New Ford Ranger prototype
Photo by: Creamer Media's Tasneem Bulbulia
Following a R15.8-bilion investment in its Silverton assembly plant and major supplier factories, as announced in 2021, Ford Motor Company Southern Africa is geared up to support production of the next-generation Ford Ranger, which is expected to be released locally later this year, along with the new next-generation Ford Everest.
This was indicated by the company during a media tour of the upgraded Silverton plant on March 22, during which the media was afforded a first look at pre-production prototypes of the new Ranger and Everest vehicles.
Ford Africa MD Neale Hill told media the upgraded facility, once it reaches full operation, will have an installed capacity to produce 200 000 vehicles a year, compared with 168 000 units a year before.
He noted that, at full capacity, the plant will produce one new Ranger off the line every two minutes.
Moreover, the plant also will manufacture Volkswagen (VW) pickup trucks as part of the Ford-VW strategic alliance.
Hill said the expanded production would create 1 200 incremental jobs in South Africa, increasing the local Ford workforce to 5 500 employees, and adding an estimated 10 000 new jobs across Ford’s local supplier network, bringing the total to 60 000.
The R15.8-billion investment constituted R10.3-billion for extensive upgrades to Silverton, and R5.5-billion to upgrade tooling at the company’s major supplier factories. A new Ford-owned and operated chassis line is also being built in the Tshwane Automotive Special Economic Zone for this new vehicle programme.
The Silverton plant upgrades included construction of a new body shop with the latest robotic technology and a new high-tech stamping plant, both of which are located on-site for the first time, which Hill said would streamline operations, improve efficiencies and reduce costs.
The new stamping plant will use a high-speed line to produce all the major sheet metal components for the new Ranger.
Extensive upgrades also included the box line, paint shop and final assembly to improve vehicle flow within the plant, along with the expansion of the container and vehicle yards.
New vehicle modification and training centres were also created, with the latter developed to ensure all Ford employees are equipped with the knowledge and skills required to maximise the efficiencies of the enhanced Silverton facilities.
Moreover, Ford also aims to achieve “Island mode”, taking Silverton off-grid entirely and becoming entirely self-sufficient and carbon neutral by 2024 – which Hill said would make it one of the first Ford plants globally to achieve this.
Upgrades therefore also include the construction of solar carports for 4 200 vehicles at the Silverton plant, which is well under way.
Notably, Hill pointed out that, with these investments and enhanced production capacity, as well as the new jobs created directly in the supply chain and in the SEZ, Ford will be able to contribute about 2% to South Africa’s gross domestic product.
Also highlighted during the event was that both the Ranger and Everest will offer Ford’s new 3.0 ℓ turbodiesel V6 engine.
Depending on the market, the next-gen Everest offers a choice of powertrains that includes new 3.0 ℓ turbodiesel V6 and 2.0 ℓ turbodiesel engines and, from 2023, the 2.3 ℓ EcoBoost petrol engine for select markets.
Also depending on the market, the next-gen Ranger offers a choice of petrol and diesel powertrains, including the addition of Ford’s V6 turbodiesel and ten-speed transmission.
Hill mentioned that both vehicles were designed to cater to customer requests and feedback. This is also evidenced in the engines of both, with customers indicating that they wanted more power and torque, hence the choice of the 3.0 ℓ turbodiesel V6 engine.
‘SUPER EIGHT’ OFFERING
Meanwhile, Ford South Africa has also recently introduced a ‘Super Eight’ offering, eight new key focus areas designed to modernise the customer experience for customers who buy new and pre-owned Ford vehicles, and which the company posits would provide an enhanced customer experience and ownership journey.
Each stage is aimed at leveraging and amplifying the Ford+ plan, which the company highlights is focused on “treating customers like family”.
The eight key focus areas are Ford Sales and Service Experience; Ranger and Everest Experts; Master Your Vehicle; Customer Service Convenience Initiatives; Worry-Free Vehicle Health; Unscheduled Vehicle Downtime; Customer Retention and Renewal; and Sponsorship.
Also, the next-gen Ranger and next-gen Everest will come with over-the-air updates to enhance ownership experience.