Rival news: $30K Ford Midsize EV Pickup (Ranchero) - News & Info

[cadblu]

Interesting! My thoughts…

1. Anyone want to bet the new Ford EV truck will be revealed sometime in 4Q26 as Slates begin to roll off the production line. Anything to steal the spotlight from Slate.
2. “Ford thinks it can reinvent the electric pickup. Ford’s make or break attempt to produce an affordable EV that appeals to all buyers, whether they're truck enthusiasts or otherwise.” Looks like Ford just stole a few pages out of Slate’s playbook.
3. Time to market is paramount. Ford’s just a little late to the party.
4. It’s apparent that Ford is copying Tesla’s latest production /assembly techniques while they desperately try to catch up.
5. Even if the new Ford truck is a compelling option, stepping into a dealership is a huge non starter.

 

[Mac-Tyson]

Some highlights and run down of the interview as well as some of my thoughts from watching the full podcast:

Beginning is talking about the interviewees transition from Motorsport to working on the Roadster/Model S to now working at Ford’s UEV Team

Ford UEV team (especially during the early days) feels more like a separate entity. Like a startup that is VC funded by Ford with all the freedom but also pressure to deliver that kind of setup brings.

Good talent is our most scarce resource. Difficult to find people with the experience, technical experience, product capabilities, or business acumen to mix all together to being able to make world class products.

Decisions are sometimes made on that scarce resource. Like from the UEV Platform standpoint “sometimes we will say first vehicle will be like this second vehicle will be like this. Probably the finance answer is ok well you can save $1 if on the next vehicle you do it this way instead. We will add another dimension pretty consistently. If we did it again just to save that $1 would we tie up our engineers time for 6 months doing that? Ok it’s probably not worth that dollar. If you have a platform then you can say ok you can spend that 6 months but it needs to fit in both of those products. When you start thinking that way you can start thinking about ways to not get stuck by the fact that you have a scarcity of talent to do the work. ‘Time is not free’.”

EV growth has flattened in the US but still growing. Number 1 barrier to entry is still cost and range. At the point where EVs are in spitting distance of ICE parity costs. Infrastructure is also a psychological barrier.

Why lead with a truck and not an SUV? Big trucks are tougher to make BEVs while meeting consumer expectations of capabilities. Smaller compact trucks much better use case (hint that towing capabilities will be for things like small boats, jet skis, and small toter homes). The reason for the pickup top hat first is because we found a way to get more cabin volume than the RAV4 and it being a universal body type they think a lot of people are ready for an Affordable BEV pickup. Also for truck buyers the frunk gives secure lockable storage which is the number 1 want for those buyers, so it’s a superpower of having the frunk and all the utility of a Pickup Bed.

Maverick Hybrid vs UEV Pickup: we need to stop just talking about the power train, that’s one thing but it needs to be super compelling from an attribute standpoint. Fun to drive and capable, it has to tug at your heart strings. You have to see it and want it. Tech experience has to be world class. It’s not about being a really good EV it’s about being good as a product (This whole topic is interesting since it frames the maverick as a competitor and by his answer it seems like the UEV team sees it that way. Which might help it succeed where the Lightning failed. Since the Lightning was just trying to be a good EV not take away F-150 buyers. This product without saying it directly they know they are competing against the Maverick on the showroom floor).

Slate vs UEV Pickup: it’s clear Slate is targeting very different customers. We have been very purposeful about putting funding and resources to things that our customers care about. This is a tech focused EV, Slate is seeking a more analog experience. But people who are interested in trying new tech like an EV they are mostly on the higher side of wanting to try new tech and will ask for more.

UEV Pickup vs Chinese Automakers: important to analyze the competition, they have no monopoly on good ideas, and assume at some point you will be competing against anyone who makes cars on the planet. Important to humble yourself because Chinese automakers have a different philosophy on how they develop products and the speed they do. So they see it as “rear view mirror analysis” if it’s already out on the market or if someone has already thought of it you get to see how consumers receive the tech and feature. What are the things people actually use and what is marketing fluff. Great to use that but don’t follow or chase the competition.

UEV Team talks very little about Autonomy compared to Tesla and Rivian: the technology is coming but Ford has a very diverse customer base. Most will never use an autonomous vehicle for many years. Partially might be due to current limits found today. Is some areas of the country the tech will be more ubiquitous but others are still struggling to have EV infrastructure developed. They might have never even seen a Tesla. There will still be a good number of customers where driving themselves is important to them. (Interesting answer because Ford is launching their own handsfree self driving in 2028 developed by the UEV team.)

300+ Mile Range anxiety in US Customers: most people don’t need that range (though some do). As a first EV you almost always buy the most amount of range. 2nd or 3rd EV you will go much lower depending on use case. A family with multiple vehicles might have a low range EV paired with an ICE or Hybrid vehicle for road trips. Which is why it’s still important for consumers to have multiple powertrains to choose from at this point in time. (I feel like this hints that the UEV Pickup won’t offer a 300 mile range at least at the base 30K price point but other UEV models will likely try to be 300 mile+ if the use case expectations are higher for them). Focus for UEV is to make the most efficient vehicles possible to make a smaller battery in the vehicle feasible. Optimization for what you actually need.

