• Ford Sollers today opened its modernized plant in Naberezhnie Chelny – the
  company’s third assembly plant in Russia, and second in Tatarstan
• Ford EcoSport SUV is the first model to be built at the plant and will be fully built at the plant
  with significant locally produced content
• Ford adapted EcoSport for the Russian market and offers the fuel-efficiency and agility of a small car with the spaciousness and go-anywhere appeal of an SUV
• Ford Fiesta 5-door will be built at the plant starting next year

Naberezhnie Chelny, Tatarstan, Russia, Dec. 2, 2014 – Ford Sollers, a joint venture of Ford Motor Company and JSC Sollers in Russia, has started production at its modernized plant at Naberezhnie Chelny in the Republic of Tatarstan.

The plant, Ford Sollers second vehicle assembly plant in Tatarstan and third in Russia, will have a total annual production capacity of up to 115,000 vehicles and employ 1,500 people.

The Ford EcoSport sub-compact SUV is the first vehicle to be built in the Naberezhnie Chelny Assembly Plant. It will be fully built at the plant and has been adapted to meet the needs of Russian customers. Next year, the five-door Fiesta also goes into production at the plant for sale in the Russian market.

“We’re proud to announce the start of production of the Ford EcoSport at Ford Sollers’ third assembly plant in Naberezhnie Chelny. This state-of-the art facility will build Ford vehicles to the highest quality levels.”” said Ted Cannis, president and CEO, Ford Sollers. “EcoSport will be a winning addition to the Russian range and will strengthen Ford’s brand presence in the fast-growing SUV and crossover market segment.”  

“We’re on track with our ambitious Ford Sollers business plan,” said Adil Shirinov, executive director and chief operating officer, Ford Sollers. “We are committed to increasing our local content level in Russia. From the very start of production of the Ford EcoSport we are sourcing about 30 components from local suppliers. In addition, we’re already preparing for the launch of new Ford Fiesta next year. This means that in 2015, Ford Sollers will be building 11 Ford vehicles in Russia.”

Ford Sollers now builds Ford vehicles in three assembly plants in Russia, with two – Elabuga and Naberezhnie Chelny in Tatarstan – and a third at Vsevolozhsk near St. Petersburg. Ford vehicles include a full range of SUVs – the full-size Explorer and Edge, mid-size Kuga, and sub-compact EcoSport – and light commercial vehicles including the new Transit family, plus the globally-popular Focus and Mondeo cars.

In August, Ford Sollers announced that in the following 14 months it would launch six new vehicles, including three in new market segments for the Ford brand in Russia. Ford Sollers also will start to build engines at its Elabuga plant in Tatarstan in 2015.

Ford EcoSport for Russia

Ford Sollers engineers have used their understanding of the Russian market to adjust the Ford EcoSport to meet the requirements of local customers. EcoSport has been tested for corrosion and durability, and is fully adapted for Russian cold winter conditions.

The Ford EcoSport in Russia is available in a choice of front- and all-wheel drive options, and comes with either a 1.6-litre or 2.0-litre gasoline engine paired with a 5- or 6-speed manual or Powershift 6-speed automatic transmission. These state-of-the-art engines and transmissions give the perfect combination of rewarding performance, pulling power, and exceptional fuel-efficiency.