FortheexcIusiveuseofJATINCHAWLAatTVFCAPITALADVISORSPTELTDon16-Jun-2025

16June2025

U.S.Autos&AutoParts

USAutos:Electric,butfamiliar-whenEVsstartfeelinglikecarsagain(EVDriveDayReport)

DanielRoeska

+19173448577

daniel.roeska@

ChristopherGray

+19173448308

christopher.gray@

Investorsandanalystsjoinedusforahands-ondaywith13EVsandacandiddinner

discussionwithFord’sEVleadershiplastTuesday.Acrosstheday,threethemesemerged:EVsarebeingjudgedascarsagain,withbrandsreassertingthemselvesthroughdriving

feelanddesign;costremainsthedefiningmetricoflong-termsuccess;andsoftware’snextfrontierisevolvingbeyondjustADAS.

LegacyOEMsarereassertingtheiridentityinEVs.Thedaysof“me-too”EVsappear

tobebehindus.CarmakersaremovingbeyondengineeringcompliancecarsormimickingTeslaandareinsteadreturningtotheirroots,deliveringelectricvehiclesthatfeel

unmistakablytheirown.Whetherit’sinthetactilefeelofthesteering,thesensoryfeedbackfrommaterials,orthedesigncohesionacrossmodels,investorsexperiencedaclear

resurgenceofbrandidentitythroughoutthelineup.

ADASistablestakes,butTesla’sFSDstillimpresses.AsADAScapabilitiesbecome

commonplace,thebarforwhatimpresseshasshifteddramatically.Adaptivecruisecontrolandlanecenteringarenowexpected,notapplauded.Whatstoodoutinsteadwerethe

systemsthatgoastepfurtherandhowtheyhandledtheunpredictablerealitiesofeverydaydriving.DuringtheDriveDay,investorshadthechancetotestADASsuitesacrossurban

streets,openhighways,andtwistycountryroads,undersunandheavyrain.Therangeofenvironmentsmadeonethingclear:notallsystemsareequaloncetheweatherortheroadturnstricky.

Ford’snextEVplatformaimsforChinesecostcompetitiveness.OurdinnerwithFordprovidedaglimpseintoafuturethat’slessaboutcatchingupandmoreaboutredefiningcompetitiveness.Thecompany’snext-generationEVplatformisafundamentalrethink,

builtaroundasimplebutchallenginggoal:matchChineseOEMsoncost.Earlycarswillbevisiblein2026,andthecompanyisawareitneedstoprovideexecutionproofpointstoinvestorsafterrestructuringitsEVportfolio.

FordPro:therealmoatintheportfolio.Amongallthediscussionsduringtheday,

perhapstheclearestarticulationofsustainablecompetitiveadvantagecamefromFord’scommercialplay.FordProisnotjustadivision,it’safortress.AndasLisaDrakeexplained,itsdefensibilityliesnotonlyinpricing,scale,orevenbrand,butinarchitecture.Specifically,intheunmatchedabilitytodeliverafullsuiteofvehiclestailoredtoreal-worldcommercialneeds.

Takeaway:Thiswasadayofmaturity.TheEVmarketisnolongeraboutproving

electrificationworks,it’saboutprovingthatcompaniescanbuildgreatcars,makemoneydoingso,anddifferentiatewithoutchasingthewrongbenchmarks.Ford’sstrategy,andthebroaderproductexperience,suggestthesectorisstartingtopivotbacktoitsroots.

Abigtank-youtotheparticipatingOEMsforentrustinguswiththecars!

SeetheDisclosureAppendixofthisreportforrequireddisclosures,analystcertificationsandotherimportantinformation.Alternatively,visitourGlobalResearchDisclosureWebsite.

FirstPublished:16Jun202505:38UTCCompletionDate:15Jun202520:12UTC

FortheexcIusiveuseofJATINCHAWLAatTVFCAPITALADVISORSPTELTDon16-Jun-2025

DanielRoeska+19173448577daniel.roeska@16June2025

BERNSTEINTICKERTABLE

13Jun2025

TTM

AdjustedEPSAdjustedP/E(x)

Ticker

Rating

Cur

Closing

Price

Target

Rel.

