Ford still has high ambitions for its electric vehicle projects despite slashing battery production amid slowing EV sales last year. Ford’s Tesla-envying CEO Jim Farley stated during an earnings call yesterday that a new low-cost EV platform was in the works, aiming to compete directly with the Elon Musk-led automaker in terms of sticker price. Farley also added that Ford’s next-generation EVs “will be profitable in the first 12 months of their launch.”
While I appreciate the optimism, it’s difficult to see how Ford could possibly generate a profit with a new affordable EV platform. None of Ford’s current electric vehicles have been profitable despite being the most expensive models they sell, according to Motor1.com. To generate the sales volume necessary to be profitable within a year, Ford’s prospective Model 3 killers would have to be generation-defining vehicles, akin to the Model T.
Farley outlined how Ford expects to meet these wild goals during the earnings call:
“We developed a super-talented skunkworks team to create a low-cost EV platform. It was a small group, small team, some of the best EV engineers in the world, and it was separate from the Ford mothership.”
“They’ve developed a flexible platform that will not only deploy to several types of vehicles but will be a large installed base for software and services that we’re now seeing at Pro.”
It isn’t clear what the kind of vehicle will be first second-generation Ford EV, but Farley highlighted the market growth for two-row crossovers. The venerable automaker has a lot of ground to cover to meet its lofty expectations after 400 dealers abandoned its EV program last year. A cheap electric Ford crossover could be transformative, but the Blue Oval needs to deliver the promised model to showrooms first. Unlike Elon, Farley has a long career in building cars already. That’s not to mention Ford’s shareholders and a board, which he will have to answer to if the gambit falls flat on its face.