AutoAlliance International (AAI) is a joint venture

Joint venture

A joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to develop, for a finite time, a new entity and new assets by contributing equity. They exercise control over the enterprise and consequently share revenues, expenses and assets...

 automobile assembly firm co-owned by Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...

 and Mazda Motor Corporation

Mazda

is a Japanese automotive manufacturer based in Fuchū, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan.In 2007, Mazda produced almost 1.3 million vehicles for global sales...

. The main AAI plant is located at 1 International Drive in Flat Rock, Michigan

Flat Rock, Michigan

- Racial makeup :As of the census of 2000, there were 8,488 people, 3,181 households, and 2,306 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,266.9 per square mile . There were 3,291 housing units at an average density of 491.2 per square mile...

. Its approximately 2700000 square feet (250,838.2 m²) and currently employs over 1,700 workers.

The factory was opened by Ford Motor Company in 1972 as Michigan Casting Center (MCC), at the time one of the most technologically advanced casting facilities in the world. Despite the sizable capital investment, frequent labor relations problems and declining demand for the V8 engine blocks produced there led to the facility's closure in 1981, after less than a decade of operation.

Mazda Motor Corporation

Mazda

is a Japanese automotive manufacturer based in Fuchū, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan.In 2007, Mazda produced almost 1.3 million vehicles for global sales...

 bought the closed plant in 1987, converted it to automobile assembly, and reopened it as Mazda Motor Manufacturing USA for production of the restyled Mazda 626 midsize sedan and Mazda MX-6 and Ford Probe coupes.

Ford repurchased a 50% share in the plant on April 15, 1992, and it officially became a joint-venture and was renamed AutoAlliance International on July 1, 1992 as Ford took over operational management. The plant began production of all models of the Mazda 626

Mazda 626

The Mazda 626 is an automobile that was produced by Mazda for the export market. It was based on the Japan-market Mazda Capella. The 626 replaced the 616/618 and RX-2 in 1979 and was sold through 2002, when the new Mazda6 took over as Mazda's large family car...

 sold in America starting in 1993. The Ford Contour

Ford Contour

The Ford Contour, and its rebadged variant, the Mercury Mystique, were compact 4-door sedans marketed from model years 1995-2000 by Ford Motor Company in North America...

-derived Mercury Cougar

Mercury Cougar

The Mercury Cougar is an automobile which was sold under the Mercury brand of the Ford Motor Company's Lincoln-Mercury Division from 1967 to 2002. The name was first used in 1967 and was carried by a diverse series of cars over the next three decades. As is common with Mercury vehicles, the Cougar...

 was produced at the plant from 1999 to 2002. Production of North American Mazda 6 models began in the 2002 model year, along with the current version of the Ford Mustang

Ford Mustang

The Ford Mustang is an automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company. It was initially based on the second generation North American Ford Falcon, a compact car. Introduced early on April 17, 1964, as a "1964½" model, the 1965 Mustang was the automaker's most successful launch since the Model A...

 in 2005.

The factory is unionized

Trade union

A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...

 with the United Auto Workers

United Auto Workers

The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, better known as the United Auto Workers , is a labor union which represents workers in the United States and Puerto Rico, and formerly in Canada. Founded as part of the Congress of Industrial...

.

Products

• 1988–1997 Mazda MX-6
  Mazda MX-6
  The first generation MX-6 appeared in 1988 and lasted until 1992 in the United States. In some markets the model years were from 1987 to 1991. It was based on a series of futuristic sports compact concept cars of the early 1980s...
  
  
• 1989–1997 Ford Probe
  Ford Probe
  The Ford Probe was a coupé based on the Mazda GD platform, and powered by a 2.2 L SOHC 4 cylinder Mazda F2 engine.The first generation Probe appeared in 1988 and lasted until 1992 in the United States. In some markets the model years were from 1987 to 1991...
  
  
• 1990–2002 Mazda 626
  Mazda 626
  The Mazda 626 is an automobile that was produced by Mazda for the export market. It was based on the Japan-market Mazda Capella. The 626 replaced the 616/618 and RX-2 in 1979 and was sold through 2002, when the new Mazda6 took over as Mazda's large family car...
  
  
• 1999–2002 Mercury Cougar
  Mercury Cougar
  The Mercury Cougar is an automobile which was sold under the Mercury brand of the Ford Motor Company's Lincoln-Mercury Division from 1967 to 2002. The name was first used in 1967 and was carried by a diverse series of cars over the next three decades. As is common with Mercury vehicles, the Cougar...
  
  
• 2003–present Mazda 6
• 2005–present Ford Mustang
  Ford Mustang
  The Ford Mustang is an automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company. It was initially based on the second generation North American Ford Falcon, a compact car. Introduced early on April 17, 1964, as a "1964½" model, the 1965 Mustang was the automaker's most successful launch since the Model A...