Video. 40 years ago, on the day Ford made an investment of one billion francs in Blanquefort

Next April 16 factories Ford de Blanquefort, in the suburbs of Bordeaux, will launch the series production of a new automatic gearbox (A4LD), intended to equip the Sierra, new Granada and Transit models, for the European market, and Ranger for the American market. But even before this production begins, the result of an investment of 1.3 billion francs announced in October 1981, Ford has just revealed that a new billion francs will be invested in the site Blanquefort. The donated equipment will be distributed in two units of Blanquefort. They will be used to develop a new transmission set “at the forefront of technology…

Next April 16 industries Ford de Blanquefort, in the suburbs of Bordeaux, will launch the series production of a new automatic gearbox (A4LD), intended to equip the Sierra, new Granada and Transit models, for the European market, and Ranger for the American market. But even before this production begins, the result of an investment of 1.3 billion francs announced in October 1981, Ford has just revealed that a new billion francs will be invested in the site Blanquefort. The donated equipment will be distributed in two units of Blanquefort. They will be used in the production of new transmissions placed “at the forefront of automotive technology”, expressed yesterday Gilbert Lévy, general manager Ford France SA and responsible for the two plants.

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May 1986

This product, designated to Ford by the code name CTX 811, then today by that of TVC (continuously variable transmission), will first equip the Fiesta range. “This is a new generation of automatic transmission for front-wheel drive, with an unlimited number of gears, (which) will achieve performance comparable to a five-speed canique, but will also reduce fuel consumption. It has been developed since 1969 in collaboration with the Dutch company Van Doorne Transmissie (see box).

Initially, it is the latter that will produce TVC advertising to prepare the Fiestas from next season. From May 1986 the boxes will be manufactured directly in Blanquefort. According to the method common to all Ford factories, it will be up to the Gironde factories to put their suppliers in competition – Ford or not – to get the best prices and the quality parts needed to assemble these boxes. Van Doorne will supply special belts for this transmission which are patented. And Ford’s pressure plant in Germany can produce those craters.

Fiat boxes

But we should note another important new feature in the investment announced yesterday. For the first time, in fact, Ford will supply other major manufacturers. Initially it will be Fiat, but contacts have already been made, mainly with two French manufacturers. After launching the program on 150 Ritmo-Transmatics with this new system, the Italian company will distribute next season the Fiat Uno-Matic which will also be equipped with boxes purchased from Van Doorne Transmissie, then from Ford. It should be noted that Volvo, which holds almost 40% of the capital of Van Doorne Transmissie, is also studying this new approach. But it can wait for the development of the electronic control system before preparing some of its models. Maybe in 1986. Unfortunately, continuously variable automatic transmissions are popular with many people today, including the Japanese. This is why Gilbert Lévy remained very discreet about the speed of production of these boxes from 1986. He largely indicated that he would be “several hundred per day”.

Quality, performance, cost

The same decision surrounds the way to finance the investment. These will be “Ford finance and bank loans at attractive rates that have been negotiated”. We can assume in any case that Hans Baumhardt, director of production programs, new work and industrial maintenance for Ford Europe and Roger Robert, director of finance for Ford France, who have led the negotiations since December 1983 with the ministry of economy and finance. , have received interest subsidies and tax exemptions for these new commitments. But, as Roland Especel, spokesman for Ford France in Bordeaux, pointed out, the Blanquefort site was chosen primarily for quality, performance and cost criteria. After the difficult years that the two factories went through due to the economic crisis and poor sales of some kind – especially in the American market – Periods of partial unemployment in Blanquefort have stopped for two months. With 109 new machines, 208 reconditioned machines, automatic equipment installed since 1982 has given new life to these units that make automatic transmissions, on the one hand, Fiesta front engine axles, on the other. Jobs haven’t seen much growth, however. There are about 3,000 at present and they should reach 3,600 people by the end of 1985. But it is at the cost of improving production that the future of the two industries will be preserved. François Mitterrand even took care to emphasize this in his press conference on Wednesday, citing Ford-France on today’s economic issues.

Future distribution

CTX, TVC, Transmatic, Variomatic. Various names for the system that found its use on millions of mopeds then, from 1958, on Daf cars, and even on Volvo’s System 3. The basic principle is simple: on two identical shafts (one driven by the motor, the other driving the wheels) are fixed two pulleys connected together by a belt. Pulley pulleys can move apart and move closer together. Therefore, when the flanges come together, the V-belt pushes out and follows the larger diameter. Conversely, when the flanges move apart, the belt descends to get closer to the axis and cover a smaller diameter. By moving side by side, while the other is tightening, the two pulleys provide an infinite number of ratios, unlike conventional gearboxes that consist of gears and therefore only present four or five reduction possibilities. The only drawback of this system, but it is important: the belt used faces serious problems. So it has a risk of tearing if it is made of rubber or even rubber reinforced with wire. In the case of the TVC made by the company Van Doorne Transmissie, the trick was the development of a steel belt made up of “jumpers” 320 » made of special steel, mounted on two flexible steel ribbons. The hydraulic system controls – by varying the oil pressure – the distance between the pulleys and also provides the benefit of smoothing and soundproofing the whole thing.