{"id":832135,"date":"2025-07-21T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-07-21T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=832135"},"modified":"2025-07-21T13:16:37","modified_gmt":"2025-07-21T11:16:37","slug":"major-american-car-brand-rolling-out-new-dealerships-across-south-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/motoring\/832135\/major-american-car-brand-rolling-out-new-dealerships-across-south-africa\/","title":{"rendered":"Major American car brand rolling out new dealerships across South Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa is planning a major expansion of its dealership footprint across South Africa, with dealer partners committing over R900 million in investment over the next three years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Neale Hill, President of Ford Motor Company, Africa, the move is a strong vote of confidence in the brand\u2019s long-term strategy, products, and customer experience in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhile some brands may be consolidating or rationalising, Ford is evolving its dealer business to meet the needs of modern customers,\u201d said Hill. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hill noted that Ford\u2019s approach centres on right-sizing dealerships, enhancing aftersales infrastructure, improving digital readiness, and optimising locations to meet the expectations of today\u2019s time-strapped and tech-savvy customer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s not us saying we believe in Ford. That\u2019s our partners endorsing it \u2013 a clear vote of confidence in our direction, our people, and, most importantly, our products and our belief in our customers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently, Ford has 118 strategically located dealerships across South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, and Eswatini, making it one of the top three largest networks in South Africa. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The aim is to grow the network, improve the overall customer experience, and future-proof the brand amid shifting market dynamics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2024 alone, 20 new dealership projects and facility upgrades are either underway or set to begin. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These investments are already generating indirect economic activity across the country. The broader network supports over 10,000 direct jobs in South Africa. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ford\u2019s data suggests that these upgraded facilities improve customer satisfaction and boost business performance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hill pointed to Ford\u2019s 2023\u20132024 Global Retail Assessment study, which found that dealerships aligned with Ford\u2019s global design standards consistently outperformed those that hadn\u2019t been upgraded, particularly on customer-facing metrics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the heart of Ford\u2019s success in South Africa is its best-selling Ranger Double Cab, which remains a top performer in both local and export markets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ford South Africa still sees growth <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Ford Ranger is currently South Africa\u2019s leading double cab and was the first bakkie to be named SA Car of the Year in 2023.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Ranger Raptor, another standout in Ford\u2019s line-up, was recently named the \u201cUltimate Double Cab Bakkie\u201d at the 2025 Cars.co.za Awards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the first half of the year, 236,914 new Ford vehicles were sold through dealerships in South Africa, accounting for over 85% of all new vehicle sales. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This figure represents a 12.9% year-on-year increase, closely tracking the wider market\u2019s 13.6% growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ford also climbed to fourth place overall in June. It captured 6.5% of the new vehicle market, a 0.5 percentage point increase. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What makes this achievement particularly notable is that Ford\u2019s growth was driven mainly by Ranger volumes in a market otherwise dominated by passenger car sales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Apart from the bricks-and-mortar expansion, Ford noted the upgrade that includes personalised finance solutions, dedicated aftersales support, and consistent service across the dealer network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really about the service, support, and relationships we maintain throughout the customer journey. That\u2019s what creates real brand connection and lasting trust,\u201d Hill added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Flagship sites like the multi-franchise Paarden Eiland dealership in the Western Cape exemplify Ford\u2019s strategy in action, combining dealer diversification, strategic brand alignment, and an enhanced customer experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Together, Ford and its dealer network are positioning the brand for growth, relevance, and resilience in a competitive and rapidly evolving automotive landscape. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re building momentum, not just in terms of sales but in trust, customer loyalty, and long-term confidence in the Ford brand,\u201d said Hill. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa is planning a major expansion of its dealership footprint across South Africa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":832136,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11119],"tags":[2042,853],"class_list":["post-832135","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-motoring","tag-ford","tag-south-africa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/832135","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/92"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=832135"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/832135\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":832234,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/832135\/revisions\/832234"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/832136"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=832135"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=832135"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=832135"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}