Ford to produce Focus in two plants in 2010

With sales up 35-percent year over year, the current Focus is on fire. Even after Ford added a third shift that bumped annual production at its Wayne assembly plant to 280,000 units per year, the Blue Oval is still selling every compact it an make. To give Americans more of what they want, the Dearborn, MI automaker plans to produce the next generation Focus in two plants. Industry insiders say Ford will convert its Louisville plant from Explorer production to a mix of small vehicles, including the Focus. There is no word at this time if the plant will also build other smaller models as well, but it's a good bet that Ford will make the plant more flexible so it can adapt to consumer demand.

The good news for enthusiasts is that the next Focus will be a global model based off the much drooled over European model. The bad news is that both the new model and the added capacity won't be available until the end of 2010. It may be two years into the future, but at least the new Focus is on its way, and there will be a lot more of them, too.

[Source: Automotive News - Sub. Req.]