Ford Slows the Pace of New-Model Launches

Mark Fields

CEO Mark Fields says Ford Motor Co. has stretched out the pace of its new-model production launches to avoid making large numbers of flawed cars it must rework before shipping.

Fields tells Automotive News that two years ago Ford grappled with messy launches in Hermosillo, Mexico, for its Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ midsize sedans. Both models were all-new designs riding on a new platform.

He says the company cranked up production in spite of startup glitches. The result: Ford ended up with hundreds of completed but flawed cars. It ended shipping them to its factory in Flat Rock, Mich., for repairs.

Since then, Fields says, Ford has been working more closely with suppliers to identify and remedy startup issues quicker. He notes that the more recent launches of the 2015 Lincoln MKC small crossover and aluminum-intensive F-150 pickup truck have been notably smoother.