The 2012 Ford Focus isn’t just an all-new model for the Blue Oval team – it represents the first example of the automaker’s “One Ford” global product strategy. Ford is now engineering cars that will be exactly the same in all markets, and for the first time in many years, we Americans will finally be able to buy the same Focus as the rest of the world.
Ford will start selling the 2012 Focus early next year, and thus, production of the new global C-car has officially started at the automaker’s Saarlouis Assembly Plant in Germany. This facility is capable of manufacturing up to 1,850 vehicles a day over the course of three shifts, and all three Focus bodystyles (sedan, hatchback and wagon) will be produced here. The high-performance Focus ST will be added to this line in early 2012, as well.
In addition to the Saarlouis plant, Ford has begun early production of the North American-spec Focus at the automaker’s Michigan Assembly Plant just outside of Detroit. This plant has been completely overhauled over the past year, as it was formerly used to produce the Expedition and Lincoln Navigator.
