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Ford CEO Touts New U.S.-Built 'Affordable' ICE-Powered Truck at Trump Factory Visit


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6 hours ago, Sherminator98 said:

The other issue with a small pickup is that if CAFE rules are changed again, it might really struggle with that...

 

This is why our brands need to have a long term outlook. Our leaders also need to be more consistent, because this constant on again, off again crap is ridiculous. 

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I can't imagine the Ranger going anywhere since we have the Bronco. 

 

The only thing I would wish is for the Ranger to move to TAP, add the Everest, and an Everest-based Lincoln. This would open up production for the Bronco in MAP with the potential to add the shelved Bronco pickup. 

 

This would allow Ford to add a competitor to the 4Runner, GX, and Gladiator all in one stroke. 

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6 hours ago, akirby said:

 

Given how Ford likes to wordsmith, I see 3 possibilities.

 

Something smaller than Maverick.  Keeps the cost down but there isn't a big market there.

A new less expensive Maverick with more options and trims.

A midsize unibody slightly bigger than Maverick offering hybrids.  This would compete overlap with Ranger which is why I suggested it replaces Ranger but now I don't think that's likely.  
 

I now think a lower cost Maverick replacement is most likely with a low cost street model si,ilar to Maverick but also higher end models based on Bronco Sport.

 

Or something completely different.  Who the hell knows at this point.

Glad to see your thoughts on this and Ford’s use of affordable…

maybe something thrown out there but affordable compared  to what?

 

I’m still wondering if Ford wants a better truck for mid-size that

beats all others including the Ranger, some sort of downsized F150

that’s slightly narrower but keeps that platform’s scales of economy?

 

Whatever Ford is planning, I suspect they want a grand scale production

that makes loads of money and takes sales away from Toyota and GM

and doesn’t impact its own F150 sales…..

 

Now that’s tricky….

 

 

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The above ideas/speculation is interesting, but they all seem to fall into the conventional Ford truck domain. A "different kind of truck",  per Farley's words, seems to suggest something more radical?  On the other hand, maybe all he means is a different platform and assembly process, like CE1 elements? Ford has put a lot of emphasis on affordable for this truck which to me sounds like it is likely a small entry level truck as opposed to midsize. 

 

Ford is probably having great fun watching all the guessing and speculation about this new truck. And any reveal is at least 2+ years away.

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3 hours ago, Texasota said:

The above ideas/speculation is interesting, but they all seem to fall into the conventional Ford truck domain. A "different kind of truck",  per Farley's words, seems to suggest something more radical?  On the other hand, maybe all he means is a different platform and assembly process, like CE1 elements? Ford has put a lot of emphasis on affordable for this truck which to me sounds like it is likely a small entry level truck as opposed to midsize. 

 

Ford is probably having great fun watching all the guessing and speculation about this new truck. And any reveal is at least 2+ years away.

 

Maybe he just means some type of 4 door midgate design.  Hard to come up with anything else.

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3 hours ago, Texasota said:

The above ideas/speculation is interesting, but they all seem to fall into the conventional Ford truck domain. A "different kind of truck",  per Farley's words, seems to suggest something more radical?  On the other hand, maybe all he means is a different platform and assembly process, like CE1 elements? Ford has put a lot of emphasis on affordable for this truck which to me sounds like it is likely a small entry level truck as opposed to midsize. 

 

Ford is probably having great fun watching all the guessing and speculation about this new truck. And any reveal is at least 2+ years away.

I still believe doing like a cool sport ute with a ton of accessories to boost appeal and profits, kinda like a slate mixed with a ranchero, could be a captivating idea. With a lower price point, I could see such a truck appealing to younger enthusiasts quite a bit. 

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9 minutes ago, akirby said:

Oh wait I found a spy photo......

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

IMG_0048.jpeg

Makes me wonder how many buyers regret their purchase.

my wife gives me grief about all the fingerprints on our SS refrigerator

so I can imagine the upkeep with polishing cleaning on cybertruck  is pretty horrendous. No wonder people wrap the thing…

Edited by jpd80
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1 hour ago, jpd80 said:

Makes me wonder how many buyers regret their purchase.

my wife gives me grief about all the fingerprints on our SS refrigerator

so I can imagine the upkeep with polishing cleaning on cybertruck  is pretty horrendous. No wonder people wrap the thing…

 

I'm seeing more wraps than natural here lately....

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7 hours ago, DeluxeStang said:

This is why our brands need to have a long term outlook. Our leaders also need to be more consistent, because this constant on again, off again crap is ridiculous. 

Agree, but I would guess the crapshoot is based on trying to guess what the Feds are going to dictate??🤔

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On 1/16/2026 at 12:45 PM, bzcat said:

I think we are just looking at a 2nd T6 plant in the US. Don't over think it...

 

Lots of things Ford can do with T6 since it is the 3rd most important vehicle program globally after F-150 and Transit. Previously the investment was limited to one plant in the US because Ford needed to limit volume for CAFE considerations. Now there is no such concern so I'm betting Ford will add PHEV options to Bronco and Ranger, add extended cab Ranger, Everest, a Lincoln SUV, and probably a cheaper smaller truck similar to Toyota's Hilux Champ which is based on the Hilux chassis just smaller/cheaper. All this implies Ford will need another T6 plant as the current T6 plant is already on 3 shifts.


