“It’s really not a pickup,” Ford’s CEO Jim Farley told The Verge about his company’s upcoming $30,000 Universal EV Platform-based truck. Ever since The Autopian published its exclusive spy photos of a prototype, the world has been abuzz about whether or not this little vehicle is a real pickup truck, and now The Autopian’s Carbage Time podcast is here to let you know what we think. And we think: OF COURSE IT’S A PICKUP TRUCK! Also, in this episode Jason and I realize that this truck could end up being an amazing people’s car if Ford does it right.
“I would say it’s a new silhouette. What I mean by that is that it has more room than a RAV4, the best-selling passenger car in the US. That doesn’t include its frunk and pickup truck bed. It is very fast, it’s rear-wheel drive, it’s super fun to drive, and it has a digital experience that no one’s seen — at least that we’ve seen — even in China,” Farley continued in the interview on The Verge.
It’s clear Ford does not want us really even thinking about this new vehicle in the same way that we think about even the Ford Maverick. On Ford’s website, the company answers an FAQ about Maverick sizing thusly:
Q: The truck will be comparable in footprint to a Maverick, but because it is a clean-sheet EV design, the only similarity to Maverick is the size comparison.
If so, that would be amazing. The fact that Ford’s goal is a range of 300 miles on the base vehicle, at a price of $30,000, is impressive.
Unlike the Subaru Baja, the truck is going to be rear-wheel drive, per Farley. So, considering the diminutive dimensions of the truck overall (here’s our best guess at its size), the small bed, and the fact that this clearly isn’t going to have tons of off-road capability, we ask ourselves in The Autopian’s Carbage Time podcast: Is this really a truck?
Jason feels strongly that it is, citing numerous vehicles over the years that are also as small, but that are known as hard-working trucks around the globe.
Is the Suzuki Mighty Boy a truck? Of course it is! In fact, our very own Australian contributor Laurence Rogers has one in his household, and the thing is a workhorse, even with a two-foot bed.
There are tons of tiny workhorses out there, with Europe’s cutest one being the Piaggio Ape (the Ape 50 below has a little 4.5ft bed):
Japan’s workhorses are tiny Kei trucks:
And while the T360 and Acty above have 6-foot beds, the Suzuki Super Carry below has a bed with an effective bed length under 5-feet (I say “effective” because there’s a slot under the rear seats where one could slide a 6-foot board or some other slim item):
So yes, the new Ford EV truck is small, but it is still a truck:
The obvious move for a company trying to build an economical vehicle with 300 miles of range is to develop a sedan or wagon — something small frontal area, little ground clearance, and low weight. The issue — and I think Ford understands this — is that Ford hasn’t had tons of success selling sedans lately, likely in part because competition is stiff.
Ford has faced this conundrum before: How can the brand sell a fuel efficient, small vehicle that doesn’t doesn’t have to fight against the Kia K4 or VW Jetta or Toyota Corolla (or even the CR-V or Rav4 or million cars in the midsize CUV space)? The answer was a truly outside-the-box one — one that will go down in auto history as one of the most brilliant product decisions ever — the Ford Maverick. It’s a vehicle that leverages Ford’s reputation as a truck manufacturer, while offering a low-cost, efficient machine with a totally unique character when compared to the standard sedan or crossover. And because of this unique character, Ford doesn’t have to be fight to sell the vehicle for the very lowest price on the market; people want Mavericks because they’re cool.
To successfully sell an EV today, the vehicle has to be cool on its own. It can’t just be “cool for an EV.” For Tesla, the Model 3 worked because it was a Tesla — a luxury brand. Ford knew that competing with the Tesla brand would be hard, which the company named its first EV the Mustang Mach-E. Mustang, the thought went, could perhaps compete with Tesla in a way Ford maybe couldn’t. Trying to build character into an EV is critical, and building a unique, small pickup is, I think, genius. I’m very, very excited, especially if this thing is $30 big ones for 300 miles, and especially if it looks cool and has some fun, useful features.
Watch/listen to our Carbage Time podcast above to see how Jason Torchinsky and I find ourselves more and more pumped for this truck the more we think about what it could be.
The fucking ad malware on here just wiped out another comment I was typing on this absurd keypad. It happens routinely, wiping the page into FAILED TO LOAD CONTENT, just much more annoying when wasting my time typing. I wonder how many viewers are driven away before they know what your site is about, by the white page o death?
What are you viewing the site on DNF? Obviously you and at least a couple others are having issues… maybe try a different browser with an Ad Blocker Ultimate plugin if necessary.
FYI, I’m running plain-jane Windows 11 and always view the site with Opera (which is based on the same Chrome engine as some other browsers) and it has ZERO extensions/plugins. I have literally not seen a single error like you describe ever.
