Rewind a few years and Ford, like most of its rivals, charged full speed into the electric future. The goal was clear: catch up to Tesla and help turn the U.S. into a thriving hub for EV innovation. Fast forward to today, and the future looks very different.

Read: Jim Farley Warns Europe It’s Selling Its Future To Chinese Carmakers

Much of Ford’s early EV effort hinged on the F-150 Lightning. Promoted by some as a cornerstone of the brand’s future, and initially the most affordable electric pickup in the States, the Lightning carried a lot of weight on its metaphorical bed.

But just three years after it launched, Ford has pulled the plug. CEO Jim Farley recently confirmed that part of the reason comes down to simple economics: buyers aren’t lining up for EVs priced north of $50,000.

Are Expensive EVs the Problem?

During an interview with CNBC, Farley addressed Ford’s announcement that it will take a $19.5 billion charge in 2026, tied to its decision to pivot away from EVs and refocus on internal combustion models. According to him, the company’s electric lineup simply wasn’t aligned with what buyers actually want.

“More importantly, the very high-end EVs, the $50,000, $60,000, $70,000, and $80,000 vehicles, they just weren’t selling,” Farley said.

Back in 2021, when the F-150 Lightning was first revealed, the base price came in at a relatively digestible $39,974. But that didn’t last for long, as the Blue Oval made a series of price hikes. By 2025, the base model had swollen to $54,780, an increase of nearly 37 percent, pushing it out of reach for many of the truck buyers it was originally meant to appeal to.

Hybrids In Focus

While Ford is now shifting its focus away from EVs, that doesn’t mean it’s done with electric motors and battery packs. During the same interview, Farley said that the company is committed to “following customers to where the market is, not where people thought it was going to be, but to where it is today.”

As such, Ford will start to prioritize hybrid and extended-range EV models. There will be a “whole lineup” of new hybrid models, including a hybrid Bronco. Farley also pointed out that Ford has quietly secured the number three spot in U.S. hybrid sales, and dominates the hybrid truck space with an estimated 80 percent market share.

Farley added that the company expects its electric Model E division to reach profitability in 2029, three years later than initially expected. By 2030, he still expects half of Ford’s global sales to be electrified vehicles. But most of those, he clarified, will be hybrids and extended-range electrics, not pure battery EVs.

Ford’s future product roadmap has gotten messy as the company has killed or delayed a number of upcoming models. Most of these have been fully electric as the automaker axed their three-row EVs and recently halted F-150 Lightning production – at least temporarily.

Amid this chaos, Ford isn’t throwing in the towel on EVs. Quite the opposite as the company is working on a mid-size truck that will be launched in 2027 and ride on the all-new Universal EV Platform. The latter will eventually underpin a “family of affordable vehicles.”

More: Ford Gives Taurus And Mondeo A Mustang Glow-Up For 2026

That family could include a rear-wheel drive, high-performance sedan that would be affordable. Ford CEO Jim Farley hinted at the car in a recently posted video, which was taken a few months ago at Monterey Car Week.

Return of the Sedan?

The executive didn’t say much about it, but implied the mysterious model has a clean silhouette as well as a “cool closure” system in the back, which enables it to carry a lot of stuff. This suggests the car could be a liftback sedan, which would broaden its appeal in the crossover era.

Little else is known about the vehicle, but Ford has been hinting at a Mustang sedan since 2022. The company also reportedly showed dealers a rendering in 2024 and this could presumably be what Farley is talking about.

Also: This Is An Official Ford Mustang Sedan Sketch And We Love It

While that remains unclear, the executive said “There’s definitely a market for sedans, a huge market.” However, he said their previous generations of sedans failed in America because they were built on European platforms to European standards. This resulted in expensive cars, which cost the company a lot of money.

Fusion Died So Bronco and Maverick Could Live

Farley went on to point out that the Bronco and Maverick never would have happened if they continued making the Fusion. As he explained, they took the money from cars to invest it elsewhere. This has proven to be a wise move and Ford has focused on the “sweet zone” with Broncos, Mustangs, and Raptors.

Elsewhere in the interview, Farley shared praise for the Xiaomi SU7. He also talked about his dream of doing an off-road supercar. 

We’ve covered the latter before, but in this interview he described it as a WRC [World Rally Championship] car for four people as well as something like a Raptor R without a pickup bed. He went on to say the model would be partially electric and have 1,000 hp (746 kW / 1,014 PS).

Of course, it’s all just a lot of talk at this point and Ford has been having problems executing their vision. Besides botched EV plans in America, the company’s European turnaround has stumbled with rebadged VWs. This is on top of 138 recalls and counting.

Shortly after introducing range-extended and fully electric versions of the Bronco Basecamp in China, Ford opened the order books for its newest off-road offering. While most eyes may still be on the familiar Bronco lineup in the West, this China-market version makes a strong case of its own.