Does Ford need a Hilux competitor?  Isn’t that Tacoma?

 

On 1/16/2026 at 12:59 PM, Biker16 said:

 Am I the only person who thinks upgrading an existing plant that already makes ICE vehicles like FRAP would have been smarter in the current political environment than building a new greenfield plant? 

Even if you had to idle FRAP for a year, you could easily build enough mustangs to meet demand during that downtime, and you would have a modern, retooled factory for the mustang and future products, at lower cost.

 

They already had BOC built and empty.  They weren’t going to just leave it that way…
 

On 1/16/2026 at 2:58 PM, jpd80 said:

A sub $30k starting price in 2029?

By that time, I doubt you’d get a Maverick for that starting price

which is why I’m cautious about what Ford considers affordable 

but I do agree that the. objective here is to occupy the price space

below F150 and Explorer  which is approximately $38k.

 

I bet Ford is looking at Tacoma sales success and wondering how

it can compete with that  by delivering a better truck than Ranger,

could Ford split F150 /1500 market into say, F100 and F200 or,

keep F150 and add a new F truck below absorbing Ranger sales?

 

So yes, mostly agree with your view but wondering how Ford gets there…..


IMO, Ford could better tackle Tacoma sales with actually trying with Ranger.  While I don’t know how may sales a supercab would actually add, Ford doesn’t push Ranger much at all.  Colorado’s success shows there is more of a market there.

 

19 hours ago, jpd80 said:

Yes, the small pickup can be ruled out as non-starter  by Ford and not what US buyers would be after

I think the new vehicle will be below F150 but not so low as to be near Maverick, an ICE adaptation 

of CE1 would be an interesting development, especially with Gigacastings possibly making it close

to the strength of a small BOF but much lighter…

 


but to me, and ICE adaptation of CE1 would/should just be a next gen Maverick.  You’re right around the same size (presumably anyway since we don’t know for sure) as the existing model , what good would it do to try to force in another model right in the same slot, that is doing the job of an existing model?   It just doesn’t make any sense to me.

 

8 hours ago, DeluxeStang said:

This is why our brands need to have a long term outlook. Our leaders also need to be more consistent, because this constant on again, off again crap is ridiculous. 

 

Agree regarding leadership - the extreme swings of late aren’t good, but that’s a different topic.

That said, Ford could also voluntarily take a longer term look by maintaining a more fuel-efficient forward looking approach.   I’d say they’re better than they were before with the trucks being more efficient, but they could not take the “all in” approach on the relaxed CAFE rules like they are to safeguard them from changes the next admin will inevitably take…

 

2 hours ago, akirby said:

 

Maybe he just means some type of 4 door midgate design.  Hard to come up with anything else.


they did patent this.  I’ve felt like that’ll be a CE1 feature, though, and not sure how “different kind of truck ” that would truly be.

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33 minutes ago, rmc523 said:


Does Ford need a Hilux competitor?  Isn’t that Tacoma?

Tacoma Champ is a tiny thing like Maverick but looks meh….

(I want to use the f bomb…)

 

image.thumb.jpeg.a9f16b4dc86857da8c2b75eb337b651d.jpeg

 

 

33 minutes ago, rmc523 said:

They already had BOC built and empty.  They weren’t going to just leave it that way…
 

Exactly, don’t make things more complicated….

 

 

33 minutes ago, rmc523 said:


IMO, Ford could better tackle Tacoma sales with actually trying with Ranger.  While I don’t know how may sales a supercab would actually add, Ford doesn’t push Ranger much at all.  Colorado’s success shows there is more of a market there.

Yes but I wonder if Ford North America wants to do their own local pickup 

based heavily on an existing but modified F150 design, narrower alloy cab?

 

33 minutes ago, rmc523 said:

but to me, and ICE adaptation of CE1 would/should just be a next gen Maverick.  You’re right around the same size (presumably anyway since we don’t know for sure) as the existing model , what good would it do to try to force in another model right in the same slot, that is doing the job of an existing model?   It just doesn’t make any sense to me.

Yes, here again I’m stuck in two minds as to how to solve this problem,

modify a larger vehicle to a mid-sized one or keep developing Maverick…

 

 

33 minutes ago, rmc523 said:

Agree regarding leadership - the extreme swings of late aren’t good, but that’s a different topic.

That said, Ford could also voluntarily take a longer term look by maintaining a more fuel-efficient forward looking approach.   I’d say they’re better than they were before with the trucks being more efficient, but they could not take the “all in” approach on the relaxed CAFE rules like they are to safeguard them from changes the next admin will inevitably take…

Stay on safe ground and build what works today and worry about the future in a few years time. Take a breath and build what buyers want 

today while building up funds for another go later.

 

 

33 minutes ago, rmc523 said:

they did patent this.  I’ve felt like that’ll be a CE1 feature, though, and not sure how “different kind of truck ” that would truly be.

Interesting….

