When someone buys a pickup truck they hopefully need it for their businesses and are willing to pay a premium price for it because all the makers of pickup trucks make a healthy profit on the vehicle. In many ways, the trucks keep the automakers in business. Technology changes and innovation still rules the production lines but other vehicles maybe in demand.

In an article by Neal E Boudette of the New York Times News Service, just 4 years ago, Ford seemed ready to give Tesla a real run on EV vehicles. Ford delivered the Mustang Mach-E, a EV truck and van. Then the growth stopped.

At the same time, higher material costs made it harder for established carmakers to make money on electric vehicles.

Ford has lost $12 billion in the last 2 1/2 years including $2.2 billion the first half of this year. Ford is still make money from the internal combustion engines, the first half of the year was $757 million versus $2.1 billion in 2024.

When a company loses money like that, a new plan is needed and was announced. Ford has developed new, lower-cost EV components that will allow it to sell more affordable cars. The new pickup truck will sell for $30,000 and be in showrooms in 2027.

CEO Jim Farley said the company has developed a brand new manufacturing process that should lower costs and improve quality. It was the most radical design since making the Model T.

Meanwhile the Chinese competition sell more EVs than Western manufacturers, often producing them at a fraction of European and American costs.

Besides the manufacturing process, Ford is counting on a new battery plant in Marshall, Detroit which uses lithium, iron and phosphate or LFP. The batteries do not use nickel and cobalt which makes less expensive.

The new production line in Ford’s Louisville factory to built an EV pickup truck has 3 assembly lines – one for front end, one for the back end and one for the battery pack and cab. The 3 branches are then joined into one where the 3 pieces are joined together. It should reduce time to assemble by 15%. Once the line is operation, the Louisville factory will no longer make the Ford Escape.

Linking to dividend paying stocks, if you own the auto companies in your portfolio, you would be receiving a dividend because the design of urban living in the US is dependent on the automobile. The world’s biggest consumer market needs vehicles to move around, and for a long time they were a license to print money. The famous saying by a GM executive – As GM goes, so does the US. Technology and innovation mean changes are on the horizon, but because the companies had a license to print money, they have the abilities to change. Will they still be a license to print money or will they make less? only time will tell and when you go to buy your next vehicle which one did you choose?

There are more questions than answers, till the next time – to raising questions.