Harley Lover Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 Wow, some big news from Europe: Quote Ford Motor is launching seven full-electric vehicles in Europe including a battery-electric version of the Puma small crossover, its best-selling passenger car in the region. The three new full-electric passenger cars and four new electric vans will be launched by 2024 and will all be built in Europe, Ford said in a statement on Monday. The first EV will be a midsize crossover that will go into production at Ford's factory in Cologne, Germany, this year. The crossover will use Volkswagen Group's MEB electric platform that underpins the VW ID4, among other VW Group models. Ford had already said it would build a new EV in Cologne, but this is the first mention of the model's body style. The electric crossover will have a 500 km (311 mile) driving range on a single charge. Its name will be revealed later in 2022, with production commencing in 2023, Ford said. A second vehicle, which Ford said was a "sports crossover," will also be built at Cologne starting in 2024. The vehicle is also expected to be based on the MEB platform. The electric sports crossover means that EV production at the Cologne factory will increase to 1.2 million vehicles over a six-year timeframe. The investment includes a new battery assembly facility scheduled to start operations in 2024. The Puma will be introduced in EV form, along with Transit variants: Quote The Puma electric crossover will arrive in 2024 and will be built at Ford's factory in Craiova, Romania. Ford will also build the new Transit Courier and Tourneo Courier vans in Craiova from 2023, with all-electric versions coming in 2024. The vans are currently produced in Turkey. The Transit EV range will be: Quote The Ford Transit light commercial vehicle range's four new electric models will be: A Transit Custom 1-ton van available as an EV in 2023 A Tourneo Custom multi-purpose compact vehicle available as an EV in 2023 A small Transit Courier van EV in 2024. This vehicle has already been announced for Craiova in Romania A Tourneo Courier multi-purpose vehicle EV in 2024 And not any less critical: Quote Ford also said on Monday that it had signed an agreement with SK On and Koc Holding to jointly build a battery production facility in Turkey. Big news overall for Ford Europe! https://europe.autonews.com/automakers/ford-launch-7-evs-europe-big-electric-push?utm_source=daily&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20220314&utm_content=hero-headline 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harley Lover Posted March 14, 2022 Author Share Posted March 14, 2022 Image accompanying article: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twin Turbo Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 I'm betting the sports crossover will be called Capri. This also seems to indicate the Fiesta and Focus won't last beyond 2030 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GearheadGrrrl Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 (edited) Ford Europe tweeted the future of the Transit Connect (for Europe at least) too: "The next generations Transit and Tourneo Courier will be built in Craiova from 2023 with an electric version starting in 2024. An all-electric version of the Puma will also be built in Craiova in 2024." With the VW MQB based Tourneo Connect just going into production now, will it be orphaned after just a couple years production? Or sold alongside a new electric model sorta like the Transit and legacy Econoline? With maybe a 3rd Transit Connect built in Mexico for North America? Edited March 14, 2022 by GearheadGrrrl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 3 hours ago, GearheadGrrrl said: 3rd Transit Connect built in Mexico for North America? The NA Transit Connect will be shared with the Maverick platform for the next 8 years or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 The Medium Size EV Crossover screams Explorer from those headlights. Maybe they'll call it the Explorer Sport EV, since the Sport name has been retired from the ICE model with the introduction of the ST Plus it would fit in with the Bronco vs Bronco Sport moniker 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bzcat Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 (edited) 58 minutes ago, silvrsvt said: The Medium Size EV Crossover screams Explorer from those headlights. Maybe they'll call it the Explorer Sport EV, since the Sport name has been retired from the ICE model with the introduction of the ST Plus it would fit in with the Bronco vs Bronco Sport moniker Medium size in the context of Europe is Kuga size. Explorer will be fullsize for Europe (~5 meters long). Explorer name doesn't really have any significant impact in European markets. I think someone mentioned it already but I'm going to say Capri is probably a strong contender for the EV sport crossover. Cortina may be a good name for the midsize crossover too. Edited March 14, 2022 by bzcat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 48 minutes ago, bzcat said: Medium size in the context of Europe is Kuga size. Explorer will be fullsize for Europe (~5 meters long). I was thinking the 2 row BEV Explorer that has been rumored to be on the GE2 platform-basically a more formal version of the MME and would slot as the Edge replacement.' 