Ford's Newest Car Carries a 'Made in India' Label

Nov 17, 2016 09:05 AM EST | Jess F.

Ford Motor Company also known as Ford is an American carmaker but it the automotive company is set to export 'Made in India' cars this year for its new EcoSport SUV.

The company will assemble its new EcoSport model in India. The EcoSport is expected to be the smallest SUV in Ford's lineup equipped with the make and features that made Ford a forerunner in the auto making industry.

However, the Ford EcoSport has been in the news not because of its features but because of the fact that the new model will be assembled in India. The new Ford EcoSport will be assembled in Chennai and it is expected to hit the markets in 2018.

This is after news surfaced that Ford will be moving its production line offshore, specifically in Mexico. Reports say that Ford has a facility in Mexico and the company's officials are open in expressing its extent to move if Donald Trump won the presidency, which he did.

President-elect Donald Trump threatened to build a wall to keep immigrants out of the U.S. but it looks like it is not the only reason. Trump also reportedly wanted to block the import of Mexican-made automobiles by imposing astrological tariff rates.

If this policy turns into a law, Ford and many other carmakers might suffer since many other companies's have turned into Mexico for their car production and assembly.

Ford's decision to employ India in their car production could be construed as a way to evade Trumps attempt to block Mexican-made imports. But despite the threat, Ford and other carmakers are not likely to drop Mexican import but might employ other countries for production just in case there will be a need for it.

"To make this whole thing work, you have to have a relatively free flow of components and vehicles across borders," William Clay Ford Jr, Ford's chairman said in a statement.

But Ford is careful in dealing with the political aspect of choosing 'Made in India' cars and its decision to also produce cars in Mexico by saying it's a global strategy. "We build EcoSport in six locations around the globe. We sell it in 100 markets, and so, just like we make Explorers and export from here into other global markets, we are going to export EcoSport from Asia Pacific, and we are going to sell it here in the US," Michael O'Brien, marketing manager for Ford SUVs said in an interview.

Ford has a record of assembling cars around the world including Russia, Brazil and Thailand.

 

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