Ford Looks In-House For AWD

Ford Motor Co. has developed its own all-wheel-drive system for several upcoming sedans and cross/utility vehicles, rather than expand use of the system supplied by Swedish parts maker Haldex AB, Phillip Kurrle, driveline systems supervisor tells Ward's.

The new system will be offered in V-6 Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln MKZ (formerly Zephyr) midsize sedans and Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX CUVs.

Kurrle says there are several reasons why Ford decided to develop an AWD system in-house, instead of using the Haldex system employed in the bigger Ford Five Hundred and Mercury Montego sedans and Ford Freestyle CUV.

“Trying to get that hardware across the ocean actually would cost us more than making it domestically,” he says. “We were also trying to get something that better fit the application.”

Cost and capacity also were factors in the decision to develop an AWD system in-house, Kurrle says.

Haldex didn't have the capability to supply the volumes needed for the midsize sedan and CUV programs, Kurrle says, and Ford was able to develop a simpler, more affordable unit.

The Ford AWD system is similar to that used on the Ford Escape CUV.