I know the frustration that a lost comment, lovingly crafted, can cause. Maybe try a couple of other set-ups to see if it can be better?
Thanks, Scott.
My comment was actually about car companies tanking their own products, then claiming “they don’t sell”, as Ford did with the 90s stock Ranger once they offered extend cabs, then extra doors. A friend spent months looking for a fleet model Ranger before finding one.
I’m forced to use a mobile since Microsoft keeps forcing updates that brick my laptop.
Average screen and too small keypad, fault of the phone design. I’m usually on duck duck, but I discovered autopian through the smart news app which acts like a browser. I can go directly to autopian, but casual use reverts to the app. I was subscribing, but dropped it when I couldn’t get discord to work again. The ad change happened later on that seems to be problematic. On a screen this size, simply reading with moving changing ads top and bottom is psychic torture. The death screen happens eventually without commenting too.
Opera sounds like a good idea. I’m not seeing a top ad today, had one ad scroll over my keyboard mid page, currently not replaced.
Ah, I see. I’m that weirdo who doesn’t have/use a smartphone but you have my sympathies. I passed 40 a long time ago and couldn’t imagine doing much of anything online via a tiny screen and itty bitty keyboard like the entire rest of the world does.
Though I’ve been using Win 10/11 for about 7-8 years now (on a i5 Asus laptop about that old too) and have been reasonably happy with it, I did use Ubuntu Linux on various PCs before that for a long time with almost zero agita.
I know changing OSes can be a traumatic PITA, but if you don’t really use your laptop because of Windows, maybe consider installing Ubuntu (the biggest/easiest/most popular) or some other Linux Distro. It’s free, usually runs pretty well even on the most ancient hardware, and most of the apps (tons of which are included) are also free. It’s also not a big deal to install: you DL (or can buy on eBay for a few dollars) the installer onto disk or flashkey and then reboot from that and it walks you through the install (if the machine is online, it’ll fetch and install all the recent updates too).
It’s really easy actually. I used Linux for about a decade and was thrilled, after 20someodd years w/Macs. If Microsoft eventually forces its AI-enabled nonsense into Windows w/o a way to opt out, I’ll be going back to Linux ASAP.
I will consider it.
I’ve never gotten the hang of Linux, but should try again. I have an older Mac one piece too. Not sure how useful that one is. Decent screen though.
The worst thing about the phone is that the keypad is artificially restricted, for unknown reasons. I had an LG I could max out the keypad on, then the next one wasn’t capable. Motorola bought them, then china bought them, so teeny keypad for no reason. Opposite of the early iPhones I think.
Those mythical planted iPhones before release were a real thing. A friend had one and programmed me into it. I said I didn’t know they could do that! He laughed and said they can’t! I checked and that was a year before release, and they did charge him for it. I bet he showed that phone to everyone in the Bay area.
The ads are back in the middle of the page.
Thanks
Sorry to drag this on so after this I’ll stop unless you need/want something.
I’ve run an older version of Ubuntu (16LTS) on a really old iMac (I dunno the gen but it’s got like a fat metal body with a black plastic back and an Intel CPU… maybe 12-15 years old) and it works fine. Even though it’s an old version, you can still install the most recent versions of some cross-platform apps such as Firefox, so that’s good. Of course, it’s an older CPU so it’s not super-fast, but it seems fine for regular web browsing like Autopian. It’s got an upgraded (bigger) internal hard disk and a bit more RAM than stock (I forget how much) and I think it’s a 24″ one, so the screen looks really nice like you said about yours.
I happen to still have this machine lying around with Ubuntu 16 on it. If you want it, or just want to try it, you can just have the iMac with Ubuntu already installed. I don’t use it anymore and was just keeping it as a ‘guest’ PC in case someone stays over, but everyone’s got their own phones anyway so I don’t need it.
Alternatively, you can just go download Ubuntu 16 LTS (from here: https://releases.ubuntu.com/16.04/ click the “32 bit desktop image” link on the right) using any PC that you have access to that has a DVD burner on it, and then burn that Ubuntu installer to a blank DVD, and then use that DVD to boot (just hold down the “C” key when you power it up) and the install DVD will walk you though the install (you can either wipe the internal drive to Linux, or partition it to share it with another existing OS …if sharing, backup any existing personal data you want to save just in case.
PS: I used the 32 bit of Ubuntu 16 instead of the 64 bit version because that’s the last version installable on old Intel iMacs w/o jumping through some hoops. If you have an old Mac or PC with a 64 bit CPU lying around, you can download a much more recent (maybe even the current one) 64-bit version of Ubuntu and install that instead (using the instructions above) and it will be considerably faster overall.
