Jump to content
News
Reviews
Discussons
Activity
Create New...
Close

  • 💬 Join the Conversation

    CnG Logo SQ 2023 RedBlue FavIcon300w.png
    Since 2001, Cheers & Gears has been the go-to hub for automotive enthusiasts. Join today to access our vibrant forums, upload your vehicle to the Garage, and connect with fellow gearheads around the world.

     

  • William Maley
    William Maley

    By William Maley •

    Volkswagen Could Use Ford's Plants in the U.S. To Build Vehicles

      This could be an interesting development

    Back in June, Ford and Volkswagen signed a Memorandum of Understanding for a new alliance that would focus on commercial vehicles. Since then, the two companies have been in discussions about it and there have been various rumors flying about. Yesterday, Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess added some more fuel to the fire.

    Speaking to reporters outside of the White House, Diess revealed that the German automaker is interested in using Ford's plants in the U.S. to build vehicles.

    "We might use Ford capacity here in the U.S. to build cars for us," said Diess.

    “We need additional capacity here in the United States, we need an additional car plant for VW and Audi combined.”

    The company is in "quite advanced negotiations in Tennessee" about a new plant in the state - Volkswagen operates one in Chattanooga for the Passat and Atlas. But Diess did say "there might be other options as well," most likely talking about using some of Ford's plants in the U.S.

    For now, this is an idea being floating out there. The two are continuing their talks about what this alliance will look like. Diess said more details would come out in January.

    Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)

    Go to articles

    User Feedback

    Recommended Comments

    G. David Felt

    Makes total sense as it would also help Ford out with under utilized manufacturing and could reduce the estimated 25,000 layoffs that the financial world says is coming with Fords $11 Billion restructuring.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    A Horse With No Name
    49 minutes ago, riviera74 said:

    This may well be more about cutting costs in Germany than just having vehicle capacity in the USA.

    VW needs to have saleable product to need Fords production capacity. Subaru took over the market for funky cars  for hipsterish people over a decade ago and never looked back. Golf sells in Tiny numbers here, huge in Europe. VW already has Puebla and Chattanooga. Their chance of needing more production capacity is dismal.

    Outside of a very few vehicles, very little is built in Germany for the US market IIRC,

    49 minutes ago, riviera74 said:

    The layoffs will still happen,

    UAW is going to soon equal Unknown Auto Workers.

    1 hour ago, dfelt said:

    Makes total sense as it would also help Ford out with under utilized manufacturing and could reduce the estimated 25,000 layoffs that the financial world says is coming with Fords $11 Billion restructuring.

    More layoffs will follow.

    Edited by A Horse With No Name
    • Like 1
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    Drew Dowdell
    2 hours ago, A Horse With No Name said:

    Does this union remind anyone else of the union Between Sears and K-mart.,..two companies in trouble that ended up feeding off of each others misery?

    No. Sears and K-Mart actually merged to become a single company. 

    This is actually a smart move by VW and it works out for Ford.  It's a way to get around Trump Tariffs while also not committing billions to build another plant in the US. Ford gets some financial relief from the burden of running these plants.  I actually expect these types of arrangements to become more common. 

    Purely a speculative example based on no evidence, but Benz could contract with GM to build E-Classes in Hamtramck to get around the tariff. Or BMW using Lordstown to build 3-series.  It would help both companies involved. 

    • Agree 4
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    A Horse With No Name
    6 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

    No. Sears and K-Mart actually merged to become a single company. 

    This is actually a smart move by VW and it works out for Ford.  It's a way to get around Trump Tariffs while also not committing billions to build another plant in the US. Ford gets some financial relief from the burden of running these plants.  I actually expect these types of arrangements to become more common. 

    Purely a speculative example based on no evidence, but Benz could contract with GM to build E-Classes in Hamtramck to get around the tariff. Or BMW using Lordstown to build 3-series.  It would help both companies involved. 

    Tesla should do this. GM knows much more about building cars than Tesla.

    • Agree 1
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    Drew Dowdell
    5 minutes ago, A Horse With No Name said:

    Tesla should do this. GM knows much more about building cars than Tesla.

    Tesla sorta did.  Their plant in California is the old Toyota-GM joint site called NUMMI and Telsa got (some) advice from Toyota on building electric cars. 

