MOTORING NEWS - Ford Motor Company's Silverton assembly plant in Pretoria has reached a major milestone.
The half-millionth Ranger unit, a Wildtrak 3,2 Double Cab, was painted in the range-topping model's distinctive Pride Orange in celebration of Ranger's segment-defining legacy since production started in 2011.
"The current Ford Ranger has been a remarkable success story for Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa. We are delighted to have reached the 500 000 mark for this vehicle programme," said Ockert Berry, vice president of operations, Ford Middle East and Africa.
"Ford invested more than R3-billion in local operations for the launch of the Ranger in 2011 to cater for the South African market and export to over 148 markets in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. We followed this up with a further R3-billion investment in 2017 to expand our production capacity to meet the growing worldwide demand for Ranger," Berry added.
"This reaffirms our role as an integral part of Ford's global manufacturing network with world-class operations at the Silverton Assembly Plant in Pretoria, and at the Struandale Engine Plant in Port Elizabeth which produces the Duratorq TDCi engines for the Ranger."
The trend-setting Ranger has introduced cutting-edge safety, comfort and convenience features to the pick-up segment over the years. This includes three generations of Ford's award-winning infotainment system, as well as advanced driver assistance technologies such as adaptive cruise control and lane keeping system which are standard on the Ranger Wildtrak.
Traditional long model cycles associated with the LCV segment have been slashed with the Ranger. Regular feature and equipment upgrades over the past seven years have ensured that Ford's pick-up range remains at the top of its game.
The Ranger has consistently been one of the top-selling vehicles in the hotly contested light commercial vehicle (LCV) segment in South Africa, as well as in the overall sales charts.
Records continue to be broken in terms of export volumes, with an impressive 8 062 units being shipped from Silverton to customers in Europe, the Middle East and Africa in April. Combined local and export volumes for the month topped at a record-breaking 10 434 units, making Ranger the highest volume LCV model produced in South Africa by a significant margin.
"Early next year we are set to launch the first-ever Ford Ranger Raptor, which will add an exciting new chapter to the Ranger's proud legacy," Berry concluded.
'We bring you the latest Garden Route, Hessequa, Karoo news'