Read: Ford’s Electrified Bronco Arrives In China With A Pop Up Roof Surprise

As we’ve come to expect from pretty much all new cars sold in China, the electrified Bronco is affordable by Western standards and is bound to make some US buyers feel stewing.

Although it bears more than a passing resemblance to a scaled-up and refreshed Bronco Sport, the Basecamp wasn’t drawn from the same blueprint. Instead, it was developed through Ford’s joint venture with Jiangling Motors Corporation (JMC), which has increasingly become the brand’s partner of choice for locally tailored models.

Ford’s foothold in China has eroded significantly over the past decade, with annual sales dropping from over 1.2 million units in 2014 to fewer than 200,000 last year. A model like this, combining familiar design cues with drivetrain options built to local tastes, might just help reverse that disastrous slide.

What Do You Get For The Money?

Ford has confirmed the new Bronco Basecamp will start at 229,800 yuan ($32,300), topping out at 282,800 yuan ($39,800). That pricing roughly mirrors the smaller Bronco Sport sold in the US, which starts at $31,695 and tops out at $40,115 before delivery charges and taxes. But in China, buyers get significantly more than just a roomier body.

Where the American Bronco Sport comes with either a 1.5-liter turbo three-cylinder or a 2.0-liter turbo four, the Basecamp goes fully electric with a 105.4 kWh battery and twin motors generating 445 hp. On a full charge, it’s rated for up to 404 miles (650 km).

Then there’s the range-extender version. This alternative setup pairs a 1.5-liter turbocharged engine with dual electric motors and a 43.7 kWh battery pack. The result is 416 hp and a claimed 137 miles (220 km) of electric-only range. Thanks to the engine topping up the battery as needed, total driving range stretches to 758 miles (1,220 km) on China’s optimistic CLTC cycle.

Longer, Wider, Better?

The new SUV shares its 116.1-inch (2,950 mm) wheelbase with the full-size four-door Bronco sold in the US, offering a noticeably longer body than America’s more compact Bronco Sport, which measures just 105.1 inches (2,670 mm) between the axles.

At 197.8 inches (5,025 mm) in overall length, it also outstretches both of its siblings, eclipsing the standard Bronco by over eight inches and the Bronco Sport by more than two feet.

This Chinese model is also laden with other important features. This includes a roof-mounted LiDAR as part of a suite of more than 30 sensors and cameras, enabling advanced driver assistance functions.

The cabin is also a far cry from the American Bronco and Bronco Sport and includes a 15.6-inch infotainment display, a digital gauge cluster, and a 70-inch head-up display.

It might not wear the Bronco badge in quite the same spirit as the American original, but for China’s EV-hungry buyers, that may not matter much. For now, Ford has no plans to export the Bronco Basecamp, and even if that changes, North America almost certainly won’t be on the list.

Ford is widening the reach of its “hands-off” driving tech, showing just how quickly features once kept for top-tier models are filtering into everyday vehicles. BlueCruise now targets the brand’s most accessible SUVs in Europe, giving buyers a taste of advanced driver assistance without having to climb the price ladder.

Besides the Puma and the fully electric Puma Gen-E, the system will soon be offered on the Kuga compact SUV and the Ranger PHEV midsize pickup as part of an optional Driver Assistance Pack.

The BlueCruise made its European debut with the Mustang Mach-E in 2023, before gradually expanding from the UK to 16 countries across the continent.

More: Ford Racing Is Readying A Secret ‘Road Car’ For January

Starting from spring 2026, Ford’s small and compact SUVs and its midsize pickup will also be offered with the hands-free system. That leaves only the VW-based Capri and Explorer EVs, the Transit/Tourneo range, and the ICE Mustang without access to the technology.

The BlueCruise, which is based on the Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control, allows the driver to take their hands off the wheel while keeping their eyes on the road. It manages acceleration, braking, and steering, with cameras and sensors monitoring traffic, lane markings, and even the driver’s gaze and head position to ensure attentiveness.

More: Ford’s Ranger Street Truck Just Got Louder And Greener With New PHEV Punch

In Europe, the BlueCruise can be activated on over 135,000 km (84,000 miles) of highways, which are marked as “Blue Zones”. For example, one could use it to travel from Stockholm to Rome, covering 2,000 km (1,500 miles) across six countries and totaling around 25 hours of hands-free driving.

Globally, Ford and Lincoln owners have logged over 888 million km (552 million miles) using BlueCruise-equipped vehicles. However, the majority of those were most likely covered in North America.

The company says that the tech will be available in “selected new model year vehicles” of the Puma, Puma Gen-E, Kuga, and Ranger PHEV starting in spring 2026. Subscription options and pricing for the Driver Assistance Pack will be announced closer to that date.

The BlueCruise is currently available in select European markets, including Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and Sweden.