Ford on Thursday released a teaser photo of a new electric crossover set to be unveiled in early 2023.
The crossover is the model that Ford is developing on Volkswagen Group’s modular MEB platform, designed for mainstream electric vehicles and made possible by a deal between the two automakers in 2019.
The MEB platform can be found in several vehicles, including the Volkswagen ID.4 compact crossover, which the Ford is likely to be closely matched with. Both the teaser and early spy footage of a clay model in transit point to the Ford having a more boxy design than the VW.
Volkswagen ID.4 built in Chattanooga
As with the ID.4, we can expect the Ford to offer a choice of rear-wheel drive or all-wheel drive. It’s not clear what size the battery will be, but the ID.4 will come with 62 and 82 kWh battery options, and the MEB platform supports a range of additional battery sizes.
Don’t look for the crossover to be sold in the US. Ford has only announced plans to sell it in Europe, where it will be built. Production takes place at the Ford plant in Cologne, Germany. This site is Ford’s European headquarters and Ford is investing $1 billion in electric vehicle and battery production.
Ford will eventually launch a second crossover based on the MEB platform in Europe. It’s being described as a sports crossover and will likely end up as a more coupe-like version of the first crossover, much like VW offers its ID.4 and ID.5 siblings.