Ford bets on $30,000 EVs to take on China’s low-cost dominance

Ford Motor Co. plans to launch a new line of affordable electric vehicles starting in 2027, including a midsize pickup truck priced from about $30,000, as it races to match the cost efficiency of Chinese competitors.

The four-door pickup will be built at Ford’s Louisville, Kentucky, plant, where the automaker is investing nearly $2 billion to retain at least 2,200 jobs. The factory, currently making the Escape and Lincoln Corsair, will be retooled for EV production.

“We have to meet the new standard set by Chinese EV makers like BYD,” CEO Jim Farley told workers on Monday. “It’s a bet. There is risk.” BYD sells EVs for as little as $10,000 in overseas markets, far below the U.S. average of $47,000 in June, according to J.D. Power.

The new vehicles are being developed by Ford’s “skunkworks” team in California, led by former Tesla executive Alan Clarke and staffed with engineers from Tesla and Rivian. Farley admitted the team worked so independently that his own company badge once couldn’t get him inside.

EV affordability is becoming a battleground. Amazon-backed startup Slate is targeting the mid-$20,000 range for its pickup, while Tesla is preparing a cheaper model. Rivian and Lucid are also eyeing lower-priced EVs, but most still start between $40,000 and $50,000.

Ford has struggled to make EVs profitable. It lost nearly $10 billion on its EV and software operations from 2023 to 2024 and expects up to $5.5 billion in losses this year. Farley says the new line should turn a profit within a year of launch.

Sales of Ford’s three current EVs, the Mustang Mach-E SUV, E-Transit van, and F-150 Lightning, fell 12% in the first half of 2025, even as hybrid sales jumped 27%. The company delayed its next-generation F-150 Lightning and E-Transit to 2028, citing softer demand.

Industry analysts warn that falling tax incentives, weaker emissions rules, and reduced charging infrastructure funding in the U.S. could further slow EV adoption. But Farley insists that making EVs affordable is the only way forward. “We have no choice,” he said.

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