Tata Motors on Monday said its subsidiary and Ford India have inked a pact with the Gujarat government to acquire FIPL's Sanand vehicle manufacturing plant. Tata Passenger Electric Mobility Ltd (TPEML) -- a subsidiary of Tata Motors -- and Ford India Pvt Ltd (FIPL) have today signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Gujarat government for the potential acquisition of FIPL's Sanand vehicle manufacturing facility, including land, buildings, vehicle manufacturing plant, machinery and equipment, Tata Motors said in a regulatory filing. The MoU also includes the transfer of all eligible employees of FIPL Sanand's vehicle manufacturing operations, subject to the signing of definitive agreements and receipt of relevant approvals, it added.
Ford Motor India said on Wednesday that it has firmed up plans to launch 'Fusion' in the next three months as the prototype of the vehicle, a crossover between a car and an MUV, has been developed.
With Tata Motors subsidiary taking over Ford's passenger vehicle (PV) manufacturing unit at Sanand in Gujarat, uncertainty over the future of Ford's Maraimalai Nagar unit in Tamil Nadu continues, with workers protesting on Thursday demanding a better severance package. There are over 2,000 employees working at the unit. On Thursday, there was a meeting between agitating employees and the state labour department. The workers started protests at the Chennai unit after Tata Passenger Electric Mobility signed a tripartite memorandum of understanding with Ford India and the Government of Gujarat for acquisition of Ford's PV manufacturing plant at Sanand.
Ford India has created waves in the Indian hatchback market with its latest offering the Ford Figo.
'We announced a $500 million investment plan for India. I have not received a single call from either the US or Bangkok (Ford's Asian centre of operations) asking me to freeze the investment programme or to scale it down,' says Michael Boneham, MD, Ford India.
People close to Indian carmakers Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra, and the buy-out group One Equity Partners, said on Tuesday that they expected Ford to respond imminently to their revised offers made last week.
Ford is expected to start production in two years, said Arvind Mathew, president and managing director, Ford India. The details of the small car, however, are yet to be finalised.
Early this year, Ford displayed SUV-Ecosport at the Auto Expo held in New Delhi.
Mahindra group and Ford Motor Co will jointly develop new SUVs and a small electric vehicle as part of several initiatives to take forward their collaboration pact signed last year.
Ford dealers in India are staring at huge losses with the automaker deciding to shut production in the country with immediate effect, automobile dealers' body FADA said on Thursday. Terming the company decision as shocking, the industry body noted that the dealers have invested over Rs 2,000 crore in creating sales infrastructure while employing around 40,000 people across the country. "The auto retail fraternity is really shocked to hear another Ford India's announcement where it has said that it will shut down production with immediate effect," FADA president Vinkesh Gulati said in a statement.
Slym doesn't face such an epic challenge - after all, his company is profitable, has a trustworthy brand, deep pockets and a vast distribution.
US auto giant Ford Motor Company has appointed Alan Mulally as president and chief executive offer.
EcoSport will be offered in four variants in petrol and diesel, mated with automatic transmission for effortless driving.
Alfred B Ford, senior trustee of Ford Motor Company Fund, said on Friday that he was talking to several strategic partners for setting up a Vedic Cosmological Project at Mayapur, West Bengal.
US carmaker Ford Motor Co, which aims to enter the Indian small car market by 2010, plans to make the country a regional hub for exports, both for the cars and engines.
As of Feb. 28, the second-largest US automaker received six reports of tanks with a fuel odour or leak due to the defect.
Though the Indian passenger car market has been a tough nut to crack, Ford Motor India is planning to launch its future products in the mid and high end car segment and will bring out a new Endeavour in early 2007
The surprise was Conde Nast Portfolio's topper for the world's best-ever CEO. It was Henry Ford, founder of Ford Motors. There is no doubt that Ford was a great entrepreneur and business visionary. But, with the hindsight of almost a century, it is worth questioning whether he was a good CEO. Ford could easily have won the accolade in his lifetime for revolutionising the personal transportation industry with the Model T.
Automobile dealers' body FADA has urged the government to formulate a task force to monitor the compensation structure being worked out by Ford India for its dealer partners across the country. In a letter to Heavy Industries Minister Mahendra Nath Pandey, FADA president Vinkesh Gulati also requested the government to instruct Ford India to keep the industry body in the loop regarding the compensation structure for the dealerships. "We humbly request your Ministry's intervention... Create a task force which takes day-to-day updates from Ford India to monitor the compensation plan for automobile dealers and dealership employees," Gulati said in the letter.
Share of diesel vehicles has been on the rise in the overall vehicle sales in the country.
Following it negotiations with Ford Motors for the aquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover, Tata Motors has been put under credit watch.
US automobile giant Ford Motor Company on Wednesday said it was seriously considering expanding production of its fuel-efficient hybrid car.
Automotive major Ford India Pvt Ltd on Wednesday said it would launch a new premium car in India by the end of this calendar year and announced the appointment of Aravind Mathew, as the new chief for Indian operations.
Indian-American Raj Nair, executive vice president and president of Ford North America, has been asked to leave the Detroit-based motor company following allegations of misconduct at work place, has been replaced by another Indian-American, Kumar Galhotra.
Ford Motor India on Wednesday said it would launch its new premium mid-sized sedan 'Fiesta' by November this year in the Indian market.
The automaker will invest USD 195 million (about Rs 1,300 crore) and would employ 3,000 workers over the next five years, Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford said in the Tamil Nadu capital today.
The current Explorer and Explorer Sport Trac models are built at the companys Louisville assembly plant in Kentucky.
Ford Motor Co sued luxury automaker Ferrari on Wednesday for trademark infringement after Ferrari named its 2011 Formula 1 racing car the "F150."
Ford Motors India has apologised for an ad campaign that showed scantily-clad, voluptuous women gagged, bound and stuffed in the trunk of the car maker's Figo model.
Volvo India is in talks with Ford Motors India to start assembly operations in India.
It's earlier prime contender, Honda City, is already in the market now loaded with automatic gearbox.
Taking a cue from heavyweights such as BMW, Mercedes and Audi, Ford Motor Company-owned Volvo Car India may use the parents' India facility in Chennai to manufacture and assemble some of its products, reducing their prices substantially.
Ford surely needs something special to improve its fortunes in India -- the new battlefront for the world's top car makers.
About 1,800 workers at Rico Auto Industries, in Gurgaon near Delhi, ended their almost 50-day strike following an agreement with the management on reinstatement of some employees.
The discount offer comes on the back of Japanese giant Honda Siel Cars offering a substantial discount of Rs 800,000 on the Civic Hybrid. HSCI sold 235 Civic Hybrids, which carried a priced tag of Rs 14 lakhs (Rs 1.4 million) after the discount, in 10 days. The offer by Ford will run on the full range of variants of the car for a limited period of 10 days starting Wednesday.
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