Ford and Renault to launch two affordable electric cars in 2028

Ford and Renault plan affordable electric cars

Ford has identified a route to bringing two reasonably priced electric cars to market quickly. The first is expected to be an electric Fiesta-style model: it will wear Ford styling, use Renault’s Ampr architecture - the basis of the R5 and R4 - and be assembled at Renault’s factory in northern France.

The car is anticipated to reach showrooms in early 2028, a little more than two years from now. That rapid timetable is achievable because both the factory and the platform are already operational. French production, potentially supported by Renault’s locally made batteries, should also help Ford qualify for whatever incentives and avoid whatever tariffs Britain and European nations have in place by then.

Ford is stressing that the model will deliver Ford-like driving dynamics and use Ford’s own digital interface. In other words, it should differ more from the R5 than the Nissan Micra does, despite the Micra also being produced at Renault’s factory.

The Renault partnership announced today covers two Ford models arriving in 2028. Ford will not yet reveal the identity of the second vehicle. Officially, it is not even confirming that the first car will be a supermini, although our source did not challenge the suggestion that a supermini is both the clearest and most urgently needed place to begin.

A possible Ford Puma successor

A crossover would be the logical choice for the second EV. The Puma Gen-E will only be four years old by 2028, yet the petrol Puma on which it is based will have been on sale for nine years. Ford could therefore replace the Puma Gen-E with an Ampr-based vehicle, while replacing the petrol Puma with a model built in one of its own factories. The Puma is currently manufactured in Romania.

The announcement is not limited to electric cars, either. It stated: "A new generation of multi-energy vehicles will arrive starting in 2028."

This could indicate that Ford is at last shaping a plan to halt years of contraction in its European passenger-car line-up. Addressing the affordable EV shortfall is pressing, but it is far from the sole requirement. Focus production has finished, leaving Ford with a disjointed and seriously depleted range.

Its least expensive offerings are the Puma, available as a hybrid or EV, followed by the Kuga in petrol, hybrid and PHEV forms. Above those sit the Mustang sports car, several converted Transit people carriers in different sizes, and no fewer than three relatively large electric crossovers: the Explorer, Capri and Mustang Mach-E.

The omissions are significant. Ford has no city car, no supermini with either ICE or EV power, no medium-sized hatchback, no estate car and no larger petrol or diesel crossover.

Gaps in Ford’s European range

Ford also requires an EV positioned between the Puma and Explorer. One possibility, though it remains unconfirmed, is the new Ford EV platform being created by a Ford engineering team headed by Doug Field, previously leader of Apple’s car project. However, that platform is at least a couple of years behind the Renault collaboration. There is also no commitment to fund its production at Ford’s Valencia factory in Spain, where the Kuga is built.

It is notable that Ford has chosen not to expand its Volkswagen partnership into smaller cars, despite using VW’s MEB platform for the Explorer and Capri and despite Volkswagen nearing production of its small EVs. Ford builds the Explorer and Capri at its Cologne factory in Germany, but sales have not matched Ford’s expectations. The plant has recently lost a shift and shed jobs. Producing smaller electric Fords there would require additional investment, making Renault production potentially the less risky route.

Part of Ford’s difficulty is that, while its light-van and pick-up dealers are performing strongly, many of its car dealerships have switched to new Chinese brands. Fewer retailers mean fewer vehicle sales. Ford has a much smaller presence than it once enjoyed, and it has alienated customers of the Fiesta and Focus. Whether those buyers will return remains to be seen.

Today’s statement offers very few concrete details about the vehicles and makes clear that they will not be entirely Ford-developed cars. Even so, it confirms that new Ford passenger cars are coming to Europe. For a time, it appeared that vans with windows might be the main thing left.