I bought a 2025 Maverick AWD Lariat hybrid for 38K and love it...has all the tech I want, was affordable to me and I enjoy it immensely. I don't mind the interior at all.
I normally do not post in the employee section as I am not a Ford employee, but I am curious about the "OHAP is opening a whole new line!!" part....what are they opening?
Everybody is screaming, "I want a cheap car" (aka, the mythical $20,000 EV) but when a company actually does it and puts out a cheap car (steelies with plastic covers, simple taillight design, no frills interior) everybody bitches about it.
There are enough other systems that will keep the extended warranty companies in biz when it comes to Dod...err, RAM. And I would be willing to bet a cup of coffee that there is exclusionary wording to keep the diffs and transfer cases out of the "powertrain" warranty for the same reason....
But you are correct, it is a big deal and will hopefully push other makers to follow suit which isn't a bad thing.
While I was not ready for the "leap" into the EV end of the pond....my hybrid is a stepping stone and I really believe my next ride will be an EV....and a Ford....of course.
Jac Nasser when he sold off heavy trucks to Freightliner...it WAS turning a profit, just not enough to satisfy Jac the Knife.....he claimed he could make more money just putting the funds devoted to heavy truck in the bank. And, with that, Ford Class 8 was history.
Here is a solution that is as old as the automatic transmission itself....
https://transmissioncoolerguide.com/transmission-coolers/best-transmission-coolers/