iPhone maker Foxconn sets sights on EV market
8. June 2023Taiwan-based Foxconn, known to many as the maker of Apple’s iPhone, recently showed off two new EVs at an event in Taipei. Foxconn, officially listed as Hon Hai Technology Group, aims to make about 5 percent of all EVs sold worldwide by 2025, Chairman Liu Young-way said at the event. He said his ambitious goal for the future is 40 to 45 percent market share for EVs, a similar figure Foxconn currently holds for computers and smartphones. As with its electronics products, Foxconn does not plan to launch its own brand or sales for EVs. Instead, the EVs will be built on behalf of other manufacturers, similar to how Europe’s Magna-Steyr produces vehicles for established automakers such as Mercedes, BMW and Jaguar. The two Foxconn EVs unveiled at the event are simply meant to demonstrate Foxconn’s level of development and manufacturing expertise.
In the U.S., Foxconn recently began production of an electric pickup truck in Lordstown, Ohio. GM previously manufactured small cars with internal combustion engines at the plant. GM sold the plant in 2019 to startup Lordstown Motors, which initially planned to manufacture electric pickups there itself. Then, earlier this year, Foxconn took over the factory and agreed with Lordstown Motors to manufacture the electric pickup there under contract starting in September. The first deliveries of the e-pickup, called Endurance, are scheduled for later this year.
Furthermore, Foxconn has signed an agreement with Fisker Inc. to manufacture its Pear electric small car at the Lordstown plant as well. Indi EV, another California-based startup, is also having its first e-car, Indi One, produced by Foxconn. In addition to vehicles, Foxconn has also been contracted to manufacture the Monarch MK-V electric tractor at its plant. According to CNN Business, it is unclear how much Foxconn expertise is involved in the respective vehicles. In this regard, a Fisker spokesperson said that in the Pear EV, some components or parts of the software are from Foxconn, but the design of the vehicle comes from the hand of Fisker CEO Henrik Fisker. No Foxconn components are used at all in the Lordstown Endurance pickup, according to a spokesperson. Nevertheless, the two companies have agreed that future vehicle developments will be based on Foxconn technology.
By contrast, Foxconn has already prepared an EV for sale in the domestic market. The Model C prototype is to be launched as the Luxgen N7 and deliveries are expected to begin in the second half of 2023, according to Foxconn. Luxgen’s parent company, Yulon Group, formed a joint venture with Foxconn in 2021. Called “Foxtron,” the company is engaged in the development and production of EVs. In addition to the Model C, a seven-seat crossover SUV, Foxconn’s portfolio consists of the Model B compact SUV, the Model E sedan, and the Model V all-wheel-drive pickup truck. The Model B and Model E were designed by the well-known Italian design firm Pininfarina, which also works with Vietnamese automaker VinFast, among others. While the Vinfast Model VF8 and VF9 are already available for pre-order in Europe, it remains to be seen when and under which brand the Foxconn vehicles will be available outside of China.
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