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Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Ford CEO Jim Farley said that taking apart a Tesla Model 3 and Chinese electric vehicles exposed how much more efficiently competitors had engineered some parts of their cars. In a November 2025 interview, he cited the Mustang Mach-E’s extra wiring weight as an example—and argued that in an electric vehicle, the cost of extra weight extends beyond the wiring itself because the battery must also move it. The figures are Farley’s reported account of a teardown, not independently verified specifications.
What did Ford find when it took apart a Tesla?
In an interview with Monica Langley for Office Hours: Business Edition, reported by Inc. in November 2025, Farley said Ford was humbled by taking apart a Tesla Model 3 and Chinese vehicles. “I was very humbled when we took apart the first Model 3 Tesla and started to take apart the Chinese vehicles,” he said. “It was shocking what we found.” Inc. reproduced the remarks from the interview; they are not an official Ford teardown report.
Farley’s specific example was wiring in the Mustang Mach-E compared with the Model 3. He said the Mach-E had roughly a mile more wiring and that the additional wiring weighed about 70 pounds. He also put the battery cost of carrying that extra weight at $200. Those numbers are Farley’s reported figures, not independently verified measurements or Ford specifications. An indexed CEOInterviews.AI transcript relays the distance as 1.6 kilometers, consistent with roughly a mile, but its page was unavailable to open.
Why does extra wiring matter more in an electric car?
The point was not simply that wiring has a purchase price. Farley’s comparison was about the vehicle as a system: additional wiring adds mass, and an EV needs battery capacity to move that mass. That can make a seemingly small component-level difference carry a broader cost through the vehicle’s weight and battery requirements.
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Farley contrasted this with how Ford evaluated costs for internal-combustion vehicles: “We don’t do that [system-wide] way of looking at the cost in an internal combustion engine. All the math changes with an EV with that huge expensive battery,” he said in the podcast interview, as reproduced by Inc. The lesson he drew was to assess engineering choices across the whole EV rather than judging each part only on its standalone cost.
How did Farley connect the teardown to Ford’s business strategy?
Ford reorganized its automotive business in 2022 into three units: Ford Model E for electric vehicles, Ford Pro for commercial vehicles, and Ford Blue for internal-combustion vehicles. Farley said separating the EV business made its performance and losses more visible to investors and created clearer accountability for management. Inc. attributed an annual EV-loss figure of $5 billion to Farley, but its account does not establish that as a current figure; it should not be treated as a present-day forecast or result.
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Farley also described his preference for confronting difficult problems openly: “My ethos is take on the hardest problems as fast as you can and do it sometimes in public, because you’ll solve them quicker that way,” he said in the interview, as reproduced by Inc. The teardown example fit that approach: use a competitor’s design to identify gaps, then make the cost and engineering challenge visible inside the company.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What direction has Ford described for its next EVs?
Ford’s later stated direction emphasized more affordable electric vehicles and a new platform. Electrek’s November 2025 coverage described a planned Universal EV Platform and a midsize electric pickup expected in 2027. That timing is a reported forecast, not a confirmed delivery date, and plans can change.
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The connection to Farley’s teardown remarks is the focus on system economics: affordability depends on engineering integration, vehicle weight, battery and materials needs, and the ability to produce EVs at scale. The cited sources explain Farley’s emphasis on those costs; they do not establish a comprehensive independent comparison of Ford, Tesla, and Chinese automakers across price, software, customer experience, or overall vehicle performance.
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