Dacia designer to head up Ford E division

Yohann Ory is leaving Dacia – and Europe – for a new job with Ford in California. The designer, who most recently led the Dacia design centre in Bucharest, is now the design director for Ford Model E and will be based in Irvine. This division was created in March 2022 to focus exclusively on electric vehicle development, while Ford Blue will continue ICE activities.

After roughly two decades with the Renault Group – across Renault, Renault Sport, Renault LCVs, Alpine and Dacia – Ory sees the move as “an important step” in his career.

“What attracted me is the way Ford is embracing the changes ongoing in car industry in a very realistic and really ambitious way, while taking the real challenges with honesty and strength,” he told Car Design News. “Ford has recruited great talents with the best experience, and it shows how much the company has decided to move forward and face the competition. That very fresh mindset on one side, combined with the unique patrimony of Ford history made of icons and human adventures, makes for a very attractive journey to write with the team. I’m really excited about what Ford is preparing!”

As part of Ford’s company restructuring a couple of years ago, management shared plans to produce more than two million EVs annually by 2026 – about a third of the brand’s global volumes – and rising to half by 2030. Its current EVs include the F-150 Lightning and Mustang Mach-E, plus the new electric Explorer, E-Transit and E-Tourneo in Europe. The most recent generation of the Ford Mustang muscle car, shown in 2022, is also expected to be the last ICE-powered variant.

With ample investment behind the electric portfolio, Ory will have plenty more EVs to work on down the line, we’re sure. Although as our sister publication Automotive Manufacturing Solutions flagged at the end of last year, it is unclear whether those investments will materialise quite as promised.