Ford Decides To Build Super Duty Pickups, May Be Experimenting With In-Wheel Motors For F-150 Lightning

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The primary a part of this story shall be of little curiosity to CleanTechnica readers. Beforehand, Ford had introduced plans to construct a three-row battery electrical SUV at its Oakville Meeting Plant in Ontario, Canada, in 2025. In April, it pushed the beginning date for manufacturing of that as but unnamed automobile again to 2027. On the identical time, Ford had recommended the Oakville manufacturing facility would additionally turn out to be a producing hub for the F-150 Lightning battery electrical pickup truck. However now, in line with Reutersthe corporate has determined to maneuver manufacturing of its F-Sequence Tremendous Obligation pickup vehicles to Oakville and put manufacturing of the electrical SUV and Lightning on maintain till the demand for electric vehicles clarifies itself.

Ford mentioned this week it plans so as to add capability for an extra 100,000 F-Sequence Tremendous Obligation vehicles on the facility. It additionally mentioned considerably ambiguously that it needs to have the flexibility to make use of what it calls “future multi-energy technology.” There may be some world class weasel wording occurring there. It hints at one thing whereas revealing nothing. Might it imply some sort of hybrid set-up? Ford CEO Jim Farley has hinted his firm will pivot to extra hybrids because it adjusts its product combine to match demand. Would that imply a standard hybrid, like a Toyota Prius? Someway the thought of a Tremendous Obligation with the center of a Prius towing a six-stall horse trailer as much as the Eisenhower tunnel exterior of Denver appears far fetched. Has Ford gotten so skittish about electrical autos that the considered a plug-in hybrid sends a chilly wind by its C suite?

“Super Duty is a vital tool for businesses and people around the world and, even with our Kentucky Truck Plant and Ohio Assembly Plant running flat out, we can’t meet the demand,” Ford CEO Jim Farley mentioned in a press release. “At the same time, we look forward to introducing three-row electric utility vehicles.” Ford has more and more leaned into manufacturing of hybrid autos to win over customers who aren’t able to go absolutely electrical and goals to quadruple hybrid manufacturing over the following few years.

Progress in EV demand globally has slowed, Reuters says. Though, the information clattering into the teletype room in CleanTechnica’s sub-basement does not support that rather broad assertion. Actually, we categorically reject that general statement. However, corporations like Tesla and BYD have lower costs to stimulate gross sales whereas Ford and Common Motors are pulling again on lots of their electrical automobile targets. Ford, which misplaced practically $4.7 billion on its EV enterprise in 2023 and has projected it is going to lose as much as $5.5 billion this yr, mentioned in February its subsequent technology of electrical autos can be launched “only when they can be profitable.” Conventional automakers proceed to profit from lengthy established factories for his or her gasoline-powered autos, making them extra worthwhile than their EV fashions, Sam Fiorani, vp at analysis agency AutoForecast Options, advised Reuters.

Tremendous Obligation pickup vehicles are particularly fashionable for Ford’s business enterprise and are additionally produced at meeting vegetation in Kentucky and Ohio. The corporate is betting on software-related providers in its business division to drive earnings within the coming years. The unit had working revenue margins of virtually 17% final quarter.

Hub Motors For The Ford F-150 Lightning?

There’s a entire business dedicated to photographing future vehicles and vehicles. Producers have to topic their merchandise to actual world testing earlier than they go into manufacturing, and there are particular components of the world the place cold- and hot-weather testing happen, which implies of us with cameras can wait patiently for brand spanking new fashions to point out up, {photograph} them, after which promote the pictures to publications like Autoblog. The businesses strive disguising the vehicles, however the lenses discover them — at Demise Valley, within the Arctic Circle, on the Nurburgring. In the present day, Autoblog is that includes pictures it obtained that it says present a Ford F-150 Lightning with in-wheel motors. We shouldn’t have permission to make use of these pictures, however you may observe the hyperlink above to see them for your self.

The pictures have been taken with a Tesla Cybertruck close by, indicating Ford is benchmarking its truck towards the completion, one thing producers do on a regular basis. A photograph of the left rear wheel caught somebody’s consideration. Within the photograph, two issues are apparent. First, that is an eight-lug wheel, which isn’t one thing usually seen on a light-duty pickup. Second, there isn’t any brake caliper. Usually, that wouldn’t increase flags. Eight-lug wheels are frequent on Ford Tremendous Obligation vehicles and drum brakes are nonetheless favored for rear axles in some purposes resulting from their lengthy service lives. That would certainly be some form of prototype brake drum behind the wheel, however drum brakes are not normal tools even on Tremendous Obligation (F-250, F-350, and F-450) fashions, and the F-150 Lightning has come outfitted with four-wheel disc brakes since day one. No matter that is, it’s not a components bin pull from a present truck, Autoblog says.

There are extra objects of curiosity in these pictures. There’s a inexperienced wire that may very well be offering energy to the rear wheel partially hidden behind a grass skirt form of affair such as you may discover at your nearest Tiki bar. There may be additionally one thing within the load mattress with the quantity “2,666” on it. That would denote the load or it may very well be nothing however a intelligent trick designed to idiot the photogs. The businesses know they’re on the market and are usually not above having some enjoyable with them. Autoblog notes that if that could be a 2,666 pound weight behind the take a look at automobile, that’s 431 kilos extra then the rated load capability of the F-150 Lightning with the usual battery.

The Takeaway

If in case you have been maintaining with the information these days, you recognize that the Biden marketing campaign is in deep, deep bother. Each company in America is instantly recalibrating its place within the market based mostly on a gathering consensus that you-know-who shall be again within the Offal Workplace subsequent January. Bloomberg studies that corporations are scurrying to close down their DEI applications, whereas the funding group has all however stricken the initials ESG from all paperwork.

It isn’t past the realm of chance that Ford (and GM) are pulling again on their commitments to electrical autos as a result of they assume all the advantages of the Inflation Discount Act are going away together with commitments to develop the nation’s EV charging infrastructure and EV battery provide chain. That could be the true purpose the Oakville manufacturing facility shall be spitting out heavy-duty vehicles as an alternative of EVs, a minimum of till one thing occurs to reinvigorate the momentum of the EV revolution. Firms are the final word political animals and can do the whole lot they’ll to curry favor with whichever celebration is in energy. If the Democrats handle to tug off a victory in November, watch those self same firms pivot as soon as once more to align themselves with the prevailing political winds.