Perf.

Cur

2024A2025E2026E

Price

2024A2025E2026E

F

U

USD

10.43

8.30

(22.6)%

USD

1.841.231.665.78.56.3

GM

U

USD

48.65

36.00

(7.9)%

USD

6.378.185.074.66.49.6

PSNY

U

USD

1.03

0.40

33.1%

USD

(0.51)(0.34)(0.26)2.21.30.9

RIVN

U

USD

13.42

7.05

10.8%

USD

(4.69)(2.46)(2.39)2.92.91.8

STLA

M

USD

9.70

11.70

(64.0)%

USD

2.682.033.173.64.83.1

SPX

5,976.97

O-Outperform,M-Market-Perform,U-Underperform,NR-NotRated,CS-CoverageSuspended

GMestimateisReportedEPS;PSNY,RIVNvaluationisEV/Sales(x);

Source:Bloomberg,Bernsteinestimatesandanalysis.

INVESTMENTIMPLICATIONS

WerateStellantisMarket-Perform,andFord,GeneralMotors,Polestar,andRivianUnderperform.Wearebroadlyconcernedaboutincreasingconsumerweakness,tariffcost,andpullforwarddemandweighingonH2/2025.

U.S.AUTOS&AUTOPARTSBERNSTEINlsocIeTecENeRAlECROUP2

FortheexcIusiveuseofJATINCHAWLAatTVFCAPITALADVISORSPTELTDon16-Jun-2025

U.S.AUTOS&AUTOPARTS

DanielRoeska+19173448577daniel.roeska@16June2025

VALUATIONCOMPSTABLE

EXHIBIT1:AutosValuationCompsSheet

MarketcapEVCarsSoldP/EEV/EBITDAEV/SALESDividendyieldFCFYieldEBIT%ROCENetdebt/EBITDA

$m$mmCYNTM+1NTM+2CYNTM+1NTM+2CYNTM+1NTM+2CYFY+1FY+2FY+2FY+1FY+1CYFY+1FY+2

GM

Ford

Stellantis

4.7%

3.9%

7.3%

46,774

41,475

27,951

-0.7x

-0.7x

-0.9x

5.8%

4.4%

4.9%

45,528

35,436

17,018

1.1%

6.4%

6.8%

-0.5x

-0.7x

-1.0x

6.0

4.5

4.2

2.7x

3.2x

1.0x

13.4%

3.3%

13.5%

0.3x

0.2x

0.1x

5.3x

8.8x

4.8x

0.3x

0.2x

0.1x

1.2%

6.0%

9.1%

5.4x

7.3x

3.5x

2.6x

2.8x

0.9x

1.2%

5.8%

7.7%

2.7x

3.4x

1.1x

0.3x

0.2x

0.1x

-0.7x

-0.7x

-0.9x

5.2x10.1x5.9x

USOEMs

116,200

97,983

14.7

6.5x

6.0x

5.2x

2.3x

2.2x

2.0x

0.2x

0.2x

0.2x

4.4%

4.4%

4.8%

10%

5.1%

5.0%

-0.7x

-0.8x

-0.8x

Tesla

*

1,047,809

1,024,706

1.8

162.0x

126.8x

90.2x

76.5x

65.2x

48.5x

10.5x

9.5x

7.9x

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

0.5%

9.0%

11.1%

-2.0x

-1.6x

-1.4x

Rivian

15,385

14,214

0.1

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

2.7x

2.3x

1.5x

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

-19.0%

-42.8%

-27.5%

0.2x

0.9x

6.2x

Lucid

*

6,406

6,347

0.0

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

4.5x

3.1x

1.6x

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

-43.4%

-87.1%

-31.8%

Polestar

2,174

4,183

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

1.4x

1.1x

0.8x

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

-23.8%

-11.3%

76.7%

-5.4x

-6.1x

-7.7x

USEVs

1,071,774

1,049,450

1.9

n.a.

