In order to gain a foothold in the fierce electric vehicle market, Ford Motor is planning to introduce an 800V fast charging architecture for its next-generation electric vehicles in order to catch up with competitors.
Ford CEO Jim Farley said after the release of fourth-quarter earnings that “dramatic changes” in the electric vehicle market forced the company to make changes.
Farley pointed out that the two main reasons for the change in the market structure are: first, the significant price cuts by electric vehicle manufacturers such as Tesla, and second, the large influx of capital and production capacity into the compact crossover vehicle segment, which is also Ford The market segment in which Mustang Mach-E is located is its best-selling electric vehicle market.
Although the Mach-E is the second-best-selling electric SUV behind the Tesla Model Y, rivals like the Hyundai IONIQ 5 are eating into its market share. While Mach-E sales rose 4.6% year-over-year in the fourth quarter, with 11,369 units sold, Hyundai IONIQ 5 sales surged 92% in the U.S. to 8,612 units.
Farley said the next generation of electric vehicles will have “groundbreaking efficiencies” compared to current models and be “packed with innovative features that customers will pay a premium for.”
Currently, Ford says the standard-range version of the Mach-E can be charged from 10% to 80% in 38 minutes using a DC charger with a maximum output of 107kW. The long-life version takes about 45 minutes. Based on Hyundai’s proprietary 800V E-GMP platform, the Hyundai IONIQ 5 can cut charging time in half, charging from 10% to 80% in just 18 minutes.
It is noticed that according to a new Ford patent, the company seems to be introducing 800V fast charging technology for its next-generation electric vehicles to narrow the gap with competitors.
The patent, published on February 27, 2024, is titled “Multi-voltage electrical architecture for electric vehicles.” It details the 800V fast-charging system developed by Ford for electric vehicles, which uses a multi-voltage charging circuit that includes two voltage levels: 400V and 800V.
Earlier this month, Ford’s CEO also mentioned that the company was developing a low-cost electric vehicle platform. Farley said Ford has assembled a “talented team” to do so, and while the team is small, it includes, according to Farley, “some of the best electric vehicle engineers in the world.” General Motors (GM) Chief Financial Officer Paul Jacobson said the company will save dozens of dollars by launching the next-generation Bolt EV on its Ultium platform rather than developing a separate low-cost system. One hundred million U.S. dollars.
