LIVES AT A GOLF CLUB IN FLORIDA.
BUT SPEAKING OF MICHIGAN, HERES
A STORY TODAY THATS A LITTLE
SOMETHING DIFFERENT FOR US, BUT
I FIND THIS ABSOLUTELY
FASCINATING ON LIKE TEN
DIFFERENT LEVELS.
IF YOU THINK ABOUT AN AMERICAN
COMPANY THAT IS A REALLY BIG
COMPANY, A COMPANY WITH A HUGE
AMOUNT OF REVENUE, A HUGELY
SUCCESSFUL RETAIL ENTERPRISE,
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF?
YOU MIGHT THINK OF LIKE
COCA-COLA OR NIKE OR McDONALDS
OR MAYBE EVEN LIKE A BIG CREDIT
CARD COMPANY LIKE VISA.
INDEED, ALL OF THOSE BIG
AMERICAN COMPANIES MAKE TENS OF
BILLIONS OF DOLLARS EVERY YEAR
IN REVENUE.
HUGE COMPANIES WITH HUGE ANNUAL
INCOME.
NOT ANNUAL INCOME, ANNUAL
REVENUES IN MILLIONS BUT IN
BILLIONS, IN TENS OF BILLIONS.
DO YOU WANT TO KNOW WHATS
BIGGER THAN ANY OF THOSE,
THOUGH?
THIS.
THIS TRUCK.
I DONT MEAN LIKE THE FORD MOTOR
COMPANY HAS MORE REVENUE THAN
McDONALDS AND VISA AND NIKE, IT
DOES, BUT THATS NOT WHAT I
MEAN.
I MEAN LITERALLY JUST THIS
TRUCK.
FORD MAKES A LOT OF THINGS.
FORD MAKES CARS, OF COURSE, AND
SUVs AND CROSSOVERS.
THEY JUST RELAUNCHED THE FORD
BRONCO, WHICH IS SUPER CUTE IN
ITS NEW ITERATION.
THEY MAKE TRANSIT VANS AND HEAVY
DUTY COMMERCIAL VEHICLES OF ALL
SORTS AND SIZES.
THEY EVEN MAKE WHATS BASICALLY
A SUPERCAR.
IF THATS THE WRONG THING TO
CALL IT, I AM TRULY SORRY.
IF YOU CAN JUST LET ME BORROW
YOUR FORD GT FOR A DAY OR TEN,
ILL LEARN ALL THE PROPER
TERMINOLOGY AND GET IT BACK TO
YOU WITHOUT A SCRATCH.
BUT OF ALL THE THINGS THAT FORD
MAKES, THE THING THAT THEY MAKE
THAT ALONE PULLS IN MORE REVENUE
THAN McDONALDS OR NIKE OR VISA
OR COCA-COLA IS THE F-150 --
EXCUSE ME, THE F SERIES PICKUP
TRUCK.
ITS THE MOST POPULAR VEHICLE IN
AMERICA.
AND IT ALWAYS IS.
MORE FORD SERIES PICKUPS,
THEYRE FULL-SIZE PICKUPS, ARE
SOLD, MORE OF THESE VEHICLES ARE
SOLD THAN ANY OTHER VEHICLE IN
THE COUNTRY AND THAT IS TRUE
EVERY YEAR.
YEAR AFTER YEAR, DECADE AFTER
DECADE.
AND ITS NEVER EVEN CLOSE.
I MEAN THE AMOUNT OF REVENUE
THAT JUST FORD FULL-SIZED
PICKUPS GENERATE IN SALES EVERY
YEAR IS MORE THAN $42 BILLION A
YEAR.
JUST ON THAT ONE VEHICLE ALONE,
DWARFING ALL OF THOSE OTHER
AMERICAN COMPANIES JUST WITH
THIS ONE TYPE OF FORD TRUCK.
SO THATS -- LIKE IF THATS WHAT
YOU WORK ON, IF YOURE PART OF
THE FORD F SERIES TRUCK
MANUFACTURING, MARKETING, SALES
PROCESS, IF YOU WORK ON THAT,
ITS LIKE, DONT SCREW THAT UP.
WE MAKE $42 BILLION A YEAR ON
THESE VEHICLES.
NOTHING ELSE IN AMERICA COMES
NO, IT CAN DO THAT BECAUSE ITS
ELECTRIC.
HERES THE THING.
