The beloved Ford Capri is back. Or is it really? Why every new electric car is an SUV, and why they shouldn’t be.

This isn’t the first time Ford has turned one of its beloved brands into an electric SUV. Mustang Mach E It’s been a big controversy, but Ford isn’t the only automaker focusing on SUVs in its electrification strategy — it’s a common theme for most automakers.

There are a few reasons why so many EVs are SUVs. Developing a car with a new drivetrain like a fully electric car is expensive, and SUVs tend to be priced at a premium, allowing some of that investment to be recouped. It’s also much easier to hide the weight gain from the huge battery pack needed to ensure adequate range in an SUV format than in a compact hatchback. And there’s the popularity factor: car makers clearly want to sell more cars, so they’ll go for the format that sells best. According to JATO Dynamics: As of April 2024, SUVs accounted for 51.1% of the European market.The US market is shaping up even better, with SUVs expected to account for 53.5% of US auto sales in 2022. From this perspective, automakers are simply giving people what they want.

Is bigger better?

But it’s worth highlighting where the popularity of SUVs came from. In the 1970s, the first automobile pollution regulations were created in the United States. At the time, large vehicles like trucks were driven only by people for commercial purposes, so fuel economy regulations for them were more lenient. Automakers realized this loophole and made consumer vehicles that were also trucks, and thus the gas-guzzling SUV was born. Consumers grew to love these big, spacious vehicles, despite their poor fuel economy. This was due to the fact that Vehicles with hood heights over 40 inches are 45% more likely to be involved in fatal collisions with pedestrians.their higher center of gravity makes them more likely to tip over in the event of an accident, and their weight increases the likelihood of more serious injuries.

This trend continues with electrification, which brings us back to the Ford Capri: For those born long enough to remember the original’s heyday, the new electric SUV version doesn’t have much to do with it. It’s not a two-door 2+2 fastback. It’s not a particularly sporty car.

“Obviously, it doesn’t look like the last Capri that rolled off the production line in the ’80s,” says Ford marketing director Pete Zillig, “and we’re well aware that this car is primarily targeted at young, urban families. We’re talking about the car you always promised yourself, some of whom may not even recognize the Capri nameplate because they’re too young to remember.”

Jeffrey Bull—Fairfax Media/Getty Images

“The world moves on,” adds Ford design director Amko Lienaerts. “This car wouldn’t be as good as it is without the Capri as its primary inspiration.” But Zillig asserts: “We didn’t just electrify the last Capri that rolled off the production line in the ’80s. We’ve brought the spirit of the Capri up to 2024. Of course, there will be haters. There will always be haters. But the reception research we did for this car has been incredibly positive.”

The negative reaction online doesn’t necessarily mean the Capri is a failure; it’s more a factor of how good the car is, despite the Capri brand name. Though press drives have yet to take place, the Capri is powered by the same Volkswagen Group-derived electric drivetrain as the Ford Explorer, and it’s reasonably quick, easy to drive, and has a decent range. But the Capri isn’t just a different body slapped on the same base car.

Have you seen it? The legend is back: the new all-electric Ford Capri.https://t.co/Mm2EJ1TfSs #TheLegendReturns #JessuisCapri #Ford Capri pic.twitter.com/SB9F6l9gaX

— Ford UK (@forduk) July 10, 2024

“The Capri is slightly longer and has 10mm lower wheels,” Lienaerts says. “There are some slight tweaks to the steering, brakes and suspension. Given that the Explorer EV was often thought of as very Ford-like, we expect the same from this car.” On first impressions, it seems like a well-thought-out car, with plenty of interior passenger and luggage space despite its “coupe” fastback design. “It has a slightly longer range than the Explorer – 630 kilometers (393 miles) – and it’s a bit heavier, but that’s because it has better aero.”

“With the Explorer, when you get behind the wheel and drive it, you know this is a great car and it drives like a Ford,” Zelig said. “The Capri is more of a sports coupe, it’s got different aerodynamics, it has a different look and feel. We want to make the electric vehicle iconic and bring back the love for the brand.”

Capri in name only?

The new car didn’t necessarily have to be called “Capri” to have these design characteristics, however. Zelig believes the car still retains the spirit of the original car. “The Capri was ahead of its time, but even back then we talked about it being a sporty car with great practicality. The word SUV didn’t even exist back then.” Lienaerts added, “We’re still combining the practicality and positivity that the old Capri was famous for. But we’re not going to make a two-door. That doesn’t make sense.”

With the Capri, Ford will have three electric SUVs in its lineup, and they will likely cannibalize each other’s sales. But Lienaerts doesn’t think that will happen. “We’re not competing with each other,” he says. “Traditionally, 10 centimeters longer defines the segment.” When Ford launched the Explorer, it emphasized that it was shorter than vehicles using the same platform, such as the Volkswagen ID.4 and Skoda Enyaq iV. The Mustang Mach-E is 474 cm long, the Explorer EV is 446 cm long, and the Capri is 463 cm long, so they are all different lengths.

“Size and performance are key,” Lienaerts says. “If you want a car that’s easy to park in the city, the Explorer is probably the best choice. If you want something more upscale, the Capri. If you want something with more performance, the Mach-E GT is the way to go.”

But Ford’s next EV will be yet another SUV — an all-electric version of the Puma — that’s said to be cheaper than the current Explorer, Mustang Mach-E and Capri, but still more expensive than the current combustion-engine-based Puma. This highlights a fundamental problem with focusing on electric SUVs: how much they’ll cost.

Is the EV market softening?

There’s been a lot of attention in the mainstream media about the softening EV market, but some of it seems to be driven more by the hopes of some manufacturers than by fact. The European EV market is still growing by 2% in the first half of 2024, and the latest data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers in July showed that EVs’ year-to-date share is 16.8%, up 10.5% from last year. But EVs will make up just 8% of the U.S. market in Q2 2024, down slightly from 8.1% in Q4 2023.

Either way, it’s not true that “nobody wants EVs,” as some critics say (usually due to vested interests in internal combustion engine vehicles), but the market is softening in some regions and sales aren’t growing as quickly as some expected, largely due to the focus on luxury SUVs. Cheaper electric cars are needed to attract more people.

In Europe, the Dacia Spring is a step in the right direction. It’s crudely assembled, but has a decent range, seats five with luggage in the back, and drives decently well. But despite being a Romanian car brand owned by France’s Renault Group, the Spring is made in China. And therein lies the problem: European manufacturers (and American ones like Ford) can’t make cheap EVs like the Chinese can.

The US has protected itself from this threat by imposing a 100% tariff on car imports from China. The EU added between 17.4% and 37.6% to the existing 10% tax rate.But these are clear admissions of a lack of local competitiveness, in part due to the focus on premium SUVs. “The world wants more practicality,” Lienaerts says. “People want to travel in comfort.” But once early adopters have made their purchase, the world will also want EVs that don’t cost a lot. Producing electric cars that aren’t SUVs might make this goal easier to achieve.

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