Ford’s Bill Ford Urges U.S. Automakers to Take on China Instead of Shutting It Out

S. market. Ford Motor Company’s executive chairman, Bill Ford, is taking a different stance. , Ford said the industry needs to face the challenge directly. “We have to go toe-to-toe with China,” he told the crowd, adding that it’s unrealistic to keep Chinese competitors out forever.

Instead, he argued, American carmakers must find a way to beat them at their own game.

That view puts him at odds with other voices inside his own company. CEO Jim Farley told Fox News in April that Chinese EVs should not be allowed into the country, citing heavy government subsidies in China that make competition unfair. S. S. should not open its doors to them.

S. like the Lincoln Nautilus, are built in China. Volvo, owned by Chinese conglomerate Geely, recently got approval to keep operating in the States, while its sister brand Polestar was denied. Bill Ford is pushing for an industrial policy that can survive political shifts, noting that automakers’ lead times are longer than election cycles.

He’s betting on product, too: Ford is developing a $30,000 electric pickup to compete head-on. S. market, but when, and whether American companies will be ready.