Ford Midsize EV Truck News: Ford Skunkworks (EVDC) - first ever behind the scenes tour; sneak peek at EV pickup [WARNING: NO POLITICS]

[Glen Baker LLC]

Ford updates video

Sponsored

 

[dusty1787]

Chinese manufacturers don't have to deal with unions... or labor laws.

I've reached the point in my life where I'm willing to pay a little more for an American-made product.

Id also chime in with safety standards. I dont believe their vehicle safety standards (like 5 star crash ratings) mean anything over there(or emission standards). so they can be built to a lower safety standard. Also why you dont tend to see them in countries that have safety requirements. (I could be wrong, and they could be building them safer lately, but that would be news to me since I last looked into china based car standards a couple years ago)

 

[Cherokee]

That is what it is called. Lockheed Martin coined the term for their advanced development. Basically, it's a division of R&D where no idea is stupid until it is proven it doesn't work. I'm glad Ford has one. Rather than languishing on old ideas, have a place where you can safely throw everything at the wall.

I was well aware of the term and its military history, I found it amusing that they could not come up with something more original.

 

[Cherokee]

So at the end of this year they will start building it. Yet ZERO pictures of it seems strange.

My guess Range 200 on paper. ad 10K get 300 long range version.

XL interior. Or upgrade 10K for nice interior and tech.

Just like the Mav, the first ones out the gate will be cheaper but that wont last.

If Its worth making it will have to be nicely equipped. $40,000 low end spec and $50,000 for a Lariat. The XLT will be about $45,000.

Roger that on the various range versions.

 

[Msjulie]

If the product quality was improved it would certainly be useable by us - we don't drive our Maverick 100s of miles a day.

It has been on a couple road trips but by far the exception. It has had more recalls then road trips by more than an order of magnitude; we still like it for what it is but Ford really needs to up their quality game AND their software.

Bringing the truck in for a software update (some of the recalls) is annoying and backward in today's tech age and every time we've had to do it, the process has been long (no waiting for the truck really feasible, it takes hours) and they somehow manage to undo all the customized settings we had.

One would hope this newer less expensive EV would actually focus on some of those key points; plenty of folks could make good use such a truck. With gas prices even more insane these days, even our ~40mpg hybrid gives us pain at the pump.

 

[OneAlienBoi]

So it gives me maverick meets mustang vibes. Like a muscle truck almost. You see how the front end looks pretty traditional and truck like, but is shorter and angles down near the leading edge.

It's hard to see because the f-150 that's covered is blocking the view of the 30k truck, but zooming in on it, this is my analysis using crude lines.

 

[Mavster Mechanic]

For the vast majority of Americans a small truck that gets a theoretical maximum range of 300 miles (real world would probably be closer to 250 max, or even less in cold weather, etc) is not practical as anything other than a second around town ride. And for those of us who live in what would be considered rural or more rural settings it might not even be suitable in those areas. Sorry but a true hybrid or plugin hybrid are still the way to go for many of us, which is why the Mav hybrid has been so successful for Ford. It is a good price point if they can hold to that $30K figure, but that is a big if.

So your home does not have an electrical grid, eh?

You are 1% of 1%. And your POV carries that much weight I'm afraid.

 

[OneAlienBoi]

For the vast majority of Americans a small truck that gets a theoretical maximum range of 300 miles (real world would probably be closer to 250 max, or even less in cold weather, etc) is not practical as anything other than a second around town ride. And for those of us who live in what would be considered rural or more rural settings it might not even be suitable in those areas. Sorry but a true hybrid or plugin hybrid are still the way to go for many of us, which is why the Mav hybrid has been so successful for Ford. It is a good price point if they can hold to that $30K figure, but that is a big if.

I strongly disagree. Most of my drives are less than 5 miles. As more and more people live in the suburbs and urban environments, you're gonna see more and more drivers who aren't driving super long distances.

Furthermore, a range of 300 or so miles is pretty comparable to a lot of gas vehicles. My explorer goes about 350. Most gas vehicles I've driven had a range of 250-400 miles, my maverick is an outlier. So the range really isn't an issue. Factor in a smoother, more premium feeling driving experience, much lower costs of ownership and better long term reliability, keep in mind Fords current hybrids and EVs are often super reliable, and the LFP batteries these affordable Ford EVs are about twice as long lasting as current Ford hybrid and EV battery tech.

So more reliable, smoother, refined, faster, advanced, and spacious. There are a lot of advantages to EVs for a huge segment of the population. Not everyone needs a 1,000 mile range.

