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Ford Windsor Engine Plant Increases Production of Award-Winning Engine

5 January 1999

Ford Windsor Engine Plant Increases Production of Award-Winning Engine

    WINDSOR, Ontario, Jan. 4 -- Ford is boosting
production of its award-winning 5.4-liter, Triton V8 engine at Windsor Engine
Plant.  An additional 50,000 units will be added to the plant's output by
March in response to unprecedented customer demand for the company's
V8-powered trucks and sport utility vehicles.
    "The overwhelming popularity of the Ford V8s has created a 'delightful
quandary' for the company's manufacturing planners," said Ford of Canada
president Bobbie Gaunt.  "They are pleased that the engines are selling so
well but have to work very hard to keep pace with growing customer demand."
    Windsor Engine Plant, which also manufactures the 4.6-liter, Triton V8 and
the 6.8-liter, Triton V10, closed the year with total production of 769,800
engines.  Combined with Essex Engine Plant, Windsor Operations produced a
record 1,363,000 engines in 1998, mostly for Ford trucks.  The new record
represents an increase of nearly 200,000 engines over the 1,195,500 engines
the two plants produced during 1997.
    Average daily production for Windsor Engine Plant is 3,333 engines, making
it one of the most productive engine plants in Ford worldwide.
    The 5.4-liter V8 engine, which powers the Ford F-Series, Expedition,
Econoline and Lincoln Navigator, has been named to Ward's AutoWorld list of
"Top Ten Engines of 1999" -- winning for the third consecutive year.  Its
horsepower has been increased by more than 10 percent to 260 hp, and the
torque curve has been shaped to provide increased benefit for hauling and
towing.
    "Looking at the sales figures for the Triton V8-powered trucks, I'm
inclined to think that our customers agree with Ward's assessment of the
engine's performance," Ms. Gaunt said.  "Additional product actions have been
planned for the Windsor facility in the near-term that will further allow us
to maximize our product mix and output."
    Windsor Engine Plant, which employs 2,380 hourly and salaried personnel,
originally was built in 1922.  It was closed in 1990 and, two years later,
stripped to its original steel structure and rebuilt.  It opened in 1994 as a
high-tech engine plant, producing Ford's new generation of fuel-efficient,
modular, truck engines.