- Jim Farley says BEVs are a “terrible solution” for some.
- He added there’s a possibility the answer could be hydrogen or sustainable fuels.
- Ford will continue to build the V8-powered Mustang for as long as possible.
Ford chief executive Jim Farley says he’s unsure if electric vehicles will be the only option in 2035 and is open to other powertrain solutions.
Farley was recently in the UK to attend the 81st Goodwood Members’ Meeting. While there, he raced a classic Mustang 289 V8 in the Ken Miles Cup, staged to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the iconic pony car. During the event, Farley spoke with Autocar and was asked if the ICE Mustang would be dead by 2035, the date when much of the world will go all-electric.
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“Are you sure?” Farley responded. “I don’t think we know. When you need a Transit for your work, or you’re a rancher with a pick-up in the US, electric power is a terrible solution – and even the most radical, decarbonizing politician can’t afford to be on the wrong side of the customers.”
“Maybe the solution will be hydrogen. Or the sustainable fuels thing is coming along. Whenever someone starts telling me they know the future, I hear a warning buzzer in my head. There are no certainties in our industry. I’ve heard this stuff a thousand times: every car’s going electric, every car’s going hydrogen, every car’s going diesel. There have been a lot of blind alleys.”
Unlike Dodge which has morphed the latest-generation Charger into a muscle car available with a battery-electric powertrain, Farley says Ford will never make “a Mustang that’s not a Mustang,” meaning not even the Mustang Mach-E can replace and kill off the ICE model. He added Ford will keep the V8 Mustang in its range for as long as possible and believes that if its fleet business is strong, it can continue to offer special cars like it.
In his interview with Autocar, Farley added that the expensive Mustang GTD is a “down payment” for the Mustang’s future and that Ford will continue to sell desirable cars that are attainable.
