Ford's Secret Team Is Building a Cheaper EV. Here’s What We Know.
And why it’s a bigger deal for them than you might think.
I’ve been window-shopping for an electric car for a few years now. I love the idea, but every time I look at the prices, I get a little discouraged. It feels like the affordable, everyday EV is still just out of reach.
So when I saw the latest news from Ford, I leaned in a little closer.
It turns out Ford has a small, secret team—a "skunkworks" project, as they call it in the industry—working on a new generation of low-cost electric vehicles. And they’re planning to tell us more about it on August 11th.
This isn’t just another car announcement. It’s more interesting than that.
First, a dose of reality
Let’s be real for a second. Ford is in a bit of a pickle with its current EVs.
The Mustang Mach-E and the F-150 Lightning are great cars. People who own them seem to love them. But Ford is losing a massive amount of money on every single one they sell. It’s just not a sustainable way to do business.
They know they can't keep selling premium EVs at a loss. They need a car they can build efficiently and sell to a lot more people at a price that doesn't make you gasp.
So, they started over
Instead of trying to tweak their existing models, Ford’s CEO, Jim Farley, pulled together a small team of top engineers. He basically told them to go hide in a corner and figure out how to build an EV from the ground up, with one main goal: make it affordable.
This team has been working quietly in Irvine, California, far away from the corporate headquarters in Detroit. The idea is to let them work like a startup—fast, lean, and without all the usual corporate red tape.
What are they building? The rumors point to a few possibilities:
- A small, compact SUV
- Maybe even a compact pickup truck
- A target price somewhere around $25,000
That last one is the important part. A $25,000 electric SUV or pickup from a brand like Ford would be a huge deal for a lot of us.
It’s not just about Tesla anymore
The other reason this is so important is the competition. And I’m not talking about their traditional rivals.
Automakers in China, like BYD, are already building good-quality, affordable EVs. They’re really, really good at it. Farley has been very open about this, saying that if they can’t compete with the Chinese automakers, their business is at risk.
So this new, low-cost EV platform isn’t just a cool project. It’s Ford’s attempt to build a car that can actually compete on a global scale. It’s about survival, really.
I’m not expecting them to reveal a perfect, finished car on August 11th. But I’m definitely curious to see what this secret team has been up to. If they can show a clear path to a truly affordable EV, it might be one of the most important announcements Ford has made in years.
I’ll be watching.