When Ford quit the Indian market in September 2021, it left a big hole in the passenger vehicle market of the country. Lack of profitability and no new models in the portfolio, forced the American carmaker to shut its business after more than 25 years in India.
The company operated two manufacturing facilities in the country– one in Sanand, Gujarat, and the other in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The former was bought by Tata Motors last year, while the bidding process for the latter continued for a long time. Jindal Steel Works (JSW) was close to acquiring the Chennai-based plant but the deal was scrapped last month.
4th gen Ford Endeavour design patent filed
This led to speculation that Ford might eventually return to India and start manufacturing in the country again. Adding fuel to fire, is an image of a design patent of the fourth generation Endeavour. Apparently, the American car brand has filed patent applications for the latest iteration of the D-segment SUV in India. An image of the same has leaked on the internet.
Registration date of the application suggests the patent application was filed after Ford’s exit from India. The fourth-gen Endeavour, rebranded as Everest in foreign markets, made its global debut in 2022. While it retains the typical boxy profile of an SUV, it flaunts a completely revised exterior styling. Further, the new model appears to be bigger than its predecessor.
It could be a case where Ford locally assembles CKD (Completely Knocked Down) kits in India at its Chennai facility for selected models, and Endeavour could be one of them. As a result, expect the Toyota Fortuner rival to be priced upwards of Rs 50 lakh (ex-showroom).
Ford hiring in India
Further, adding fuel to fire are the recent job openings by Ford at its Chennai production facility posted on the company’s official LinkedIn page. The carmaker is hiring for various positions including Technical Anchor, ADAS Feature Owner, Software Engineer, Senior Data Engineer, etc. This is a clear indication that Ford intends to kickstart some operations in Chennai.
However, only time will tell if Ford indeed returns to India. If it does, we expect more models other than the Endeavour, most probably in the premium segment, to make their way to the Indian market.
