Ford has called work by the likes of GWM and Kia to tune their cars for Australian roads a "marketing ploy", arguing they pale in comparison to what its engineers do to create the Ranger and Everest locally.
A senior Ford Australia executive has dismissed work by rival car makers such as Kia and GWM to tune the suspension and steering of their vehicles in Australia – to suit Australian roads – as "insignificant", and a "marketing ploy".
Ford Australia marketing director Ambrose Henderson used a media briefing to take aim at competitors with Australian tuning programs, arguing changes to a car's suspension and steering are not in the same league as Ford’s own development and testing.
The brand has invested $5 billion over 10 years into the local development of vehicles sold in Australia and globally, using the 900-hectare You Yangs Proving Ground in Victoria, and forming the broadest Australian engineering presence of any car brand.
Ford’s You Yangs Proving Ground
The current-generation Ford Ranger – Australia’s best-selling new car for three years running – was developed mostly in Australia by Ford, along with the Everest, Ranger Raptor and Ranger Super Duty.
However, the Ford executive was less than admiring of local development efforts from competitive car makers.
"While others – who may be Chinese OEMs [car brands] or other OEMs – talk about Australian tuned, as a marketing ploy..." Henderson told media at a preview of the updated Ranger and Everest at You Yangs.
"Let’s be honest, right? How much is Australian tuning, how much can you really change on the dynamics of a vehicle?
"I’d argue, if it’s any more than 5 per cent, we should have a really big debate about it.
"It’s really insignificant in terms of how a whole vehicle comes together."
Chinese car giant GWM recently took up a long-term residency at Holden’s former proving ground at Lang Lang, south-east of Melbourne, before the site was recently sold to a defence contractor.
GWM’s own ‘AT-1’ tuning program will continue elsewhere, calibrating suspension, steering and software to suit the Australian market.
Kia has consistently tuned its Australian-delivered vehicles on local roads for the past 15 years, while sibling Hyundai has moved away from such a program to less frequent local adjustments, along with providing feedback into the brand's global vehicle development.
Other car makers make occasional changes to Australian-bound vehicle tunes as well on an ad-hoc basis, such as JAC.
Mario Brandini, Ford Australia vehicle program director, said tuning only catches one portion of vehicle development.
"Tuning is the last end of it. If you’re not designing it here from scratch, put the right hardware into it at the start, you can’t get the tune that you want. Ford can go full circle,” he said.
"For the life of the car. You put the right hardware in at the start, that gives it a long life. If you mess up at the start, it doesn’t matter how hard you work on tuning. You’re never going to get it there."
Henderson said Ford sees its Australian operations, which employ 1500 people, as an advantage in the market.
"I think that's why it's so important that we keep talking about capability today, because that is something that I think we have a sustainable, long-term competitive advantage on," he said.
"Because we’ve made a decision to be based here and invest here."
It follows no-pulled-punches comments by Ford global CEO Jim Farley on the future of said local operations to Australian media in March.
"We have to work with your government, because we have to be competitive on speed and cost here in Australia versus China or Vietnam or other places," Farley said.
"There is a premium for innovation, so we're willing to pay, but your government has to decide if they want engineers in your country, or do you want to be a country of hairdressers and bankers?"
"... They need to decide if they want to help us equalise the cost differential, because this is among the most expensive places to have engineers on the planet."
Sam has been banging on about things with wheels as a job for about fifteen years now, making a start in four-wheel-drive magazines after a botched attempt at tertiary education. A love of four-wheel drives has never left the picture, and he even managed to bag an award for off-road journalism at the 2024 Newspress Awards. Sam's remit now includes anything and everything since joining CarAdvice back in 2018.
