New Ford electric SUV spied testing ahead of 2023 reveal
New shots give us our first look at Ford's all-new EV undergoing testing ahead of a full reveal soon
These new spy shots of Ford's upcoming all-electric crossover have given us our best look yet at the Blue Oval's new machine, which is set to make its debut soon. Spotted testing at the brand's Electrification Centre in Cologne, despite wearing heavy camouflage we an still make out some of the styling details of the brand's new challenger in the family SUV class.
A deep, wide grille is obvious under the disruption pattern, with the car's high, wide-set headlight units flanking this. They could be linked by an LED strip, as our exclusive preview images show (click the main image above to view our gallery on the car), while at the rear the new machine will feature chunky tail-light units and a tailgate spoiler. The solid look will be reinforced by bold surfaces, which we'll get to see when the covers come off as, potentially as early as March.
Ford's mid-size SUV will likely be similar in size to the Volkswagen ID.4, because it's based on the same VW-derived MEB platform for electric cars as a result of a tie-up between the two brands. The MEB architecture can currently accommodate a battery up to 77kWh, and Ford says that its new model will be capable of travelling 311 miles on a full charge.
The platform can also be used for both rear and four-wheel drive configurations, with outputs between 146bhp and 295bhp for the most powerful all-wheel drive models.
This new car will be the first model from Ford's new line-up of electric cars in Europe after the brand revealed a new ‘start-up’ business unit called Ford Model e, which will deliver three new electric SUVs by 2024. Along with the new model pictured, the agreement Ford signed with Volkswagen Group to secure access to VW’s MEB platform for electric cars will extend to two of these models – a five-seat, mid-size SUV (the car our spy photographers have caught testing) and a sportier crossover.
These will be built at the firm’s Cologne factory, which is currently undergoing a £1.5billion transformation from being the home of the Fiesta supermini (which will cease production in June this year) to an electric car factory with an on-site battery assembly plant. The other new EV will be an electric version of the Puma crossover.
As the spy shots and our exclusive preview images show, the new SUV will give us our first glimpse at Ford’s all-new design language for EVs when it arrives, and will have a smaller footprint than the brand's existing electric SUV, the Mustang Mach-E.
The second electric model from Cologne will arrive in 2024, described by the brand as a ‘sports crossover’, which it previously teased with another new lighting signature. Like the Volkswagen ID.5, it will likely be positioned as a sleeker version of its SUV relative. And despite the shared underpinnings, former Ford of Europe boss Stuart Rowley told Auto Express last year that he is confident these new SUVs will separate themselves from Volkswagen’s offerings out on the road: “Let me assure you, these products will absolutely look and drive like Fords.”
Following these two purpose-made EVs will be an electric version of the brand’s big-selling Puma crossover, of which 130,000 were sold across Europe in 2020; the Puma also took fourth spot for registrations in the UK last year. It will be built in Romania, with production capacity made available in the absence of the soon-to-be-axed EcoSport crossover. No technical details have been confirmed, but to rival the likes of the Peugeot e-2008 a range of more than 200 miles will be necessary.
Alongside its electric passenger car announcement last year, Ford also confirmed that four new-generation electric commercial vehicles will be available in Europe by 2024.
Click here to read our in-depth review of the Ford Mustang Mach-E...
