Ford Vice Chair John Lawler Says Suppliers Not Engineering Upcoming EV

We’ve known for some time now that Ford has a special Skunk Works team working on developing a new, low-cost EV platform, which is set to underpin more than one future model starting in 2027 or later. This low-cost Ford EV platform will be simple in nature and lacking in terms of high-tech features like full autonomy, all with an eye toward driving down the price of those models and making them more attainable and competitive. However, it doesn’t seem as if Ford is relying on its suppliers for much of the engineering work as it pertains to these future vehicles, according to the company’s Vice Chair, John Lawler.

“If you look at the relationship with the suppliers on the Advanced EV team, it’s a whole different relationship. A lot of what’s happening in the industry with the traditional OEMs in internal combustion, it’s a lot of project management, where the suppliers are owning the engineering and such, whereas in the advanced electrification team, they’re owning the engineering and they’re working directly with the supply base on a real-time basis for design changes,” Lawler said at the 2025 AllianceBernstein Strategic Decisions Conference.

“And that’s allowing us to not overdesign the vehicle. That’s allowing us to really understand what the cost structure of that part should be, to work with that supplier on what a fair margin would be for them to produce that part, and then optimize the cost structure.”

We already know that the first Blue Oval product slated to utilize the low-cost Ford EV platform is a mid-size pickup, which could possibly resemble the ICE-powered Ford Ranger, or even use the same nameplate. It’s also long been rumored that a small crossover could appear afterward, potentially built at the Louisville Assembly plant, a facility that currently produces the Ford Escape and Lincoln Corsair. That plant is reportedly set to undergo a major retooling later this year in preparation for production of a new EV.