Ford to expand profitable truck lineup with new small Maverick pickup
DETROIT - Ford Motor will expand its highly profitable truck lineup with a new small pickup called the Maverick, the company confirmed Thursday.
The compact vehicle is expected to be smaller than Ford's F-150 full-size pickup as well as its mid-sized Ranger. This is the U.S. May be one of the smallest and cheapest pickups in the U.S., filling a void for some buyers as trucks become increasingly large and valuable.
"We think there's some opportunity there because of how expensive trucks have gotten, how big they got and the overall popularity of the trucks," said Michelle Krebs, executive analyst at Cox Automotive.
The pickup is being produced alongside the company's new Ford Bronco sport SUV at Ford's Hermosillo plant in Mexico.
The Maverick is expected to go on sale by the end of this year, though a Ford spokesperson declined to comment on additional details of the vehicle other than its name and its unveiling next week.
“Months of rumours, spy shots and speculation have led to this moment. It's true – Ford is adding a new small pickup to the lineup, and it's called the Maverick," Ford said in a release.
According to the company, Maverick will debut Tuesday on its Instagram and TikTok channels, as well as Ford's social media and Hulu with the help of actress Gabrielle Union.
Automakers have largely offered compact pickups in international markets, leading to the U.S. market for larger trucks. According to Krebs, the vehicle could help Ford attract new customers, especially on the West Coast, where smaller pickups and non-domestic brands tend to do well.
For the first time on Thursday, Ford has confirmed the vehicle as well as its name. It comes a week after Ford's stock price dropped by $15 per share for the first time since 2015, following its inaugural investor day under CEO Jim Farley.
The event focused on Farley's new "Ford+" plan to spin off its operations and expand into emerging markets such as connected vehicles and subscription services.
During the incident the Maverick was referred to as a new unnamed "white space product" that would have a better profit margin than the Ford Fusion sedan, which had previously been produced at the plant.
The name Maverick is not new to Ford. It produced a two-door sedan with this name from 1969 to 1979. The company also used the Maverick name in Australia, China and Europe for several vehicles.
Analysts have said that the Maverick should be priced significantly lower than the Ford Ranger and other mid-size pickups to be competitive in the US market. The two-door version of the Ranger starts at around $25,000. According to Ford's website, the four-door model starts at around $27,000.
According to Ford, additional details about the Maverick will be released during the vehicle's unveiling next week.