Ford Prioritizes Super Duty Pickup, Reduces Investment In Electric Vehicles?

JAKARTA - Sales of electric vehicles from Ford Motor Company in the United States in the first half of 2024 were not bad at second place under Tesla. But Ford faces several challenges and admits it suffered significant losses to every electric car sold.

It was Ford's strong sales of pickup ICE trucks and hybrid cars that covered the unsatisfactory performance of its electric model division. For the record, Ford sold 199,463 F-Series trucks in the 2nd quarter of 2024, much compared to 23,957 electric cars in the same period.

For this unsatisfactory performance, Ford announced the expansion of Ford's heavy-duty super Duty or pickup truck production since 1999 into Canada and the latest generation of trucks will adopt "multi-energy technology".

As reported by CarBuzz, July 22, previously, Ford had a big bet on electrification. However, this latest decision shows a change in strategy. A major investment in V8 trucks and delays in electric car production indicate adjustments to Ford's plans to meet current market demand.

With a multi-path, it means Ford wants to offer multi-energy technology to the next generation of Super Duty trucks, giving consumers more choices and supporting Ford's electrification plan. Although the details are still vague, this move confirms the use of hybrid or plug-in hybrid (PHEV) engines on the latest Super Duty.

However, Ford has not given up on electric cars. They still want to launch an electric car below US$30,000 (equivalent to Rp486 million) to be able to compete with Tesla and electric car manufacturers from China who offer affordable prices.

In the heavy pickup truck segment itself, Ford competitor Stellantis is rumored to be introducing a hydrogen-powered Ram 5500. The technology used is fuel-cell, different from hydrogen combustion engines. Production of Ram 5500 is scheduled to start this year. Meanwhile, GM has not made an official announcement regarding their electric truck.