Is Ford's Rivian Investment About to Bear Fruit?

Rivian, the Michigan-based EV startup with big plans for its R1S SUV and R1T pickup, isn’t bashful about making its “skateboard” electric vehicle platform available to rivals. At Ford, that skateboard may soon appear below a new Lincoln vehicle, a new report claims.

Ford raised eyebrows earlier this year when it sunk $500 million into the upstart EV maker, with the Blue Oval claiming the investment paves the way for an “all-new, next-generation battery electric vehicle.” That vehicle is apparently now taking shape.

According to sources with knowledge of the program who spoke with Reuters, the Rivian platform will form the basis of a new Lincoln SUV scheduled to land in mid-2022.

Ford wouldn’t confirm the report, but the sources claim the all-wheel drive model carries the program code U787. The second vehicle bound for the flexible platform, Rivian’s R1S, is slated to enter production in early 2021 in Normal, Illinois, where the automaker took over a mothballed Mitsubishi plant.

The Lincoln model’s timing coincides with the appearance of an electric Cadillac crossover riding atop General Motors’ new EV architecture. That vehicle is expected to appear in late 2021 or early 2022.

Besides being a way to avoid lofty development costs, Ford’s Rivian cash dump also expedites the arrival of new EV models. No one wants to be late to the party, though many still wonder just how many buyers will show up at this gas-free kegger. An EV Lincoln would be a valuable product for the Chinese market, at the very least.

Aside from the program code and scant details attached to the project, little else is known about the Rivian-based Lincoln crossover. The R1S is a three-row, midsize vehicle, capable of driving up to 410 miles on a single charge, but this report exists in the context of an earlier report claiming Ford has two midsize EV crossovers bound for production at Flat Rock Assembly for the 2023 model year. Those vehicles will carry a Ford and Lincoln badge.

Reuters‘ sources claim Ford has two Lincoln EVs in the planning stage, one a compact crossover due to debut in late 2021 or early 2022, the other being a midsize unit arriving for 2023. Given the R1S’s dimensions, one can only assume that both midsizers bound for Flat Rock are Rivian-based.

The smaller Lincoln model will ride atop the Mustang Mach-E’s in-house platform.

[Image: Lincoln Motor Company]