Ford CEO Fields fires back at Trump: Zero jobs to be lost to Mexico

Ford CEO Mark Fields appeared on CNN on Thursday afternoon to set the record straight in the automaker's ongoing feud with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump over the automaker's decision to move the production of small cars to Mexico.

Fields said "zero" jobs will be lost in the U.S. and said "it is really unfortunate when politics get in the way of the facts."

Fields' decision to appear on CNN came after Trump appeared earlier today on Fox News and said, if elected, he will impose a 35% tax on automotive imports from Mexico.

Trump also criticized Ford on Wednesday after Fields told Wall Street investors that the automaker would move all small car production to Mexico over the next two to three years. Ford's decision to shift small car production to Mexico comes as sales of cars have declined as SUVs and crossovers have grown in popularity.

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Automakers have historically struggled to make a profit off small cars produced in the U.S., in part because labor costs are higher than in Mexico.

"They think they're going to get away with this and they fire all their employees in the United States and ... move to Mexico," said Trump. "When that car comes back across the border into our country that now comes in free, we're gonna charge them a 35% tax. And you know what's gonna happen, they're never going to leave."

Fields told CNN that Trump's claim about job losses was false.

The spat between Trump and Ford dates to June 2015 when Ford first announced that it would stop producing the Ford Focus and Ford C-Max at its Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne in 2018 so it could move those vehicles to a lower-cost country.

Today, Fields reiterated the automaker's commitment to the UAW to keep that plant running.

"We will be replacing those products with two very exciting new products so not one job will be lost," Fields said.

However, Fields stopped short of saying what those vehicles will be. The Free Press and other media outlets have previously reported that Ford plans to bring the Ranger, a midsize pickup it builds in other parts of the world, to the U.S. and might bring back the Bronco SUV nameplate.

Ford declined again to comment on those reports on Thursday.

Ford also has previously declined to confirm that the Focus compact car and Ford C-Max hybrid and plug-in cars are the nameplates it will make in Mexico.

"What we have announced is that we will be moving our Focus out of Michigan so we can compete more financially in that particular segment," Fields said on CNN.

For many in the automotive industry, the entire episode is old news that keeps getting reported. Ford confirmed in April its plan to invest $1.6 billion to build a new plant in Mexico and create 2,800 jobs. Ford said at the time that the new plant is for small car production but refused to confirm that the Focus and C-Max would would be the vehicles made there.

Each announcement has generated a fresh round of back-and-forth between Ford and Trump.

On Thursday, Fields also emphasized that Ford made a commitment last fall to invest $9 billion in U.S. plants and create or retain more than 8,500 jobs as part of a new four-year contract with the UAW.

How Ford will spend $9B on plants, secure 8,500 jobs

"When it comes to Ford, our commitment to creating and investing in jobs in the U.S. has never been bigger," Fields said. "We will continue to do that no matter who is in the White House."

Contact Brent Snavely: 313-222-6512 or bsnavely@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrentSnavely.