How Ford Will Keep It's $30,000 Electric Truck Cheap

Ford is hard at work on its upcoming electric truck after last summer's announcement. The automaker has some bold targets for the vehicle, which will ride on the Ford Universal Electric Vehicle (UEV) platform being developed specifically for this truck and other models. Ford touts new manufacturing processes, development strategies, and an inside look at a handful of the brand's expectations for the new truck in a press release.

Ford wants serious range, speed, and practicality from its new truck

The new truck will be the first on the platform, and some lofty goals have been set. A rumored $30,000 starting price will combine with the speed of an EcoBoost Mustang and more passenger space than the current Toyota RAV4. The latter clues us into the size of the new EV, which will likely be more midsized than a compact truck.

Ford is also working hard to maintain a strict price point for the new truck, pushing development teams to chase what it calls "bounty targets." These are metrics that will convert an efficiency improvement to cost savings and boosts in the estimated range. Given the limited appetite for EVs at the moment, these are arguably the two things Ford must deliver on over all other aspects of the truck. A new manufacturing process aims to help with that, reducing the number of structural parts and fasteners needed to hold a vehicle together, instead relying on a larger frame.

Ford stresses range and battery costs

When it comes to range, Ford is working to eek every inch of it out of the new UEV platform. It's a very literal game of inches (or millimeters). Ford provides an example: even an extra millimeter increase in the truck's roof height would add more mass, necessitating a larger battery to the tune of $1.30, and the loss of around a half mile of electric range. Ford also says it shaped the roof to push air over the bed, which typically collects air from behind the cab, creating drag, and shaped bolt holes under the truck to direct air more efficiently. Mirror size has fallen by 20 percent to reduce drag further.

Battery improvements will also help with range and efficiency. The new truck should use a 400-volt battery and 48-volt architecture for greater charging speed and efficiency, but it's unlikely that even Ford has real estimates on range at this stage. With so much of the vehicle still in the design phase, things change fast. The automaker says it's doing everything it can in the name of battery efficiency, though, including a new circuit board design to reduce parts cost and wiring. Clearing the $30k price tag estimate will be tough, but Ford is making attempts to improve efficiency throughout the production process, which will at least help in hitting that target.