Just yesterday we learned more about Ford’s plans for “Project T3,” which stands for “Trust The Truck,” a code name that stuck after the development team made it their rallying cry. Per Ford, the team’s main goal with the development of the Ford F-150 Lightning’s successor has been “to create a truck people can trust in the digital age – one that’s fully updatable, constantly improving, and supports towing, hauling, exportable power and endless new innovations owners will want.” Here’s what we know so far about the future Cybertruck-competitor from Ford’s media arm and from a recent Yahoo Finance interview of CEO Jim Farley.
“Project T3 is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to revolutionize America’s truck,” Ford writes in its press release. “We are melding 100 years of Ford truck know-how with a world-class electric vehicle, software, and aerodynamics talent. It will be a platform for endless innovation and capability.”
Ford President and CEO Jim Farley says the upcoming T3 is going to be a technological juggernaut. From Ford’s press release:
PJ O’Rourke once described American pickups as ‘a back porch with an engine attached.’ Well, this new truck is going to be like the Millennium Falcon – with a back porch attached,” [Farley] said. “The manufacturing process will be equally breakthrough, with radical simplicity, cost efficiency and quality technology that will make BlueOval City the modern-day equivalent of Henry Ford’s Rouge factory. A factory of the future that people from all over the world will want to tour.
Wow, this is some serious hype. But that’s nothing compared to what Farley says in this Yahoo Finance interview:
“It launches in about 30 months,” he starts. “It is a…real world vehicle…[that] will have technology no one’s every seen in any of these electric trucks,” Farley continues. “”It’ll be fully software updatable so…we can ship software to the car over the air. Your truck’s going to get better every time you get in it.”
Then things get really interesting. Farley goes on: “We think we’re going to be able to land a semi-autonomous system so you’ll be able to sleep in your truck while you’re traveling on the highway. It would be I think…the first, maybe one of the first vehicles you can do that safely in the U.S.”
“A lot of [customers] use their vehicle as an office, and to be able to do more work, bid out more jobs inside their truck while they’re commuting to the worksite is fantastic,” he continues.
When the interviewer questions Farley about how these claims are even going to be possible, the CEO responds:
On a sunny day on a highway we have the technology — we’re just finalizing it now — we took 600 engineers out of Argo, and they’ve been working on an autonomous feature that, while you’re on the highway on a sunny day (which is a lot of miles for Americans), you’ll be able to drive…that technology is right around the corner. You’ll be able to do that in this kind of truck.
Wow. These are some lofty claims. Folks will be able to sleep in their cars while it drives itself?! I know we’ve come a long way with semi-autonomous tech, but this would be a massive leap from anything we have today, including Tesla’s “Autopilot.”
Key to Ford’s plan to make this truck such a technological marvel is BlueOval City, a manufacturing plant currently being erected to build T3. Here’s what Ford has to say about the site:
With its F-150 Lightning, Ford already has shifted people’s expectations about the capability, driving enjoyment and productivity EV pickups can deliver. Ford’s Project T3 aims to further grow and reinvent the Ford truck franchise.
Ford is developing its second-generation EV truck in tandem with the all-new assembly plant, resulting in efficiencies never before possible – such as a 30 percent smaller general assembly footprint than traditional plants while delivering higher production capacity.
Meanwhile, Project T3 team members are ensuring they deliver the capability and innovation customers expect from Ford trucks with a fraction of the complexity from previous truck programs.
State-of-the-art manufacturing, software-updatable electrical architecture, next-level EV tech, and autonomous driving? Sounds familiar. Speaking of, there are still no signs from Elon on the hotly-anticipated Cybertruck’s production numbers, time frame, or price. The T3, which is expected to join the party by the fall of 2025, will be entering the EV pickup world with its Lightning brother, the Rivian R1T, the Hummer EV, and the Chevy/GMC Silverado/Sierra twins. Once a segment that hardly existed two years ago, the bleachers are filling up, quickly. If Tesla plans to grab a spot on the bench before it’s too late, it better hop on to a centralized game plan before seats run out. In the meantime, Star Wars aficionados stay tuned for the T3, put on your Han Solo-inspired costumes, and get sailing.
