Ford Teases All-Electric Fathom Pickup Driving Down Las Vegas Strip

Hoping to build momentum ahead of the new Fathom pickup’s launch next year, Ford CEO Jim Farley has posted a handful of images showing a camouflaged version of the EV making its way along the neon-lit Las Vegas Strip. Headlight.News has more on Ford Fathom.

In what could be its most critical launch in some time, Ford will roll out an all-new battery-electric pickup in autumn 2027. Following its latest marketing strategy, Ford has begun teasing the truck, first by inviting journalists to meet with the development team working on Fathom. Now, in its next move, Ford is giving us a brief glimpse of the truck in camouflaged form.

CEO Jim Farley this week posted a handful of shots showing the 2028 Ford Fathom rolling down the neon-lit Las Vegas Strip. But while the images answer some of the questions we’ve had about the new EV, they raise a number of others.

What’s clear is that Fathom won’t stray far from the design language used for Ford’s more traditional pickup family, from the compact Maverick to the full-size F-Series.

What’s New

Ford wrote down about $19.5 billion on its EV program last year – among other things canceling a 3-row SUV and ending production of the F-150 Lightning. Farley ordered a dramatic shift in direction, setting up a “skunkworks” team in Long Beach, California to come up with a way to build an affordable line-up of battery-electric vehicles that could win over buyers, even at a time when demand for EVs has gone into a slump.

The first product to emerge from that program will be a compact pickup named Ford Fathom, set to go into production early next year, with the order bank to open in spring, first deliveries to follow by autumn 2027.

Ford plans to fully reveal Fathom later this year but, despite the camouflage we get far more insight into what’s coming. For one things, the basic design appears to follow the design language shared by Ford’s current truck lines – with a few notable differences. For one thing, there are large headlight opening in the camo just above the bumper. The question is whether that layout is design to be misleading. Meanwhile, cut outs in the center of the lower fascia will likely be used to channel cooling air to Fathom’s battery pack, control electronics and motor drive system.

By the numbers

In an unusual move, Ford has already announced pricing for the new pickup. It will start at $29,945, including $1,595 in delivery fees, making it one of the most affordable EVs available in the U.S.  Its most direct competitor is expected to be the new Slate pickup, the Blank Slate set to have a base MSRP of $26,400, including $1,450 in delivery fees.

But there’s a big difference in philosophies. Slate will be a stripped-down, single-row pickup with crank windows and few amenities. Even a radio will be an option. Fathom will have two rows and far more standard features, Ford promises, even in base trim. Depending upon the package, Fathom will offer a built-in audio system accessed through a large touchscreen, a digital key and even bidirectional charging, allowing an owner to tap into its battery, say, to provide power at a work or campsite.

Slate, a Detroit start-up, says its truck will get an EPA-estimated 205 miles range on its 65 kWh battery pack. Ford plans to release range and other data later this year but it’s planning to offer two battery pack options. The base version could run as high as 240 miles while a senior Ford source told Headlight.News the automaker is “aware” that buyers will likely want something closer to 300 miles in the extended-range pack.

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Plenty of questions

The camo used in the images Farley released makes it hard to determine what the final version of Fathom will look like. But it also leaves other maters open to conjecture. During a visit to Long Beach earlier this year, a top Ford executive suggested the “footprint,” or exterior dimensions, of Fathom could fall into the upper end of the compact spectrum. That would put it somewhere close to the size of the current Ford Maverick.

In his post on X, however, Farley described it as a “mid-size electric truck.” Both executives could be correct. As with many of today’s EVs, Fathom will ride on a skateboard-like platform tucking its battery pack and other key components below the load floor.

That will free up space to deliver a more midsize cabin and cargo bed. Ford has also said Fathom will feature a frunk, or front trunk, where an internal combustion engine would go. As with the older Lightning, that would provide concealed space for cargo.

What’s next

Ironically, the frunk may vanish when Ford brings back an all-new Lightning in a couple years. That truck will switch from an all-electric drivetrain to an E-REV, or extended-range electric vehicle. It will have a modest-sized internal combustion engine onboard.

But, unlike today’s plug-in hybrids, the system will be used solely as a generator to keep the battery charged up. The ICE side of the drivetrain will never send torque to the wheels. The approach will allow more extensive driving on the battery pack alone than today’s PHEVs but solve the range restrictions that limited Lightning’s appeal.

By some estimates, the E-REV model will get up to 700 miles when it has a fully charged battery and a full tank of gas.