562.5x

170.3x

120.9x

90.3x

56.3x

9.8x

8.8x

7.1x

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

-0.1%

3.4%

3.9%

-2.8x

-1.9x

-1.4x

Mercedes-Benz

#

56,544

17,661

2.4

7.2x

7.0x

6.3x

1.0x

1.0x

0.9x

0.1x

0.1x

0.1x

6.1%

6.5%

7.6%

10.3%

6.7%

4.8%

-1.9x

-1.9x

-1.8x

BMW

#

54,818

43,635

2.5

7.6x

7.1x

6.3x

2.1x

1.9x

1.8x

0.3x

0.3x

0.3x

5.4%

6.0%

6.6%

10.5%

7.4%

6.1%

1.8x

1.3x

1.2x

Volkswagen

#

51,830

113,171

9.0

4.4x

4.0x

3.4x

2.1x

2.1x

2.1x

0.3x

0.3x

0.3x

6.3%

7.9%

9.4%

16.5%

5.9%

4.8%

-0.7x

-0.8x

-0.9x

Renault

#

14,707

8,603

2.3

5.9x

5.2x

4.6x

1.1x

1.1x

1.0x

0.1x

0.1x

0.1x

5.9%

7.2%

7.9%

18.3%

6.8%

4.2%

-1.2x

-1.5x

-1.7x

VolvoCars

&

5,233

4,455

0.8

6.3x

5.1x

3.8x

1.2x

1.1x

1.0x

0.1x

0.1x

0.1x

0.0%

0.6%

0.8%

11.9%

4.2%

10.0%

-0.5x

-0.6x

-0.8x

EUOEMs

183,133

187,525

16.9

6.1x

5.6x

4.9x

1.8x

1.8x

1.7x

0.2x

0.2x

0.2x

5.8%

6.6%

7.7%

13%

6.4%

5.1%

-0.5x

-0.6x

-0.7x

Toyota

+

280,174

217,888

9.4

11.4x

11.0x

10.6x

5.3x

5.1x

4.9x

0.6x

0.6x

0.6x

3.8%

4.0%

4.2%

3.3%

8.6%

5.9%

5.1x

4.8x

4.7x

Honda

+

51,081

99,271

2.8

9.4x

8.9x

8.1x

8.6x

8.3x

8.1x

0.7x

0.7x

0.7x

5.3%

5.7%

6.1%

-2.9%

5.8%

5.3%

3.1x

2.7x

4.0x

Suzuki

+

23,064

27,066

3.4

8.8x

8.5x

8.2x

4.7x

4.5x

4.4x

0.7x

0.6x

0.6x

2.8%

3.0%

3.3%

7.7%

10.1%

14.6%

-0.7x

-1.0x

-1.0x

Subaru

+

12,576

2,167

0.9

10.3x

9.4x

8.7x

0.8x

0.8x

0.7x

0.1x

0.1x

0.1x

4.6%

4.9%

5.0%

4.0%

5.5%

9.0%

-1.6x

-1.4x

-0.9x

Nissan

+

9,259

2,510

2.7

n.a.

n.a.