Images: Ford, Tesla
I guess they’re going to just skip over Level 3 autonomous driving and go right to Level 4 in 2 years time. Sure, seems plausible….
“Speaking of, there are still no signs from Elon on the hotly-anticipated Cybertruck’s production numbers, time frame, or price.”
That’s not true.
There have been plenty signs… one of which was the installation of huge stamping equipment that will be used for manufacturing the Cybertruck.
https://electrek.co/2023/03/21/tesla-delivery-second-worlds-largest-press-cybertruck-production/
As well as more ‘beta’ prototypes being seen.
https://electrek.co/2023/02/02/tesla-cybertruck-beta-prototype-spotted/
And it was mentioned by Musk that production should start this year… but in low volumes. Large-volume production will happen by next year.
https://electrek.co/2023/01/26/tesla-updates-cybertruck-production-timeline-temper-expectations/#:~:text=In%20March%202022%2C%20it%20was,to%20start%20in%20mid%2D2023.
I have no idea why the “Cybertruck” was even mentioned in this article. It was only designed to capture the fantasies of the internet tech blogger types, and it’s not even available yet. It’s certainly not the benchmark you want it to be. They can’t even figure out how to make it.
The first automaker who has a mid sized electric truck for $30k and at least a 5.5ft bed will get all my money and I’ll name my first child after them.
This Farley guy does not get it. The reason the Lightning is popular is because it is a truck that happens to be an EV. Just build a good EV that looks normal and moves people from A to B and money will flow in.
I agree that the Lightning is perhaps the most “normal” looking EV on the road today, no small part of it’s success. That said, I’m interested to see what they come up with. I’d like to see what EVs look like when they carry none of the design restrictions of the internal combustion drivetrain that they used to have. A thoughtful concept could revolutionize what we picture when we think about a truck, as opposed to being way out of left field just for the hell of it, which is like 90% of the concept of the Cybertruck.
Perhpas they should retire him to an EV Van down by the River. If it make sit there of course. 100 miles of range is sketchy to trust.
More Farley BS to appease the Wall Street crowd.
Hitch up 10k lbs, see 100-125 miles of range…
I swear anything that is advertised as OTA updatable is advertised as such partly to steal customer information to sell or to patch security issues that wouldn’t exist if the item weren’t connected in the first place, but also because they know it will be buggy as hell out of the gate and the option of OTA means they don’t have to worry about getting it right in the first place. It’s also a good way to force obsolescence in the near future by making the vehicle warranty-void or even non-functional if critical/”critical” updates (new emoji additions) aren’t performed because the customer sensibly disabled connectivity.
The Falcon was a highly personalized rat rod of a spaceship held together by the Star Wars equivalent of duct tape and baling wire. Does Farley mean their software is going to be full of bugs that fail in, ahem, interesting ways?
This sounds like computer shopping. Why should I buy one now if the one in two years is going to be better cheaper faster?
This is very true. Though for computers, it hasn’t really been the case since about 2004 that the second you bought something it was already waay outdated.
The same will likely be the case, eventually, for EVs.
“Well, this new truck is going to be like the Millennium Falcon – with a back porch attached,” [Farley] said.”
You came here in THAT thing?
You’re braver than I thought!
I don’t trust a thing that comes out of Farley’s mouth. The dude is a bag of hot air…and the next time Ford launches a new vehicle without any issues will be the first time that I can remember off the top of my head. Over promise and under deliver is the Ford way.
“Your truck’s going to get better every time you get in it.”
So what are you saying?You’re not gonna build it right first time?
FORD: Fix OTA Repair Daily
F-FIX
O-OR
R-REBBOT
D-DAILY
“You’ll be able to sleep in it” seems ill-advised at a time when others are cutting their autonomous divisions due to lack of progress and publicity about problems with certain programs.
Is he Musking? I’ve often said CEOs should be subject to the same random drug tests the blue collar workers are—and certainly spot-tested when they make statements like this.
