on.

 

Ford Brazil unfortunately centers a lot on cost cutting and their input is one of the main reasons why the EcoSport ended up being panned everywhere. It had to be designed around their budget. Too much, IMO.

 

Yes, there was a trade deficit issue with Brazil. It wasn't limited to Ford, though. Still, with the exception of Brazil, most Ford plants in SA are low volume. Judging by the Fiesta, it seems Ford wants to consolidate production plants.

 

So again, we end up where we began. 325k (Cuautitlan) + 350k (New plant) = 675k.

 

We know the Focus platform is involved, we know the Ranger and four new SUVs are coming, so... if it isn't that, how would you fill that production capacity? Almost 700k Focus and EcoSports a year, with most of them going to the US?

 

CUAP can only produce ~120,000 Fiesta's per year.

 

I'd Assume the Dedicated HEV and Transit connect will be assembled in the US, Not Mexico, For Buy America compliance for the Government Market.

 

That would leave Focus and C-max production in Mexico. that totals 280,000 units for NA.

 

I'd Size the New plant to produce 300,000 unit on 3 Shifts(same Size as HAP), and potentially reconfigure CUAP to produce 200,000 units on 3 shifts.

[bzcat]

 

CUAP can only produce ~120,000 Fiesta's per year.

 

I'd Assume the Dedicated HEV and Transit connect will be assembled in the US, Not Mexico, For Buy America compliance for the Government Market.

 

That would leave Focus and C-max production in Mexico. that totals 280,000 units for NA.

 

I'd Size the New plant to produce 300,000 unit on 3 Shifts(same Size as HAP), and potentially reconfigure CUAP to produce 200,000 units on 3 shifts.

 

My guess is CUAP can produce more... it lack products now. Fiesta landed there because there was no other suitable place in NAFTA. As a single product plant, it must have relatively low utilization (e.g. is it even on 2 full shifts?)

[pcsario]

Cuautitlan's current output might be ~120k a year, but it was declared a 320k plant during its inaugural ceremony. Why did they never use CUAP at its fullest? Dunno... I remember them toying with the idea of building a small coupe and SUV in addition to Fiesta. Perhaps growth in the b segment didn't turn out to be as big as Ford thought.

Edited January 21, 2016 by pcsario

[jpd80]

 

CUAP can only produce ~120,000 Fiesta's per year.

I has a maximum installed capacity of 324,000

LINK

Ford’s Global Marketing and Operations Vice-President for Canada, Mexico and South America, Jim Farley, and Paul Mascarenas,

Ford’s Global Engineering Vice-President. The plant closed on December 2008 to prepare for the production of the company’s new

model. The new plant has a maximum installed capacity to produce 324,000 units per year, although it is expected that production at

such plant will increase gradually from 180,000 units during the first year of operation. Preparations made at the plant included an

additional 25,800 square meter building to accommodate manufacturing processes, which will operate with a line of five highly

productive presses, 270 robots and in-line measurement systems; and adjustable ergonomic platforms in the upholstering section.