Ford kick-starts production of new Ranger engines

As we await the local launch of the next generation Ranger, Ford has commenced production of the 3.0-litre V6 diesel engine at the Struandale Engine Plant in Gqeberha.

This follows Ford’s R600 million investment in the plant to upgrade the assembly process of the 2.0-litre Single and Bi-Turbo diesel engines. According to Ford, design changes and additional derivatives of the engine have been added for the new Ranger, and it’ll be sold locally and exported to more than 100 global markets.

“The modernisation and upgrades to the Struandale Engine Plant began in July 2021. Construction was completed on time in December, ready to begin our tooling trials and pre-production runs this year in preparation for Job 1 for both engine programs commencing in August,” says Shawn Govender, Plant Manager of the Ford Struandale Engine Plant.

The production line has 40 stations that are capable of the versatile assembly of both units and 25 slots that are dedicated to the assembly of the 3.0-litre V6 diesel engine. The total installed capacity for this line is 130,000 engines per year.

Ford says that about 23 design changes have been implemented for the new application of the 2.0-litre Single Turbo and Bi-Turbo engines. In contrast, the number of derivatives produced on the dedicated assembly line for this engine program has increased from 9 to 13.

As demand for these engines keeps increasing, the plant does away with the previous two shifts for 2.5 shifts and Ford expects to build up to 120,000 engines per year. The powerplants go through extensive testing regimes to ensure performance and durability.

The new 3.0-litre V6, the revamped 2.0-litre Single Turbo and Bi-Turbo units will be responsible for powering select Ranger models with power outputs ranging from 110 kW to 184 kW.