operates several proving grounds worldwide, for development and validation testing of new vehicles.
North America
Arizona Proving Ground (APG) - Wittmann, Arizona
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The Arizona Proving Ground opened in 1985. The Proving Ground consists of 1,498 acres located less than one hour northwest of the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport at an elevation of 1,650 feet. The facility was originally a Volvo facility but was transitioned to the Ford branding in the summer of 2009 and renamed the Arizona Proving Ground. Volvo still is a large user of it. It features a 2-mile oval track with banked curves, a 2-mile completely straight road, a brake test area and some more tracks. The Arizona Proving Ground is operated year round. The climate is of a desert type with low annual rainfall and low relative humidity. Daytime temperatures are high throughout the summer months. The winters are mild. Nighttime temperatures frequently drop below freezing during the three coldest months, but the afternoons are usually sunny and warm. The summer heat is the most used time of the year, since worst case should be tested in order to cover many test cases. The facility is located on the outskirts of Phoenix.
The Ford Michigan Proving Ground of Romeo, Michigan sits on 3,880 acres, and contains a total of over of roads. These grounds hold events like the Society of Automotive EngineersFormula car competition. This involves teams from colleges and universitiesaround the world to compete in a competition involving both design and performance.
Major facilities: High speed track, durability/special surface roads, grades, EMC facility, road simulators, fire resistance facility, vehicle dynamics area
Purpose: Car and truck durability, performance testing
Dearborn Development Center (formerly Dearborn Proving Ground (DPG))
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The Dearborn Development Center was built on the site of Ford Airport in Dearborn, Michigan. The facility, formerly known as Dearborn Proving Ground, completed major reconstruction and renovations in 2006.
The facility is located at the nearby Thompson Airport in Thompson, Manitoba, Canada. The Extreme Cold Weather Test Facility offers vehicle testing in extremely cold weather conditions during the winter months from around November 1 to March 30.
Cuautitlan Proving Ground - Ford of Mexico - Cuautitlan, Mexico
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Stats : 245 acres, 5 miles of roads
Major facilities: High speed track, special surface/low speed track, straightaway, handling course, grades, corrosion/salt bath, twin rolls
Major testing: Performance, ride, and handling; corrosion testing; emissions certification
This facility is no longer leased by Ford. Ford sold the facility in 2002 to Harley Davidson. It has been taken over by Chrysler in early 2013 with Harley-Davidson leasing parts of the facility.
