The all-electric Ford Explorer has had a tough time of it. Back in 2022, WIRED was invited to a secret look at the Europe-only, all-electric Explorer which the company had been working on for some time. In March of 2023, the wraps were finally taken off, and it was announced that the US might get a version of the midsize crossover too, such was the enthusiastic response of dealers stateside to the winning design.
A brand-new factory was opened in Germany in June 2023, the Cologne EV Center, Ford’s dedicated “home of a new generation of electric vehicles.” Then, just two months later, it was announced that the sale of the Explorer EV was to be delayed until summer 2024—not ideal when the pace of advancement in EVs these days is rampant, with tech being superseded so quickly that residual values of electric cars are disastrous. By the time Ford’s EV Explorer eventually hit the roads in 2024 perhaps its biggest threat, the Kia EV3, was no longer on the horizon but just about to arrive.
In July, Ford Europe plowed on with the reveal of the Capri, a “relaunch” of the classic 1960s car that is remembered fondly for being Europe’s version of the original Mustang. If fact it was exactly the same car as the Explorer, just with a different exterior design. It seemed half-hearted, somehow, especially as both the Capri and Explorer sit on Volkswagen Group’s MEB platform—the result of a technology-sharing deal that apparently shaved two years off Ford’s development time.
Then, in August, just when Ford Europe thought the birth of its pair of EU EVs couldn’t hit any more snags, Ford announced it is stepping back from electric vehicles, with CEO Jim Farley saying that, for now, hybrids are the future for the company. Mere weeks before this, Farley proclaimed he’d been driving a Xiaomi EV in the US for six months and had been so impressed he didn’t want to give it back.
Finally, in November came the job cuts—4,000 in total in Europe—with Ford citing slowing electric sales and increased competition from China EV makers.
I’m not sure where all this leaves Ford Europe’s electric ambitions. Last month, a Ford announcement stated: “Due to the weak economic situation and lower-than-expected demand for electric cars, we are further adjusting the production program for the new Explorer and Capri. This will result in additional short-time working days at our Cologne plant in the first quarter of 2025.” But later in the announcement, Ford added that it would “offer … customers a range of ICE, hybrid, and fully electric vehicles” going forward.
What I am certain of is that the teams I met at Ford Europe were passionate about pushing toward full EV and had genuinely good ideas—but also were likely unable to avoid some bad ones. A critical look at the Explorer explains this properly.
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