Ford Chief Executive Jim Farley officially confirmed during the Earnings Call on Tuesday that the American legacy automaker created a “skunkworks team” two years ago, The Street reports. Since then, the team has worked to develop innovative models that would aid the brand’s expansion in the electric vehicle market.
The team primarily aims to develop and launch a new “low-cost” electric vehicle platform that will underpin a third-gen EV to accelerate Ford’s electrification efforts.
Background
Ford’s “secret” strategy was apparently outlined in its Ford+ plan announced in 2021. As part of that plan, the American automaker will not exit gas-powered vehicle production/sale through the new Ford Blue unit to generate profit to support its electric vehicle unit Model e’s operation.
“We made a bet in silence two years ago. It was a small group, a small team — some of the best EV engineers in the world — and it was separate from the Ford mothership.
It was a startup and they’ve developed a flexible platform that will not only deploy to several types of vehicles, there will be a large install base for software and services.”
Ford Chief Executive Jim Farley said during the earnings call
The move is part of Ford’s efforts to compete with cheap China-made EVs and an upcoming affordable Tesla car.
The skunkworks team
Ford CEO Farley noted that the “secret team” focuses on smaller, “low-cost” electric vehicles. The American automaker aims to further lower the pricing of these yet-to-be-known models and make them more efficient to appeal to a wider customer base.
TechCrunch claims that a 12-year Tesla veteran engineer and current Ford Advanced EV Development Head, Alan Clarke, are leading the secret team’s operations. The team also recruited Auto Motive Power engineers, which is a Blue Oval-acquired energy management startup.
During the recent Earnings Call, Ford CEO Farley that the skunkworks “was operating like a startup outside of the rest of Ford.”
“All of our EVs teams are ruthlessly focused on cost and efficiency in our EV products, because the ultimate competition is going to be the affordable Tesla and the Chinese OEMs.”
Ford Chief Executive Jim Farley said during the earnings call
Ford’s EV challenges
Ford’s intensified electrification push comes at a time when the automaker is undergoing Senate lawmakers’ investigations. It is apparently about Ford’s involvement with China’s CATL on a battery factory from which it has already withdrawn a huge investment.
Moreover, Ford recently announced plans to lower the F-150 Lightning electric pickup’s production due to “slow demand.” It prompted the company to disseminate some of its workers to its other factory, which produces the gas-powered Bronco off-road vehicles.
Nonetheless, the American legacy brand remains optimistic about electric vehicles, as evidenced by its efforts to catch up with industry leaders like Tesla. However, it must continue to work hard this year to make up for its $4.7 billion loss in its EV division last year.