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bzcat Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 16 minutes ago, silvrsvt said: I was thinking the 2 row BEV Explorer that has been rumored to be on the GE2 platform-basically a more formal version of the MME and would slot as the Edge replacement.' Sure, I agree for the US market. But not the one they will build in Europe because the European one are MEB as stated in the article. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 14 minutes ago, bzcat said: Sure, I agree for the US market. But not the one they will build in Europe because the European one are MEB as stated in the article. Ah I missed that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bzcat Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 (edited) The most surprising thing about this announcement is that Ford is sticking with the Courier nameplate. There was some speculation that Ford will discontinue Transit Courier because the B-segment vans are losing favor in Europe as most commercial buyers prefer the SWB C-segment vans that are not much bigger but offer more payload. Another thing to ponder... not exactly clear to me the Puma and Transit Courier are MEB. A couple of things to note: 1. Ford invested $2b in Cologne to build MEB but only invested $300 million in Craiova to build Puma EV and Transit Courier. $300m is more indicative of normal new tooling rather than whole new platform. 2. Hard to imagine VW will let Ford make a cheaper van based on MEB vs. ID Buzz. This could imply that Ford has adopted its B2 platform for full EV use and we didn't even know about it! Notice how the article was worded: Quote The Puma electric crossover will arrive in 2024 and will be built at Ford's factory in Craiova, Romania. Ford will also build the new Transit Courier and Tourneo Courier vans in Craiova from 2023, with all-electric versions coming in 2024. The vans are currently produced in Turkey. MEB is EV only so no ICE offshoot is possible. A new Transit Courier (implying ICE) is coming in 2023, and the EV version (meaning not a whole new dedicated EV) will follow in 2024. That seems pretty clear to me next gen B-2 (B-3?) Puma and Transit Courier will be available in both ICE and EV. Harley Lover already mentioned the investment with SK and Koç to build batteries. But he didn't mention this nugget from Ford's own press release: Quote To further boost electric and commercial vehicle capacity, Ford announced this morning that Ford Otosan will assume ownership of the Craiova plant and manufacturing business, subject to regulatory approval and consultation. Ford Otosan, a joint venture between Ford Motor Company and Koç Holding, is one of the longest running and most successful joint ventures in the global auto industry. Craiova will move from Ford Europe to Ford Otosan. If you are wondering the significant of this, let me illustrated it for you. 1. Puma is Ford's #1 selling passenger vehicle in Europe, which will now be build by Otosan. 2. Ford Europe's van business was rumored to be profitable and propping up money losing European car business. It's a shot across the bow by Farley - there are no sacred cows. Ford Europe better learn to swim or Farley will cut them lose like India or Brazil. Edited March 14, 2022 by bzcat 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvrsvt Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 1 hour ago, bzcat said: It's a shot across the bow by Farley - there are no sacred cows. Ford Europe better learn to swim or Farley will cut them lose like India or Brazil. I was under the impression that Ford EU was going away under a reorganization…it was an article posted a few days ago? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
