Ford Motor (NYSE: F) said today it is investing C$1.8 billion in its Oakville Assembly Complex to make it into a high-volume hub of electric vehicle manufacturing in Canada. The property, to be renamed Oakville Electric Vehicle Complex, will begin to retool and modernize during Q2of 2024 to prepare for production of next-generation EVs.
This apparently marks the first time a full-line automaker has announced plans to produce “passenger EVs in Canada for the North American market,” claimed Ford. This apparently rules out truck production? Oakville currently builds the Ford Edge and Lincoln Nautilus (autoinformed.com on: Ford Motor Q1 2023 US Sales Up 10%)
Canada and the Oakville complex will play a vital role in our Ford+ transformation. It will be a modern, super-efficient, vertically integrated site for battery and vehicle assembly,” said Jim Farley, Ford president and CEO.
The current 487-acre Oakville site includes three body shops, one paint building, one assembly building. The transformed campus will have a new 407,000 square-foot on-site battery plant that will use cells and arrays from Battery Park in Kentucky. Oakville workers will take these components and assemble battery packs that will then be installed in vehicles assembled on-site. (autoinformed.com on: EVs – Ford to Spend $11.4B Creating a Tennessee Campus, Twin Battery Plants in Kentucky)
“Ford’s investment in retooling its Oakville plant will support thousands of good paying jobs and is an important milestone in our plan to become a leader in the electric vehicle revolution,” said Ontario Premier Doug Ford (No relation to the families of Ford Motor). “Together, with our industry and union partners, we’re building up a world class, home grown electric vehicle supply chain, from mining to manufacturing, so that the vehicles of the future are built right here in Ontario, by Ontario workers.”
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
Ford Oakville Assembly in Canada to Convert to EVs
Ford Motor (NYSE: F) said today it is investing C$1.8 billion in its Oakville Assembly Complex to make it into a high-volume hub of electric vehicle manufacturing in Canada. The property, to be renamed Oakville Electric Vehicle Complex, will begin to retool and modernize during Q2of 2024 to prepare for production of next-generation EVs.
This apparently marks the first time a full-line automaker has announced plans to produce “passenger EVs in Canada for the North American market,” claimed Ford. This apparently rules out truck production? Oakville currently builds the Ford Edge and Lincoln Nautilus (autoinformed.com on: Ford Motor Q1 2023 US Sales Up 10%)
Canada and the Oakville complex will play a vital role in our Ford+ transformation. It will be a modern, super-efficient, vertically integrated site for battery and vehicle assembly,” said Jim Farley, Ford president and CEO.
The current 487-acre Oakville site includes three body shops, one paint building, one assembly building. The transformed campus will have a new 407,000 square-foot on-site battery plant that will use cells and arrays from Battery Park in Kentucky. Oakville workers will take these components and assemble battery packs that will then be installed in vehicles assembled on-site. (autoinformed.com on: EVs – Ford to Spend $11.4B Creating a Tennessee Campus, Twin Battery Plants in Kentucky)
“Ford’s investment in retooling its Oakville plant will support thousands of good paying jobs and is an important milestone in our plan to become a leader in the electric vehicle revolution,” said Ontario Premier Doug Ford (No relation to the families of Ford Motor). “Together, with our industry and union partners, we’re building up a world class, home grown electric vehicle supply chain, from mining to manufacturing, so that the vehicles of the future are built right here in Ontario, by Ontario workers.”
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.