The secret of Ford Saarlouis – on the way to becoming the home of the car

In its Easter issue of 1965, the Saarbrücker Zeitung reported for the first time on the possible establishment of a Ford works in the vicinity of Saarlouis / Dillingen.

However, the affair seems to have been in the offing before that. On 17 March 1965, federal chancellor Ludwig Erhard suggested to the Saarland government that they should make contact with Ford. Erhard knew about Ford's plans to build another new works in Europe. As early as 19 March 1965 the Saarland government sat down together with Ford's director general Robert Layton. At that time, it may be assumed, it was certain that Ford would set up a works in Saarlouis. On 17 April the Saarbrücker Zeitung carried the headline 'Ford on the Saar?' After Opel's failure to settle at the beginning of the 1960s the Saarland government had made an agreement with the SZ to maintain silence on the matter.

Finally, on 22 June, at an election rally in Saarlouis – five days before the federal state elections – Erhard announced Ford's decision in favour of Saarland. Saarlouis and its workforce became model pupils in the Ford group. The Saarländer kept the faith with Ford, and the latter's market share here has remained above average to this very day.

On 22 June 2022, however, Ford announced that the end had come once and for all. In Europe and in Germany, Ford's popularity had dropped drastically, whilst the South Koreans were becoming more and more successful in selling their vehicles.