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Ford planning a Gas + Range Extended EV Pickup/SUV for Calendar 2027

There was some coverage on this on other sites.

In answer to the question, the former leadership of Stellantis had an obsession with pure battery electric and hydrogen fuel cells and trashed a lot of the hybrid momentum in Auburn Hills. The new leadership has to now play catch up and mend their relationships with suppliers. My guess is Toyota will be first. Will people choose a series hybrid over the parallel PHEV systems now available?
 
I think series hybrids will move the needle where PHEV has plateaud. The issue is that ZF isn't interested in expanding production at graycourt, and STLA isn't control of their own destiny with PHEV.

STLA has control with a series hybrid setup - they own the engine, and motor production isn't constrained like transmission production currently is. I'm not sure who they will source generators form.
 
I don't know how I missed this back in November: New 8-Speed Transmission Coming To Dodge Charger SIXPACK

The PHEV transmissions presently going into the Jeep Wrangler and Grand Cherokee are Gen-3 units imported from Germany. With the 880RE transmission being built in Kokomo, I don't think production capacity will be a problem. As long as the money is good, I don't think ZF will have any problems selling Stellantis the electrical components for a PHEV version.

What is the 880RE Transmission? –
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The 880RE is Dodge’s latest in its 8-speed transmission series. Built under license from ZF Friedrichshafen AG at Stellantis’ Kokomo Transmission plant in Indiana, it has a torque rating of up to 600 lb.-ft. The new Gen4 units can pair with ICE, mild-hybrid (mHEV), and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) systems, making them a versatile choice across the Stellantis lineup.
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Source: Mopar Insiders 🤓(y)
 
patfromigh said:
I don't know how I missed this back in November: New 8-Speed Transmission Coming To Dodge Charger SIXPACK

The PHEV transmissions presently going into the Jeep Wrangler and Grand Cherokee are Gen-3 units imported from Germany. With the 880RE transmission being built in Kokomo, I don't think production capacity will be a problem. As long as the money is good, I don't think ZF will have any problems selling Stellantis the electrical components for a PHEV version.


Source: Mopar Insiders 🤓(y)
Click to expand...

They're licensing and building in-house the purely mechanical version. ZF isn't licensing the PHEV version. Same as it ever was - ZF has let FCA/STLA license mechanical variants for over a decade now. ZF keeps the good stuff (PHEV) for itself / upcharges like hell for it. Hence my earlier comment that PHEV is a dead end, and a series hybrid strategy does not have this constraint.

"The 8-speed plug-in hybrid transmission for the Jeep Wrangler 4xe is produced in Saarbrücken, Germany by ZF Friedrichshafen"
 
Here is the latest information from the ZF website. (Emphasis added)

"ZF will produce a six-digit quantity per year. The plant in Saarbrücken has already planned another assembly line. Starting in 2025, the ZF plant in Gray Court (USA) will also begin production of the new generation of electrified 8-speed automatic transmission."

ZF can charge whatever they want, but Aisin is also in the hybrid game. Remember the Durango/Aspen hybrids used Allison built transmissions, but GM tried to gouge FCA on the price. Will ZF want to play hard to get with the German auto industry in a state of collapse.
 
I'm thinking the present day Wrangler PHEV is the most likely parallel hybrid to be replaced by a series hybrid. First of all, Jeep has already stated there is going to be a range extended hybrid power train in the Wrangler/ Gladiator similar to the Ramcharger. Second, this would make the current plugin option redundant. If these Jeep models use the traditional solid axle arrangement, then e-motors can be mounted on the differentials, this is called an e-beam axle by one of their suppliers.

If Stellantis wants to recover any of their costs from the Charger Daytona and Wagoneer S EV programs, they will have to install some sort of range extender. One of the suppliers will have a solution for an electric e-axle for the front.
 
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