WHETHER OR NOT YOU CARE ABOUT
PICKUP TRUCKS, WHETHER OR NOT
YOU CARE ABOUT CARS, WHETHER OR
NOT YOU CARE ABOUT ELECTRIC
CARS, EVEN WHETHER OR NOT
CLIMATE AND ENERGY ARE THINGS
THAT KEEP YOU UP AT NIGHT, OR
NOT, IF THE FORD F-150 BECOMES
AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE, IF FORD CAN
TRANSITION THAT PARTICULAR
VEHICLE TO ELECTRIC, BECAUSE AS
AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE ITS BETTER,
GOOD-BYE GAS CARS IN AMERICA.
THERE ISNT A SINGLE THING THAT
COULD BE DONE IN THIS COUNTRY TO
MOVE US FURTHER AND FASTER
TOWARD A NO GAS AUTOMOTIVE
FUTURE AND EVERYTHING THAT MEANS
FOR INFRASTRUCTURE AND CLIMATE
AND ALL THE REST OF IT.
THERES NOTHING THAT COULD MOVE
US FURTHER AND FASTER TOWARD
THAT THAN THIS ONE VEHICLE, THIS
SPECIFIC VEHICLE, NOT ONLY
HAVING AN ELECTRIC OPTION BUT
ACTUALLY BEING BETTER AS AN
ELECTRIC VEHICLE THAN IT IS AS A
GAS ONE.
BEING MORE CAPABLE AS AN
ELECTRIC VEHICLE THAN IT IS AS A
GAS ONE.
BECAUSE PICKUP TRUCK OWNERS IN
THIS COUNTRY, AND THERE ARE
GAZILLIONS OF THEM, WANT THEIR
VEHICLES TO BE BETTER AND MORE
PRODUCTIVE AND THEY WANT THEM TO
LOOK COOL.
F-150s RECENTLY CHANGED FROM
STEEL BODIES TO ALUMINUM BODIES.
WHEN THEY MADE THAT CHANGE,
EVERYBODY SAID, OH, TRUCK OWNERS
ARE GOING TO THINK THAT WAS
PRISSY AND THIS WAS GOING TO BE
A BIG MISTAKE BY FORD.
TRUCK OWNERS WERENT GOING TO
LIKE THAT.
ALUMINUM SEEMS LIKE A WUSSY
MATERIAL.
TRUCKS MADE WITH ALUMINUM BODIES
THAN STEEL BODIES CAN DO MORE.
THERES NO DOWNSIDE THAT MADE
ANY DIFFERENCE IN ANYBODYS
LIFE.
F-150s RECENTLY SHIFTED FROM
THEIR MOST POPULAR ENGINE BEING
A BIG V-8 TO INSTEAD BEING A
BOOSTED V-6.
NOT BECAUSE F-150 OWNERS GOT ANY
GREENER IN THEIR SENSIBILITIES,
BUT BECAUSE THE SMALLER ENGINE
TURNED OUT TO BE BETTER.
IT WAS BETTER.
THE ECO-BOOST V-6, MORE HAULING
CAPABILITY, MORE TOWING
CAPABILITY AND USES LESS GAS.
EVEN IF YOU DONT CARE ABOUT
THAT, THE POINT WAS STILL IT WAS
BETTER.
MORE POWER, FASTER, MORE
CAPABLE, AN IMPROVEMENT.
SO YEAH, EVERYBODY WANTS THE
BETTER OPTION.
EVERYBODY WANTS THE BETTER
VEHICLE.
EVERYBODYS WANTS THE BETTER
ENGINE.
EVERYBODY WANTS THE BETTER BODY.
FORD DID RECENTLY START OFFERING
A HYBRID TRUCK.
DO FORD F-150 OWNERS WANT A
HYBRID?
I DONT KNOW, MAYBE SOME DO.
YOU KNOW WHAT TRUCK OWNERS DO
WANT?
THEY WANT TO BE ABLE TO DO STUFF
THAT THEY COULDNT DO BEFORE OR
NEEDED EXPENSIVE OTHER EQUIPMENT
TO BE ABLE TO DO.
I DONT KNOW WHAT FORD F-150
OWNERS AND POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS
THINK ABOUT THE HYBRID IN THE
ABSTRACT, BUT YOU KNOW WHAT
PEOPLE REALLY LIKED AND TURNED
OUT REALLY WANTED WAS THE
FREAKING GENERATOR THAT CAME
WIRED INTO THAT TRUCK, INTO THE
BED OF THE TRUCK.
