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HomeFeatured ArticlesFord India - 25 Years of that 'Family Waali Feeling!'

Ford India – 25 Years of that ‘Family Waali Feeling!’

All the automotive enthusiasts and serious car buyers are disappointed about only one fact. Ford, the American auto giant has decided to leave our country. Now that Ford has made their exit official from the Indian automotive industry, we want to bid adieu by looking at the 25 glorious years that this legendary automaker has spent in the Indian subcontinent!

Ford India | The Beginning

2000 Ford Mondeo
2000 Ford Mondeo

It was 1926 when Ford India Private Limited entered India as a subsidy of Ford Motor Company of Canada but was liquidated in 1953 due to severe import restrictions. Ford re-entered India in October 1995 as Mahindra Ford India Limited (MFIL), a 50-50 joint venture with Mahindra & Mahindra Limited.

Talking of the launches, the brand brought in sixth-generation European Ford Escort and the Ford Ikon, later followed by the Ford Mondeo that you see in the picture above. 2004 was a revolutionary year for the brand as they introduced the Indian audience to a new segment called ‘crossovers’ with the launch of the Ford Fusion!

Ford Fusion | credits-Motor.Beam.com
Ford Fusion | credits-Motor.Beam.com

Read Ford Fusion was way ahead of its time | We will tell you why

We can definitely say that the Fusion was the forerunner of what was driving Ford’s success in the present-day market too. We are talking about none other than the Ford EcoSport. Just like Fusion, EcoSport also made the Indian audience experience a whole new segment. Also, both these vehicles had a great petrol and diesel engine too! Both Fusion and EcoSport were vehicles well ahead of time!

Ford India | Manufacturing Plants

Sanand Ford Plant
Ford Sanand Manufacturing Facility

The American automaker has set up 2 manufacturing facilities in India. Ford India has one plant in Chennai while the other one is in Sanand, Gujarat. The Chennai facility is spread in 350 acres of land and has a manufacturing ability of 200,000 vehicle units and 340,000 engines a year. The Sanand plant is spread over 460 acres and can make 240,000 vehicles and 270,000 engines a year.

The only thing worth noticing is that Ford India has been a loss-making local entity where COVID-19 worsened their situation further. As per SIAM, the American automaker was working on a 20% capacity in their plants till July 2021. The brand itself said that they have made a loss of over $2billion in the past 10 years of their operation in India.

The Rise

used premium hatchbacks under 3 lakhs
used premium hatchbacks under 3 lakhs

As we mentioned above, Ford was paving their road to success in the Indian market smoothly, some cars from their lineup were an absolute hit in the market! From the very beginning, IKON was regarded as a true icon in the Indian market. After that, Mondeo and Fusion also did equally good.

Ford made another smart move by launching the Fiesta and the Figo in the Indian market. All of us know how well Figo was sold in India. About Fiesta (Classic), its name will always be among the legendary sedans made in India.

Read 6 Iconic Ford Cars That Indians Will Terribly Miss

Apart from this duo, we also have the Ford Endeavour who has been a very tough competitor to the Toyota Fortuner. We know how the enthusiasts felt when Ford discontinued the 3.2! Similarly, EcoSport truly deserves the credit for being the trendsetter for what we see on the Indian roads in the present times. Be it the Kia Sonet, Mahindra XUV300, Nissan Magnite, Tata Nexon, Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Toyota Urban Cruiser, Hyundai Venue or Renault Kiger, all of them are a result of the trend that was started by Ford!

The Fall

Cheapest CNG Sedans
Ford Aspire CNG

This can be a mixture of many tales. Ford’s failure in the Indian market can be related to many factors. When they entered India, they had a partnership with Mahindra & Mahindra, they wanted to set up their facility in Maharashtra. Due to continuous efforts by the Tamil Nadu government, they were able to secure a facility in Chennai. In a matter of a very short period of time, Hyundai also entered the game. While Hyundai had already launched Santro, Ford was still working on its first made-in-India product.

Ford had a different vision of course. While Hyundai gave Indians what they wanted, Ford wanted the customers to feel privileged to be behind the wheel of a blue oval! Well, by the time Ford planned to bring in the IKON, Hyundai was already set to launch the Accent and Ford had no choice but to price it at a very competitive point!

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This American automaker had a legacy due to which they thought they knew what the Indian audience wanted. Hyundai, on the other hand, adapted according to Indians’ needs. Ford was always perceived as an expensive premium brand and we believe Ford did nothing to change the perception at least in the initial years.

We believe it was too late till time Ford realised that it needed to change its approach towards the Indian market. Well, seems like the Indian market was too small for the global leadership to allow the local team to come up with local products and strategies. Skoda, on the other hand, has made a really smart move by making Kushaq in India, for India.

Verdict

Ford India
Ford India

No matter how things were, the only one that counts is that the bumpy ride has come to an end. Ford has started wind down for their production in India however, they will continue to provide services to the existing owners. For those of us who want to experience Ford, they will be bringing in imported units of the Mustang and the Mach-E.

With the declining sales and huge losses, Ford was meant to exit India someday or the other. They kept the audience glued with the launch of Figo AT and the EcoSport facelift but we guess the pandemic hit them too badly to make their way further in the Indian market.

This sudden decision has been a shocker for all of us and to make sure that all the Ford owners in India continue to have a smooth driving experience, GoMechanic has launched a special 20% off for all Ford owners across India!

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Vishal Khanna
Vishal Khannahttps://yt.vu/c/UCowI-iJCENrPhicwCoSkxZw
GoMechanic's OG Content Creator | Automobile Enthusiast | Automobile Engineer | Blogger | YouTuber | The DIY Automotive Guy

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