OK… I’ll shut up now (or at least try ;-). If you do want to have my old Ubuntu iMac, just let me know here and we can get in touch for you to pick it up (I’m sure I can find an extra keyboard and mouse for it too) if you need ’em. 🙂
PS: sorry forgot to mention, I’m in LA. 🙂
I’m always interested in learning more.
I think I have an iMac, silver metal case, suggested it’s 2010 to 2014? I have a Mac 9500 hot rodded for animation and film editing, but I think the scsi drives are missing since I moved. I hear the entry apple mini is better than its hardware would indicate. I’ve looked at tablets but the differences are bewildering.
I’m not sure how messaging works here.
I can’t get logged into discord again? I’m at morse 31 at yahoo no gaps.
Last time I was driving in LA, no one I knew was close enough to drive to.
I’ll send you an email w/my contact info and please feel free to get in touch should you find yourself in LA. I probably have a few old SCSI drives you could have too in addition to the iMac if you want ’em. Also, if you’re not using your iMac, maybe give that Ubuntu 16 installer link I posted a try when you have some time. 🙂
Just had the death page wipe out my comment to you again. So frustrating!
I’m not LA adjacent, but I am trying to get out there this year. Moved house so in recovery here. In case my email failed the suffix is yahoo dot com.
Love to hear from you and everyone else since I lose most comments here.
Is it Malware I’ve been getting this for months
I consider a lot of current advertising malware when it kills the page or reroutes me and locks me on a different page.
Even just reading, I keep getting the page killed, and get the filed to load content Page O Death. Then I have to start over. Kills comments too.
You shouldn’t be seeing any of that with the member subscription.
I don’t mind ads, per se, but ads that are active in any way are intolerable for me anyway. The problem seems to be tied to new active ads, but the more serious problems appeared after I dropped my subscription since I couldn’t get discord to work, with the new version of ads, I think.
Top and bottom of page moving ads right now.
Have you had pages freeze here too?
To be completely accurate, the page capture thing hasn’t happened here yet.
Not a complete lock.
On one site that’s always been legit, McDonald’s ads appear that lock the page.
Any attempt to bypass or remove them makes it worse. I’ve found I have to lock the page, then send it to trash before I can leave it. Sometimes it promotes Amazon, sometimes others.
Of course it’s a pickup. And yes, it’s relatively small.
However we have already established – particularly in light of the “small” trucks you noted, which are much, much smaller than this new Ford EV – that the Ford is by no means “tiny” (Which means “extremely small – diminutive – minute”, ie: smaller than small)
Compared to the Keis and such – it’s at least twice as large. Probably 3x larger is closer to correct.
So please quit with the “Tiny” when describing the Ford already.
Because it’s not.
Relatively speaking, it is indeed tiny. But I understand if, in the context of kei trucks and older pickups, you yourself don’t want to use that term. NBD either way
The silence on if the Autopian believes there is a midgate hiding under that black plastic cladding or not is deafening…
Midgategate
and this will be the singular feature that blows the Slate out of the water…especially if the cost is close
Another yawn inducing crew cab snoozefest, I will stick with a Slate with a proper two door truck.
yeah, but if this were the same cost, would you still?
Not the original poster but between the quad cab/shortbed and the inevitable giant sync screen with ads and subscriptions. I’m still buying a slate.
I’ve been burnt for the last time by ford. They would have to build exactly the vehicle I want to ever get my new car money again. And then prove that the vehicle is reliable and user serviceable.
What do you think the odds are that Ford announces the price and starts taking reservations on June 24th right after the Slate’s price is released? I like the idea of the Slate -I think- but Ford could eat their lunch.
I bet this is exactly how it will go
You would be well within the minority at this point in time. Yes the slate is a two door EV pick up truck, but the market doesn’t want a 2 door truck anymore. The modularity of the Slate is also coming at the expense of everything even standard features being extra. No power windows, an unpainted gray plastic body, no stereo system, etc. Sure you could convert it to an SUV by bolting seats in the bed and installing the caps and airbags, but then you have to store those pieces when you want a truck again. Having a four door cab means you don’t have to choose between passengers and cargo.
150 miles of range for likely around 27500-29999 is pathetic as well when the bolt and leaf both offer closer to 260-300 miles for 28-30k and are fully featured automobiles.
If the Slate was 19999 or less like the advertised price with the tax credits initially assumed in place but before incentives then it might have a chance as an urban fleet runner and for those who want the 1980s experience, but if it’s within a few thousand dollars of the Ford EV pickup truck with at least 230-300 miles of range and the features customers want it is DOA.
I already hate Ford’s new AI truck
Very hard to believe Ford is going to deliver any kind of good digital experience. Fords infotainment and app are not great, like Toyotas.
