Ford bets on Aussie know-how to hold off China’s car invasion

Aussie expertise is the special ingredient being used by Ford to battle back against the horde of Chinese invaders in the car world.

The company says its team of 1500 technical experts, including more than 200 at the top secret You Yangs proving ground near Geelong in Victoria, is what will give it a crucial showroom advantage.

As it updates its Ranger pick-up and Everest family SUV, Ford Australia is confident its local workforce and decades of experience in development are translating into a showroom edge.

“Our job at Ford Australia is to make sure that those two products, Ranger and Everest, continue to be at the absolute peak of capability, and we continue to innovate so that we stay ahead of the competition,” said Ford Australia’s marketing director, Ambrose Henderson

“I think the proof’s in the pudding. These (Chinese) competitors have been around for some time now… and we’ve continued to be able to deliver number-one performance in both segments, and also the number-one selling car overall.”

Ford unfazed by Chinese challenge

Ford has taken a hit in recent months, with BYD cashing-in on panic buying for its battery-electric vehicles, but there is no panic at the blue oval brand.

It’s faced existential threats in the past, one in the very earliest days of You Yangs. That time, with the Falcon failing to fire against the iconic Holden, Ford mounted at 70,000-mile – 112,000 kilometre – high-speed endurance run at the proving ground to highlight the durability of its local contender.

Generations of locally-designed and locally-developed Fords have followed, even if the Falcon is dead and the Ranger-Everest twins are built in Thailand to save money.

With BYD promoting its ability to ship 5000 vehicles at a time, using a BYD owned and built car carried, Ford wants to remind people of its advantages.

It even highlights its own shipping deal, which has been running for more than three years since the Covid-19 pandemic caused a giant threat to its showroom pipeline.

“I’m going to speak specifically about the (BYD) boat for a second and the reason is that three, four years ago we leased two boats of our own. So we could also do a picture of 5000 Rangers coming in every month,” said Henderson.

“So I think part of this is some PR, part of this is some, you know, sensationalism, if I can put it that way. So we are taking those actions and already took those actions to secure the logistics for the volume of cars we’re selling years ago, so there’s in my mind no new news about a boat of 5000 cars coming, because we do that every month.”

Why You Yangs still matters

Bypassing the boats, You Yangs is about people – stylists, engineers, technicians and test drivers – and the ability to build vehicles which can cope with Australian drivers and road conditions.

“It’s so important that we keep talking about capability today, because that is something that we think we have a sustainable long-term competitive advantage,” said Henderson.

“We’ve made a decision to be based here and invest here, while others – that may be Chinese OEMs or it might be other OEMs – talk about Australian-tuned as a marketing plan.”

He resists the temptation for a cheap shot at the Chinese brands, but is quick to highlight that Ford does development work from the first styling sketches and the first key strokes on an engineering computer, where its rivals can only add some final local polishing to a vehicle which is development far away from Australia.

“We’ve made a decision to be based here and invest here, while others – that may be Chinese OEMs or it might be other OEMs – talk about Australian-tuned as a marketing plan,” he said.

“Let’s be honest, right. How much is Australian tuning? How much can you really change on the dynamics of a vehicle? I mean, I’d argue if it’s any more than five per cent.”

A familiar fight for Ford

But Henderson does not deny the threat from China, although it’s not the first time Ford has been threatened.

“There’s a new wave of competitors, of course. We haven’t been around for 101 years in Australia without having to go through a few changes in the market – two world wards, GFC, Covid, depression, you know.

“We’ve seen a fair bit in our history and I think what you’ve seen from Ford at every one of those changes in the industry is us re-focus on what customers want, pivot and address that, to deliver and win.”

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