WHAT FORD DID THEY FIGURED OUT A
WAY TO USE THE TECHNOLOGY IN
THAT TRUCK TO PUT A GENERATOR IN
IT THAT YOU CAN PLUG STUFF INTO.
THERES PLUGS LIKE YOUD HAVE IN
YOUR HOUSE RIGHT NEXT TO THE
TAILGATE.
DO YOU WANT IN THE ABSTRACT THE
LATEST TECHNOLOGY IN YOUR
GIGANTIC MULTI THOUSAND POUND
WORK VEHICLE?
NO, NOT IN THE ABSTRACT.
BUT IF YOU LIVE IN TEXAS AND THE
POWER GOES OUT FOR DAYS BECAUSE
IT GOT COLD AND TEXAS POWER
GRID CANT OPERATE IN THE COLD,
BEING ABLE TO BACK YOUR TRUCK UP
TO THE FRONT OF THE HOUSE SO YOU
CAN RUN EXTENSION CORDS IN IT
AND KEEP STUFF PLUGGED IN, YEAH,
TURNS OUT PEOPLE WANT THAT.
NOT NECESSARILY BECAUSE IT COMES
IN AN ECO-CONSCIOUS PACKAGE BUT
BECAUSE THATS COOL.
THATS REALLY USEFUL.
THATS BETTER THAN NOT HAVING
THAT.
MASS CONSUMER ADOPTION OF A
BETTER PRODUCT, WHEN THAT
PRODUCT IS ALREADY OUTSELLING
EVERYTHING ELSE IN ITS CLASS BY
A MILE FOR DECADES, THATS THE
KIND OF CHANGE THAT INSTANTLY
RENDERS EVERYTHING ELSE
OBSOLETE.
NOW, IM A LITTLE RELUCTANT TO
TALK ABOUT THIS ON TV BECAUSE I
AM A CAR PERSON, WHICH MEANS I
DONT NECESSARILY HAVE A GOOD
SENSE AS TO HOW MUCH APPETITE
ANYBODY ELSE HAS TO HEAR ABOUT
THESE THINGS.
IM A CAR PERSON.
IM ON MY SECOND FORD F-150.
FOR EVERYTHING THATS DIFFERENT
BETWEEN SUSAN AND I, PART OF THE
REASON WE GOT TOGETHER IS
BECAUSE WERE BOTH CAR PEOPLE.
SHE HAD HER INITIALS IN GOLD
LEAF ON THE DOOR.
I WAS LIKE, OH, MY GOD, I THINK
IM DEAD.
I JUST MET YOU AND SERIOUSLY,
THATS YOURS?
IM DEAD.
MY LIFE AS I KNEW IT BEFORE IS
OVER.
PLEASE, CAN I MEET YOUR CAR?
THAT WAS HER CAR.
THAT WAS HER JEEP.
I SET IT ON FIRE MANY TIMES
SQUIRTING STARTER FLUID INTO IT
UNDER THE HOOD WHILE SHE TRIED
TO TURN OVER THE ENGINE.
BEING A CAR PERSON DOESNT MEAN
YOURE MECHANICALLY-MINDED.
WHETHER YOURE GOOD WITH A
CARBURETOR, YOURE EITHER INTO
CARS OR NOT.
AS A NEWS MATTER, WHETHER YOURE
INTO IT OR YOU ARENT, IT IS
WORTH KNOWING THAT RIGHT NOW THE
SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT LEAP
FORWARD OUR COUNTRY COULD MAKE
TOWARD BECOMING AN ELECTRIC CAR
COUNTRY IS FOR THIS ONE SPECIFIC
VEHICLE, THE BEST-SELLING
VEHICLE BY A MILE, THE FORD
F-150 TO BECOME AN ELECTRIC
VEHICLE.
FOR IT TO BECOME AN ELECTRIC
VEHICLE BECAUSE THE ELECTRIC
VERSION OF IT IS BETTER THAN
WHAT IT WAS WHEN IT WAS ONLY
OFFERED AS GAS.
THE MOST IMPORTANT THING, THE
MOST IMPORTANT SINGLE CHANGE
THAT OUR COUNTRY COULD MAKE FAST
WOULD BE FOR THAT CHANGE TO
HAPPEN.
NO PRESSURE, RIGHT, IF YOURE