Ford CEO Has Been Driving a Xiaomi EV for 6 Months and ‘Doesn’t Want to Give It Up’

Ford CEO Jim Farley said successful a recent podcast interview that he’s been driving an electrical conveyance made by Chinese electronics institution Xiaomi and “doesn’t privation to springiness it up.” The model, the Xiaomi SU7, looks akin to a Porsche Panamera sedan and starts astatine astir $30,300, with the top-of-the-line variant going for astir $42,100.

“This Xiaomi car… is fantastic. They merchantability 10 thousand, 20 1000 a month,” Farley said. “I don’t similar talking astir the contention much, but we flew [an SU7] from Shanghai to Chicago and I’ve been driving it for six months now, and I don’t privation to springiness it up.”

Farley didn’t notation which mentation of the SU7 helium imported, but it’s mean for automakers to trial retired their competitors’ vehicles to amended recognize what they’re up against. Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe precocious said helium learned his pickups were being torn down by automakers successful China.

Xiaomi is champion known for making smartphones and was erstwhile referred to arsenic the “Apple of China” for its accelerated emergence successful the marketplace there. It trails Huawei contiguous but inactive remains a large subordinate successful the Chinese smartphone market. It besides sells a scope of different electronics including TVs and astute speakers which tin each enactment interoperably wrong the Xiaomi ecosystem. 

It whitethorn look unusual astatine archetypal that a handset shaper would participate the electrical car market, but it’s not that antithetic erstwhile you see that BYD, 1 of the biggest EV makers successful China, got its commencement making batteries for companies similar Motorola. Electric cars are, aft all, fundamentally smartphones connected wheels—the toughest situation to flooded for automakers has been artillery chemistry and pricing.

The SU7 is afloat integrated with Xiaomi’s different products, truthful you tin remotely power household appliances from the vehicle, for instance. Up beforehand it has a 16.1-inch infotainment surface with smartphone reflector and Xiaomi Pilot, its bundle for assisted driving. The car tin spell from 0 to 62mph successful 2.7 seconds, beating the Tesla Model 3’s clip of 3.1 seconds. Xiaomi says the modular exemplary gets 435 miles connected a charge, though that fig mightiness not beryllium reliable.

Chinese companies person been capable to execute what Ford and Tesla person not—produce inexpensive electrical cars that really marque money—thanks successful portion to the Chinese Communist Party’s EV-friendly policies and the sheer standard of its home car market. The extremity seems to beryllium to unseat the U.S. arsenic a ascendant planetary subordinate successful the aboriginal of automotive and turn China’s brushed powerfulness abroad. BYD, which astatine 1 constituent successful 2023 overtook Tesla arsenic the biggest electrical car shaper successful the world, has been focused connected increasing successful processing markets, flooding them with affordable EVs and opening factories successful places similar Brazil.

Sadly, due to the fact that of geopolitical issues, the U.S. marketplace is each but closed to Chinese automakers close now, and neither enactment seems to person an appetite to alteration that. Back successful September, the Biden medication implemented a 100% tariff connected Chinese electrical vehicles sold successful the U.S., adjacent though nary automaker from China sells vehicles here.

Even still, 1 of the cheapest Chinese EVs, the BYD Seagull EV, starts astatine conscionable $9,700—so factoring successful the tariff, $20,000 for an electrical car with an estimated scope of 190 miles is not atrocious astatine all. They’re sold successful Mexico arsenic the BYD Dolphin Mini, truthful you could thrust down southbound and drawback one, though they’re priced person to $20,000 USD there—still a bully deal.

Ford has been struggling alongside the remainder of the U.S. bequest automakers to get its EV concern disconnected the ground. Sales of EVs haven’t declined, but maturation has slowed and the bequest companies person been speedy to pare backmost their ambitions arsenic they dilatory grind towards profitability. Ford precocious canceled a three-row electrical SUV and delayed an electrical pickup motortruck until 2027. The institution reported a $1.3 cardinal nonaccomplishment successful its Model e EV part successful the archetypal 4th of 2024 and a $1.1 cardinal nonaccomplishment successful the second.

Tesla is the lone institution that has been capable to scope profitability successful EVs stateside, but CEO Elon Musk said connected an net telephone this week that the institution won’t beryllium releasing a $25,000 car arsenic galore hoped. The company’s income volition beryllium astir level successful 2024, a acold outcry from the 50% year-on-year growth that Musk predicted not that agelong ago. Musk is hoping for maturation to prime backmost up to 20 to 30% successful 2025, but the institution inactive sells acold less vehicles than companies similar Toyota.

Ultimately, gathering electrical vehicles requires important concern upfront and years of patience to spot a return. There’s a spot of a chickenhearted and ovum problem—selling a batch of EVs affordability requires important standard to thrust down costs, but selling a batch of EVs requires the cars to be, you know, affordable for capable people. Trump has said that if helium becomes president again, helium volition chopped taxation credits and different incentives supporting the EV industry. Don’t expect inexpensive Chinese EVs similar the Xiaomi SU7 successful the U.S. anytime soon.