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Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa

Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa (Pty.) Ltd. is an automobile and commercial vehicle manufacturer with corporate headquarters in Pretoria.

Ford Motor Company
of Southern Africa
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryAutomotive
Founded1923; 101 years ago (1923)
HeadquartersPretoria, South Africa
ProductsAutomobiles, SUVs, pickup trucks, commercial vehicles
ParentFord Motor Company
Websiteford.co.za

The company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ford Motor Company.[1] As of 2024, Ford had the fourth-largest market share in South Africa with about 10% of the market.[2]

History

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The company was founded in 1923.[1] A year later, the first Model Ts were assembled in Port Elizabeth.[3][4] This made Ford the first automobile manufacturer in South Africa.[4]

The assembly plant in Silverton near Pretoria was opened in 1967 (according to other sources 1968).[5]

Together with Sigma Motor Corporation, which at that time belonged to Anglo American plc and produced Mazda models for the local market, Ford founded the South African Motor Corporation (Samcor) in 1985. In 1988, Ford withdrew from South Africa for economic and political reasons.[6]

Samcor produced car and commercial vehicle models of the Ford and Mazda brands as well as the South African version of the Mazda 323 as Sao Penza.

A source confirms the sale of the Mazda 323 under the Sao Penza brand name in the UK between 1991 and 1992.[7]

With the renewed takeover of Samcor shares (45%) in 1994 Ford returned to South Africa.[8]

In 2000 Ford took over the majority of the Samcor shares, which became the Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa.[9] Since 2014, the Mazda brand has again been distributed via its own dealer network.[10]

The Ford Ranger is currently produced in Silverton. In addition, the FMCSA has an engine factory opened in Struandale near Port Elizabeth in 1964. The units manufactured there are exported to 148 countries.[11] The Ford Everest SUV is also currently produced in Silverton.

Models

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From 1971 to 1987, the Ford Cortina Pick-up (from 1982: Ford P100) was manufactured in South Africa. It was based on the respective Cortina model and was exported to Europe from 1982.

After the merger with Samcor, Ford began to badge-engineer its European models - Ford Escort and Ford Sierra - with Mazda-based Ford Laser / Ford Meteor and Ford Telstar. The Ford Husky was based on the Mitsubishi L300.[12]

The model Sierra XR8 achieved international fame, of which a total of 250 vehicles were produced between 1984 and 1988. The vehicle, which can be recognized externally by the air inlets on the bonnet, made around 209 hp with a displacement of 5 liters.[13]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Overview". Archived from the original on 17 January 2017. Retrieved 1 October 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) auf der Website der Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa.
  2. ^ "Car ownership by make / brand in South Africa as of March 2024". Retrieved 28 July 2024.
  3. ^ Ford in South Africa. Information on Ford in South Africa from 1903-1990, Informationen und Bilder auf www.dyna.co.za.
  4. ^ a b "South African Automotive Policy Evolution", in: "automechika. Catalogue 2013" (PDF). Archived from the original on 6 February 2017. Retrieved 1 October 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link), S. 62–71.
  5. ^ Ford Oldtimer und Motorsport Club Cologne e.V. im ADAC: Ford Südafrika – SAMCOR.
  6. ^ Ford Discussing Plans to Divest in South Africa : Firm Would Give 24% Stake to Workers, But Maintain a Presence, Los Angeles Times, June 15, 1987
  7. ^ George Nick Georgano (Chefredakteur): The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile. Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, Chicago 2001, ISBN 1-57958-293-1, S. 1413. (englisch)
  8. ^ Apartheid Gone, Ford Back in South Africa, in New York Times vom 29. November 1994.
  9. ^ Deon Sonnekus: Samcor becomes Ford of Southern Africa, in: News24 vom 21. August 2000.
  10. ^ Irma Venter: Mazda invests R150m as it splits from Ford in SA, in: Engineering News vom 19. September 2014.
  11. ^ Charles Cornew: African adventures, in: Automotive Manufacturing Solutions vom 4. November 2014.
  12. ^ Werbung für den Ford Husky auf flickr.com.
  13. ^ Bruno von Rotz: Mit richtigen Muskeln - der unbekannte Ford Sierra XR8, auf: Zwischengas.com vom 25. Januar 2016.
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