Ford Pulls The Plug On Local Manufacturing, To Market Only Imported Cars

• Ford will retail imports such as the Mustang and Mustang Mach-E electric SUV soon.

• Manufacturing of exports at Sanand will stop by the end of 2021, with the Chennai plant halting production by June 2022.

• Current owners will continue to get customer support, service, aftermarket parts and warranty coverage.

After a long period of losses and a lack of growth in the Indian market, Ford has had enough. The carmaker has announced that it will cease vehicle manufacturing at their plants in Chennai and Sanand. Production of export models will still continue, but will cease at the Sanand plant by the end of this year, while production at the Chennai plant is set to end by Q2 2022.  

Ford’s reignited India innings began in 1995 with its first locally produced model coming in the shape of the Escort followed by popular models such as the Ikon and Fiesta around the 2000s. The EcoSport has been the carmaker’s most popular model in India.

With this announcement, Ford’s current India lineup of Figo, Aspire, Freestyle, EcoSport and Endeavour will eventually cease to exist after dealer stocks run out, and no new products will be introduced. So what’s next for the carmaker? Well, they will technically retail vehicles in India, but it’ll be niche iconic import offerings like the Mustang and the Mustang Mach-E electric SUV. But it will be available only at select dealerships. 

Current Ford owners can breathe a sigh of relief for now, as the carmaker will continue to offer full customer support operations for their vehicles with service, aftermarket parts and warranty coverage. Also, the carmaker will continue to produce engines in India, but strictly for exports. The carmaker aims to retain 100 percent of its dealership networks. 

The loss of Ford from the Indian market comes as an unfortunate blow to the Indian auto industry, joining the likes of Fiat and Chevrolet in failed attempts to make a mark in our markets. Ford’s halt of local production in India is similar to the situation in Brazil where the carmaker shut production earlier this year.