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17 hours ago, jpd80 said:

Makes me wonder how many buyers regret their purchase.

my wife gives me grief about all the fingerprints on our SS refrigerator

so I can imagine the upkeep with polishing cleaning on cybertruck  is pretty horrendous. No wonder people wrap the thing…

Why polish a turd?

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17 hours ago, jpd80 said:

Makes me wonder how many buyers regret their purchase.

my wife gives me grief about all the fingerprints on our SS refrigerator

so I can imagine the upkeep with polishing cleaning on cybertruck  is pretty horrendous. No wonder people wrap the thing…

Teach the family members to push the fridge door(s) shut with the handle not push on the panel. Also on double door fridges, stainless or not, be sure that the left side door with the hinged mullion closes all the way...

ME    "Did you get up in the middle of the night?"

HER: "Yes, why?"

ME   "The door on the fridge wasn't closed all the way."

HER  "Well I gave it a shove with my elbow, didn't notice that it didn't close all the way.

ME    "Well the ice in the ice maker started melting into a 3lb block, couldn't get ice for my lunch cooler.

HER  "Oh, sorry. I finished the leftover pot roast, by the way."

ME:  image.jpeg.189eee3606d6c1df6d8aabf80cea334f.jpeg

 

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8 hours ago, Motorpsychology said:

Teach the family members to push the fridge door(s) shut with the handle not push on the panel. Also on double door fridges, stainless or not, be sure that the left side door with the hinged mullion closes all the way...

ME    "Did you get up in the middle of the night?"

HER: "Yes, why?"

ME   "The door on the fridge wasn't closed all the way."

HER  "Well I gave it a shove with my elbow, didn't notice that it didn't close all the way.

ME    "Well the ice in the ice maker started melting into a 3lb block, couldn't get ice for my lunch cooler.

HER  "Oh, sorry. I finished the leftover pot roast, by the way."

ME:  image.jpeg.189eee3606d6c1df6d8aabf80cea334f.jpeg

 

LOL, I can’t blame anyone else, this is all on me…

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On 1/18/2026 at 12:37 AM, jpd80 said:

Tacoma Champ is a tiny thing like Maverick but looks meh….

(I want to use the f bomb…)

 

image.thumb.jpeg.a9f16b4dc86857da8c2b75eb337b651d.jpeg

 

 

Exactly, don’t make things more complicated….

 

 

Yes but I wonder if Ford North America wants to do their own local pickup 

based heavily on an existing but modified F150 design, narrower alloy cab?

 

Yes, here again I’m stuck in two minds as to how to solve this problem,

modify a larger vehicle to a mid-sized one or keep developing Maverick…

 

 

Stay on safe ground and build what works today and worry about the future in a few years time. Take a breath and build what buyers want 

today while building up funds for another go later.

 

 

Interesting….

 

Whoops, didn't notice the Champ thing....that thing is ugly!  lol

 

I don't see what a modified/narrower F-150 truly gets you though?

 

And I'm not saying to ignore an opportunity to make say more Raptors because you can.  Just that that doesn't automatically mean they have to stop pushing further with more fuel efficient offerings to hedge their bets for regulation changes down the road.

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I honestly have no clue which way Ford is thinking with the new affordable truck.

It’s just me looking at the new vehicle from two perspectives and I’m happy for people to disagree and suggest better way for Ford to achieve its objectives

 

To clarify my two perspectives:

1.  “F100” would tap into all existing F150 supplier and alloy cab production

in a slightly narrower truck but still wider and possibly lighter than Ranger.

F100 is perhaps a name that better resonates with North American buyers?

 

2. A slightly bigger Maverick?  either an evolved C2 Maverick or

ICE/EREV version of CE1 pickup with CE1’s construction process

and gigacastings, front, middle and back to produce

a way more efficiently designed mid-sized truck

 

Edited by jpd80
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3 hours ago, jpd80 said:

I honestly have no clue which way Ford is thinking with the new affordable truck.

It’s just me looking at the new vehicle from two perspectives and I’m happy for people to disagree and suggest better way for Ford to achieve its objectives

 

To clarify my two perspectives:

1.  “F100” would tap into all existing F150 supplier and alloy cab production

in a slightly narrower truck but still wider and possibly lighter than Ranger.

F100 is perhaps a name that better resonates with North American buyers?

 

2. A slightly bigger Maverick?  either an evolved C2 Maverick or

ICE/EREV version of CE1 pickup with CE1’s construction process

and gigacastings, front, middle and back to produce

a way more efficiently designed mid-sized truck

 

 

If it is option #2, that could allow the Maverick to slightly downsize in a next generation. Thus allowing it to keep its lower price. 

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On 1/18/2026 at 12:17 PM, Texasota said:

Does anybody remember the Volkswagen Thing?

image.jpeg.e2998172294a3df8c840512b34e42cc6.jpeg

 

It was butt ugly and the name was appropriate. That would have been a far better name for the Cybertruck. 


Looks like a variation of the Volkswagen Kübelwagen which went into service for the German military in 1940. Ironically, it was designed to be an inexpensive, lightweight military transport vehicle that could operate reliably both on and off-road.
 

Seems like the objective of the vehicle referenced in this post. 

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