Ford Pro Go & See Week Kicks Off in Europe
Maybe it’s being American, but I just love a road trip. I like the freedom of being out on the open road and meeting new people. In August, I drove from Germany to Italy to meet with Ford Pro employees, customers, dealers, and upfitters. While my main goal was to listen and learn, my daughter Grace joined me, and we also had a lot of fun traversing the Continent together.
I was pleased to see Transit vans are as ubiquitous on the roads of Europe as they are in North America. Transit is the world’s bestselling cargo van, after all, and van-based businesses — like plumbers, electricians, and road builders — accounted for an estimated €1 trillion in economic activity across the EU and UK in 2023. It’s these work-ready vans, plus pickup trucks like Ford F-Series and Ranger, that are fueling Ford Pro’s growth and enabling the businesses that are the backbone of our communities.
I drove the 500-mile journey in the all-new electric Ford E-Transit Custom and its plug-in hybrid variant. Ford is committed to decarbonisation and we are investing billions to bring exciting new electrified products like these to our retail and commercial customers. The appetite to electrify in Europe is high, but like elsewhere the road to zero emission, transportation is highly challenging, and governments must do more to support more fleets and families to make the switch so ambitious CO2 industry targets can be met.
I wanted to experience firsthand the difficulties and opportunities businesses of all sizes face as they go electric, and how Ford Pro’s ecosystem can support them. Here are the 5 key takeaways from my trip.
1. Commercial vehicle customers in Europe are embracing electrification
Many businesses in Europe are going electric not just for the environmental impact, but to lower their total cost of ownership and improve productivity. They want the best tools for the job, and vehicles are no different. They are doing the math, and with an electric vehicle, their fuel costs go down, and there’s less need for maintenance and service, boosting uptime. The key challenge for commercial customers is figuring out which vehicles in their fleets they should electrify first and what the charging needs will be. Ford Pro is there to help. For example, we have a free tool called E-Switch Assist that figures out which vehicle in a fleet is ready to electrify based on its daily charging needs.
2. Hybrids are a great transitional technology on the path to all-electric
Customers want a range of powertrain solutions. I met with Fröschl, an Austrian construction company that uses Rangers to go up mountains to fix infrastructure. With the high altitudes and inclement weather, they will be sticking with diesel and hybrids for the foreseeable future. I drove the Transit Custom PHEV on day 3 because its extended range and torque was the best choice to get me through the steep climbs in the Alps. Ford’s future direction is clear: We will optimize for pure electric vehicles. But it’s also clear that hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and partial electric vehicles are attractive low-carbon solutions that will coexist with electric vehicles longer than anyone previously thought.
3. Improving charging infrastructure is key to electric vehicle adoption
The least of my problems on the road in Europe was charging. There were plenty of fast chargers on our route in working condition and with spots available. It was a totally different experience than when I drove the F-150 Lightning across California last year. One of the key reasons electric vehicle adoption has stalled in the U.S. is a lack of charging, especially for long distance drives. There’s still more work to be done in Europe and bolder investment needed by policymakers to get to mass coverage, but I was excited by the existing charging options I saw and how reliable access lowers range anxiety.
4. Commercial customers are super users of software and services
Increasingly, digital experiences are a key brand differentiator. I was pleased to hear how much our Ford Pro customers love our software and services because they make the transition to electrification easier, increase productivity, and save costs. Like uptime solutions that use connected data to optimize fleets and maintenance. Combined with mobile service vans that can repair multiple vehicles in one visit. And telematics — which I used myself on this road trip that can pre-condition your vehicle, give you charging alerts, and coach drivers to avoid negative driving behavior. It can also quantify cost saving and CO2 reduction of a fleet. Our next-gen commercial vehicles will be even smarter, adding new features like prognostics that can predict the failure of components before they happen. Commercial customers are the super users of software and services for our industry because keeping their vehicles on the road has tangible business value, and this know-how will eventually benefit our retail customers, too.
5. The importance of going and seeing for yourself
I learned the value of “Gemba” when I worked at Toyota — seeing things with your own eyes and listening to the people doing the actual work. I am often surrounded by team members who tell me everything is fine. Hearing feedback directly, on issues large and small, helps me jumpstart the process on fixes. I always ask simple questions, like what’s working, what isn’t? I met with the head of DHL — which is going 60% electric globally. They love our E-Transits but want the charging port at the back of the vehicle instead of at the front. At one of our largest commercial vehicle dealerships in Germany, I learned about some product delays and a taillight issue that were news to me. Doing a Gemba trip lets you understand the problem, find the right solution, and make better business decisions.
I’ve returned to the U.S. with great confidence in our Ford+ strategy, but also with a long list of to-dos and clear eyed about the challenges ahead to meet our shared societal goals.
Ford Pro is at the forefront of our transformation into a leader of electric and connected vehicles — and it embodies what we can achieve when we focus on our strengths.
We know work customers better than anyone else. That insight has earned us the #1 commercial vehicle brand spot in Europe and the U.S. But our competitors aren’t sitting still. And to win in the future requires humility and a commitment to continuous improvement.
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