Ford F-650 and F-750 medium-duty are rolling off assembly lines Tuesday for the first time in the U.S.
DETROIT, MI - Ford F-650 and F-750 medium-duty trucks are rolling off assembly lines Wednesday for the first time in the U.S., and securing 1,000 hourly UAW jobs along with them.
Ford Motor Co. said the move is part of a $168 million plant investment at the Ohio Assembly Plant, and replaces production that was previously located in Mexico.
The production shift from Mexico is part of the collective bargaining agreement Ford and the United Auto Workers negotiated in 2011.
"Our investment in Ohio Assembly Plant reinforces our commitment to building vehicles in America and to delivering best-in-class commercial trucks," Joe Hinrichs, Ford's president of the Americas, said in a new release. "Working with our partners in the UAW, we found a way to make the costs competitive enough to bring production of a whole new generation of work trucks to Ohio."
Located west of Cleveland in Avon Lake, the Ohio Assembly Plant currently employs about 1,400 workers.
It opened in 1974 to produce the Ford Econoline and E-Series van. The Mercury Villager and Nissan Quest were produced there from 1993 through to 2002, as was the Ford Escape and Mercury Mariner up to 2005.
The plant produced Ford E-Series lineup of cargo and passenger vans, until the line was discontinued last year. The Dearborn-based automaker replaced the vans with Ford Transit vans, which are made at Ford's Kansas City Assembly Plant in Missouri. The Ohio workers continue to make E-Series chassis cab and cutaways.
The 2016 F-650 and F-750 medium-duty Ford trucks will go on sale this summer.
The restyled-for-2016 trucks will be available in Regular Cab, SuperCab and Crew Can body styles and in straight-frame, dock-height and an all-new dedicated tractor model for heavy towing uses.
Engine options include a 6.7L Power Stroke V-8 diesel and a 6.8L gasoline-powered V-10. The 6.8L engine can also be factory-prepped to be compatible with compressed natural gas or liquid propane.
David Muller is the automotive and business reporter for MLive Media Group in Detroit. Email him at dmuller@mlive.com, follow him on Twitter or find him on Facebook.