9.3x

0.9x

0.7x

0.6x

0.0x

0.0x

0.0x

2.1%

3.6%

4.1%

26.8%

1.6%

1.5%

14.2x

10.2x

11.6x

Mitsubishi

*

4,125

3,467

1.0

13.7x

11.3x

9.7x

2.8x

2.7x

2.7x

0.2x

0.2x

0.2x

2.9%

3.7%

3.6%

2.4%

3.8%

9.2%

-0.9x

-0.8x

-0.8x

Mazda

+

3,687

571

1.2

24.3x

11.2x

7.5x

0.5x

0.4x

0.4x

0.0x

0.0x

0.0x

5.1%

5.5%

5.4%

1.9%

2.0%

4.0%

-2.6x

-2.3x

-0.9x

JapaneseOEMs

383,964

352,941

21.4

11.6x

10.7x

9.9x

5.3x

5.1x

4.9x

0.5x

0.5x

0.5x

3.9%

4.2%

4.4%

3.3%

6.7%

5.7%

4.1x

3.8x

4.1x

Hyundai

*

29,888

125,732

4.1

3.4x

3.4x

3.3x

9.2x

7.9x

6.6x

0.9x

0.9x

0.9x

6.2%

6.3%

6.4%

13.1%

7.4%

5.4%

7.0x

5.1x

4.8x

Kia

*

28,353

14,746

3.1

4.0x

4.0x

4.0x

1.4x

1.4x

1.3x

0.2x

0.2x

0.2x

6.7%

6.8%

7.0%

22.6%

10.1%

20.8%

-1.3x

-1.6x

-1.9x

KoreanOEMs

58,241

140,478

7.2

3.7x

3.7x

3.6x

5.7x

5.2x

4.6x

0.6x

0.6x

0.6x

6.4%

6.6%

6.7%

18%

8.4%

8.2%

3.3x

2.6x

2.4x

LiAuto

§

29,715

16,788

0.5

20.9x

16.9x

12.5x

9.6x

7.8x

5.7x

0.7x

0.6x

0.5x

0.0%

0.1%

0.1%

11.5%

6.3%

15.9%

-7.0x

-6.0x

-5.6x

XPeng

§

17,303

15,263

0.2

n.a.

262.9x

29.7x

n.a.

104.8x

23.8x

1.3x

1.1x

0.9x

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

5.1%

0.8%

1.9%

19.9x

-9.0x

-6.7x

NIO

§

7,883

10,407

0.2

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

0.8x

0.7x

0.6x

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

-5.3%

-8.2%

-20.1%

0.0x

-0.4x

-107.3x

ChinaEVs

54,902

42,458

0.9

n.a.

n.a.

28.3x

n.a.

36.9x

13.1x

0.9x

0.8x

0.6x

0.0%

0.1%

0.1%

7.0%

1.1%

2.8%

424.7x

-8.1x

-5.6x

BYD

§

148,763

137,385

4.3

19.3x

17.4x

14.6x

7.6x

6.9x

5.9x

1.0x

0.9x

0.8x

3.1%

3.9%

4.4%

6.2%

7.1%

32.4%

-1.2x

-1.4x

-1.7x

SAIC

§

25,980

37,582

4.0

17.7x

16.0x

13.4x

7.7x

7.3x

7.2x

0.4x

0.4x

0.4x

2.2%

2.8%

3.4%

1.5%

2.9%

3.4%

-1.2x

-1.1x

-1.1x

GreatWall

§

22,658

26,352

1.2

12.7x

11.9x

10.6x

8.9x

8.5x

7.8x

0.8x

0.8x

0.7x

3.9%

4.3%

4.8%

5.9%

6.2%

12.0%

-0.8x

-0.9x

-1.4x

Geely

§

20,991

17,063

2.2

10.4x

9.4x

7.7x

5.2x

4.7x

4.0x

0.4x

0.3x

0.3x

3.1%

3.7%

4.4%

15.9%

4.8%

20.1%

-1.8x

-2.1x

-2.4x

GAC

§

8,929

10,546

2.0

55.8x

48.1x

35.8x

19.3x

15.7x

11.9x

0.7x

0.6x

0.6x

1.7%

1.9%

2.8%

-11.4%

-2.6%

-2.0%

-2.3x

-0.2x

0.3x

ChinaOEMs

218,392

218,382

11.7

16.8x

15.2x

12.8x

7.4x

6.9x

6.0x

0.7x

0.7x

0.6x

3.1%

3.8%

4.3%

2.3%

5.5%

12.6%

-1.2x

-1.4x

-1.7x

Ferrari

#

83,005

84,516

0.014

45.2x

42.2x

37.7x

27.0x

25.4x

22.9x

10.3x

9.8x

9.0x

0.8%

0.9%

1.0%

2.1%

30.0%

38.4%

0.0x

-0.2x

-0.3x

PorscheAG

#

43,570

46,573

0.311

21.9x

17.5x

13.3x

6.0x

5.5x

4.8x

1.1x

1.1x

1.0x

3.1%

3.6%

4.3%

6.1%

9.7%

11.2%

1.2x

1.1x

1.2x

AstonMartin

&

1,162

2,584

0.006

n.a.

n.a.

n.a.

