Ford EV Archives - Gizmochina

Ford to rethink its brand for China to better compete with local EV brands

Sean — Fri, 21 Apr 2023 10:32:03 +0000

The CEO of Ford recently told reporters that the company has to rethink its brand and strategy for the Chinese automobile market. The statement arrives amid the booming electric vehicle market in the region. So here are all the details.

Ford seeks to be more competitive in China

According to Chief Executive Jim Farley, “We’re going to have to rethink what the Ford brand means in a place like China.” The senior executive made this statement highlighting the competitive market for EVs in China. He believes that Ford Motor Co needs to rethink its brand for the world’s largest automobile market. The official told reporters during a charity event in Detroit that “It can’t be like middle of the market. It’s totally over filled.”

Unfortunately, he did not elaborate on what exactly this means for the popular American car maker. But based on market reports, Ford saw a decline in sales in China during the first quarter of this year. It sales and market share also fell during this period. On the other hand, automakers that sold battery powered electric and plug in hybrid cars saw a boom in sales in Q1 2023.

Furthermore, the market was also led by the Chinese automobile giant, BYD. Ford CEO also added that his visit to China revealed that the only premium brands that were faring well in the Chinese market were focusing on electric only vehicles. These models focused on technology and aspects that improved the drivers overall experience. This wasn’t just in terms of their digital technology but even included their “beautiful” design for every vehicle. He even talked about specific brands that were succeeding in the market, including Xpeng, Li Auto, and NIO.

RELATED:

(Via)

The post Ford to rethink its brand for China to better compete with local EV brands appeared first on Gizmochina.

Over a Dozen F-150 Lightning Trucks Recalled by Ford Due to Battery Fires

Anubhav — Tue, 14 Mar 2023 06:05:28 +0000

Ever since EVs started getting more popular, safety regulations have been constantly evolving in order to accommodate EV standards. The safety of EVs is an ongoing concern for automakers and regulators alike. Although the vast majority of EVs are at low risk for battery fires, these incidents can be serious when they do occur. As per recent news, Ford has issued a recall notice for 18 F-150 Lightning pickup trucks due to defective battery cells.

The issue caused at least one truck to catch fire. Production of the electric truck was paused for four weeks while Ford investigated the cause of the defect. The automobile manufacturer will restart production on Monday, March 13th, with a “clean stock” of battery packs. The affected vehicles are either on dealer lots or in customer’s hands. Ford has been in close contact with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is expected to publish the recall notice next week.

The “root cause” of the issue was at South Korean battery supplier SK On’s factory in Georgia, according to Ford. In a statement, spokesperson Emma Bergg said that the company was not aware of any reports of accidents or injuries related to this recall. Ford has confirmed the root cause with SK On and implemented quality actions to prevent future issues.

Battery fires, while rare, remain a serious concern for EV makers. More data is needed, but researchers have determined that the vast majority of EVs are at low risk for battery fires. However, when fires do occur, EVs with lithium-ion batteries burn hotter, faster, and require more water to extinguish. This fact has led some towns to retrain their emergency responders for when such incidents occur.

The most serious incident involving battery fires in EVs was with the Chevy Bolt. The vehicle was recalled after GM reported at least 19 battery fires due to defective cells from the supplier LG. The automaker was forced to temporarily shut down production after a software fix failed to prevent several more fires. Chevy resumed production last year after installing new battery packs.

RELATED:

(Via)

The post Over a Dozen F-150 Lightning Trucks Recalled by Ford Due to Battery Fires appeared first on Gizmochina.

Ford rumored to re-enter Indian market to manufacture and sell EVs

Sudhanshu — Mon, 14 Feb 2022 21:05:45 +0000

Ford Motor Company is planning to re-enter the Indian Market after its exit in 2021. The company is looking towards making India the hub of manufacturing and exporting EVs to the international markets. The company has also hinted at the possibility of selling cars in the domestic market in the future.

Image source: Ford

The news of this upcoming venture came to light when Ford’s application to participate in the federal government’s Performance Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme got approved. This particular scheme aims at making India a hub for automobile manufacturing and offers incentives to the companies that set up their production units in the country.

Ford, which has two plants in India, said that it is now “exploring the possibility of using a plant in India as an export base for EV manufacturing”. Although the company had left the Indian market just six months back, stating that the Indian market was not profitable for the company and was ready to suffer $2 billion in losses.

While the company has no concrete plans to develop electric vehicles for the Indian market, the company said, “There is no specific discussion on this right now, but it is not out of the realm of future consideration. Ford also plans to serve customers in India with must-have iconic vehicles, including the Mustang coupe.”

This news aligns with Ford’s announcement that it is focusing on electric vehicles and has announced a massive budget of $30 billion globally to develop new fully-electric and new hybrid vehicles.
Considering these announcements and the Indian electric vehicle market, it would be a great time for ford to enter the Indian market as it is still in a nascent stage. But both the Ford plants in the country – one in Sanand, Gujarat, and the other one in Chennai would require significant upgrades in order to be able to start making electric vehicles.

If all goes well, this move could prove beneficial for the Indian market as it would provide much-needed competition as well as affordable electric cars to boost the adoption of zero-emission vehicles in the country.

RELATED:

(via)

The post Ford rumored to re-enter Indian market to manufacture and sell EVs appeared first on Gizmochina.

Ford to spend $20 billion as it pushes for Electric Vehicles

Sean — Wed, 02 Feb 2022 11:18:08 +0000

Ford is planning on investing up to 20 billion US Dollars as it seeks to step into the electric vehicle market. The large sum will help reorganize its operations to include EVs in the future.

According to a Bloomberg report, the American automobile giant had previously announced that it will be spending around 30 billion US Dollars on electric and autonomous vehicle development by 2025. In other words, this news is in line with its initial plans. Furthermore, Ford is reportedly bringing Apple and Tesla executive Doug Field, who will be in charge of the reorganization.

This will have him oversee the conversion of its factories from gas based to electric vehicle production. Doug Field had also served as the vice president of special projects at Apple. He also led the Cupertino based giant’s efforts for a self driving electric car. He even worked as the chief vehicle engineer at Tesla.

The shift in focus will have the brand hire more engineers as well. As of right now, Tesla is leading the EV market, with Ford struggling to catch up. While the company is a major player in the automobile industry, selling more F series trucks alone than Tesla’s entire output, it still is behind the latter in terms of EVs. Notably, Elon Musk’s vision of an all electric future has also been successful with investors owing to its future potential. So it remains to be seen if Ford manages to successfully expand into the EV segment and rival both Tesla and other Chinese EV makers that have grown in popularity recently.