Ford promised a year ago that it would build vehicles in China with localized production to help promote its brand within the country. Ford has now announced that the first Lincoln Corsair has rolled off the assembly line in China. The vehicle rolled off the line at the Ford factory in the Chongqing Municipality in Southwest China.
The first Lincoln Corsair rolling off the assembly line means that Ford has taken a significant step towards promoting the Lincoln brand in the country. The factory where the Corsair was produced as a joint venture between the Changan Automobile Company and Ford. In China, the Corsair starts at 246,800 yuan, and the price goes up to 345,800 yuan.
corsair
Those prices work out to somewhere between $34,800 and $48,770. Pricing information was offered by Anning Chen, President, and CEO of Ford China. Chongqing is one of the largest automotive production regions in China, with factories from over ten auto manufacturers located in the area. The area also has over 1000 auto parts and accessory manufacturers.
Ford China and other automotive manufacturers have been very hard-hit by the coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic that shut production down in the entire country for weeks. Ford announced in February that it wanted to open its production facilities up on February 10. While production is underway, automotive sales are down significantly. The Chinese trade association called the China Automobile Dealers Association noted earlier this month that nearly 91 percent of franchised new car dealerships were back in operation. However, traffic at the dealerships was 53 percent lower than normal levels for the time of year. Estimates are that retail passenger car sales declined by 47 percent for the first 15 days of March, and sales aren’t expected to increase quickly.
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Source: Xinhua
Comment
Are the Lincoln Corsairs being built in China going to be shipped to the States or are they going to be a China Only Vehicle?