5.6x

4.9x

3.9x

1.2x

1.1x

1.0x

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

-5.1%

3.3%

3.1%

3.6x

3.0x

2.5x

LuxuryOEMs127,736133,6730.33135.5x29.8x23.5x11.8x10.9x9.6x2.5x2.5x2.3x1.6%1.8%2.1%3.4%12.7%14.8%0.9x0.8x0.9x

GlobalOEMs(exEV)1,087,6671,130,98272.39.6x8.9x7.9x4.1x3.9x3.6x0.4x0.4x0.4x4.0%4.4%4.8%6%6.4%6.1%0.9x0.7x0.6x

GlobalEVs1,126,6761,091,9082.8n.a.598.3x136.8x126.3x85.5x49.9x7.1x6.3x5.1x0.0%0.0%0.0%0%2.7%3.7%-4.5x-2.7x-2.1x

Pricingdate:Jun13,2025;*notcoveredbyBernstein;#coveredbyBernstein'sStephenReitman;§coveredbyBernstein'sEuniceLee;&coveredbyBernstein'sHarryMartin;+coveredbyBernstein'sMasahiroAkita;calculatedEVsexcludefincodebt

3

Source:Bloomberg,Bernsteinanalysis

FortheexcIusiveuseofJATINCHAWLAatTVFCAPITALADVISORSPTELTDon16-Jun-2025

U.S.AUTOS&AUTOPARTSBERNSTEINlsocIeTecENeRAlECROUP4

DanielRoeska+19173448577danieI.roeska@16June2025

DETAILS

LegacyOEMsarereassertingtheiridentityinEVs.Thedaysof“me-too”EVsappeartobebehindus.Legacy

carmakersaremovingbeyondengineeringcompliancecarsormimickingTeslaandareinsteadreturningto

theirroots,deliveringelectricvehiclesthatfeelunmistakablytheirown.Whetherit’sinthetactilefeelofthe

steering,thesensoryfeedbackfrommaterials,orthedesigncohesionacrossmodels,investorsexperiencedaclearresurgenceofbrandidentitythroughoutthelineup.

?Volvo’sScandinavianclarityisaliveacrossitsEVs:BoththeEX30andEX90stoodoutfortheirshareddesignIanguage

—minimaIist,Iight,andcaIm.InvestorsconsistentIyremarkedontheseamIesscontinuityacrosspricepoints,withrecurringeIementsIikethesIimverticaIIighting,airycabinIayout,andintuitivecontroIinterfaces.Despitebeingindifferentsegments,bothmodeIsrefIectVoIvo’scoreethosofsimpIicityandsafety—transIatedfIuentIyintotheEVera.TheEX30inparticuIar

surprisedwithhowaccessibIeitmadethatidentity,offeringapIayfuIyetcomposedexperienceatanentry-IeveIpricepoint.WhiIetheEX30impressedwithitsaccessibiIityandpersonaIity,itsIightweightfeeIandstripped-backtechIedsometoviewitmoreasaspiritedcitycarthanapremiumaII-rounder.Afewinvestorsnotedthatincomparisontohigher-tiervehicIes,

itmightfacestiffercompetitioninEurope’svaIueEVsegment.SeveraIinvestorshighIightedtheEX90’sserenecabinandstandoutsoundsystem,asweIIastheeffectivenessofitsheads-updispIay.TheabiIitytoraiseandIowerthird-rowseatsatthetouchofabuttonexempIifiedtheintuitivedesignVoIvoisknownfor.

?BMW’sEVportfoliofeelslikeonebrand—attwoendsofthespectrum:TheiXandi7MmaydifferdramaticaIIyin

formandfunction,butthecoreBMWDNA-precision,heft,andperformance-wastangibIeinboth.Fromtheweightybutresponsivesteeringtothetech-Iadenyetdriver-focusedcockpit,investorsnotedafamiIiardynamiccompetence.WhiIetheiXchanneIsmodernismandcomfort,thei7MIeansintoaggressionandfIair.StiII,theyunmistakabIycomefromthesame

designandengineeringphiIosophy.AfewinvestorsnoteddesignquirkssuchaspartiaINAVscreenobstructionandregionaIIimitationsoftheADASonnon-designatedhighways.NonetheIess,theBMW’soveraIIhandIingandbuiIdquaIityIeftastrongimpression,andtheiX’sdistinctivematteexteriordrawingbothattentionandappreciation.

