Ford commits to new cars for Australia August 13, 2013 - 3:21PM Ford says its committed to Australia after a multi-million dollar launch of its new line of cars. The company, which recently announced it will close its Australian factories in 2016, revealed its new line up at an extravagant presentation on Tuesday at Sydney's Fox Studios. Ford Australia and New Zealand CEO Bob Graziano said the launch was to demonstrate the company's commitment to the two countries. "What we've tried to do is demonstrate the commitment and the level of investment that we've made in Australia over the last six years," Mr Graziano said. Ford's decision to end its Australian manufacturing operations will mean the closure of two plants in Victoria and the loss of 1200 jobs. But Mr Graziano said that about 1100 Ford engineers will continue to work in Australia in its product development centres in 2016 and beyond. The company's big bosses including Ford's global president Alan Mulally made a surprise appearance at the launch to talk about the company's future. During the presentation, which reportedly cost $4 million, Ford bosses hinted at soon-to-be launched Ford Mustang but remained vague in the details. The company will also launch a number of new SUVs, which it says is the top growth market in Australia. It will also accelerate its new vehicle launches and refresh its entire vehicle line-up in Australia, offering 11 models by 2017.