Ford reaffirms its commitment to local development

Ford Australia has reiterated that it will continue developing vehicles locally for the foreseeable future, with Ford Motor Company having invested $5 billion in Aussie R&D over the past 10 years, with $500 million being committed every year.

At the launch of the updated 2026 Ford Ranger and Everest last week, the company’s executives provided some insight into the relative importance and significance of the You Yangs proving ground and other R&D facilities operated in Australia.

“The success of this place (Young Yangs) is what you see on the road, right?” global truck program director Mario Brandini said.

“So... proving time and time again, the ability of the team here and its capability. What we can do, what we’ve got and how we do it is something proven over and over again.

“Hence why we keep investing in the place. We wouldn’t be investing here if we were going to end and go [somewhere else].”

Australian product communications manager Ben Nightingale emphasised that point further by revealing the size of Ford’s local investment.

“The real key piece in that puzzle here is that $5 billion has been invested in R&D in Australia in the last 10 years. Half a billion dollars every year, and that’s ongoing,” he said.

“Jim [Farley] was here in March, and he drove [Ranger] Super Duty, and he was blown away by Super Duty – and the work this team did for that.

“We just announced Super Duty is going to Europe now, too. We keep doing that work here, and the lights stay on.”

The You Yangs facility became an overnight sensation in 1965 when it hosted the 70,000-mile Durability Run, a marketing exercise aimed at promoting the reliability of the then-new XP Falcon.

Ever since, it has been a leading light in Ford’s local R&D work; testing the Ranger and Everest for the T6 development program for 20 years – work that’s paid handsomely for Ford, with the Ranger outselling any other vehicle in this country for the past three years. It’s also the most popular vehicle of its type in Europe.

In 2026, the facility operates 24 hours a day, and Ford’s R&D team seamlessly interact with teams in other parts of the world – taking advantage of Australia’s different time zone to continue work on big projects after the boffins have gone home for the day in Dearborn or Cologne.

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