Ford's EV Plans - Very Positive News [ADMIN WARNING: NO POLITICS]

[celestial_knight]

Yes, if you listen to recent podcasts with Ford CEO Jim Farley as a guest, they're quite good. He has resolve to keep Ford a global company, and not cede the market to the Chinese

Hence the infatuation with these fancy tech forward experiences, and fully redesigning the platform for their EVs from the ground up. Ford will not be confined to the Americas if he can help it

As to whether they will accomplish it, time will tell

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[celestial_knight]

Besides, you only need a >30 kwH battery once or twice a years for long road trips so why do you need a 91 kwH battery. Just start using the ICE inside the Mach E GT EREV.

Totally disagree. I'm sitting here looking out the window at snow and cold temperatures in Northern Wisconsin. Frequent weekly/daily commutes of 55 to 70 mile trips in cold winter weather isn't going to be fun with a 30kWh battery pack. Can average 2.0 miles/kWh in this weather.

I am also in the north, except not as extreme. Current gen batteries are very vulnerable to the cold; in fact so much so for any temperature variance that a good rule of thumb is that if you're uncomfortable, the battery is uncomfortable, and therefore in trouble

An ICE engine or a gas generator can far more easily heat up the battery and maintain a good operating temperature

This is not just about efficiency but battery lifespan. Cold batteries, just as hot batteries, destroy themselves (and remember what is cold and what is hot to them are not even as extreme as what we can handle)

Tesla does have somewhat fancier batteries and some iterations of larger batteries may ameliorate this somewhat. This is why preconditioning came into existence

However, fundamental changes in battery platform may be needed, and hopefully are coming - solid state, and sodium ion

 

[Snakebitten]

Yet the hybrid F150 had a 15% growth in sales to nearly 85,000 units for MY 2025 while lightning sales dropped 18.5% to just 27,000 units. So, it appears that Ford's F150 customers, some of the most loyal in the market, have accepted the concept of a hybrid architecture for their next pickup truck over a straight BEV version of the F150. The market for the F150 is already shifting to what you think you need to see before you will believe a EREV F150 will be Ford's future.

A series hybrid architecture is one step better in the hybrid solution as it simplifies the mechanical design by separating the ICE from the mechanical drivetrain system. Advance the state of the art and we'll get more efficient ICE power units tied to more efficient and lighter weight generator units at a lower price. Considering the hybrid F150 already has a good sales track record there is no reason not to expect an even better hybrid solution will not meet market acceptability.

The BIGGEST reason I chose the F150 Powerboost (Hybrid) over the Lightning is for the towing range hit. In every other aspect, the Lightning meets and/or beats the Powerboost.

That's not a shortcoming of Ford's engineering, of course. It's simply the one use case that currently a BEV doesn't tackle.

An EREV Lightning would address that for me. And it would also replace my Mach-E, as long as it has an EV range of ~60 miles or so. I would absolutely pay the $ for the "Limited" trim too, since I imagine it would be a co$t savings over my KingRanch Powerboost and Mach-E GTPE?

Still, I think, hope, and believe Ford will have both options for the consumer. EV truck and EREV truck.

 

[jav_eee]

But no frunk. Many like the frunk. Like me.

many of us have survived decades without a frunk.

 

[dan_meh]

Maybe they can do it, maybe they can't. I hope they do. But at this point, I wouldn't bet the farm ...

Ford has bet a couple of farms on the UEV platform. And it should inspire confidence.

You’re absolutely correct: they have yet to deliver, so we’re all just speculating with opinions and guesses. Ford has put real dollar bucks on the line in its speculation and they have been as open as they can be.

Can Ford copy BYD’s homework like BYD copied Tesla’s? I think so.

 

[Rustic Roads]

The Mach-E 1400 was a one-off design exercise like the SuperVan, the F150 Lightning Pike's Peak race truck, and the E-NASCAR show car. They're attention-getters funded by Marketing and Engineering budgets. They were *never* intended to be for sale to the public or even to racers like the Mustang GTD is.

My point (obviously poorly stated) was that Ford knows how to make a more capable version of the Mach-E with high-performance bits, but what works as a one-off track monster doesn't work when people actually need to afford it. The GTD is the closest I think Ford has ever come (in recent history) to selling a track-ready vehicle to the public, but that's going for a price that is not intended for volume sales.

Ford could make a vehicle that would meet the wishes that some express, but I'm very sure that they're run the numbers, and the variants they're offering now are the ones they feel can make the most money for the company. Lots of people wish for things when they don't have to put money down, but then are absent when automakers actually produce something that approaches what they said they wanted.

 

[Kamuelaflyer]

No offense intended… I know some people really like the frunk. I mean, I like having the frunk, too, and use it occasionally. But I could also easily do without it (and very well may if my next car is a Cadillac Lyriq V) in exchange for other upgrades. One such upgrade for a lot of people would significantly expanded range and no more required DCFC.

So the “no frunk” complaint reads tantamount to someone complaining about eliminating some cup holders. I think what most of the frunk enthusiasts are really saying is they like having a big empty space under their hood. As in, no engine.

No, it’s not the same. Frunk storage on the mme and similar cars is literally the only out of sight storage location available. Using a false equivalence fallacy with loss of a cup holder is at best disingenuous. Some people use their frunk routinely. No frunk? No sale for me.

 

[Snakebitten]

I'm an RV full timer for just short of a decade. The Mach-E frunk is perfect for carrying a 30lb propane tank to get filled. It's like it was made for it!

Saves me from firing up the RV towing rig just to cart 1 tank. I could live without the Frunk, but it would be missed.

It's also my grocery getter

 

[phil]

many of us have survived decades without a frunk.

if you can even call that living ...

 

[ericNdfw]

Notice I did not say I have a GT now either.

 

[SonicBlue]

No, it’s not the same. Frunk storage on the mme and similar cars is literally the only out of sight storage location available. Using a false equivalence fallacy with loss of a cup holder is at best disingenuous. Some people use their frunk routinely. No frunk? No sale for me.

I mean, how did you live for all these years without a frunk before you got the Mach E?

 

[Kamuelaflyer]

I mean, how did you live for all these years without a frunk before you got the Mach E?

By using cars with real trunks.

 

[Jimrpa]

I don’t WANT a “truck”. I want an EV that is fun to drive (3.5s or less 0-60 for the “wow!” factor off the line), comfortable (including features like BlueCruise hands free, ventilated seats, dimming interior and exterior mirrors, etc, as table stakes). Oh, and a frunk. A frunk is a “must have”.

 

[Billyk24]

I am also in the north, except not as extreme. Current gen batteries are very vulnerable to the cold; in fact so much so for any temperature variance that a good rule of thumb is that if you're uncomfortable, the battery is uncomfortable, and therefore in trouble

An ICE engine or a gas generator can far more easily heat up the battery and maintain a good operating temperature

This is not just about efficiency but battery lifespan. Cold batteries, just as hot batteries, destroy themselves (and remember what is cold and what is hot to them are not even as extreme as what we can handle)

Tesla does have somewhat fancier batteries and some iterations of larger batteries may ameliorate this somewhat. This is why preconditioning came into existence

However, fundamental changes in battery platform may be needed, and hopefully are coming - solid state, and sodium ion

The "cost" of having a dual propulsive platform--ICE plus 30+kWh battery pack isn't going to do any favors "cost wise". Not an engineer or auto mechanic but wondering how to fit everyting into a compact crossover sized package. F150 size "should" be possible but....

 

[Snakebitten]

Ranger size. So bigger than Maverick, smaller than F150

BYD EREV

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