Rumorpile: Lexus Working On A Smaller GS Hybrid

There's so much to digest with this: 1. This is a new way of assembling vehicles. The new production line is now a production tree with three branches that converge into one. 2. Ford has cut a lot of weight out of the platform. 4,000 fewer feet of wiring harness, 25% less fastener. Lower weight will mean more range with less battery. 3. LFP cells that are built in the US without cobalt or nickle. 4. Faster production, while overall production time will drop 15%, the assembly process will drop 40%. Ford will use some of that savings to in-source some component production. 5. 52,000 sq/ft expansion of Louisville facility. 6. Ford claims lower total cost to own than buying a 3-year old Model-Y. (I'd like to read the fine print on this one) 7. The way the components are assembled is now significantly more ergonomic, less twisting and bending for assembly workers. There was an audible gasp from someone in the crowd of assembly workers at the press event when the presenter said "You will never need to put a dash cluster through a door opening ever again". 8. The platform will allow many kinds of body styles including crossovers, sedans, and sport cars. The debut vehicle will arrive in 2027 as a mid-size truck.

Today, Ford took the wraps off its breakthrough Universal Vehicle Platform, a new EV platform intended to bring a new level of affordability to electric vehicles.  Ford is investing $5 billion in its Louisville, KY assembly plant and the BlueOval Battery Park in Michigan to bring this new platform to life. As part of this project, the Louisville plant will expand by 52,000 square feet and secure 2,200 jobs. The first UVP product will be a 4-door electric pickup with a targeted base price of $30,000 and going on sale in 2027. Ford says it will have more passenger space than a Toyota RAV-4 and be faster than an Ecoboost Mustang while having a frunk and truck bed. Ford is taking the inspiration for the Universal Vehicle Platform from the Model-T built over 100 years ago.  The idea is that Ford will have one platform that supports multiple body styles. While the first vehicle is a mid-size truck, the platform is destined to support sedans, crossovers, and sports cars. The platform reduces parts by 20%, uses 25% fewer fasteners, and 4,000 fewer feet of wiring than Ford's first-gen electric SUV, the Ford Mach-E. With this new innovation, Ford is again innovating the production line as it did with the Model-T. Instead of using a single line, Ford will move to a production tree, three parallel lines move sub-assemblies down simultaneously and then joined together mid-way through. Ford is using large, single-piece aluminum castings to allow the frond and rear of the vehicle to be assembled separately. Ford predicts that this new process will speed vehicle assembly by up to 40%. Some of that savings will be redirected to quality control for a net speed increase of 15%. The big bet Ford is making is on new prismatic LFP batteries, built in the United States.  These new batteries are cobalt-free and nickle-free, greatly increasing the sustainability of the batteries' construction.  The battery pack is structural to the vehicle, giving a lower center of gravity and greater interior space.  View full article

One of my best friends passed away, he was only 58. Flying to San Francisco the weekend of the 23rd for a celebration of life. 

Given the direction of our economy, cats and dogs will literally be on the table in a few months. I ate breakfast Sunday at a restaurant that's usually packed with a wait list, three other folks ate in the whole place with me. 2008 esque $h! storm coming.  The Salad at the little family owned restaurant I sometimes get lunch at ahs gone from $8.99 to $15.00 in three years. The inflation we are going to face is pretty epic. And we can't stop deficit spending. The world will move away from the dollar, and then the whole house of cards collapses. I hope to live in South America and watch from a distance as the whole thing burns to the ground. The decline of empire is inevitable. 

All I want is an Airbus or an Embraer wheels up headed for somewhere calm and sane. I am studying Spanish.  Explains how I am feeling.