[GTO]

Fords had quite the sprint with the Figo's success. And the Indian market's growth story over the last 3 years seems to have provided a shot in the arm.

8 new cars to be launched in the next 5 years. That's a lot considering they've only offered 6 cars (the Escort, Ikon, Mondeo, Fusion, Fiesta and Endeavour) in 14 years of being in India, up until the Figo's introduction. Talk about being bullish.

I expect the new Fiesta, Focus, Endeavour replacement and an MUV to be a part of these 8 upcoming cars. Any guesses on the rest?

Excerpts from the official communication received:

Ford Motor Company will launch eight new vehicles in India by the middle of the decade as it moves to rapidly expand its presence in the fast growing market. Joe Hinrichs, president of Ford Asia Pacific and Africa (APA), made the announcement today during a keynote speech titled “Managing Growth – Evolving Market Dynamics” at the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) Conference in New Delhi. “We have big plans for India and for this region,” Hinrichs said. “As we have seen from the spectacular early success of the Ford Figo, more and more Indian consumers appreciate the fuel efficient, economical, high quality, safe, and fun-to-drive vehicles that Ford offers. By the middle of this decade we will introduce eight new vehicles to India from our global platforms, in segments appropriate for this market.”

Ford's APA region encompasses markets on three continents, including Australia, China, India, Thailand and South Africa. Industry sales in the region will increase from 16 million units in 2009, to an estimated 35 million units by 2018. The region is expected to account for nearly 70 percent of Ford's worldwide growth in the next decade. Sales of vehicles in India have grown at an average annual rate of 17 percent over the past five years, and an estimated 10 million to 11 million people will migrate from two-wheeled forms of transport to small cars in the next few years.

[simply_sunny001]

its really interesting to see that Ford India is really going places after the success of Figo.

What can be the replacement of Endeavour , Ford Everest/Explorer or something totally new ????

[f1fan]

I believe they might have plans to launch another small car maybe on the dimensions of the Ford Ka.

[anachronix]

The new Fiesta hatch & the sedan later on. (2)

Mondeo would make a come back for sure! (1)

The Focus sedan was already predicted for 2012 by an ex-insider here. (1)

S-Max would be a strong contender in the MUV segment. (1)

Current Fiesta as the entry level sedan (1)

The Figo as the entry level hatch (1)

The new Explorer can take the SUV market by storm! (1)

So thats 8 cars from Ford by 2015. Finally, I hope my predictions become a reality

[saurabhdadhichi]

Originally Posted by GTO

Fords had quite the sprint with the Figo's success. And the Indian market's growth story over the last 3 years seems to have provided a shot in the arm.

8 new cars to be launched in the next 5 years. That's a lot considering they've only offered 6 cars (the Escort, Ikon, Mondeo, Fusion, Fiesta and Endeavour) in 14 years of being in India, up until the Figo's introduction. Talk about being bullish.

I expect the new Fiesta, Focus, Endeavour replacement and an MUV to be a part of these 8 upcoming cars. Any guesses on the rest?

Excerpts from the official communication received:

GTO, i expect Ford would try to put in one car for each segment. You have already mentioned about Gorgeous Fiesta, Focus, Endeavour, other than these i think in small car segment, it will be KA, for family of 7 it will be Ford Galaxy, new Ford Mondeo for C segment are my take.

What say?

[rajushank84]

Maybe eight new vehicles means each variant is treated as a different model. Just maybe.

Apart from Figo 1.6, new Fiesta hatch and new Fiesta sedan, I think it makes so much sense for Ford to launch an MUV-type vehicle to compete with Innova. Other than that, the Focus also makes a lot of sense in competition with ANHC.

[gomzi]

Really great to read this!

Ford IMHO has been treating the indian market a bit shabbily till now with non-contemporary and limited models. The launch of Figo seems to have revived them as they also announced more service centers. It does show that they have the intention to be a long term player here and grow with the market.

[DicKy]

The Figo going to be the volume player and lowest in the stable.
The current Fiesta being positioned slightly downward's in market positioning with the new Fiesta replacing it,albeit at a higher price.
The Focus(MK3) to fight with the Corollas and Cruzes and Mondeo should be able to do well with diesel engines in the Laura segment.
The compact SUV in all probability will be the Kuga otherwise it has to be the Escape which is produced in thailand but doesn't have a diesel and the new Endeavour will be launched only after the launch of it's pick-up cousin the Ranger.
The MUV? Galaxy or S-max,maybe.

[VictorSinha]

At least 2 new versions of Figo will be launched(my guess) - Petrol with a better power and torque - Diesel with a completely new mill And as it is Ford, I guess there will be at least 2 Special Editions in these 8 new models.

[kraft.wagen]

Focus or a Mustang for the enthusiasts

[Thad E Ginathom]

OHMYGOD I thought, for a minute, that they were going to launch a new "Escort"!


And...Must be the Ka! We need the Ka!

I did like the Ford Fusion when it came out in the CRDi avatar but it seemed to be very underpowered i hope they will relaunch the Ford Fusion with 1.4L CRDi taken from the fiesta but with a turbocharger attached. This would mean the power will jump from the current 68ps to 85-90ps at least.

There is a 4x4 version that could be comparative with lesser models of Yeti.

[blackasta]

I would love to see the Mustang and F 150 introduced!

[grules]

On a related note, Ford is also planning to open another manufacturing plant not too far away from its existing facility in Chennai. The existing facility has a peak capacity of 2 lakh units and uses up all the 350 acres the company had acquired. Figo has been a tremendous success for them selling 30K units in 25 weeks which is equal to the total sales the whole of last year. They will soon run out of capacity and hence the new plans.

[kraft.wagen]

Originally Posted by blackasta

I would love to see the Mustang and F 150 introduced!

Yea we surely do need a pick-up too
Pick-ups can do well in India, but then pricing would be the key