HAZELWOOD, Mo. -- Ford Motor Co. Thursday rolled its first Aerostar off the assembly line and joined the other Big Three automakers in the burgeoning minivan market.
Chairman Donald Petersen said he was unconcerned that both Chrysler and General Motors beat Ford in putting their minivans on the road.
'The expected challenge is to prove once again Ford builds the best trucks in the world,' Petersen told reporters.
Petersen drove the first of Ford's minivans through a large red, white and blue banner that read 'Aerostar for America!' Seated next to the Ford chairman was Gov. John Ashcroft.
Ford officials said they expect to sell 50,000 Aerostars by year's end, noting its St. Louis Assembly Plant is capable of producing 200,000 of the vehicles each year.
The new minivans are aimed at the growing numbers of 'baby boomers' who now have their own families. They are designed to be as nimble as mid-size cars, but have as much seating space and cargo capacity as full-size station wagons. Base price for the Aerostar is $9,064. Ford claims the Aerostar has greater capacity to tow boats and trailers than its domestic rivals.
The suburban Hazelwood plant, which underwent a $300 million conversion in the last year, is the only Ford facility where the Aerostar is assembled. The plant, which employs 2,500 workers on two shifts, formerly was used to build full-size Fords and Mercurys.
Philip Novell, Ford sales manager, said dealer deliveries will begin this month. He said of the 40,000 Aerostar's ordered by dealers, 12,000 already have been sold.
Ford got out the Aerostar several months later than it had hoped, primarily due to delays in fine-tuning automated equipment in the Hazelwood plant.
