Ford is achieving amazing numbers in their production lines locally. A few months ago, we visited the Ford Struandale Engine Plant after producing its fourth million engine milestone. Now Ford is celebrating another great achievement, the one millionth Ford Ranger to be produced on local soil.
But before you search for new or used Ford Ranger models on AutoTrader and join the Ranger family, remember that you can sell your car quickly and easily on our website here. But now let us get into the details of this achievement.
Related: Ford Ranger Tremor (2024) Review
When did Ford Ranger production start in South Africa?
This milestone stretches back to the year 2000 when production started on the first-generation Ford Ranger. In 2008, the Ranger was first exported to the rest of Africa in both right and left-hand drive derivatives. By 2011, the model range was discontinued. However, the Ford Silverton Manufacturing Plant managed to produce more than 100,000 Rangers. What makes this an even bigger achievement is that the plant was a multi-platform assembly facility, producing both passenger cars and light commercial vehicles.
Next-generation Ford Ranger and Ranger engine production.
Second generation Ford Ranger not only expanded the production capacities at the Silverton plant, but with the introduction of the 2.2L and 3.2L Duratorq TDCi engines meant that the Struandale Engine Plant in Gqeberha had to get investment for the component machining and assembly too.
The second generation Ranger underwent a few upgrades over its lifecycle as well as saw the 2.0-litre Single Turbo and Bi-Turbo diesel engines introduced in 2019. The Ranger line-up also saw the introduction of the popular Raptor during this time. The expanded range and the plants with a total focus on one high-volume flexible single platform resulted in a total of 873 751 units produced at the time when production ended in November 2022. Keep in mind that two-thirds of these Rangers produced ended up in other global markets.
The third and current generation Ford Ranger production.
Ford Motor Company of South Africa invested massively in the expansion of the Silverton Manufacturing Plant. Where previously, the facility had a capacity of 110 000 units per year; now, the plant has an installed capacity of 200 000 vehicles a year or 720 units a day, if you will. This makes it the highest volume of any vehicle manufacturer in South Africa.
To achieve this volume, Ford constructed its own stamping plant, an all-new body shop, a completely new and modernized assembly line and the first Ford-owned and operated chassis plant in the newly developed Tshwane Automotive Special Economic Zone adjacent to the Silverton plant.
"This automotive supplier hub was the first of its kind in South Africa, and was the result of a unique public-private partnership between Ford and national, provincial and local government. It now houses 11 component suppliers that provide parts directly to the Ranger assembly line. Many of our employees and those at supplier companies in the Tshwane Automotive SEZ come from the communities surrounding the Silverton plant. As a result, we are a major contributor to the economic development and empowerment of this region." Ockert Berry, Vice President Operations, Ford South Africa.
The Ranger achievements
At the time of writing this article, the Ford Motor Company of South Africa employs around 5 200 people as well as supports around 60 000 jobs in the total value chain of the Ranger's production. Mr Berry says, "We are also exceptionally proud that we have a large number of employees with decades of service, along with numerous multi-generational families that have been and remain part of the Ford family at both the Silverton and Struandale plants,” Berry says. “Many of these dedicated generations of family members have only ever worked at Ford, and play an important role in building the vibrant culture and pride, and the commitment to excellence, that permeates throughout the company."
But it is also these individuals who resulted in the building of the millionth Ford Ranger in South Africa, the result of 24 years of hard work and determination. Neale Hill, President of Ford Motor Company South Africa, also announced that further investment will be given to produce the Ranger Plug-in Hybrid EV locally.