Timed out again. So a car design is not eternal. The SUV is over 30 years old. People want something different. What I have an idea. But what does the Autopian community think. Especially considering they are the people who want what the 90% of car buyer’s don’t.
5. So I can only post so much you don’t have a motor so to save weight it won’t be that long figure minivan front end designed around a COE design.
6. If the frunk can hold more than the bed it ain’t a truck.
7. Between yesterday’s story about the 4 door Thunderbird cover I am thinking a hybrid where the 2nd row of the truck can be folded down open up the back maybe a barn door so more bed room not bedroom.
8. As I stated 51% or more truck stuff or it isn’t a truck.
9. A beetle or train front end would be aerodynamic just like a minivan COE Design maybe give the Bishop a homework assignment?
Why can’t I make it through a long post before I get kicked out of the site?
Love the new feature. My take on what is a truck;
1. It needs to be road legal or it can’t do most truck stuff. So the API is a truck in Asia but not in the US.
2. IF it’s a truck over 50% of the vehicle must be dedicated to truck stuff. So small truck with a small bed truck. Big truck with 4 doors and a bed longer than the cab = truck..
3. Here 90% car 10% trunk with out a lid not a truck. Check it I can take my trunk lid off my Camry it ain’t a truck.
4. Why is Farley saying not a truck besides it’s not being a truck. My business degree says they are trying something new and don’t want 2 vehicles competing against each other and designed it that way.
Why are you calling this vehicle tiny when you have estimated it to be 15 inches longer than a 2026 RAV4?
#5 on the list (a surprise to me to) https://www.caranddriver.com/rankings/best-suvs/compact
It would be a surprise to car buyers as well.
Car magazines are out of touch with what the general public actually buys – as usual. The RAV4 (400K) outsells the Mazda CX-50, Bronco Sport, and Tiguan combined (320K)
That was Farley statement
Because it is the smallest 4 door truck in production*.
*once it’s in production.
Okay, as someone who has his $50 down on a Slate, what is keeping them from making exactly this with a standard cab and real bed? They used to make pickups with all the cab/bed combinations. What has changed?
1. Too few people want 2-door, 2-seater, non-sportscar vehicles anymore
2. This vehicles is unibody so making cab & body variations is not trivial or cheap
No families are breaking up and Miatas can’t move possessions. I predict a 2 door 2 seater is in the near future
The tiny number of regular cabs they would sell would not pay for the development and tooling to build those vehicles.
This is the same reason that no midsize pickup has a regular cab version. Simple economics.
In Europe they do. Well, almost.
https://www.gpas-cache.ford.com/guid/5cc4696f-db5d-34be-b9fa-7ef8acae3dca.png?catalogId=WAEEX-TRB-2026-RangerSouthAfricaESP202650
In Europe and other parts of the world the Ranger is used as a base for work vehicles. It is offered in a Chassis Cab configuration.
Similar to full size trucks in the USA and the reason that US manufacturers still offer full size trucks with a regular cab even though the take rate is 2%. They already build the cab so there is little incentive not to offer it to retail customers.
Why would they need retool they already have it from yesterday
The old design doesn’t meet modern standards.
The body design is not required to meet a standard. Take a modern modern and old body and you are good.
Bodies are absolutely required to meet current crash standards. They also have to meet other standards like automatic emergency braking
Because the manufacturers want to make one vehicle for everyone and that doesn’t work.
People want flexibility, and I think it’s one of the things Slate was clever about with the modularity. Most compact trucks have to be an “everything” car, carrying around an extra 30% of the wrong vehicle “just in case”.
Slate is an “anything” car. It’s a pickup truck or a 5-seat passenger vehicle, but not both at the same time. I think that’s enough, or even better, for most people.
Then it also becomes an expression of identity. “I don’t need to carry around 3+ people all the time”.
And contrary to what I posted to Mr. Hardigree elsewhere here, that modularity is what could be the thing to keep Slate going
Trucks replaced cars, even as trucks are morphing into cars. The trend is for bigger cabs, smaller beds and hard tonneau covers.
The Maverick’s cargo bed offers 33 cuft of capacity, and a Crown Vic had 20 – how long before bed sizes reduce so much that they reach the size of the trunk on a 90s full-size sedan?
People who actually buy new vehicles overwhelmingly buy 4dr trucks. A massive portion of sales for single cab trucks still being built is chassis cab configs and/or fleet sales. Individual buyers are a rounding error on the market.
What lurks under the black bonnet cape? The front bumper looks substantial, but could be foam board fake out. The side view y’all were ciphering shows the very raked A pillar. Could they have a somewhat “Probe” schnoz with pop up headlights?
