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Ford may keep building Rangers U.S. production was to end in '09
Bryce G. Hoffman / The Detroit News
With record gasoline prices undermining sales of its full-size pickups, Ford Motor Co. is considering extending the life of its elderly Ford Ranger compact pickup for another two years, according to people familiar with the company's plan.
That would be good news for workers at Ford's Twin Cities Assembly Plant in St. Paul, Minn. The factory is slated to close next year when production of the Ranger is scheduled to end.
Under the plan now being weighed by Ford, the Ranger would stay in production until 2011 when a new global version is ready. That truck will be produced overseas.
The review of the Ranger is part of a broader rethinking of Ford's entire truck program triggered by skyrocketing fuel prices and a consumer shift to smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles.
As The Detroit News first reported two weeks ago, the Dearborn automaker is planning on converting some of its U.S. truck plants to car production. It is also taking a hard look at every future product program.
Though no final decisions have yet been made, sources say the company is considering an indefinite delay of the SVT Raptor, a planned high-performance version of its F-150 pickup.
It is also likely to kill the new 6.2-liter V-8 engine that was supposed to power the truck. The ill-fated HEMI-fighter was originally dubbed "The Hurricane" and redubbed "The Boss" in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Now, it may be yet another victim of high gas prices and changing consumer tastes.
Officially, the company would not confirm any of these developments.
"We do not discuss future product plans for competitive reasons," said Ford spokesman Said Deep.
But analysts said these moves make sense with gasoline selling for more than $4 a gallon.
"With high gas prices, the Ranger is looking a lot more attractive," said analyst Erich Merkle of IRN Inc., adding that he was aware that Ford was considering keeping the truck alive.
The Ranger debuted in 1982 as a 1983 model, replacing the Ford Courier. The truck has been lauded for its quality and capabilities, but Ford has not made a significant investment in the Ranger for more than a decade, leaving it to languish.
But at 21 mpg city and 26 mpg highway, the Ranger is the most fuel-efficient compact pickup on the market today. And despite going more than a decade without a significant redesign, it is still the nation's No. 2 compact pickup after the Toyota Tacoma.
Ford originally planned to end Ranger production this year, but agreed to keep St. Paul open for another year as part of its 2007 contract with the United Auto Workers.
UAW Local 879 President Roger Terveen, who represents workers in St. Paul, said the union has heard nothing from the company suggesting the plant could stay open beyond next year.
"We've talked with management and expressed our desire to keep it going," he said. "We think it's in Ford's best interest. The trucks are selling."
Ranger sales have posted a modest gain this year. The 36,421 trucks Ford had sold by June represented a 2.3 percent increase over the same period last year. That may not be much, but it is a lot better than the 18.7 percent decline in F-series pickup sales that occurred during the same time.
"Whatever they're selling, it's with zero marketing," said analyst Jim Hall of 2953 Analytics. "And all of the tooling was paid off a long time ago."
However, Hall said keeping the Ranger alive is not without cost. The truck lacks side-impact airbags, which will become mandatory by the end of next year. He said the question that will decide the Ranger's fate is this: How much is Ford willing to spend to update a design that will, in any event, be replaced with an entirely new truck in three years?
Design work is already well underway on a new global Ranger platform. Codenamed T6, the new Ranger will be manufactured at factories outside the United States -- including one in South Africa, which is exempt from U.S. import tariffs on small pickups.
The Raptor may get a second chance, too. Ford also is said to be considering a high-performance version of the new F-100, a smaller version of the F-150 that it plans to produce at the Michigan Truck Plant in Wayne. Instead of being powered by the Boss, it would be powered by one of Ford's new EcoBoost gas-turbo direct-injection engines that promise more horsepower and better fuel economy.
"That would be a good move, because they're going to need to generate some 'wow' for the F-100 when it comes out," Hall said.
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