Questions around waiting times as Chinese parts supply issues delay local release of Ford’s Aussie-developed global ute
First Australian deliveries of the all-new Ford Ranger will now take place in July, while those already in the queue for a new Ranger Raptor or Everest will now wait until August.
The delay has thus far been kept relatively quiet by Ford, which commenced production of the new Ranger in Thailand last month, with the only real indication being a subtle new subclause on the banner of Ford’s next-gen Ranger website landing page, reading: “Arriving from July 2022”.
What that means in terms of delivery wait times for fresh customer orders remains unclear.
In a statement issued to carsales yesterday, a Ford Australia spokesperson said the delays were the result of the ongoing global semi-conductor shortage which has been crippling automotive production across the globe, as well as other “COVID-related supply chain challenges”.
“A combination of both of these factors means there will be some wait times, but we’re doing what we can to make them as short as possible,” the spokesperson said.
“We continue to communicate with our dealers so they can keep our customers updated.”
In a dealer bulletin issued last month, Ford Australia told its retail network the semi-conductor shortage and supply chain issues that stemmed from China’s ongoing COVID lockdown were expected to impact Ranger production, but didn’t say by how much.
“Next Gen Ranger Q2 (April to June) production has been negatively impacted as a result of some major cities in China now being under COVID lockdown,” the bulletin read.
“Unfortunately, a portion of the expected Q2 (April to June) production volume will need to be re-calendarised, with detailed impact to production expected to be available over the next fortnight.
“For context, the China COVID lockdown has affected 91 suppliers and 393 unique parts utilised on Next Gen Ranger.”
At this stage carsales is unaware of any subsequent Ford Australia dealer bulletins providing an update on Ranger availability, but the above statement suggests wait times won’t be too long – at least for those who ordered their vehicles early.
But with Ford confirming it continues to attract “very strong interest” in the new models, questions remain around exactly how long the current waiting list is for new orders and, perhaps more importantly, how much further waiting times will blow out as demand continues to rise for the blue oval brand’s long-awaited new ute.
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Keyword: New Ford Ranger, Raptor and Everest pushed back