The automaker is combining its industrial know-how with a start-up mentality to create the new Ford Universal EV Production System, reported to radically simplify vehicle assembly for safety, quality, and speed.
LOUISVILLE, Ky.—In August, Ford Motor Company said in a company release that it is again taking what it called “a revolutionary leap forward in engineering and manufacturing to bring a new family of affordable, high-quality electric vehicles within reach for millions around the world.”
According to Ford, the new Ford Universal EV Platform and Ford Universal EV Production System introduced in August were created by a “team that combines the discipline, expertise, and scale of a company with 122 years of experience with the speed, innovation, and first-principles thinking of a California-based electric vehicle hardware and software skunkworks team.”
The result, the company said, is a simple, efficient, and flexible ecosystem to deliver a family of affordable, electric, software-defined vehicles. First up is a midsize, four-door electric pickup that will be assembled at Ford’s Louisville Assembly Plant for the U.S. and export markets. Its launch is scheduled for 2027, the release stated.
“We took a radical approach to a very hard challenge: Create affordable vehicles that delight customers in every way that matters—design, innovation, flexibility, space, driving pleasure, and cost of ownership—and do it with American workers,” said Ford President and CEO Jim Farley, in a statement.
“We have all lived through far too many ‘good college tries’ by Detroit automakers to make affordable vehicles that end up with idled plants, layoffs, and uncertainty,” he continued. “So, this had to be a strong, sustainable, and profitable business. From Day 1, we knew there was no incremental path to success. We empowered a tiny skunkworks team three time zones away from Detroit. We tore up the moving assembly line concept and designed a better one. And we found a path to be the first automaker to make prismatic LFP batteries in the U.S.”
The Ford Universal EV Platform
The numbers tell the story, Farley said. The platform is reported to reduce parts by 20 percent versus a typical vehicle, resulting in 25 percent fewer fasteners, 40 percent fewer workstations dock-to-dock in the plant, and 15 percent faster assembly time. It is also said to enable a lower cost of ownership over five years than a three-year-old used Tesla Model Y.
For example, the wiring harness in the new midsize truck will reportedly be more than 4,000 feet (1.3 kilometers) shorter and 10 kilograms lighter than the one used in Ford’s first-generation electric SUV. In addition, lithium iron phosphate (LFP) prismatic batteries enable space and weight savings while delivering cost reduction and durability for customers.
Doug Field, the chief EV, digital, and design officer at Ford Motor Company, speaks at Louisville Assembly Plant as Ford shares its plans to design and assemble breakthrough electric vehicles in America on August 11, 2025. (Image courtesy Ford Motor Company)
“The platform’s cobalt-free and nickel-free LFP battery pack is a structural sub-assembly that also serves as the vehicle’s floor,” the release stated. “This low center of gravity improves handling, creates a quiet cabin, and provides a surprising amount of interior space.”
The new midsize truck is forecast to provide more passenger room than the latest Toyota RAV4, “even before you include the frunk and the truck bed,” the automaker said in the release. “You can lock your surfboards or other gear in that bed—no roof rack or trailer hitch racks required.”
It’s not just about space and utility, however. The electric vehicle platform—with a low center of gravity from the battery, instant torque from electric motors, and obsessive chassis engineering—will make the midsize truck fun to drive, according to Ford. The truck will have a targeted 0-60 time as fast as a Mustang EcoBoost, with more downforce.
“We took inspiration from the Model T—the universal car that changed the world,” said Doug Field, Ford chief EV, digital, and design officer, in a statement. “We assembled a really brilliant collection of minds across Ford and unleashed them to find new solutions to old problems. We applied first‑principles engineering, pushing to the limits of physics to make it fun to drive and compete on affordability. Our new zonal electric architecture unlocks capabilities the industry has never seen. This isn’t a stripped‑down, old‑school vehicle.”
Additional specifications for the midsize electric truck, including reveal date, starting price, EPA-estimated battery range, battery sizes, and charge times, will be disclosed later, the company said.
The Ford Universal EV Production System
The Ford team is said to have obsessed about efficiency in manufacturing, transforming the traditional assembly line into an “assembly tree.” Instead of one long conveyor, three sub-assemblies run down their own lines simultaneously and then join together.
Louisville Assembly Plant employees and others listen as Ford shares its plans to design and assemble breakthrough electric vehicles in America on August 11, 2025. (Image courtesy Ford Motor Company)
“Large single-piece aluminum unicastings replace dozens of smaller parts, enabling the front and rear of the vehicle to be assembled separately,” according to the release. “The front and rear are then combined with the third sub-assembly, the structural battery, which is independently assembled with seats, consoles, and carpeting, to form the vehicle.”
Parts reach operators by traveling down the assembly tree in a kit. All fasteners, scanners, and power tools required for the job are included in the kit, in the correct orientation for use. The Ford Universal EV Production System is said to dramatically improve ergonomics for employees by reducing twisting, reaching, and bending, allowing them to focus on the job at hand.
Because of the integration between the Ford Universal EV Production System and Platform, the assembly of the midsize electric truck could be up to 40 percent faster than Louisville Assembly Plant’s current vehicles. Some of that time will be reinvested into insourcing and automation to improve quality and cost, ultimately netting a 15 percent improvement in speed, according to Ford.
“We put our employees at the center and re-created the factory from scratch,” said Bryce Currie, Ford vice president, Americas Manufacturing, in the release. “We live and breathe continuous improvement, but sometimes you need a dramatic leap forward. We expect ergonomic breakthroughs and complexity reduction—through elimination of parts, connectors, and wire—will flow through to significant quality and cost wins.”
Continued Investment in American Manufacturing
Ford said it is building on its strong legacy of investing in U.S. vehicle assembly. It is planning to invest nearly $2 billion in the Louisville Assembly Plant to assemble the midsize electric truck, securing some 2,200 hourly jobs. The project is supported by an incentive offer from the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority.
“Today, Ford and Team Kentucky are introducing the world to the future of automotive production with nearly $2 billion being invested to transform the Louisville Assembly Plant, which will also secure 2,200 jobs for Kentuckians,” said Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, in a statement. “This announcement not only represents one of the largest investments on record in our state, it also boosts Kentucky’s position at the center of EV-related innovation and solidifies Louisville Assembly Plant as an important part of Ford’s future. Thanks to Ford’s leaders for their continued faith in Kentucky and our incredible workforce. Ford and Kentucky have been a tremendous team for more than 100 years, and that partnership has never been stronger than it is today.”
Bryce Currie, Ford vice president, Americas Manufacturing, speaks during the launch event to introduce the new Ford Universal EV Platform and Ford Universal EV Production System at Louisville Assembly Plant on August 11, 2025. Louisville Assembly Plant will assemble the platform’s first vehicle—a midsize four-door electric pickup. (Image courtesy Ford Motor Company)
Ford is planning to expand the Louisville Assembly Plant by 52,000 square feet to move material more efficiently. Digital infrastructure upgrades are expected to give the Louisville Assembly Plant “the fastest network with the most access points out of any Ford plant globally, enabling more quality scans,” the company said.
Ford’s investment in the Louisville Assembly Plant is in addition to its previously announced $3 billion investment in BlueOval Battery Park Michigan, which will build the prismatic LFP batteries for the midsize electric truck starting in 2026. Together, the investments total approximately $5 billion. Between the two plants, Ford said it expects to “create or secure nearly 4,000 direct jobs while strengthening the domestic supply chain with dozens of new U.S.-based suppliers.”