The 10,000th Focus has rolled off the production line at Ford’s plant in Russia. The milestone car was an ink blue 1.6 Comfort station wagon.
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The locally built Focus was launched in October 2002 and, during the first six months of 2003, 5,244 cars were sold in the Russian market – a 281% increase compared with the same period of 2002.
In April Ford announced the addition of a second production shift in its new car plant at Vsevolozhsk, near St. Petersburg, to meet strong demand for the Focus in Russia.
With the introduction of a second shift at the plant, the workforce reached 1,250 employees, and will raise production volume to an annual rate of 25,000 from December 2003. There is potential to expand to 100,000 units annually.
The plant, opened in July 2002, is the first production facility owned by a global automotive company in Russia. With an initial investment of $US150 million, Ford began production of the Focus in four-door saloon, five-door hatchback and wagon body styles and three engine sizes: 1.6-, 1.8- and two litres.
Ford’s Russian dealer network represents 65 companies across nine time zones and 37 regions. Sales in the first six months of 2003 reached 7,375 vehicles, 162% growth year on year.
