Ford to Move Production of Large Trucks from Mexico to Ohio

Ford (NYSE:F) plans to move production of its new medium-duty trucks from Mexico to an assembly plant in Ohio, the company announced on Friday.

The automaker said it will invest $168 million in the Cleveland-area facility, which currently makes Ford’s E-series vans. Ford expects the plant to begin production of the F-650 and        F-750 commercial trucks early next year before they go on sale in the spring of 2015.

Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford is scrapping its E-series cargo and passenger vans later this year, replacing them with the upcoming 2015 Transit. The new van will be produced at a plant near Kansas City, Mo.

The E-series cutaway vans and stripped chassis will continue to be built in Ohio through most of the decade, Ford noted.

“Building these trucks in-house will utilize our expertise from our other tough truck and commercial vehicle lines to give our customers a better product at a competitive price,” said Joe Hinrichs, Ford’s president of the Americas.

Ford unveiled several upgrades to the F-650 and F-750 at a truck show in Indianapolis this week. The company said it will equip the trucks with an eight-cylinder turbo diesel engine. Ford is also the only automaker to offer a gasoline engine for medium-duty trucks.

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