The unicorn vid shows concept art where the b pillar slopes back, vertically slit headlights, and chiseled fenders.
Ford has shown a profile previously. It has a pretty rounded front end.
Regarding the Maverick, what about it makes it be regarded as so great? I skipped over much of its release, and so my understanding thus far is that it is a small pickup, and it gets good mileage, and looks more truck-y than a Santa Cruz. Also that it was originally supposed to be really cheap, but then it wasn’t by the time it arrived. Is that it? I’ve never seen one street- or parking lot parked, only spotted a 2 or 3 on the highway.
I’ve only seen two or three Mavericks out and about. I see far more Rangers.
They started cheap, but also very stripped downat 20k. The 2nd gen (25s and up) added more standard features, so though the price went up to upper 20s, you got more. Even more importantly the new gen let you select hybrid + AWD + 4k towing with tow assist. We see mid-low 30s mpg on the highway and low 40s with our loaded AWD hybrid 4k tow around town. Very versatile with the bed cover, small enough to maneuver, efficient and versatile. Hard to beat and truck enough for most users.
It was a cheap hybrid compact crossover with a bed instead of a trunk, entering a market where nobody else was selling one. Its price at launch undercut most/all compact crossovers (even excluding the standard hybrid powertrain, which is normally a $2k+ upgrade), and even after the MSRP increased in the following years it’s still one of the cheapest hybrids you can buy and still slightly undercuts non-hybrid compact crossovers.
It got you some truck utility and aesthetics without some of the major downsides (high MSRP, fuel economy, size/maneuverability, BoF ride) and the low price makes up for the major downside of not having an enclosed cargo area.
From Ford’s view – it is great because it far outsold original expectations and they had to add production capacity 3 times. It is still selling well at a MSRP $6K more than the original.
Why do people buy it? It is cheap and gets good fuel economy.
I see them all the time – both ones owned by the local parks department and also a bunch of privately owned ones. It outsells the Ranger more than 2:1
There are two on my block, including mine. I like it because it’s comfortable, hauls 4 comfortably, or me and my dogs comfortably. I bought the hybrid, and I average 40 mpg, which is 15 mpg better than the car it replaced. The bed is a bit small but it has never been an issue for me. Clearly it’s not for everyone, but for what I need as a homeowner and sort-of outdoorsy person, it works much better than the car it replaced.
Also, I paid $28K including taxes etc. which I found to be a good value given the comparable Ranger was $10K more.
Thanks, all.
I will say it is a truck, but why is it a truck?
It has a low roofline. It would look fantastic as a wagon.
Here is my particular use case for this vehicle’s slot in my lineup. I drive in the front seat. Rear seat is cargo area. That’s where the giant multipack of quadruple roll Charmin rides back from Costco. Cargo area behind the rear seats is for the dogs. I cannot do this with an open bed. I also usually have some tools in the rear seat footwell. Not that I live in the highest crime area, but even just a couple of Milwaukee batteries sitting out in the open may tempt otherwise honest folk. So the tools can’t go in the bed. The dogs can’t go in the bed.
Once a year I get bagged mulch. Maybe another two times per year I bring home a large amount of potting soil / garden soil / pea stone). These open bed would be fine for this. I don’t know the hauling capacity or bed measurements, but this doesn’t seem like I’ll be able to have someone dump a loader scoop of anything directly into the bed. So the mulch / soil / etc will still have to be bagged. Bagged stuff can be transported in anything. I’ve brought home bagged mulch and soil in a Miata.
In this configuration, I am buying a cargo bed that I will never use. That annoys me. I hope they offer a wagon version. I could live with a crossover version.
As cool as I think the Slate is, Ford is an established company. The fresh new startup should have been able to deliver more quickly than the slow-moving dinosaur. I’m curious to see where Slate’s pricing finally lands when they start taking orders this Month. Hopefully ford’s announcement has them subsidizing the first trucks to keep from flopping their first model year.
I’d wager your wagon version comes next. The hatchback-y crossover space is fairly crowded, but a wagon-by-another-name isn’t really.
They have not shown a wagon version. They did show 3 crossovers and a van based on this platform.
This thing will HOPEFULLY have a mid-gate. If it does, then you can just buy yourself a camper topper and bingo-bango-bongo, you’ve got a wagon AND a sweet-ass EV truck.
A truck cap / topper / canopy (depending on region) fixes the safe storage and dog problem while still providing a small bed for dirty things (like dogs) that can be easily hosed out.
I have no idea why, but every truck with a cap I have seen in the last 20 years is driven by a weird old dude.
I don’t want to join the club. (At least not that way.)
