Ford To Reduce Its Dependence On Electric Vehicle Technology
The American manufacturer will invest in its own electric vehicle platform for the European market.
Ford and Volkswagen continue to collaborate on various joint venture projects, including trucks, light commercial vehicles, and electric car technology. The Blue oval carmaker, on the other hand, aims to narrow the scope of the EV segment as it gradually pushes to develop production electric vehicles based on its own platforms and technology. This adjustment in Ford’s strategy solely affects its business in Europe, where the company plans to sell entirely electric vehicles beginning in 2030.
According to Martin Sanders, Ford’s EV development manager for the Old Continent, Volkswagen’s MEB design is a transitory technology for the firm. It saved Ford around two years of development time, but the company is now actively investing in its own electric platform. Ford will build and market MEB-based electric vehicles until the development work is completed.
This, in turn, necessitates further investments. Ford will invest roughly $2 billion in its Cologne facility to prepare it for MEB-based EVs. The first model based on VW technology is expected to debut in the first quarter of this year as a compact crossover in the same sector as the VW ID.4. A second “sport crossover” will be added to the lineup around a year later, with manufacture set to begin in Cologne.
Ford’s Valencia facility, meanwhile, will undergo significant modifications. The S-Max and Galaxy are being assembled at the plant, but the two MPVs will be phased out very soon. The plant will be converted to make software-defined EVs based on Ford’s own design. These vehicles will not employ MEB technology and will be available later this decade.
“In Valencia, we will employ an all-electric platform. At the present, however, it is unclear when this will occur and which models will be built there “Sander added his two cents. These new EVs will also utilise software developed in-house by Ford for semi-autonomous features.