On the highway in good weather is actually doable which is why they are saying they can do that.
“Your truck’s going to get better every time you get in it.”
Geez, I hope the hell not!
I LOVE the fact my car *does not* update or change; I like my car reliable and predictable amid the hell of traffic.
To make a point: I hate coming home to find the cable company has rearranged the cablebox OS and removed some of my most used features for ones that serve themselves better (usually ad revenue). It makes me want to switch providers, but in my area I cannot. I *can* buy a different car though … are you listening Ford?
Will there be a gas truck that I can fall asleep in? I prefer my rest to be lengthy; I wouldn’t be excited to wake up every 3 hours to recharge.
I am sure if they make everything “by wire”, you can sleep in it while the computers take care of the driving. The question is whether they have the incentive to do it.
Farley seems to be trying a bit to hard to be musk-like with his statements.
Well if they’re unveiling it in 2025 then there’s zero chance I’ll get one. Best case it won’t be in production till 2026, then there will be tons of issues with getting production going, then once its going there will be tons of massive dealer markups and dealer ransoms, then if you somehow manage to get your T3 or whatever they’re calling it it’ll probably have several recalls that take weeks to months to fix and the dealers won’t let you take your T3 back after you bring it to them and then they tell you it’ll be months till the parts will come in.
The Maverick is dealing with all of this and that’s a pickup built off of an existing platform using a ton of already existing parts. Imagine what’s going to happen with a new platform and no pre-existing parts commonality.
Part of the franchise agreement for Ford dealers to sell EVs is that they have to sell them at fixed no-haggle prices.
I see this annoucement more to counter the Dodge mid size EV annoucement more than a slight to Cybertruck. All 3 to be delivered TBD.
You’ll have to be able to sleep in it… because you’ll have to sell your house to afford it.
No problem with the new 20 year auto financing program
Since the only “car” product they have in North America is the Mustang.. if they don’t trust the truck, what else are they going to trust? Flying cars?
“Once a segment that hardly existed two years ago, the bleachers are filling up, quickly. If Tesla plans to grab a spot on the bench before it’s too late…”
A company can bring a decent EV truck to market in five years and it’s still going to be far from too late. People forget how many ICE trucks get sold relative to how many EV trucks are currently available/sold. The segment is going to keep growing for at least a decade, likely.
As for the Cybertruck, it may not matter if it ever gets sold, if viewed relative to Tesla’s stated primary goal of motivating legacy auto to sell EVs. Car companies saw the writing on the wall with the huge demand for Tesla’s cars — and the mere suggestion that Tesla had its sights set on their beloved truck market got them all crapping their pants, by all appearances. This sudden motivation to sell EV versions of their trucks looks to have come from Cybertruck’s mere announcement.
The cybertruck is a pure boondoggle and as such, won’t be too hard to compete with (ending preposition – ugh).
One will be bodied with a soft, light, relatively easy to work with rust-resistant painted metal, and the other with a hard, difficult to form, paint-less, heavier, rust-free panels with a grain that will highlight misaligned panels. Don’t even get me started on aerodynamics.
I’d place my bets on Ford.
There’s nothing wrong with prepositions at the end of a sentence. Literally nothing except some idiot decided English should be like Latin, which doesn’t have sentence-final prepositions. English isn’t Latin. Latin isn’t some “perfect” ideal to be emulated.
It’s entirely on my English major mom. It’s her fault I’m this way. I also later noticed I left an extra comma in there too, but alas, no edit yet.
For the record, I completely, entirely, and wholeheartedly agree that it’s okay to end with a preposition despite strident counter arguments from high-school English teachers. The entire point of a formal language is to convey facts and ideas and if an ending preposition most efficiently accomplishes that, then it is correct usage. But I still hear my mom every time I do it and will til the day I die. 🙂
Fellow English major here. We shall attack you with grammar, Thad.
Probably two things that jump out at me with all this.
