Ford Motor Co. won’t be on the ballot in November. But in a new campaign, the automaker is draping itself in patriotism as much as any candidate running this year. New ads tout the 117-year-old company’s American heritage, U.S. manufacturing footprint and job-creation efforts in a bid to separate itself from Chevrolet, Jeep, Ram and other brands.
The campaign from Wieden+Kennedy comes as the automaker today reveals plans to invest $700 million for U.S. manufacturing of its F-series pickup truck, the top-selling vehicle in the U.S. Spending includes upgrades at a plant in Dearborn, Michigan that will equip it to build the first-ever all-electric F-150 by mid-2022. In a press briefing on Wednesday previewing the announcement, officials boasted that the investment would create 300 jobs at the company’s historic Rouge Center, where components for the Model T were once made.
“We pay a price for keeping such a significant portion of our manufacturing here in the U.S.,” Kumar Galhotra, president of Ford’s Americas and International Markets Group, told reporters, alluding to economic factors that often make overseas assembly cheaper. “But it is a choice we make, because we believe in American workers and the value of a strong American manufacturing base.”
The campaign, voiced by Bryan Cranston, includes one ad called “Built for America” that has lines and scenes reminiscent of political ads. “We’ve seen tough times, but we’ve learned we are better when we come together,” Cranston says at one point. Weaving together scenes from factories, American homes and the open road, the spot touts the company as “employing more U.S. hourly workers than any other automaker,” as well as “assembling more vehicles in America than any other automaker.” Another spot will feature Ford trucks used by first responders.