Ford India back up but don’t expect a new Figo or EcoSport soon

Ford’s surprise U-turn on the consolidation of its operations in India won’t lead to the revival of some previously assembled products, most notably the EcoSport and Figo, a new report has alleged.

Departure…

Back in 2021, the Blue Oval announced it has decided to end manufacturing at both its Chennai and Sanand Plants that produced the Figo, Figo Sedan, Freestyle, EcoSport and Endeavour (Everest) after accumulating losses of more than $2-billion over a decade.

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The eventual closure of the Sanand Plant become official a year later with Tata acquiring the facility soon after, while negotiations regarding the sale of Chennai continued.

…or not

Earlier this year though, it was reported that Dearborn had backtracked on its decision to exit India completely by keeping and expanding the latter as a manufacturing hub for electric vehicles outside Europe and North America.

According to a report by Forbes India in January, more employees would be hired at the facility to help with EV assembly over the next two to three years as part of an investment worth $23-billion into expansion, retooling and production of models rumoured to include the Mustang Mach-E and Volkswagen-underpinned Explorer EV.

Addressing its product future, an unnamed spokesperson told Autocar India that aside from EVs, it will also manufacture vehicles based on the T6 platform at the plant, which at present, includes the Ranger, Everest and Bronco.

No Figo or EcoSport

While declining to comment on whether the Everest would again be marketed under the Endeavour name or sold as the Everest in-line with global markets, the spokesperson stated that no replacements for the Figo or EcoSport are being mentioned as “that chapter is closed”.

“Our internal combustion engine play in India will only be limited to T6 product,” the short statement to the publication read.

While a successor for the Figo never received mentioning, a third generation EcoSport – the original having been a South American exclusive – had been on the cards as part of a partnership with Mahindra.

The joint venture, signed in 2019, came to an abrupt ending shortly before Ford’s departure though as a result of what both brands described as “fundamental changes in global economic and business conditions” as a result of the global pandemic.

At the time, it was reported that the EcoSport would ride on the same platform and use the engines from the Mahindra XUV 300, now called XUV 3X0, while a second model, known internally as C757, would be introduced in 2022 based on the underpinnings of XUV 500 that morphed into the present-day XUV 700.

Impact on South Africa

The decision to end production not only resulted in the end of the Figo in South Africa, but also the EcoSport, whose sourcing originated from Sanand and, in the case of the flagship 1.0 EcoBoost models, from the Craiova Plant in Romania that also produces the Puma.

“The Indian-sourced EcoSport derivatives remain on sale in South Africa. We have an adequate supply of vehicles, as well as service, maintenance and replacement parts to support current and future EcoSport customers,” Ford South Africa told The Citizen shortly after the final EcoSport departed Sanand on 20 July two years ago.

A top-seller throughout its tenure, the EcoSport’s indirect replacing of the long awaited Puma at the end of last year has so far not resulted in the same success as a result of its higher price tag and line-up of two models priced between R570 400 and R614 400.

As it stands, the Blue Oval’s most accessible model on local soil comes in the shape of the two-wheel-drive single cab XL version of the Ranger priced at R514 800.

For reference, the Sanand-made EcoSport 1.5 Ambiente had a sticker of R311 400 at the time of its discontinuation.

Besides the EcoSport and Figo, the end of Fiesta production last year after 47-years brought a further end to entry-level models, a space now occupied, in Europe, by a broader range of Puma derivatives.

Only expected to commence with production in 2025 or 2026, according to the Autocar India report, it remains to be seen whether the Sanand plant will again play role in Ford South Africa’s programme, especially in the case of the Everest that is once again sourced from Thailand.

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