Curious why Kia / Hyundai can come out with a cheap FWD based EV, but FoMoCo cannot. 

A 7.3L Godzilla and a 5/8 ton chassis (between 1/2 and 3/4 ton) would do the trick for sure. Anyone remember the old 7700 series version of F150? 

The Panther mafia lives!   Sofas on wheels for everybody!

The Free Press article is behind a paywall.

From Borg at GMI: Lincoln “relaunching” in 2031   “Farley is talking more specifics about their plan for Lincoln following the announcement that they would begin expanding US production in 2030 and phase out Chinese imports.   https://www.freep.com/story/money/cars/ford/2026/08/14/ford-ceo-jim-farley-explains-why-building-lincolns-in-u-s-makes-sense/91293924007/?link_source=ta_first_comment&taid=6a7f3bb220dc9a0001e402bd&utm_campaign=trueanthem&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook It's a worthwhile read, but here are a few interesting quotes with regard to product vision and timeline. ""With new models due to hit showrooms around the 2031 model year, Lincoln has a unique opportunity to relaunch the brand in spectacular fashion," Sam Fiorani, vice president of global vehicle forecasting at AutoForecast Solutions, said. "Lincoln has always lagged behind the major players in terms of volume even with a range of excellent products." Farley said Ford's decision to move Lincoln production to the States took a year and it was brought on by the idea of giving Lincoln an all-new designed lineup — which costs a lot of money in terms of retooling plants and securing suppliers — as well as considering the economic impact from President Donald Trump's tariffs. When asked whether Ford plans to dramatically redesign the Nautilus, Farley again declined to be specific about models, but he said Ford will be investing in a "pretty major change for Nautilus."" This confirms Lincoln is not moving Nautilus or Corsair production to the US, but developing new product to relaunch Lincoln in 2031. This actually lines up with 4 all-new Lincolns on the schedule for MY 2031-32; the UEV, Bronco, Aviator, and Navigator. The "pretty major change for Nautilus" is probably the UEV, unless he considers Bronco the replacement. But like all-things this far out...especially at Lincoln....I would not bet on any of it, Lincoln's funding is always precarious and this will be an expensive bet on a company that will be near death at the end of 5 years.”

Correct, from its inception as a compliance utility, the idea was to use C2 bodies with additional aluminum front, middle and rear cradles that approximate a GM skateboard approach.   Using the C-Max as the starting point really screwed things up, out of date data strikes again but, If Field had started GE1 with the right C2s at development (Focus and Escape) there wouldn’t have been the near doubling of costs to add a Mach E crossover…maybe even Lincoln versions of all three?   It absolutely galls me to see how Ford Eng “sabotaged” its own efforts, I wonder if some of it was done in a way to make it look less obvious and to a accentuate why BEVs weren’t ready for prime time.  

Logistics and costs. Flat Rock was supposed to get a new $500 million paint plant quite some time ago (cancelled) The issue with low height vehicles goes to available clearance with running height of overhead  conveyors and the distance between skillet floor and connection to the conveyor, all of that need to increase if you want to build taller vehicles. Assuming body shop and coating dip step are not difficult to reconfigure….The big issue has been Ford’s lack of investment, they were hoping that S550/S650 we’re economic platform upgrades not requiring much to be done to Flat Rock.  

Seems like we have a Canadian Navy vet or two here ( @Hugh, maybe?) who might be interested in this.

The Tahoes are well liked by law enforcement based on my experience. The simpler V8s are very appealing to fleet managers.  The 5.0 would make this very enticing.  

I like it. Definitely one of the better looking EVs out there. Kia styling is usually appealing to me though.