Ford, an American car manufacturer, exited the Indian automobile market in 2021 following the lack of acceptance of their cars in India as expected. Among its two factories in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu in India, it has sold the Sanand factory in Gujarat to Tata Motors.
But for the past few months, information has been leaking that Ford is coming back to India. It is reported that the company is about to re-enter India with new plans after abandoning the plans it had last time. So what is Ford’s plan for India and what can we expect from the company?
Previously, locally produced mass market cars were Ford’s plan. It was on that basis that the Ecosport compact SUV, Figo hatchback, Freestyle crosshatch and Aspire compact sedan were manufactured and sold. But after not getting the expected response, it left India.
Now if Ford is bringing these cars to India again, then the Ford side says definitely not. Ford has reached a point where there is no room for talk of mass market cars made in India anymore. Instead, the company plans to sell only a few fuel cell cars built on the T6 platform in India.
In other words, the company is planning to sell their Endeavor model under the name Everest and their pickup model called Ranger in India. Both these models are built on the company’s T6 platform. It is clear that Ford has no plans to sell fuel cars built on any platform other than this T6 platform in India.
Following this, the company is planning to sell affordable electric cars in India. India’s electric car market is still in its infancy. No company has emerged as the sole king of the market yet. So, Ford wants to take advantage of this opportunity.
Ford currently has no plans to manufacture either of the above fuel-efficient cars in India. Instead, it will be imported first and then assembled in India for sale. As soon as the plan for electric cars is ready, Ford feels that it will be able to decide whether or not to manufacture the Everest model in India.
