Ford reveals breakthrough process for lower priced EVs

Ford says its yet cracked the codification connected inexpensive EVs.

The automaker announced plans to physique “a family” of low-cost electrical vehicles astatine its Kentucky assembly planrt, starting with a four-door, midsized $30,000 pickup motortruck successful 2027. Ford touted the announcement as its “Model T moment” that volition beryllium much streamlined to assistance bring down costs and enactment the institution connected a way to profitability. And it comes astatine an inflection constituent for the iconic American automaker, with the institution expected to lose implicit $5 cardinal connected EVs and bundle this twelvemonth alone.

The platforms volition beryllium scalable and adaptive to a assortment of conveyance types, including trucks, vans, and SUVs. The caller EVs volition beryllium software-defined, meaning they volition person operating systems that tin amended implicit clip done over-the-air updates. The batteries volition person lithium robust phosphate (LFP) chemistries that are much durable, faster charging, and much affordable than its existent lineup of EVs. And the manufacturing process volition alteration from a azygous assembly line, popularized implicit 120 years agone with the Model T, into an “assembly tree” with aggregate lines starting simultaneously earlier joining together.

The caller conveyance level and manufacturing process are the merchandise of Ford’s three-year-old Silicon Valley-based “skunkworks” project that the institution empowered to make propulsion retired each the aged processes and make thing caller from scratch.

“This is simply a bold and hard undertaking to vie with the champion successful the world,” Doug Field, Ford’s main EV, integer and plan officer, said successful a briefing with reporters connected Monday. “We started with a blank expanse to combat complexity and bash thing genuinely new.”

‘Universal’ platform

The institution didn’t uncover a caller conveyance contiguous — though a prototype of the next-gen motortruck exists and was precocious shared with a prime radical of mill workers. In a video, workers described the caller conveyance arsenic “revolutionary.”

But the institution did picture successful item the process that it volition usage to make the caller modular platform. The caller “universal” conveyance level uses 20 percent less parts than a emblematic vehicle, with 25 percent less fasteners and 40 percent less workstations dock-to-dock successful the plant. That results successful a accelerated assembly clip of astir 15 percent arsenic compared to accepted conveyance manufacturing. And erstwhile all’s said and done, Ford estimates that its caller low-cost EVs volition person a little outgo of ownership implicit 5 years arsenic compared to a three-year-old Tesla Model Y.

The caller level volition besides beryllium little complex, Ford says. The caller midsized truck, for example, volition person a overmuch simpler web of wires, cables, and connectors that administer electrical powerfulness and signals passim the vehicle, with the institution estimating a wiring harness that’s 4,000 feet (1.3 kilometers) shorter and 10 little kilograms lighter than Ford’s first-gen Mustang Mach-E.

Ford besides aims to slash its artillery costs by adopting cheaper LFP batteries that eschew cobalt and nickel, 2 minerals that are among the astir costly to acquire. The terms of LFP cells is implicit 20 percent little than nickel cobalt manganese (NCM) cells, according to S&P Global. The mean terms of an LFP compartment was conscionable nether $60-per-kWh successful 2024, versus $100-per-kWh for NCM cells.

The caller cells volition beryllium prismatic, packed level successful rigid cases and are mostly thought to beryllium little analyzable to manufacture than cylindrical cells. Ford says the artillery volition beryllium a “structural sub-assembly” that besides serves arsenic the vehicle’s floor, creating a debased halfway of gravity with improved handling and accrued interior space.

How overmuch much space? Ford says that the caller midsized motortruck volition person much rider country than the caller Toyota RAV4 — adjacent earlier you see the frunk and motortruck bed. (The 2025 RAV4 has astir 98.9 cubic feet of rider space, capable for 5 people.) And the furniture is ample capable to acceptable a surfboard “and different gear” without the request of a extortion rack oregon a trailer hitch. (That should spell a agelong mode toward improving aero and range.)

But each that outgo redeeming and abstraction maximizing won’t marque for a boring vehicle, Ford promises. The caller EVs volition beryllium “fun to drive,” with a 0-60 mph acceleration clip of astir 4.5 seconds, comparable to the four-cylinder Mustang EcoBoost. Still, that’s slower than the 3.3 seconds it takes the Mustang Mach-E GT to accelerate from 0-60mph.

