Ford staying put in Louisville

Over the weekend, President-elect Donald Trump announced that his “hard work” to convince Ford (Dearborn, MI) not to move its Lincoln manufacturing out of Louisville, KY, had paid off, when CEO Mark Fields called to tell Trump that the company would not move its Lincoln manufacturing to Mexico. However, that’s a bit of a stretch, given that Ford had no plans to move the manufacturing of its large Lincoln vehicles to Mexico.

In an official statement, Ford said: “We continue to engage with President-elect Trump’s team—and the new Congress—as they shape the policy agenda for 2017. We have shared our commitment to continue investing in the U.S. and creating American jobs—building on the $12 billion we have invested in our U.S. plants and the nearly 28,000 U.S. jobs Ford has created in the past five years. Ford continues to employ more American autoworkers and produce more American-made vehicles than anyone.

“Today, we confirmed with the President-elect that our small Lincoln utility vehicle made at the Louisville assembly plant will stay in Kentucky. We are encouraged that President-elect Trump and the new Congress will pursue policies that will improve U.S. competitiveness and make it possible to keep production of this vehicle here in the United States.

“We will have more details to share on our future plans at the appropriate time.”

In an interview at the Los Angeles Auto Show last week, Fields commented on the company’s future working with the Trump administration and Congress, noting that the company “wants fuel economy regulations that are aligned with market realities.”