MENU
SEARCHAutomaker says it’s revolutionizing auto manufacturing with new EV assembly system.
Ford CEO Jim Farley said the new manufacturing system’s first product will be a $30,000 midsize pickup in 2027, 'roughly the same as the Model T when adjusted for inflation.'
Ford
Ford revealed a new assembly line innovation for electric vehicles as the “Model T moment” it’s been teasing.
The three-branch “tree” assembly structure to debut at its Louisville, Ky., plant will produce more affordable EVs in a more efficient process on a smaller factory footprint, said the automaker’s CEO, Jim Farley, in a statement.
What the automaker is calling the Ford Universal EV Production System is the product of a “startup skunkworks” by a California-based engineering team.
The new system’s first product will be a $30,000 midsize pickup in 2027, “roughly the same as the Model T when adjusted for inflation,” Farley said.
He emphasized that the EVs made at the plant will be powered by batteries assembled in Michigan, “not imported from China,” and said the combined vehicle and battery operations will employ about 4,000 people and represent a $5 billion investment. The Trump administration’s trade tariffs have increased U.S. manufacturing as one of their two stated goals.
The CEO likened the EV production system innovation to the Model T assembly line breakthrough that made automobiles accessible to the mass market, calling it a “reinvention of our company.” EVs’ traditionally higher prices have been one of the drags on wider-scale adoption in the U.S.
“Ford is going to deliver what no other automaker has been able to: a family of affordable, adaptable electric vehicles that offer multiple body styles for work and play — including for export,” Farley said.
Ford broke the traditional assembly line into three main branches. Vehicles’ fronts and rears will be assembled on separate lines, while the structural battery will be on a third line to be preassembled with seats, consoles and carpeting. The three branches merge at the end.
The flexible system will produce trucks, cars “and everything in between,” Farley said.
LEARN MORE: Rhyme and Reason to Ford Recalls
Stellantis is adding a third end-of-life vehicle dismantling facility to feed its growing reuse business sparked in large part by autos’ growing lifespans.
Read More →
U.S. consumer interest in electric vehicles lags behind other countries despite the rising gas prices caused by the ongoing war in the Middle East.
Read More →
Research reveals the brands and models most likely to have higher recall rates over their lifetimes. While some brands rank high, addressing safety issues can be a selling point.
Read More →
Dealers are facing growing frustrations with current generic artificial intelligence tools, according to a survey by Lotlinx, which found they want a solution that understands their inventories.
Read More →
Scott Cooke has served in various roles with Toyota Financial Services for over 20 years, including president and CEO, which he retires from on June 30.
Read More →
The sale of two Minnesota franchises ends a rare multigenerational business while adding to one of the Midwest’s biggest auto groups.
Read More →
2026 NADA Chairman Rob Cochran knows a thing or two about leadership after decades in the business. He brings an emphasis on stewardship to his new role at the head of the country’s major auto retail trade group.
Read More →
Building on a previously announced $26 billion U.S. investment, Hyundai said it will grow its North American lineup and U.S.-based production and parts sourcing.
Read More →
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety awarded 63 vehicles for safety, and SUVs lead the picks with more than half of the base and Pick+ awards.
Read More →
The Kerrigan Index shows that despite a chaotic year of musical trade tariffs, high vehicle prices and more roadblocks, acquirers still flush with pandemic-era cash accelerated the consolidation pace.
Read More →