My grandpa had one of those on the back of his 80s Chevy. He passed away when I was 10, and instead of a hearse they put his casket in the back of the truck. You could hear it sliding around back there. I was passenger and they (for some reason) had me drive the truck through the cemetery on the way to the graveside service. Anyway that’s the story of the first time I ever drove a car, with my deceased grandfather in the bed of a pickup truck.
That is amazing, although this may be the story of more than one truck cap.
Canopies (as we call them here) are extremely popular – I have one on my Amarok, and it is awesome! Security, dryness et.
I am old, but (hopefully) not weird…
They were more popular here in the 80s, back when you could load the bed with a bunch of kids and there weren’t that many SUV options.
I feel like the few I see that still have them have been driving a truck with a cap since then. If I see a truck cap, I can guarantee a spirited conversation about Vietnam if I spoke to the driver.
Adding a topper doesn’t add climate control to the bed, so it doesn’t really give a good place for the dogs to ride.
Toppers come with windows that open. Dogs love open windows.
You could also open the rear sliding window in a typical truck and connect it to topper. My parent’s 82 Ford F-150 was set up that way and we had 6 kids in the back on longer trips. (No A/C in that truck – we relied on windows for ventilation.)
This Ford EV is also supposed to have a midgate.
I have a dog that will not go outside if it is raining, snowing, dark out, cold, hot or if she’s just not in the mood.
Un-controlled climates are not acceptable for the princess.
I have a simple defining rule: If you can throw 100 dead fish in it and not care, it’s a truck.
Every car I don’t own is a truck!
Nice!
I have a busted-ass Pathfinder that I can do this with.
Say, would you like to buy a busted-ass Pathy that smells like fish?
LOL! Maybe I should amend it to a nice vehicle that you would not mind throwing in 100 fish in the bed.
I had to use smaller fish than I would have liked, but my neighbor’s convertible 911 is now a truck. The conversion was super easy.
Torchy, Tracy, I’m soo THRILLED the pod is back. Keep it up yall! (even though Torchy is wrong about drive modes. Drive modes are the manual transmission of the ev world. Don’t take our small amount of tweak ability from us! ❤️????)
I see drive modes, and regen controlled by flappy paddles, as things carried over from IC practice that suddenly make a lot more sense the more electrified a car is.
I really like this idea, as I increasingly contemplate a world w/o manuals on anything but high end sports cars. Esp if the screens (which sadly won’t go away) can display power levels ala IndyCar racers instead of just your infotainment choices and exactly what the HVAC system is doing.
Agreed regarding drive modes, though it really depends on the vehicle. Some drive modes are useless or offer minimal delta between settings. Others work
FWIW our 2-motor AWD Ioniq 6 drives modes (ECO, NORMAL, SPORT) are quite different. ECO uses only the front motor and also cuts back on the AC a bit. Normal is quite normal and my go-to mode, and SPORT makes the whole car uber-responsive to the point where you need to watch your modulation of the go-pedal or you get into trouble quickly. It’s fun, but not for every trip.
I only drive the Ioniq 5 in sport. I miss the engagement of a manual, and the super sensitive throttle pedal comes close to making up the difference.
Ford’s Tiny $30,000 EV Pickup Totally… is not tiny.
Comparisons to the Mighty Boy or Ape are laughable.
Also being European I am not a pick up expert, but isn’t the bed ridiculously small?
The bed is small but not rediculously for what it is, assuming this has a midgate it’s probably fine.
If they stuck a 4′ bed on a half ton THAT would be rediculous.
My guess Ford is testing the “utility” limit. Americans increasingly view vehicles as primarily personal + cargo transportation pods (hence all the crossovers), and most of us live clustered around urban centers. So something that offers a fair amount of the first, is workable where we actually live, with enough of an overlay of the strong positive emotional connection that some attach to pickups, might be just the ticket to profit. It’s a thoughtful experiment for sure.
I know one place this would be an advantage, my company offers a $750/mo for use of a personal vehicle as a work truck. This would qualify as a truck and that $750 would probably cover payments and insurance to boot.
Personally I would be more excited for the van version of this truck.
Why would a midgate be assumed?
That’s a lot of engineering and production expense just to add more warranty failure points (and expense) to a low-margin vehicle.
Mainly because they covered it up in the camoed’ version.
But I’m just some guy on the internet and definitely not involved in vehicle design and production.
My Maverick has a 4.5 foot bed but you can still haul 4×8 sheets of whatever no problem. You can put the tailgate in a half-lowered position which is exactly the same level as the wheel wells in the bed. Cut a couple of 2×6 boards and lay them across into slots already molded into the bed and you have a nice flat load floor. That’s probably more than what most people will do with a Mav anyway.
It’s not a comparison; it was just proving the point that just because a vehicle is tiny, doesn’t mean it’s not a pickup.