1. This truck wasn’t exactly a secret, but I thought it was going to be an *additional* truck because we can’t stop buying trucks in North America. It wasn’t really clear, but that was an assumption I made. So, I’m a little surprised that it’s a replacement for the Lightning. I wonder what current Lightning buyers will think? Many dropped $100k on a pickup EV that now has a replacement that’s 30 months away. Yikes. I suppose we’ll find out more (i.e. will they be sold at the same time?). I also wonder if it might get easier to get a Lightning as a result…
2. I wonder if it’ll ship before the Cybertruck does. (sorry…)
Ford calls it a “sequel” to the Lightning and the “second generation” electric truck.
They might be sold at the same time, but based on those terms, it seems it will replace the Lightning.
Take a look at the Munro Lightning tear down, they give an impression that the Lightning is over built. Ford seemed to have prioritize getting it to the market and peform well before well everyone (but Cybertruck was obviously the target). It is probably not generating profit that Ford would like. I would bet new model will be optimized on cost and EV.
+1
Exactly what I was gonna say.
I can’t sleep on a moving airplane, let alone a moving vehicle. And certainly not from the driver’s seat. Vehicles should not in any way shape or form be a “tech device” until the “tech” is standardized across all brands.
All this chatter of late about the “AI” revolution scares the hell out of me. Give me a steering wheel, a go pedal, a brake pedal(.gas or electric) and leave me alone. I wanna be in charge of my travels. I already have a device in my pocket that achieves ???? % of what the automakers want to do.
I don’t mind tech that’s adjacent. Bluetooth is a good thing that I use every day, but not in my car.
The phone call/text/email can wait until I’m not controlling a 3000 pounds of metal. I go out of way to avoid the SUV infestation because I know I would lose any unpleasant interaction with them.
Nobody is stopping you from driving yourself and being awake.
True. But also, I’ll not be able to avoid sharing lanes with those who do. Worrying about drunk drivers was bad, now I’ll have to worry if the next driver rebooted their truck after the last update :-/
Not the end of the world, but no fun either.
At least drunk drivers see 2 of you. Sleeping drivers see none of you.
Try a vehice weight more like 8k+ lbs for this upcoming magical Ford POS.
I drive a Golf 2 door. In most instances I’m the smallest car on the road. And I get passed on the right every day by Suburban or some stupidity large vehicle. In the center lane.
I’m doomed if go anywhere near the interstates.
3000lbs would be an extremely light truck. The Unibody Ford Maverick pickup is over 3600lbs
“I can’t sleep on a moving airplane, let alone a moving vehicle. ”
Well maybe you need some quaaludes…
So by out cyber the cybertruck Farley is really talking out bs the Elon? Must not be a Star Wars far because the Millennium Falcon was constantly failing and needing Space Fonzie to hit the dash to get it to work. What I mostly get here is prejustification for the subscription you will need after paying over $100,000. Ford hasn’t launched a vehicle in decades that they didn’t screw up so a super, self driving pick up with stuff noone has ever seen before is what they are going to get right? Are we sure that wasn’t Musk in a fat man in a little coat Farley costume?
Yeah, a shiny new high-tech pickup has absolutely nothing in common with the Millenium Falcon. The Falcon originally was sort of a combination of a tugboat and a freighter, designed to latch onto the back of a string of containers and shove all that mass like hell. With no cargo pods to have to push, all that power could be put into going like hell. Of course, it was also old and looked like one of David’s jeeps…
My rustbucket Cummins-Dodge from 2000 is more like the Millenium Falcon — big, beat-up, and generally still able to run and work as hard or harder than plenty of newer trucks. It also requires the occasional percussive maintenance, and bystanders are known to utter, “What a hunk of junk!” or, “You came in THAT thing? You’re braver than I thought!”
6BT for the win. Our 460 Ford will probably keep burning 8MPG as long as we live, but an older Cummins Dodge is top of the list of potential replacements.
But can your dodge make the Kessel run in 12 parsecs ?
Ha I missed your reply!
Yeah but can your rust bucket do the Kessel run in 12 parceps? 🙂
The Falcon may not have looked like much, but she had where it counted, kid.
It’s also a weird analogy because the Falcon was already a freighter. It doesn’t need a back porch.