Ford tries zagging in the EV arms race
By Editor - Tue May 23, 1:05 pm
Ford CEO Jim Farley called it a “personal bullet train.” Doug Field, the automaker’s chief advanced product development and technology officer, described it as “groundbreaking.” Ford’s next-generation full-sized SUV EV might turn out to be both — if the automaker’s claimed advances in physics and energy loss translate into the real world. Ford’s next-generation EV platform, which will be the basis of the T3 electric truck and three-row SUV that are going into production in 2025, signals a new strategy for the automaker. As some of its competitors try to cram even bigger batteries in trucks and SUVs, Ford is hyper focused on finding ways to reduce the pack size while still maintaining performance and range. Companies have long turned to aerodynamics and other efficiency tricks to boost fuel economy, and now range, in EVs. But another trend is afoot in the U.S. market: automakers trying to meet consumer demand for trucks and SUVs while shifting to EVs are turning to bigger batteries. “There’s a bit of an arms race in the industry to shove bigger and bigger batteries into large EVs to try and make them like ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles,” Field said Monday during the company’s Capital Markets Day
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