• Ford leads automotive exports in September with 6995 vehicles shipped.
• The US car company sold 3679 vehicles in the local passenger and commercial market.
• Total domestic and export sales of 9 174 Rangers in September is the best performance this year.
Ford South Africa emerged as the top vehicle exporter for September 2020, with a total of 6995 units shipped to its more than 100 global markets – an increase of 11.3% compared to August 2020, and its highest export volume for the year.
Local sales
On the domestic front, the brand sold 3679 vehicles sales – a 23.6% improvement compared to August, and its best volume since February 2020, the company said.
Ford is the third best-performing brand in the local sales charts for September, according to data from the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (NAAMSA).
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"It's encouraging to see markets finally recovering to the volumes that were typical pre-COVID-19," says Neale Hill, MD of Ford SA.
"The already strained economic climate prior to the coronavirus lockdown pales in comparison to the devastating financial impact over the past six months, but the domestic and international markets have shown remarkable resilience and we expect this trend to continue for the remainder of this year."
"Our total domestic and export sales of 9174 Ford Rangers in September is our best result for the year," Hill adds.
"It reaffirms the confidence that local and international customers continue to have in our locally produced Ranger, and further entrenches the significant role we play in the local economy and the large number of direct and indirect jobs we support," Hill concluded.
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All engines for the Ranger and Everest – comprising the latest generation 2.0-litre Bi-Turbo and 2.0-litre Single Turbo, as well as the 2.2-litre and 3.2-litre Duratorq TDCi engines – are assembled at company's Struandale Engine Plant in Port Elizabeth.
The plant recently won its fourth Best Exporter OEM award from Exporters Eastern Cape. Along with supplying engines to the Silverton plant, it exports fully assembled engines and machined components to several Ford plants around the world.
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