A new electric vehicle manufactured by Ford is set to rival Tesla with its cheaper, more advanced model that is expected to shake up the market when it launches in 2026.
The vehicle will benefit from a lithium-iron-phosphate battery and will reportedly be around 30 per cent cheaper than a Tesla.
Tesla’s next-generation electric vehicle, the Model 2, is estimated to be priced at around £21,400, making it nearly 50 per cent cheaper than previous versions.
The new Ford model is said to be followed by a similar-sized SUV, in addition to it being suited for ride-hailing services, according to Bloomberg.
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The Ford model will arrive in 2026 with a price estimated at around $25,000
FORD
Reports suggest that Ford is focusing on developing small EVs at its California plant. Although very few details have been published about the new EV, it is believed that the project is being headed up by Alan Clarke, who was the lead engineer on Tesla’s Model Y vehicle.
The Ford model will arrive in 2026 with an estimated price of around $25,000 (£19,680), a person working on the project stated to Bloomberg.
Last month, Jim Farley, CEO at Ford, said: “We have announced plans to significantly increase our electric vehicle production volumes.
“However, our ability to produce higher volumes of electric vehicles is dependent upon the availability of raw materials and other components necessary for the production of batteries, e.g lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite, and manganese, among others."
The race to electrification was primarily sparked by the UK announcing ambitious targets to get 80 per cent of new cars and 70 per cent of new vans sold to be zero emission by 2030, increasing to 100 per cent by 2035.
For manufacturers selling in the UK, if they aren't able to meet these quotas they could face a fine of £15,000 per car sold that isn't compliant.
Affordable EVs are becoming more popular as companies look to get ahead of each other on price.
Most recently, Dacia has unveiled its new electric Spring model which will be hitting UK dealerships in October with a starting price of just £14,995, making it the UK's cheapest EV.
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Tesla’s next-generation EV, the Model 2, is estimated to be priced at roughly £21,400
TESLAAs of the end of February 2024, there are now over one million electric cars on UK roads and a further 620,000 plug-in hybrids.