    • Agree 2
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    A Horse With No Name
    14 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

    Tesla sorta did.  Their plant in California is the old Toyota-GM joint site called NUMMI and Telsa got (some) advice from Toyota on building electric cars. 

    I know about that....was thinking that a Tesla-GM indirect partnership might pay off.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    ccap41
    Just now, A Horse With No Name said:

    I know about that....was thinking that a Tesla-GM indirect partnership might pay off.

    If it's only for a plant for production, yeah. If it's anything more, there's nothing in it for GM. Tesla's patents are all public. 

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    Drew Dowdell
    Just now, ccap41 said:

    If it's only for a plant for production, yeah. If it's anything more, there's nothing in it for GM. Tesla's patents are all public. 

    If it kept the lights on at Hamtramck, GM might also be able to build something else there profitably. 

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    G. David Felt
    17 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

    Tesla sorta did.  Their plant in California is the old Toyota-GM joint site called NUMMI and Telsa got (some) advice from Toyota on building electric cars. 

    Clearly Musk did not listen as he still wanted to roboticize in a way not done by the OEMs. That really seems to have mucked him up.

    • Agree 1
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    ccap41
    1 minute ago, Drew Dowdell said:

    If it kept the lights on at Hamtramck, GM might also be able to build something else there profitably. 

    I'm all for keeping jobs around so if the theoretical "merger" were a thing, it would be great. Hopefully Tesla could take a few more notes on how to assemble vehicles before GM leaves them with the keys to the building. 

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    Drew Dowdell
    Just now, ccap41 said:

    I'm all for keeping jobs around so if the theoretical "merger" were a thing, it would be great. Hopefully Tesla could take a few more notes on how to assemble vehicles before GM leaves them with the keys to the building. 

    I think you're confusing merger with a partnership.  Ford and VW would still be independent of each other, they would just share a workspace for assembling vehicles.  Like how Toyota and GM did with NUMMI (Corolla/Prism/Matrix/Vibe).  And Subaru and Toyota at Lafayette (Legacy / Camry)

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    ccap41
    1 minute ago, Drew Dowdell said:

    I think you're confusing merger with a partnership.  Ford and VW would still be independent of each other, they would just share a workspace for assembling vehicles.  Like how Toyota and GM did with NUMMI (Corolla/Prism/Matrix/Vibe).  And Subaru and Toyota at Lafayette (Legacy / Camry)

    Yes! I just couldn't think of the word, LOL ??‍♂️. That's why I quoted it because I knew it wouldn't be a merger(in theory). 

    Edited by ccap41
    • Haha 1
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    A Horse With No Name
    11 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

    If it kept the lights on at Hamtramck, GM might also be able to build something else there profitably. 

    Exactly. And it might keep Tesla profitable...they seem to have a lot of production issues.

    • Like 1
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    G. David Felt
    17 minutes ago, A Horse With No Name said:

    Exactly. And it might keep Tesla profitable...they seem to have a lot of production issues.

    But ya know Musk is the smartest person in the room and it would be a cold day in hell before he would snuggle up to Barra to have a joint manufacturing where they actually built a consistent auto and quickly off the assembly line.

    • Agree 1
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    A Horse With No Name
    20 minutes ago, dfelt said:

    But ya know Musk is the smartest person in the room and it would be a cold day in hell before he would snuggle up to Barra to have a joint manufacturing where they actually built a consistent auto and quickly off the assembly line.

    A legend in his own mind, yes.

    • Haha 1
    Link to comment
    Share on other sites


    Join the conversation

    You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
    Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

    Guest
    Add a comment...

    ×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

      Only 75 emoji are allowed.

    ×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

    ×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

    ×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

    ×



  • Support Real Automotive Journalism

    Cheers and Gears Logo

    Since 2001, Cheers & Gears has delivered real content and honest opinions — not emotionless AI output or manufacturer-filtered fluff.

    If you value independent voices and authentic reviews, consider subscribing. Plans start at just $2.25/month, and paid members enjoy an ad-light experience.*

    You can view subscription options here.