?Mercedesembracesfragmentationbydesign:UnIikeothers,Mercedesdoesn’taimforportfoIiocoherence—itIeans

intoproductindividuaIity.ThatstrategycamethroughIoudandcIearinthecontrastbetweentheuItra-smoothEQSandtheboxy,ruggedeIectricG-CIass.Eachhasauniqueidentityanddrivingexperience,withinvestorsnotinghowdistincttheyfeItfromeachother.WhiIethismaycompIicatepIatformandsoftwareuniformity,itaIsoreinforcesMercedes’focusonIifestyIesegmentation.IntheeIectricG-CIass,theridecomfortandconfidentADASperformanceduringheavyrainwereespeciaIIyweIIreceived.Somedesignchoices,IikeheatedandcooIedcuphoIders,feItexcessivetocertaininvestors,butconsistentwithMercedesIIuxury-firstapproach.

?Lotuschanneleditsperformanceroots—electrically:TheEIetrewasareveIation.WhiIemanyEVsprioritizeserenityorutiIity,LotusdeIiveredadrenaIine.WithsharphandIing,instanttorque,andpurposefuIdesign,thecardidn’tjuststandout—itthriIIed.InvestorsrepeatedIyciteditasthe“mostfun”vehicIeoftheday.AndwhiIethebrandremainsniche,itdemonstratedhowevensmaIIerpIayerscancarveoutadefensibIespacebystayingtruetotheircore.

?Ford’sDNAisruggedfamiliarity,withEVpolish:TheF-150Lightningsurprisedmanywithhow“Iight”itfeItbehindthe

wheeI.ItsridecomposureandmaneuverabiIitydefiedexpectationsforafuII-sizetruck—especiaIIyaneIectricone.TheMach-E,whiIeIessstandout,stiIIreinforcedFord’spositioningasaneverydaybrandwithapproachabIetechandstrongdriveabiIity.Theexperiencewaspositiveacrosstheboard.WhiIetheMach-Estoodoutasafun,weII-roundedvehicIe,rankingasa

favoriteforseveraIparticipants,itsinfotainmentandinterfacefeItIessadvancedwhencomparedside-by-sidewithTesIa’sofferings.Evenso,itconsistentIyreinforcedFord’simageasapproachabIeandeasytodrive.

?VinFastisprogressingquickly,withrefinementstillevolving:InvestorsacknowIedgedVinFast’srapidproduct

maturation,withsoIiddrivingdynamicsandafunctionaIuserinterface.WhiIesomenotedareasforfurtherimprovement,thetrajectorywascIearIypositive.Withcontinuedrefinement,VinFastcouIdemergeasacredibIepIayerinthevaIueandmid-tiersegments.

?BrandfamiliaritymakestheEVtransitionfeelseamless:Oneofthemostrepeatedcommentsduringthedaywasthat“thesearejustcars”—asubtIebutsignificantshift.InvestorspointedoutthatthenoveItyofEVpropuIsionisstartingtofadefromtheconsumermindset.AstheEVbecomesnormaIized,whatmattersmostisthatthecarstiII“feeIsIikeaVoIvo,”or

“drivesIikeaBMW.”Inthatcontext,strongbrandidentityservesnotonIyasasourceofdifferentiation,butaIsoasacomfortfactor.ItaIIowsIegacyOEMstoretaincustomersthroughthetransition,offeringafuture-forwardproductthatdoesn’tfeeI

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aIien.