 

[Mac-Tyson]

Slate vs UEV Pickup: it’s clear Slate is targeting very different customers. We have been very purposeful about putting funding and resources to things that our customers care about. This is a tech focused EV, Slate is seeking a more analog experience. But people who are interested in trying new tech like an EV they are mostly on the higher side of wanting to try new tech and will ask for more.

I’ll focus on this aspect since it’s the Slate Forums I don’t disagree with him when it comes to the early adopters. I always maintain as soon as you start seeing Slate builds in the wild or on social media it will sell itself. But for the early adopters I agree a lot of EV enthusiasts are not interested in the Slate Truck, so the type of people who are more interested in a software defined experience* is not going to be interested in Slate. I think the early adopters will be a combination of single cab enthusiasts who are just happy someone is putting effort into a single cab again, the same type of demographic who loves “dumb phones” who want a more analog experience, DIYers, and Fleet Sales. I think Slate can easily scale and expand from this audience to their main target demographics but I think those will be the early adopters.

I think it’s curious how he talked about Slate almost saying it’s not a competitor. It’s a stark contrast from other people at ford or ford outlets cover Slate. I suspect as a Car Guy he might actually really like Slate but genuinely thinks that there isn’t a strong market for a more analog EV right now.

*Slate not being a software defined experience is a misconception though, it is by nature a more analog vehicle but they are putting effort into the software experience it’s just an optional software experience with an app on your phone/tablet. So unlike any other software defined vehicle on the market.

Side Note: I do think Slate being a single cab will actually help it in the long run since it helps set it apart from other compact BEVs. Slate is compared to the other vehicles because the fact is the midsize and compact single cab market doesn’t exist anymore, any market Slate has it will essentially own in that segment. Slate will succeed where those other trucks failed because it solves two of the biggest reasons the Single Cab failed to begin with.

 

[SparkYellow]

Bro that's more than what was in the article. Will need a few hours to read through everything. 😅

 

[Mac-Tyson]

Bro that's more than what was in the article. Will need a few hours to read through everything. 😅

Well of course they want you to actually listen the podcast so they condensed everything. Honestly should and could have done that too since I’ve written blogs for work before but I guess just wanted to get a more detailed and raw overview for those who like reading instead of listening lol.

 

[Revenant89]

I hate Ford with a passion (greedy bastards). I hope Slate dominates the segment.

 

[GaRailroader]

I think the early adopters will be a combination of single cab enthusiasts who are just happy someone is putting effort into a single cab again,

Guilty. This is me.

 

[E90400K]

I hate Ford with a passion (greedy bastards). I hope Slate dominates the segment.

I shouldn't, but I gotta ask... why?

 

[Shrink36s]

I shouldn't, but I gotta ask... why?

Maybe this?
https://www.usatoday.com/story/cars...s-vehicles-bronco-sport-maverick/90368898007/
Maybe this helps sales of the Slate… doubt it, though.

 

[E90400K]

Maybe this?
https://www.usatoday.com/story/cars...s-vehicles-bronco-sport-maverick/90368898007/
Maybe this helps sales of the Slate… doubt it, though.

A recall of just 4,653 vehicles over two completely different chassis types built in two different factories in two different countries over a combined 11 model years makes Ford greedy bastards? Huh?

Sounds like Ford's control arm supplier has a quality control problem.

 

[atx_ev]

I hate Ford with a passion (greedy bastards). I hope Slate dominates the segment.

Ive never bought a ford, but I dont hate any company. I can just choose to not buy their products.

If tesla made a normal truck/suv on the cyber truck platform, rivian would be dead.

If ford makes an EV maverick, slate is dead.

 

[sodamo]

If Tesla made a two door, Slate style pickup on their platform - WOW, especially if the display/infotainment was modular and optional, starting with minimal.

 

[Revenant89]

I shouldn't, but I gotta ask... why?

Cause they charged more than any other manufacturer (Until Ram surpassed them a couple years ago). Also their dealerships are the scummiest I've ever dealt with. When I attempted to "pre-order" a Bronco they straight up told me they were going to add money and if I didn't like it I wouldn't get my vehicle. Same thing happened with the Maverick.. I know the dealerships aren't run by Ford but still.

 

[Revenant89]

Ive never bought a ford, but I dont hate any company. I can just choose to not buy their products.

If tesla made a normal truck/suv on the cyber truck platform, rivian would be dead.

If ford makes an EV maverick, slate is dead.

I bet their EV truck will never actually be $30k and then the dealerships will be gouging people for even more regardless of what Ford says.

 

[GaRailroader]

If ford makes an EV maverick, slate is dead.

I disagree. A lot of people want a small single cab pick-up. I think both Slate and Ford will have success with their pick-ups. I am not waiting for the Ford because I specifically want the small footprint of the Slate versus the Maverick. Additionally, I like the hail proof panels on the Slate that I can wrap and make it retro cool.