Jim Farley just got a very loud wakeup call
Ford Chairman and CEO Jim Farley has just returned from a trip to China, and he’s in a state of shock. What he has seen there has left him terrified to the point of considering the country’s auto industry as an “existential threat” to his company, and by extension, all traditional auto manufacturers.
What Farley saw on his trip has forced him to desperately redesign his strategy, to propose a radical change his company’s lukewarm approach to EVs, which could be paraphrased as: “making some EVs while still believing petrol and diesel are and will always be our main products”. As a result of which, Ford has lost several billion dollars and is way behind the EV curve.
But what did Farley see in China that freaked him out? What any observer could see, even without having to travel to the country: the largest market in the world is now a place where EVs make up 40% of sales, while a highly competitive market has honed manufacturers not just at the domestic level, but internationally.
Fully loaded EVs with ranges of more than 480 kilometers for just over $10,000 that more than hold their own against traditional brands that cost more than three times. Ford’s former partners such as Changan Automobile, which the company licensed designs to and regarded as simply a cheap manufacturer, now produce vehicles that Ford can only…
