In India, the small car B-segment in India accounts for 70 percent of the new vehicle market. Thinking highly of the market, Ford is investing $500 million into its Chennai plant, increasing its annual capacity to 200,000 units. Then the plant will become a regional centre of excellence for Ford small car production.
"Our exciting new Ford Figo shows how serious we are about India," said Mulally. "It reflects our commitment to compete with great products in all segments of this car market. We are confident the Ford Figo will be a product that Indian consumers really want and value."
Ford has made it clear that the Figo is not a competitor to the $2,000 Tata Nano. “Right now we are going to focus on the larger portion of the (small car) market, which is the B size,” Mulally said. “So, we don’t have plans to compete in the A size, or sub-B right now.”
Based on the fifth generation 2008 Fiesta, the Figo leverages Ford’s small-car platform architecture and is treated to Ford’s kinetic design language. From the front grille to the sculptured lines the styling is modern and reflective of current models like the Mondeo and the Fiesta. The latter also shares some technologies with the Figo. However, Ford is reserving further details about the vehicle until closer to its production launch early in 2010.
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