Ford of Europe's main plant in Cologne, Germany, starts assembly of the Explorer EV - a model with American heritage through its name but otherwise rocking more Volkswagen DNA than anything else.
About three years ago, Ford of Europe announced that it plans to become fully electric by 2030 and consequently closed the production of various models like the Fiesta in the subsequent years. However, nowadays, the climate isn't as EV-friendly as everyone believed as late as last year, and, naturally, the US automaker is also ready to revert course.
Not entirely, though, as they still bank on electrified offerings – the little Puma crossover is a mild hybrid by default starting the current model year, the Kuga (aka Escape) rocks a plug-in hybrid powertrain, and soon the E-Transit plus Mustang Mach-E will be joined by the all-new Explorer EV at continental and UK dealerships.
More precisely, the Blue Oval company has announced that it has finally started mass production of the new all-electric Explorer at its main assembly plant in Cologne, Germany. This is the first model set for manufacturing at the new Ford Cologne Electric Vehicle Center, is now on its way to customers across the entire region, and is the equivalent of the Volkswagen ID.4, Skoda Enyaq, and Audi Q4 e-tron from the Volkswagen Group because it's based on the same MEB architecture.
There's a $2 billion investment to be recouped from the "state-of-the-art" Electric Vehicle Center that ensures high-quality EV production – and the historic plant now transformed into a "factory of the future" is also a crucial hook of the Ford 'Road to Better' strategy that aims for carbon neutrality across its European production facilities, including in terms of logistics and direct suppliers, by 2035.
The new generation of high-quality electric passenger vehicles for the Old Continent debuts with the new all-electric Ford Explorer, and a second EV, a sporty CUV, will soon be revealed as production is targeted in Cologne by the end of the year. The new all-electric Explorer has "German engineering, an American attitude" and a powertrain good for more than 600 km of range on a single charge.
"To see the Cologne factory founded by Ford in 1930 being transformed into a state-of-the-art electric vehicle production facility is nothing short of amazing. The start of mass production of electric vehicles, with the new all-electric Explorer, marks the beginning of a new era for Ford in Europe," said Kieran Cahill, vice president, Manufacturing, Ford in Europe and International Markets Group.
For example, the Cologne Electric Vehicle Center has cutting-edge AI and "a symphony of hundreds of carefully choreographed state-of-the-art robots," self-learning machines, and more than 600 new robots working in the welding, cutting, dusting, painting, and fusing departments. There's also a new control center that monitors the assembly process in real-time, plus a "digital twin" showcased on a big touchscreen that monitors all workstations with information on tooling, material delivery, work safety, and more.
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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