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    Sunday, May 05, 2024

    Ford to bring back Ranger, Bronco to US market

    General Motors Executive Chief Engineer Autonomous & Electrified Vehicles and New Technology Pam Fletcher, left, and Bolt Chief Engineer Josh Tavel stand next to a Chevy Bolt after being named top car in the North America at the North American International Auto show, Monday, Jan. 9, 2017, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

    DETROIT (AP) — At the annual North American International Auto Show, Ford Motor Co. has confirmed that the Ranger small pickup and Bronco SUV will be returning to the U.S. market.

    The Bronco was made between 1966 and 1996; Ford Chairman Bill Ford says he had one when he got his driver's license.

    Ford killed it when sales started slumping. But with low gas prices boosting SUV sales and the huge success of the Jeep brand, Ford will bring the 4x4 back in 2020. Ford still sells the Ranger outside the U.S., but stopped selling it here in 2011 when sales of smaller pickups were hurting. Now, pickups are back, and the Ranger will go on sale here in 2019. Both vehicles will be made at a plant outside Detroit.

    President-elect Donald Trump is touting decisions by Fiat Chrysler and Ford Motor Co. to expand plants and create new jobs in the U.S., as the auto industry gathers for its annual show in Detroit.

    Fiat Chrysler said Sunday it will invest $1 billion in two U.S. factories to build three new Jeep vehicles, including a pickup truck. The expansion will create 2,000 new jobs. Ford last week scrapped plans to build a $1.6 billion small-car factory in Mexico, and said $700 million would go toward expanding a Michigan plant to build new electric and autonomous vehicles.

    Trump has criticized the industry's strategy of building cars in Mexico and then shipping them to the U.S. He has threatened a 35 percent border tax and said the cars should be built in the U.S. by American workers.

    On Monday, Trump tweeted "it's finally happening," and thanked Ford and Fiat Chrysler for the investments in the U.S.

    At the show, executives from General Motors and Volkswagen said they have no plans to change production plans despite the Trump border tax threat.

    The Chevy Bolt from General Motors has snagged the annual award for the top car in North America.

    Mark Reuss, GM's head of global product development, describes the Bolt as a "moon shot." Reuss says the car's developers weren't sure what kind of range and price they would end up with when they started the project, but everything turned out just right. The Bolt gets more than 200 miles per battery charge, which is more than the average American drives in a day, and sells for around $30,000 when a federal tax credit is included.

    The Honda Ridgeline was named truck of the year, while the Pacifica minivan from Fiat Chrysler won the award for as top utility vehicle, the first time an award was given separately for that category.

    FILE - In an Oct. 24, 2007 file photo, workers leave the Warren Truck Assembly, a Chrysler automobile factory, during a shift change in Warren, Mich. Fiat Chrysler said Sunday, Jan. 8. 2017, it will add three new Jeeps to its lineup including a pickup truck as it invests $1 billion in two U.S. factories and creates 2,000 new jobs. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)
    President and CEO of Honda North America John Mendel stands next to the Honda Ridgeline after winning the truck of the year at the North American International Auto show, Monday, Jan. 9, 2017, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

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