?Differentiationbecomesrelevantagain:Withbatteryrange,acceIeration,andchargingincreasingIyconvergingacrossbrands,investorsarebeginningtoseespaceopenforOEMstoonceagaincompeteonthetraditionaIvectors—driving

experience,designidentity,andemotionaIappeaI.This,ironicaIIy,bringsEVsbackintothecompetitiveparadigmthatIegacyOEMsunderstandbest.ThechaIIengeisnoIonger“CanyoubuiIdanEV?”but“CanyoubuiIdonethat’sdesirabIe,profitabIe,andunmistakabIyyours?”O(jiān)neattendeecapturedthesentimentsuccinctIy:IThesearejustcarsnow.IThetransitiontoEVsisstartingtofadeintothebackground,IeavingtraditionaIvaIues,comfort,drivingdynamics,andbrandaffinity,toonceagaindefinevehicIeappeaI.

ADASistablestakes,butTesla’sFSDstillimpresses.AsADAScapabilitiesbecomeubiquitous,thebarforwhatimpresseshasshifteddramatically.Adaptivecruisecontrolandlanecenteringarenowexpected,notapplauded.Whatstoodoutinsteadwerethesystemsthatgoastepfurtherandhowtheyhandledtheunpredictablerealitiesofeverydaydriving.DuringtheDriveDay,investorshadthechancetotestADASsuitesacrossurbanstreets,openhighways,andtwistycountryroads,undersunandheavyrain.Therangeofenvironmentsmadeonethingclear:notallsystemsareequaloncetheweatherortheroadturnstricky.

?Tesla’sFSDremainsthebenchmark,forbetterorworse:Forinvestorsnewtoit,TesIa’sFSDwasaneye-opener.It

demonstratedconfidentIanechanges,soIidnavigation,andhighcomposure,especiaIIyonweII-markedhighways.However,thesystem’sAchiIIesIheeIwasaIsovisibIe.Inheavyrain,itdisengaged,IeavingdriversmomentariIyunsureofthesystemIsIimits.ThisreinforcedthatwhiIeFSDisaheadonambitionandbreadth,itremainsvuInerabIetoenvironmentaIvariabIes.

StiII,amongthesystemstested,itgeneratedthemostinvestordiscussionandengagement—proofthatitstiIIcarriesatechnoIogicaIhaIo.

?Ford’sBlueCruiseimpressedwithreliabilityandrestraint:InvestorspraisedBIueCruiseforwhatitdidn’tdo—jerky

corrections,randomdisengagements,oroverpromising.Onthehighway,especiaIIyinmoderatetraffic,itdeIiveredasmoothandconsistentexperience.Itshands-freemodefeItmature,anditsconservativedesigngavedriversconfidence.WhiIeit

IackedthefIairofFSD,itofferedsomethingequaIIyvaIuabIe:trustworthiness.

?Othersblurintothebackground:BeyondFordandTesIa,mostothersystemsdeIiveredwhatoneinvestorcaIIed“defauItcompetence.”TheymaintainedIanes,foIIowedtraffic,andoccasionaIIypingedforhandcontact.ButnonestoodouteitherforexceIIenceorforfaiIure—asignthatL2functionaIityhasbecomeabaseIinerequirement,ratherthanapointofcompetitiveadvantage.

?FSDasahalo—andaheadacheforcompetitors:Amonginvestors,TesIa’sFSDIeftacIearimpression:thisisn’tjust

incrementaI—it’syearsaheadinscopeandvision.Evenifimperfect,itrepresentsareaIIeapbeyondL2functionaIity.AndwhiIeseveraIOEMshaveannouncedpIanstoIaunchNOA-Iikefeatures,nonehavepubIicIycommittedtotimeIines—or

demonstratedcomparabIefieId-readycapabiIity.ThissiIencespeaksvoIumes.TheimpIication:fornow,TesIa’sIeadinthisdomainremainsintact,andIikeIydurabIe.InvestorssawthisasbothamoatandachaIIenge—particuIarIyforIegacyOEMsthatIacktheverticaIintegrationordatascaIetoacceIeratedeveIopmentindependentIy.

Ford’snextEVplatformaimsforChinesecostcompetitiveness.OurdinnerwithFordprovidedaglimpseintoafuturethat’slessaboutcatchingupandmoreaboutredefiningcompetitiveness.Thecompany’snext-generationEVplatformisafundamentalrethink,builtaroundasimplebutchallenginggoal:matchChineseOEMsoncost.

