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Although Ford will be using its European mid-size platform as the basis for the development of its next-generation global mid-size cars, the engineering work will be done here in North America.
Ford’s mid-size offering in the U.S., the Ford Fusion, currently uses the Mazda-designed CD3 platform, which also underpins the Fusion’s Lincoln and Mercury siblings, along with the Mazda CX-9, Lincoln MKX, and Ford Edge crossovers.
The Ford Mondeo, the automaker’s European mid-size car, uses the Volvo-engineered EUCD (for European C/D) platform, which it shares with the Volvo S80 and the new Volvo XC60, along with several other European models.
Both cars will migrate to a new iteration of the EUCD platform when they are redesigned in 2012 or 2013. This new platform, although sourced from Europe, will be engineered at Ford’s Dearborn, Michigan, engineering center. Ford assigned the car to the center late last year, according to Joe Bakaj, Ford vice president of global product programs and Ford of Europe product development.
“We’re trying to balance the workload between the engineering centers, and so the cars are going to be led out of North America but with a global team,” Bakaj said.
He revealed that there are engineers from Europe and Asia present, and that the team will work toward creating a mid-size car that can be sold in different regions of the world with minimal adjustments for specific markets.
Source: Automotive News
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