LOUISVILLE - President-elect Donald Trump took credit Thursday for convincing Ford Motor Company to keep a manufacturing plant in Louisville, Kentucky, from relocating to Mexico -- but the automaker says it never planned to relocate the entire plant.

Trump tweeted, "Just got a call from my friend Bill Ford, Chairman of Ford, who advised me that he will be keeping the Lincoln plant in Kentucky -- no Mexico. I worked hard with Bill Ford to keep the Lincoln plant in Kentucky. I owed it to the great State of Kentucky for their confidence in me!”

Just got a call from my friend Bill Ford, Chairman of Ford, who advised me that he will be keeping the Lincoln plant in Kentucky - no Mexico

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 18, 2016

Ford spokesperson Christin Baker told ABC News that the automaker had only planned to transfer production of the Lincoln MKC -- not the entire plant –– out-of-state. The Louisville Assembly plant also produces the Ford Escape.

"We had planned to move the MKC out of the Louisville Assembly Plant, per the contract we negotiated with the UAW in 2015," Baker said, adding that Cuautitlán, near Mexico City, "was likely the plant for MKC."

It was unclear when the decision to maintain production of the Lincoln MKC in Kentucky was made.

In addition to Baker's comments to ABC News, Ford released this statement following Trump's tweets:

“We continue to engage with President-elect Trump’s team –- and the new Congress –- as they shape the policy agenda for 2017. We have shared our commitment to continue investing in the U.S. and creating American jobs -– building on the $12 billion we have invested in our U.S. plants and the nearly 28,000 U.S. jobs Ford has created in the past five years. Ford continues to employ more American autoworkers and produce more American made vehicles than anyone.

Today, we confirmed with the President-elect that our small Lincoln utility vehicle made at the Louisville Assembly Plant will stay in Kentucky. We are encouraged that President-elect Trump and the new Congress will pursue policies that will improve U.S. competitiveness and make it possible to keep production of this vehicle here in the United States.

We will have more details to share on our future plans at the appropriate time."