Ford is delaying the release of its electric three-row SUV until 2027, the company said in an update. He will also start working on his next electric truck in 2026 and will offer hybrid options for every model in production.
Production of the unnamed SUV was set to begin in 2025 at Ford’s Oakville, Ontario plant, which is currently in the process of transitioning from producing gasoline vehicles to producing electric vehicles. Ford cited several reasons for the delay, including a desire to wait until the three-row SUV market matured before introducing its own entrant.
“The additional time will allow the consumer market for three-row electric vehicles to continue to mature and allow Ford to take advantage of new battery technologies to provide customers with improved durability and better value,” the company said.
The unnamed SUV was supposed to go into production starting in 2025.
Although there are more than 100 electric models sold in the United States, very few of them are three-row SUVs, despite their popularity among families. The Tesla Model X, Rivian R1S and Kia EV9, as well as some Tesla Model Y models, are among the few available to customers who need the extra range.
Ford also said it will delay work on its next-generation electric truck until 2026 at a plant under construction. BlueOval City Tennessee Campus. The truck was originally expected to go into production starting in 2025.
The focus is on the BlueOval City campus, which includes the installation of a paint shop and “nearly 4,000 tons of stamping equipment that will produce sheet metal stampings for Ford’s next all-new electric truck.” Ford is also working to expand its assembly plant in Avon Lake, Ohio, where it will produce the next generation of electric commercial vehicles by mid-decade.
The electric truck and SUV were intended to represent Ford’s second-generation electric vehicles, following the first-generation Mustang Mach-E, F-150 Lightning and E-Transit van. Ford CEO Jim Farley said second-generation electric vehicles will be profitable within the first 12 months.
Ford also said it will delay work on its next-generation electric truck until 2026.
But while the next generation of cars has been delayed, its next generationnextThe production of third-generation electric vehicles is still in development. Ford says design work for a new line of affordable electric vehicles is “continuing” Skunkworks laboratory led by former Tesla designer Alan Clark. The California team is “developing a smaller, lower-cost, profitable and flexible electric vehicle platform capable of supporting multiple vehicles at high volumes,” Ford said.
Ford, like other global automakers, is trying to perfect the formula for profitable electric vehicles. The company’s Model e unit, which oversees electric vehicles and software products, reported a loss of $1.6 billion in the final quarter of 2023. Ford said it would slow the pace of spending money on electric vehicles to better meet consumer demand.
Ford announced his sales figures for the first quarter yesterday, in which hybrids in particular played an important role. The automaker sold 38,421 hybrid vehicles in the first three months of 2024, up 42 percent from the first quarter of 2023. Its fuel-guzzling SUVs (Escape, Explorer, Expedition and Bronco) also enjoyed a historic quarter that the company calls its “best ever.” And sales of electric vehicles are up 86 percent compared to last year.