Has Ford got cheap car fever? A $25K crossover is supposedly on the way.

福特患上了“廉价车热”？据传一款 2.5 万美元的跨界车正在路上。

Talk of the affordability crisis may be penetrating corporate boardrooms. Hot on the heels of the name and starting price for Ford’s new affordable electric truck, news leaked today that the sub-$30,000 Fathom isn’t the only cheap Ford in the works. 关于“购车负担能力危机”的讨论或许已经传到了企业董事会。继福特新款平价电动皮卡公布名称和起售价之后，今日又有消息泄露称，售价低于 3 万美元的 Fathom 并不是福特正在研发的唯一一款廉价车型。

According to a report at Automotive News, the automaker is working on a new entry-level crossover that will start at around $25,000, although don’t expect it in showrooms until 2029. The leak is courtesy of an unnamed Ford dealer, which, together with its peers, was shown an early prototype described as resembling a first-gen Ford Escape. 据《汽车新闻》（Automotive News）报道，这家汽车制造商正在开发一款全新的入门级跨界车，起售价约为 2.5 万美元，不过预计要到 2029 年才能在展厅见到它。该消息来自一位不愿透露姓名的福特经销商，他与其他同行一起参观了一款早期原型车，据描述，该车外观类似于第一代福特翼虎（Escape）。

The crossover is said to have both hybrid and unelectrified powertrain options, and Automotive News notes that several sources have told it that Ford will assemble a hybrid crossover at its Hermosillo plant in Mexico in 2029, alongside the Bronco Sport and Maverick. 据悉，这款跨界车将提供混合动力和传统燃油动力两种选择。《汽车新闻》指出，多位消息人士透露，福特将于 2029 年在其位于墨西哥的埃莫西约（Hermosillo）工厂组装这款混合动力跨界车，与 Bronco Sport 和 Maverick 车型共线生产。

Additionally, Ford apparently showed off a four-door Mustang, which Automotive News compares to the Porsche Panamera in terms of size and styling, albeit with a sub-$40,000 price tag (making it almost a third the price of the cheapest Panamera). And a third nugget of news—the universal electric vehicle platform that will build the Fathom will result in four other electric Ford models as well. 此外，福特似乎还展示了一款四门版野马（Mustang）。《汽车新闻》将其在尺寸和造型上与保时捷 Panamera 相提并论，但其售价却低于 4 万美元（仅为最便宜的 Panamera 价格的三分之一左右）。第三条消息是：用于打造 Fathom 的通用电动汽车平台还将衍生出另外四款福特电动车型。

2029 is far enough out that plenty could happen to the proposed small Ford before it reaches the streets. But average transaction prices crept above $50,000 by the end of last year, and we’re now left with a relatively small handful of new vehicles that can be purchased for less than $30,000. Even fewer if MSRP needs to be closer to $25,000. 2029 年还很遥远，在这款小型福特车上市之前，很多情况都可能发生变化。但去年年底，平均交易价格已攀升至 5 万美元以上，目前市面上售价低于 3 万美元的新车屈指可数。如果将建议零售价（MSRP）定在 2.5 万美元左右，选择就更少了。

So an additional entry to that list ought to be welcome, especially if the starting price is about $25,000 in 2029 dollars. Even better would be other OEMs paying attention and following suit. Ars reached out to Ford, which told us that it won’t comment or speculate on future products. 因此，如果能增加这样一款车型，无疑是受欢迎的，尤其是如果其起售价在 2029 年的货币价值下约为 2.5 万美元的话。如果其他汽车制造商（OEM）也能关注并效仿，那就更好了。Ars 联系了福特，对方表示不会对未来产品发表评论或进行推测。