The grand return of the Ranger is shaping up to be a winner for Ford. The company will be instituting overtime hours at the Detroit-area plant that is building the revived pickup to meet very strong demand.
This if course is in sharp contrast with what’s happening a number of other assembly plants devoted to cars, where production has slowed down due to falling demand. Ford, you’ll recall, has in fact completely eliminated production of cars in North America, with the exception of the Mustang.
As for the Ranger, production capacity is about to be significantly ramped up. After two weeks of availability at Ford dealers, 1,200 units have already been snapped up. In all, the company estimates that 300,000 consumers have shown serious interest in buying one. This is according to Kumar Galhotra, head of Ford’s operations in North America, who made the declaration to Detroit-based journalists this week.
“The demand is going to be so strong, that starting in February, just in a few days, our Wayne Assembly plant where this product is made will be going into massive overtime. That is fantastic news.”
- Kumar Galhotra, Ford
That plant in Wayne is where Ford built its Focus model until last year. This same pattern is being seen in General Motors plants as well. The disruption in the automotive market means that, according to some estimates, building capacity currently outpaces demand by some three million vehicles. Into the vacuum are stepping SUVs and trucks, as companies ramp up production of these vehicle types to meet burgeoning demand.
Still according to Ford’s Galhotra, the company is directing 90% of its capital expenditure towards the production of SUVs and trucks.
Read our review of the 2019 Ford Ranger