Rumorpile: Ford and UAW Talking About Building The Ranger In U.S. , Restarting Sales

Ever since Ford ended production of the Ranger in the U.S. in 2011, many have been clamoring for the blue oval to bring the Ranger sold elsewhere to the U.S. But Ford has said no since the current Ranger since the new model is close in size to the F-150, and would be very close in terms of pricing. But the blue oval could be changing that.

The Detroit News has learned from sources that Ford wants to resurrect the Ranger pickup and build it at the Michigan Assembly Plant. Sources explained that Ford and the UAW are currently in contract talks, with one of the items being bringing the Ranger to the U.S. for the production. Now this will need to be agreed by the UAW and then Ford’s board of directors.

Now bringing the Ranger over to the U.S. would allow Ford to take advantage of a marketplace that seems interested in mid-size trucks again - thank the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Colorado.

“There’s a real hunger for midsize trucks right now. Once upon a time, there were a lot of midsize trucks in this market. The ones that are available are cashing in on the demand,” said Karl Brauer, senior analyst for Kelley Blue Book.

Bringing the Ranger to the U.S. would also solve the problem of what would be built at the Michigan Assembly plant. As we reported last month, Ford will be moving Focus and C-Max production from Michigan Assembly to a new plant, most likely Mexico.

Source: The Detroit News