DETROIT — Two industry analysts say that Oakville Assembly in Ontario is the mostly likely location for Ford to build the Explorer and Lincoln Aviator electric vehicles, now that the automaker will dedicate the entire production of the plant in Cuautitlan, Mexico, to the hot-selling Mustang Mach-E. The Explorer and Aviator EVs had been earmarked for that plant.
Ford has told suppliers to plan for combined annual volume of roughly 100,000 for the two utility vehicles, with production being moved to late 2024 from mid-2023. At least three plants — two in the United States and Oakville Assembly — now are potentially in the running to get the upgrades needed to build those vehicles.