And yeah, there are smaller trucks out there, especially historically, but this will be the smallest pickup in the U.S., and smaller than almost every 4-door pickup even globally.
The bed is small and I’m willing to bet the payload limit is quite small as well. It’s a truck only if an El Camino is a truck.
El Caminos got truck plates in Wisconsin. Now they’re old enough to get collector plates.
Are there people who think that the El Camino and friends (Ranchero, etc.) weren’t trucks!?
I called my 1978 Ranchero a pickup, though never a truck.
Weirdly, I call an F-150 both a pickup and a truck, depending on random firings in my brain at that moment. So, there’s that.
Except for being a small EV ute, there’s really nothing new about the basic idea here and that’s fine. Ford has a huge stake in its truck identity and this fits perfectly. If they can deliver on the range and price goals, I see no reason why this can’t be as big a hit as the Maverick, or close to it as EV adoption grows, especially at the lower end.
I figure down the line there will more offerings like AWD, but as projected this is a good start. I’m hoping for a midgate right from the go.
I bemoan the fact that $30k is considered a low price; however, it is an EV and looks to deliver more capability than a Leaf or a Bolt for similar money. Ford is going to have to whip the recall monster if they want it to sell, although everyone seems to recalling everything these days, so maybe not. Consequences of building complicated cars, I suppose.
What to call it? I’d stick with the western theme and call it a Burro, Donkey, Mule or Pony. But not ass. People would just call it an AssUV. We’ve had lots of vehicles with name affiliations to Texas, California, Wyoming, Alaska, the Dakotas, etc., but off the top of my head, I can’t recall any for Hawaii. They’ve got cattle ranches and cowboys, too. The Hawaiian word for horse is Lio and a donkey or mule is called Hoki. Ford Lio or Ford Hoki sounds OK to me. They’ll probably just call it a Ranchero and be done with it.
Can’t wait to see it without the disguise.
Ford Paniolo would be a fantastic choice too.
Do you mean “Palamino?”
No
Well I think it would b a great name! “He’s a pal ‘of mine mine, o.”
It is interesting Ford created the ute in Australia. Created a vehicle that made trucklet catch on and sort of defines it. This sort of combines ute and trucklet. Maybe it’s just a modern ute or mini truck. Ute is now used as a synonym for truck or pickup. One can only imagine how GM will mulletfy these concepts.
FWIW the comment about using the Mav (or any small truck) for a road trip with no place to put the luggage misses the option of adding a quality hard flip top 3 or 4 segment tonneau cover. We’ve a Leer 4-fold on our Mav. It locks against the bed, is mostly waterproof, and hides whatever is under it (luggage). Flips up nearly completely when full bed is needed. Nothing that a pry-bar won’t pop open, but better than putting stuff in the back of a SUV that is visible to thieves.
A frunk is still more secure, but a Mav with a quality hard tonneau cover makes a perfectly fine road tripper. Our hybrid gets low-mid 30s on the interstate, low 40s in town. It’s AWD and can tow 4,000 lbs. A great all-around vehicle if you’re staying with an ICE drivetrain.
Yeah lots of people use hard covers on their trucks, large and small, to make a locking, non-visible, storage area out of their bed.
So lemme get this straight. You put a hard cover on the open bed of a 4-door pickup? I think you’ve created an entirely new class of vehicle. Perhaps we should call it, I dunno, a “SEDAN”?
In many good ways it replaces a sedan, and the ‘trunk’ is huge. It can also accommodate dirty stuff and tall stuff when the flip top is (very easily) flipped back where it stows up against the rear window so the bed space is fully useful, and can fully coverup the bed and locks when down. Fits the wife’s mobility scooter if needed as well as a lawn mower, beach chairs, ice chests, fishing gear and other fun stuff.
When down and locked, the bed can also fit a pack of COSTCO toiler paper and a pack of COSTCO paper towels at the same time with room to spare for the bag of smoker pellets and the 3 gallons of Mango nectar. 🙂
Yes, because the hard cover is permanent and can never be removed, ever. ‘Tis a shame.
If you can’t discern the difference between a covered pickup bed and a sedan (or SUV if it’s a camper shell), then perhaps you’re on the wrong site. Truth Social is that way. We prefer to allow people to choose how they use their own vehicles.
Clearly you’ve never seen an old farmer remove the trunk lid from a rusty old sedan and use it to haul hay bales out to the field.
Perhaps the CEO’s take “it’s not a truck” is based on the universal design. It’s not just a truck. It is (will be)…
a truck
a cuv
a sedan
a hot hatch
a van
a high performance GT grade sports convertible with a power retractable hard top (Thunderbird? I can dream can’t I?)
