Ford to build its carbon-fiber GT in Canada

Ford has confirmed that its flagship GT coupe will be built in Canada, rather than rolling out of a US factory.
The automaker has tasked Canadian supplier Multimatic with building the carbon-fiber body and finishing the assembly process at its factory in Markham, Ontario, in the Greater Toronto Area.

“We chose to partner with them because they have specialized equipment for carbon fibre production and expertise in carbon fibre assembly,” Ford’s marketing manager for Canada, Marc Vejgman, told CBC.

Multimatic boasts extensive work for Aston Martin, including engineering of the One-77 occupant cell, design and production of the CC100′s carbon-fiber exterior and exterior, and production of V12 Zagato components. The supplier’s components can also be found on the Camaro Z/28 and Dodge Viper, among other vehicles.

Ford separately announced a new collaborative effort with DowAksa, a joint venture between Dow and Turkish material specialist AKSA, to develop manufacturing processes for automotive-grade carbo fiber. The companies will be part of the US government-founded Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation.

The companies will be working to overcome the high costs and limited supply volumes associated with carbon fiber, while refining high-volume manufacturing processes.

The GT is expected to begin production sometime in 2016.