Understanding the Ford Power Promise
You’ve read headlines touting a major slowdown in EV sales, hailing a pivot to hybrids, and tallying cancelled EV programs (like Ford’s electric three-row SUV). Well, Ford’s throwing a hail-Mary pass called the Ford Power Promise. Its goal is to convert a crowd of known EV intenders into buyers by combatting their primary misgivings, which Ford aggregates under the rubric of “change anxiety.”
Home Charging Is Cost-Prohibitive
Not with the Ford Power Promise: Every purchase or lease of a new Ford F-150 Lightning, Mustang Mach-E, or E-Transit will now include a free Ford Charge Station Pro home charger, including free “standard installation.” The terms here are generous: Included are up to 80 feet of wire of sufficient gauge to support 60 amps of current. The charger must mount to or within the same residential single-family home/duplex/condo/townhome building housing the electrical service panel, and the home must have sufficient incoming electrical service to support a charger. The owner will be on the hook for upgrading the incoming service or trenching to a detached garage, and they can elect to upgrade the amperage (80-amp charging is supported by this charger). Bi-directional (vehicle-to-home, or grid) capability is not included (the necessary hardware adds $3,895, and installation costs may also rise).
Charging Takes Way Longer Than Gassing Up
Yeah, but who cares when you’re at home while the vehicle is charging? Ford’s research suggests that its owners do more than 80 percent of their charging at home. That jibes with research suggesting that the average American only drives farther than 150 miles about four days per year. On those road-tripping days, the Ford Power Promise points out that its owners have access to the largest public charging network in North America, which now includes more than 15,000 Tesla fast chargers, with more being added every week. And as for time-efficiency, anyone with at-home charging who takes fewer than six long trips per year will spend less time refueling their EV than they would an ICE vehicle.
If the Battery Dies, My Car Is Totaled
Abundant third-party research now suggests that the average new EV battery loses less than 2 percent of its capacity per year. For those still worried, the Ford Power Promise still includes an 8-year/100,000-mile battery warranty that will replace the high-voltage battery if capacity drops below 70 percent of its original capacity. (Statistics suggest that should take 15 years.)
EVs Are Too Expensive
Yep. Batteries are pricey, so most electric vehicles for sale up until now have skewed higher in the price range. However, affordable variants exist and the Ford Power Promise points to maintenance costs that are 27 percent lower than an equivalent combustion Ford—that’s in marked contrast to the perception among EV intenders polled, who reported thinking EVs cost 9 percent more to maintain.
What If I Run Out of Juice?
Another leg of the Ford Power Promise is an enhanced 24/7 electric vehicle live support network that owners can reach out to with any problems, questions, or concerns. They can also opt in to a program that allows their vehicle to report problems such as critically low battery state-of-charge levels, allowing Ford to proactively intervene. Say you’re traveling, the charger you banked on using is kaput, and the next closest one might be out of range. Ford can scramble a tow-truck even before you know you need it.