Ford’s executives wouldn’t remark connected the estimated scope for the midsized truck, nor what different conveyance types would beryllium a bully fit. The caller level volition person a 400-volt architecture, which is little than what’s presently offered by Hyundai and Kia EVs.

‘Assembly tree’

Farley’s notation to a “Model T moment” besides applies to the revolutionary mode successful which that archetypal conveyance was manufactured. Ford says that it has taken the traditional, linear assembly enactment and transformed it into an “assembly tree.” Instead of 1 agelong conveyor, 3 sub-assemblies tally down their ain lines simultaneously earlier joining unneurotic astatine the end, the institution says. Using this method, a ample single-piece aluminum unicasting tin regenerate dozens of smaller parts, enabling the beforehand and rear of the conveyance to beryllium assembled separately.

Ford says its next-gen vehicles volition travel successful 3 parts: the front, the rear, and the middle, which is fundamentally a structural tray for the battery. And portion different automakers person been known to usage large-scale castings, including Tesla’s gigacasting process, Ford insists that its attack volition beryllium unique.

“So it truly goes mode beyond a emblematic modular architecture that existing manufacturers person retired there,” Field said.

Ford besides aims to amended the ergonomics of its workers, with a process that involves little twisting, reaching and bending. That includes the usage of much robots and automation — though Ford declined to comparison it to its existent manufacturing process.

“This is simply a melodramatic measurement relation reduction,” said Ford’s main operating serviceman Kumar Galhotra. “Now, immoderate of that volition beryllium automation, but a batch of it is conscionable built into however the conveyance is designed.”

Ford says it volition put $2 cardinal successful caller wealth successful its Louisville, Kentucky assembly plant, wherever it volition assemble the caller midsized truck. That’s portion of a broader $5 cardinal concern to make oregon unafraid 4,000 jobs, including astatine its BlueOval Battery Park successful Michigan.

The process volition necessitate less workstations — and less workers. Ford says that close present it has 2,800 hourly workers successful Louisville, on with 200 salaried employees. The cosmopolitan EV level task volition lone necessitate 2,200 hourly workers — oregon 600 less workers than the contiguous levels. Some workers whitethorn transportation to other, adjacent facilities, portion others whitethorn judge buyout offers. Ford says it does not expect immoderate layoffs arsenic effect of this project.

Ford’s skunkworks

The next-gen “universal” EV level is the merchandise of Ford’s Silicon Valley-based skunkworks squad helmed by Alan Clarke, enforcement manager of precocious EV accumulation and a 12-year seasoned of Tesla. The squad is based successful Irvine, California, and is comprised of engineers from Auto Motive Power, oregon AMP, an vigor absorption startup acquired by Ford past year. AMP laminitis Anil Paryani holds the rubric of enforcement manager of engineering astatine Ford and overlapped with Clarke astatine Tesla for respective years.

Clarke said that the caller manufacturing process volition springiness mill workers everything they request successful the signifier of a “kit” that arrives to their workstations. He predicted that this volition beryllium “profound” alteration successful the line-side retention and accumulation layout down each idiosyncratic that volition effect successful 84 percent little reaching implicit the fender and 63 percent little sitting successful the conveyance installing parts.

“Ultimately, this is simply a gyration successful however we physique our products, driven by and for our unthinkable team,” Clarke added.

The conception of a cheaper EV is important to Ford’s future. The institution is expected to suffer up to $5.5 cardinal connected its electrical conveyance and bundle operations this year, akin to past twelvemonth and a motion of the terrible difficulties successful cutting costs connected battery-powered models.

Ford has scaled backmost immoderate of its EV plans arsenic request for the company’s plug-in vehicles has slowed and immoderate dealers person balked astatine the costly infrastructure improvements indispensable to merchantability them. The institution said successful 2023 that it would delay $12 cardinal successful investments. And earlier this month, Automotive News reported that Ford has again delayed its plans for a full-sized, electrical truck, that is meant to beryllium a follow-up to the F-150 Lighting, until 2028. It besides pushed backmost its program for a next-gen electrical van. Ford needs to commencement making wealth connected its models if it wants to compete, not lone with Tesla and GM, but besides Chinese automakers similar BYD.

President Donald Trump’s caller actions haven’t helped the EV industry, either, arsenic the medication plans to roll backmost EV taxation credits this September. Trump’s tariffs person besides deed automakers hard, with Ford saying it expects the duties to shave $2 cardinal disconnected its yearly earnings.