Earlycarswillbevisiblein2026,andthecompanyisawareitneedstoprovideexecutionproofpointstoinvestorsafterrestructuringitsEVportfolio.

?ReshapingFord’sEVprogram:Overthepasttwoyears,FordhasdecisiveIyre-positioneditsEVprogram.DecisionstodefercertainbatterypIantinvestments(e.g.,Kentucky2,Turkey)andcanceIthethree-rowEVrefIectapragmaticIensonnear-termeconomics.

?Aplatformbuiltforscaleandsurvival:Ford’snewEVpIatformisdesignedtosupportuptoeight“tophats,”aIIowingthecompanytostretchthearchitectureacrosstrucks,crossovers,andpossibIysedans.Fromthecomments,wewouIdinferthatthefirstproductmayresembIeaFordRangerEV.ThatwouIdbeacompeIIingchoice:high-voIume,gIobaIIyreIevant,and

commerciaIIyviabIe.ThisbreadthiscriticaI.PIatformdupIicationacrossregionsandusecaseshasbeenamajorcostdragin

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Ford’spastefforts.

?CosttargetsstartwithChina:LisaDrakewasexplicit:FordintendstomatchthecoststructureofleadingChineseplayers.Thatmeansnotjustbatterypricing,butfullsystemcostfromchassisandthermalsystemstoinvertersandelectronics.

PrismaticLFPbatteries,developedwithCATLandproducedintheU.S.,arecentraltothisambition.TheSkunkworksteam,nowrebrandedastheAdvancedEVTechnologyTeam,followedawidearrayofideas,likeborrowingfromIKEA’sflat-packsupplychainorarigorousdesign-to-costdiscipline.

?Designedforlongevity,notiterationchurn:Whiletimelinesremainflexible,wetookawaythatthisplatformisbeingbuilttolast.Witheightbodystylesandpotentialglobalapplicability,it’sintendedtounderpinFord’sEVstrategyformuchofthenextdecade.Thatcontrastswithsomerivalswhocontinuetolaunchstand-aloneEVproductswithbespokearchitectureslimitingre-useandscalingpotential.

FordPro:therealmoatintheportfolio.Amongallthediscussionsduringtheday,perhapstheclearestarticulationofsustainablecompetitiveadvantagecamefromFord’scommercialplay.FordProisnotjustadivision,it’s

afortress.AndasLisaDrakeexplained,itsdefensibilityliesnotonlyinpricing,scale,orevenbrand,butinarchitecture.Specifically,intheunmatchedabilitytodeliverafullsuiteofvehiclestailoredtoreal-worldcommercialneeds.

?Fleetbuyersdemandvariety,notjustquality:LisaoutlinedwhyFordcontinuestodominatethissegment:business

customers,evensmallones,wantfleetharmonization.It’snotenoughtoofferoneortwogoodmodels.Alandscapingfirmmightneedasinglecabforloadhauling,aSuperDutywithasleepercabforaforeman,andaservicevanfortoolstorage.Onlyabrandthatcandeliverallofthoseoncompatibleplatformscanofferoperationalefficiencyandfleetintegration.

?Body-on-framemodularityistheenabler:Ford’struckarchitectureisdesignedforthiskindofvariety.Thebody

componentscanbeextended,compressed,orswappedwithoutdisruptingtheunderlyingplatform.AflexibilitythatallowsFordtoservenichesmostcompetitorscan’treach.AndasLisaputit,thisisn’tabonus,it’sarequirementformanyfleet

buyers.

?Whyothersfail:Mostnewentrantsunderestimatethis.Theydesign“onegoodtruck”andhopeitscales.Butwithoutafullportfolio,they’relockedoutofmid-sizecommercialcustomerswhoexpectmulti-vehicleharmonization.Asaresult,theyeitherlosethesaleorgetstuckinlow-volumeniches.InvestorswalkedawaywithadeeperunderstandingthatFordPro’smarketshareandEBITmarginaren’taccidental,they’restructural.

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EXHIBIT2:EVslininguptoleaveManhattan,asraincloudsgather

Source:Bernstein

EX