Ford F-150 will have expanded production to meet demand in the USA

Ford announced that it will significantly expand production of the F-150 and F-Series Super Duty pickup trucks in 2026, with the aim of meeting strong demand in the United States and offsetting losses caused by the fire at supplier Novelis’ aluminum plant in Oswego, New York.

The plan foresees an increase of more than 50 thousand units in production and the creation of up to a thousand new jobs.

The expansion will be concentrated in two North American factories. In Dearborn, Michigan, the brand will add a third team to the truck unit at the Ford Rouge Complex, responsible for assembling the F-150. In Louisville, Kentucky, the truck factory will receive additional personnel to expand production of the Super Duty line.

According to Ford, the Dearborn plant is expected to produce more than 45,000 additional F-150 pickup trucks in 2026, including gasoline and hybrid versions. To achieve this, 1,200 new employees will be hired, in addition to 90 workers at the Dearborn Stamping Plant and 80 at the Diversified Manufacturing unit, which supports the main line.

The increase in production will prioritize models with combustion and hybrid engines, considered more profitable and less dependent on aluminum. Assembly of the electric F-150 Lightning will continue to be suspended at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center, and all hourly employees at that facility will be transferred to the new F-150 assembly team in Dearborn.

At the Kentucky Truck Plant, Ford intends to increase the speed of the F Series Super Duty assembly line by approximately one vehicle per hour, which represents more than 5,000 extra units per year. To achieve this, the company will hire more than 100 new employees and invest around US$60 million in training and modernization of the structure.

In a statement, Kumar Galhotra, Ford’s director of operations, stated that the expansion of production seeks to respond to demand for one of the most popular vehicles in the country. “We are mobilizing our team to serve customers who depend on F Series pickup trucks,” said the executive. “We will work with the UAW union and our suppliers to quickly increase production in Michigan and Kentucky.”

With these measures, Ford reinforces its focus on F Series pickup trucks — a line that has led vehicle sales in the United States for decades and remains one of the pillars of the brand’s industrial strategy.