Hell, I'd argue so much of our affordability crisis as a nation has to do with overbuying. Most people would be fine with a range of a few hundred miles, but convince themselves they need to be able to drive for 7 hours without recharging. Just like most people only need a maverick sized truck, but all these people buy these massive luxury trucks for their egos, and yet we can't figure out why cars are getting so expensive.

It's because everyone is always asking for more, even when they don't need or use it.

 

[OneAlienBoi]

So at the end of this year they will start building it. Yet ZERO pictures of it seems strange.

My guess Range 200 on paper. ad 10K get 300 long range version.

XL interior. Or upgrade 10K for nice interior and tech.

So it'll have more than 200 miles of range, and the interior won't be basic. It won't be on the level of a 80 grand Cadillac, but the team wanted to create affordable vehicles that didn't that the Slate approach of needing to be shitty to be affordable. Apparently it's gonna have one of the most advanced interiors despite being one of Ford's cheapest vehicles.

Regarding trim level, engineers told journalists they might consider doing one trim level where all the vehicles were fully stacked. I looked that up, it means fully loaded. So building one trim of truck which saves a huge amount of money, but also making it a nice trim level so customers are happy.

IDK if that ends up being accurate, but it makes a lot of sense consider the goals of the project, and the unique assembly tree process that will be a lot easier to join those three sections into one vehicle at the end of the assembly process if they're all the same trim level.

We're also gonna get a lot of custom accessories apparently. So this truck is gonna be like the Slate truck, but actually good essentially. Like it's gonna be low cost, and be easy to mod, but have a nice interior, a much better range than the slate, and be much faster.

 

[Blue_Max]

So it gives me maverick meets mustang vibes. Like a muscle truck almost. You see how the front end looks pretty traditional and truck like, but is shorter and angles down near the leading edge.

It's hard to see because the f-150 that's covered is blocking the view of the 30k truck, but zooming in on it, this is my analysis using crude lines.

I have no idea what this is trying to show me.

 

[Chops]

So it'll have more than 200 miles of range, and the interior won't be basic. It won't be on the level of a 80 grand Cadillac, but the team wanted to create affordable vehicles that didn't that the Slate approach of needing to be shitty to be affordable. Apparently it's gonna have one of the most advanced interiors despite being one of Ford's cheapest vehicles.

Regarding trim level, engineers told journalists they might consider doing one trim level where all the vehicles were fully stacked. I looked that up, it means fully loaded. So building one trim of truck which saves a huge amount of money, but also making it a nice trim level so customers are happy.

IDK if that ends up being accurate, but it makes a lot of sense consider the goals of the project, and the unique assembly tree process that will be a lot easier to join those three sections into one vehicle at the end of the assembly process if they're all the same trim level.

We're also gonna get a lot of custom accessories apparently. So this truck is gonna be like the Slate truck, but actually good essentially. Like it's gonna be low cost, and be easy to mod, but have a nice interior, a much better range than the slate, and be much faster.

I drive less than 200 miles per month. I spend more time tinkering with my Maverick than driving it. I really like my ICE Lobo - but this “Maverick” EV will be interesting

 

[OleFordGuy]

Hum, looks like a skunk, smells like a skunk, they can keep their skunk 🦨
On a serious note I hope it will fulfill the needs of many and is a success for ford, their financial losses are horrendous. But I have no need or desire for whatever it ends up being like.

 

[TheSEARCH]

MOST of the time I don't drive over a 200 mile round trip . BUT what do I do when I need too. Saying rent is not doable as I need a vehicle with specialized roof rack. Drive to FL from NY no thanks. Then cost goes way up too. Changing WHERE you drive to find chargers no thanks. Then they are broken often or if they do work at a much slower charge rate. .

I will argue on lower cost of ownership with an EV. NOT when you ad it ALL up. The other fantasies like power your home, lol . NOPE unless you have one of those two way chargers over $9k.

If you NEVER travel much go for it. Some it works great for. I still say the majority it does NOT. Still doubting the trucks cost. The lightning failed. Will see if this one does too.

 

[Dale F]

Will the truck go into Battery Saver Mode, like mine, if the temperature gets below 50 degrees?

 

[Blue_Max]

Will the truck go into Battery Saver Mode, like mine, if the temperature gets below 50 degrees?

Ford hasn't released any specs at all yet, so I am confident in saying that yes, it absolutely will do that. It will also lock itself when you exit the vehicle. That's what's known in the industry as a "surprise and delight" feature.

Sponsored