passis Posted March 14, 2022 Share Posted March 14, 2022 (edited) 2 hours ago, bzcat said: Craiova will move from Ford Europe to Ford Otosan. If you are wondering the significant of this, let me illustrated it for you. Could Otosan be involved in saving India's operations with EVs? I wish they had interest to do the same in Camaçari and adapt B2 towards cheaper BEVs. It was an interesting announcement, the European puzzle is much clearer now. The plan seems good, but not very cohesive, involving their very own products (Mach E), and two partnerships (VW with ID.4 + ID.5 cousins and now Otosan with vans + Puma). Edited March 14, 2022 by passis 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmc523 Posted March 15, 2022 Share Posted March 15, 2022 https://www.autoblog.com/2022/03/14/ford-romania-jv-turkey/ Quote Ford Motor Co's Turkish joint venture will buy the U.S. company's Craiova plant in Romania for 575 million euros ($630 million) and plans to move Courier van production there, the company said on Monday. Ford Otosan, the joint venture with Turkey's Koc Holding, will pay an additional 140 million euros to Ford over the next decade according to certain capacity utilization criteria, the company said. Ford Otosan shares jumped 8.5% to 264.7 liras in response. The Romanian plant produces Puma and EcoSport passenger models. It will begin production of the Courier along with Puma next year, with battery electric versions of both rolling off in 2024. Ford Otosan, which is undergoing a 2 billion-euro expansion of its Turkish plant, will likely finance the acquisition with bank loans, CEO Haydar Yenigun told a press conference. It plans to keep paying dividends. The transaction is expected to be completed in the third quarter pending a regulatory review. Ford Otosan plans to begin manufacturing Europe's top selling van Transit's electrical and hybrid versions in Turkey next year. Ford also announced plans, together with Korean battery maker SK On and Koc Holding, to form a joint venture to produce electric vehicle batteries in Turkey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpd80 Posted March 15, 2022 Share Posted March 15, 2022 (edited) 13 hours ago, bzcat said: Medium size in the context of Europe is Kuga size. Explorer will be fullsize for Europe (~5 meters long). Explorer name doesn't really have any significant impact in European markets. I think someone mentioned it already but I'm going to say Capri is probably a strong contender for the EV sport crossover. Cortina may be a good name for the midsize crossover too. I’m thinking the two MEB based vehicles will be Kuga and Focus Active that might sound a bit plain but probably suits Europe but also dovetails in well for North American production where Kuga becomes Escape/Corsair and Focus Active might just be called Focus or Escort for an E named utility. Edited March 15, 2022 by jpd80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ausrutherford Posted March 17, 2022 Share Posted March 17, 2022 On 3/14/2022 at 4:36 PM, bzcat said: The most surprising thing about this announcement is that Ford is sticking with the Courier nameplate. There was some speculation that Ford will discontinue Transit Courier because the B-segment vans are losing favor in Europe as most commercial buyers prefer the SWB C-segment vans that are not much bigger but offer more payload. Another thing to ponder... not exactly clear to me the Puma and Transit Courier are MEB. A couple of things to note: 1. Ford invested $2b in Cologne to build MEB but only invested $300 million in Craiova to build Puma EV and Transit Courier. $300m is more indicative of normal new tooling rather than whole new platform. 2. Hard to imagine VW will let Ford make a cheaper van based on MEB vs. ID Buzz. This could imply that Ford has adopted its B2 platform for full EV use and we didn't even know about it! Notice how the article was worded: MEB is EV only so no ICE offshoot is possible. A new Transit Courier (implying ICE) is coming in 2023, and the EV version (meaning not a whole new dedicated EV) will follow in 2024. That seems pretty clear to me next gen B-2 (B-3?) Puma and Transit Courier will be available in both ICE and EV. Harley Lover already mentioned the investment with SK and Koç to build batteries. But he didn't mention this nugget from Ford's own press release: Craiova will move from Ford Europe to Ford Otosan. If you are wondering the significant of this, let me illustrated it for you. 1. Puma is Ford's #1 selling passenger vehicle in Europe, which will now be build by Otosan. 2. Ford Europe's van business was rumored to be profitable and propping up money losing European car business. It's a shot across the bow by Farley - there are no sacred cows. Ford Europe better learn to swim or Farley will cut them lose like India or Brazil. Transit Courier sells well in Turkey. Now it s just Ford vs Fiat in that market, they both can take the market share. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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