Ford $F ( ▲ 0.99% ) unveiled its new electric vehicle plans today—likening it to a Ford “Model T moment,” which revolutionized the vehicle manufacturing process.
The details: Ford’s plan—arguably one of the company’s boldest moves in decades—is centered on a $5 billion investment into a Universal EV Platform for a new generation of affordable EVs, flexible enough to underpin trucks, cars, and other vehicles.
The first EV launched on the platform will be a midsize four-door electric pickup for the U.S. and export markets—with a starting price of about $30,000 in the U.S. and a scheduled launch date of 2027.
Ford’s all-electric pickup will be built at the automaker’s Louisville Assembly Plant—with the lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries for the truck to be built at the BlueOval Battery Park in Michigan.
Details about the all-electric pickup are fairly limited at this point aside from Ford noting that it has more core passenger space than the latest Toyota RAV4, with a frunk and a bed and a targeted 0-60 time as fast as a Mustang EcoBoost, which is estimated at 4.9 seconds with the performance package.
Why it matters: Affordability remains a significant obstacle for many car buyers considering an electric vehicle, a concern that has been exacerbated by the elimination of the $7,500 federal EV tax credit, which takes effect on September 30.
Digging deeper: The crux of Ford’s new Universal EV Platform strategy lies in the production measures that will be taken to reduce the overall manufacturing cost of the vehicles that will ride on the new platform.
The platform reduces parts by 20% versus a typical vehicle, with 25% fewer fasteners, 40% fewer workstations dock-to-dock in the plant, and 15% faster assembly time.
Lithium iron phosphate (LFP) prismatic batteries also enable space and weight savings, while delivering cost reduction and durability for customers.
What they’re saying: “We took a radical approach to a very hard challenge: Create affordable vehicles that delight customers in every way that matters – design, innovation, flexibility, space, driving pleasure, and cost of ownership – and do it with American workers,” said Jim Farley, President and CEO of Ford.
Between the lines: Ford is touting its new EV strategy as a $5 billion bet on America, where “innovation meets efficiency”—a bet also aimed at better positioning the automaker against competitors pushing to widen their global footprint in the EV sector and overtake Tesla.
GM recently announced a partnership with Hyundai to build an all-electric van for the North American market, as part of a new five-vehicle development collaboration—with indications that the two automakers could expand their plans.
Chinese automakers continue to grow their market share with low-cost, high-tech electric vehicles—with the country’s vehicle shipments soaring for the sixth straight month, due in part to its EV exports.
Bottom line: Ford is making a high-stakes $5 billion bet on a cost-slashing Universal EV Platform to unlock mass-market affordability, starting with a $30K electric pickup in 2027. However, the payoff hinges on executing new manufacturing efficiencies, overcoming the loss of the federal EV tax credit, and scaling fast enough to capture price-sensitive buyers before rivals do.
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