    *a very limited number of ads contain special coupon deals for our members and will show

  • Similar Content

  • Posts

    • ccap41
      Random Thoughts Thread

      By ccap41 · Posted

      No, it is not. A 20 year old ICE vehicle is not losing any SIGNIFICANT amount of range or power output.    So you're basically saying your Escalade is a piece of junk at this point? It's 20 years old. I think we both know it's probably pretty close to OEM status when it comes to output and range, right?  Even if they aren't as simple as a good tune-up away, they are still way closer to factory output and range than a 20 year old EV will be. 
    • G. David Felt
      Random Thoughts Thread

      By G. David Felt · Posted

      WOW, I get it that your stuck on the 64% capacity issue. Yet the same thing can be said for ICE  A 20-yr old auto is NOT a tune up away from running near-new running condition. Never will be and the evidence of how moisture destroys an auto that has been sitting or only run in short local driving is everywhere. From gasket leaks due to age on just about every component that has a liquid to the rings on the piston that after 20 years of running will have blow by in not holding compression and cannot make the initial HP/Toque of when the engine is new. As one that grew up with building engines, transmissions and tune-ups on ICE, the clear evidence is both ICE and EV will still be around in 20 years, but how they work, and the power is very different. End result is the FUD that has been thrown at EVs is just that FUD as EVs is going to last just as long and in some cases could be longer as the auto industry has moved to superior insulation to avoid battery degradation, no different than how they realized heat shields play a pivotal role in maximizing the burning of unburnt hydrocarbons and how they use cats to clean up the exhaust.  EVs batteries are already better in dealing with extreme cold and heat than earlier generation EVs and will only get better over time. In this regards the batteries will outlast most of the auto's life and still have a use which cannot be said for an ICE Motor without having to have it totally rebuilt. I respect your choice to feel how you feel just as I feel about batteries versus ice. Have a relaxing weekend with the family.
    • G. David Felt
      Microsoft updates Blue Screen of Death for a Black Screen of Death.

      By G. David Felt · Posted

      We'll I always felt it needed to be updated, but is a Black Screen of death any better? Microsoft kills the iconic Windows 'Blue Screen of Death.' It looks like this now | PCWorld
    • ccap41
      Random Thoughts Thread

      By ccap41 · Posted

      Less complex auto....that needs pampering. Keep it cool, but not cold. Don't park it outside in the heat or it will degrade faster. Look for shade, especially when charging. Don't charge it too fast, or it will degrade faster. Know what battery chemistry you have because keeping the state of charge between 20% and 80% is best, unless you have a LFP battery. LFP batteries can accept full charges and last longer, possibly. There's been a study going against that, too.   You and everybody else here knows I like EVs. I would love a Lightning or an R1S/R1T. I'm just not going to sit and read a BS article that tries to say EV batteries last longer than an ICE, because that's not what it's saying. It isn't saying it lasts longer than an internal combustion ENGINE. The batteries can last longer than the VEHICLE. An internal combustion ENGINE will still outlast an EV's battery.  ~64% capacity after 20 years makes most anything out today worthless at 20 years old, unless you are the original owner. Nobody is buying an EV9 with ~150 miles of range in 20 years. People will still but an ICE vehicle that's 20 years old because they're almost certainly just a tune-up away from near-new running condition. 
    • G. David Felt
      Random Thoughts Thread

      By G. David Felt · Posted

      No, I am saying when you look at the grand whole picture, EVs will outlast ICE. If you follow the link on what that write up is based on and I guess I should have just done this as it has far better info, but on the extreme end of 1.8% degradation, you still get a solid output in the way the EV will drive and handle. EV Battery Health Insights: Data From 10,000 Cars | Geotab This gives a pretty solid picture and even they state that every year the batteries get better and better, and degradation is reduced. Picking on just a few negative points without looking at the bigger picture is just one way a person can read this, I look at it as the positive of a less complex auto lasting longer than a far more complex auto. I feel strongly that Hybrids, while they have their place for long distant driving, is NOT the right solution for most who just drive locally and at that average 40 miles a day for commuting.

  • Who's Online (See full list)

  • My Clubs

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.

Hey there, we noticed you're using an ad-blocker. We're a small site that is supported by ads or subscriptions. We rely on these to pay for server costs and vehicle reviews.  Please consider whitelisting us in your ad-blocker, or if you really like what you see, you can pick up one of our subscriptions for just $1.75 a month or $15 a year. It may not seem like a lot, but it goes a long way to help support real, honest content, that isn't generated by an AI bot.

See you out there.

Drew
Editor-in-Chief

I've whitelisted
Continue without support

Write what you are looking for and press enter or click the search icon to begin your search