Thread: New platform family for Ford

Next-gen Fiesta set to be the first to benefit from flexible new architectureFord is developing a new platform family similar in concept to Volkswagens modular MQB platform, but with structural variations to suit the sizes of cars that will be spun from them.
Insiders report that most of the core European models will be catered for by three varieties of this platform, each designed to suit the weights and duty cycles of the models clustered around it.
According to Ford, one drawback of VWs MQB strategy, in which the groups small, mid-size and crossover models share the same core hardware, is that the smaller models carry a weight penalty because the platform has to suit bigger and heavier cars.
The Ford approach still provides most of the same economies of scale but allows more variation in the weight, strength and substance of the platform to better suit the needs of each model.
The trio of platform configurations will cover segments represented by the Fiesta, Focus and Mondeo and their derivatives, these three building blocks forming part of the companys five-strong armoury of global platforms, which also includes the Ranger pick-up and the Transit commercial range.
It has another four regional platforms, the F-series pick-up that sells in huge numbers in the US being an example. Ford committed to reduce its platform count from 11 to nine at the start of the year as part of its One Ford programme.
The next-gen Fiesta, due in around three years time, could be the first recipient of the new hardware and component set. Minimising the platform count has the potential to save significant sums of money by reducing tooling and component design requirements and achieving potentially huge economies of scale in the process.
Platform development accounts for almost half of manufacturers R&D costs, providing a substantial incentive to source multiple models from the same underlying hardware.