Ford foregoes Fiesta for Figo

Ford today announced that its Aussie-developed successor to the Indian market Fiesta will be named Figo. The car's name is an Italian word, translated as 'cool' in English.

Although the Figo went on display today, the car's global launch will not take place until early next year.

Ford Australia was responsible for the vehicle's design and engineering. The team tasked with the car's development here was led by Scott Strong, the man who also designed the FG Falcon.

Ford President and CEO, Alan Mulally, introduced the new car to the international press and also announced that the Figo would be built in the company's upgraded Chennai (India) plant. Representing an investment of US $500 million, the upgrade was a pre-requisite for the plant to assume the mantle of small-car production centre of excellence in the region. More environmentally friendly since its upgrade, the plant's production capacity has also been doubled to 200,000 units a year and Ford intends for the Chennai plant to export some of its output in due course.

"Our exciting new Ford Figo shows how serious we are about India," Mulally said. "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."

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