Unfortunately according to a recent report by Ford Authority Ford just let the Thunderbird trademark lapse. So if they do offer a sports/convertible on this platform it is unlikely that it will revive the Thunderbird name. Or maybe they just think no one will come along and snap it up.
I mean did they really keep renewing the Maverick name for all those decades since they last used it? Or did they just say oh look no one has grabbed that name lets resurrect it?
Going back to Edsel GM and AMC snapped up the Citation and Pacer names, but somehow Corsair was still available to use on the Lincoln. Meanwhile they kept Ranger alive as a trim package until they reused as a model name.
Note they did say the platform could accomodate up to 7 body styles. Next up is a CUV and a Van is likely too. Wagon, Sedan, Hatchback and we are only at 6. Of course they could consider an extended cab pickup a different body style but that seems to leave room for a convertible or 2 seater.
Since it an EV platform they could go with Thunderbolt.
Makes sense! Afterall, Lightning comes before Thunder. 🙂
Good call.
COTD.
Don’t think Ford abandoned “Thunderbird” trademark, though did that the “Thunder” (maybe to be a trim level?) for the Maverick and F-150.
https://blueovalforums.com/forums/index.php?/topic/78992-ford-abandons-f-150-and-maverick-thunder-trademarks/
Not entirely but for use on automobiles. https://fordauthority.com/2026/06/ford-abandoned-one-thunderbird-trademark-two-years-ago/
Thanks for the info.
I wasn’t aware Ford abandoned the Thunderbird trademark.
Seems shortsighted, though I don’t have a clue as to the annual cost of maintaining a ™.
My memory, and this may be wrong, is that Ford had abandoned the “GT 40” name, and when they wanted to use it on the 2004 supercar, Ford found someone owned “GT 40” and would happily sell it for only $15M. Ford declined, and instead built the 2004 Ford GT.
I think it’s an attempt at reassuring a certain kind of guy whose whole identity is tied up in a big, V8-powered TRUCK that “They” aren’t going to take it away.
Never mind the fact that they’re the absolute highest margin vehicles made and the Detroit 3 would’ve gone out of business decades ago without that steady profit, modern conspiracy theories are well known for following the wrong money to the wrong places.
Someone at Ford saw the Slate EV trucklet and said “Hey! We can adapt the Maverick idea.” Time will tell whether they can meet the price and range goals. If they can, they might have a winner. But I have my doubts.
Why is everyone so excited about it being only $30k? Make it $20k and average working class people and first time buyers will buy as many as Ford can build.
Because they probably aren’t making $10k profit for each one.
We are being realistic.
It has a big in-house centralized compute module for doing AI. The $10k is all for VRAM.
Really just an evolution of the Ranchero, El Camino, Rampage, Rabbit pickup concept. Not to mention the countless Australian Utes. Maybe just call them Utes here too.
That’s EVolution.
I agree with this take.
I have always been indifferent about the El Camino – neither for or against in any way, although I know folks who love them (which is pretty cool in itself). But I really don’t know if folks consider them a pickup, a car, a truck, or whatever.
So, is the El Camino a pickup truck or not? If not, then perhaps Jim Farley has a point. But I think Ford will have their hands full with marketing either way.
(I hope they succeed.)
Regardless, I like the concept (so far), and could see myself buying one in the future.
Ute and Pickup are appropriate terms for unibody vehickes with pickup beds
Thing is, Ranchero and El Camino were body on frame, while the Ridgeline and Maverick are unibody. I’m not sure where the cutoff is: maybe it’s like porn – you know it when you see it. I’m proposing it is the more passenger car like windshield rake and hood height that make it a Ute. Also, Utes tend to have integrated, not seperate beds.
Oh look a 3rd speculation article this week.
Anyways, here’s Slates Warsaw factory, fired up and ready to rock
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YH3jEEDvduY
I wish them luck but that video doesn’t not show a factory that is ready to run. Slate’s projection is that they will start production in the 4th quarter.
Yeah I was going to say that looks like a factory where they are still validating the equipment and procedures. To be fair that doesn’t mean that they haven’t completed those steps and it is now ready to run.
Sure, we’re always happy to give you some speculation stories among our world-exclusive spy shots and our detailed dive into Ford’s skunkworks development facility. We’re all about providing our readers with variety.
I can totally see a fully enclosed crossover version that, with a few fairly economical styling tweaks, is within squinting distance of a hatchback car. GM’s success with the Trax and Envista, and Ford’s own Evos in China – which we were supposed to get in the states before the tariffs of 2017 even, shows the idea can work.
Ford has shown profiles of a truck, 2 row crossover, 2 row crossover “coupe”, 3 row crossover, and a van on this platform.