Jim Farley reveals the reason he chose not to drive a Tesla in favor of a Chinese EV and Musk won't be happy
Published on Apr 21, 2026 at 2:16 PM (UTC+4)
by Henry Kelsall
Last updated on Apr 21, 2026 at 2:16 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Ford CEO Jim Farley has been happy enough not to drive a Tesla, instead opting for a Chinese EV, which may have upset Elon Musk in the process.
Farley has previously discussed his affection for some Chinese EVs over Ford’s own cars, and, of course, he conducted a teardown with Ford engineers on a Chinese electric car and Tesla.
But in a recent interview with Rapid Response, Farley expanded on why he has chosen a Xiaomi SU7 EV over anything from Musk’s company.
The boss of Tesla might not like it, but Farley has been as honest as he can be.
This is why Jim Farley prefers a Chinese EV over a Tesla
The Ford boss wanted to make it clear that he has no hate or dislike towards Tesla.
“Nothing against Tesla, they have been doing great,” he said to Rapid Response.
Farley was choosing between a Xiaomi SU7 and a Tesla Model S Plaid as a daily driver.
As we know, it was the Xiaomi that he ultimately plumped for.
He explained that much of this was down to Musk’s company not having an updated version of the EV.
“You know, they really don’t have an updated vehicle,” he said.
Since then, Tesla has pushed for redesigns of its cars, but not before Farley had bought the Xiaomi.
There was a silver lining, however.
Farley knew he could take his knowledge of the Chinese car and apply it to Ford’s products.
How the Xiaomi SU7 inspired Farley and Ford
“If we’re smart, we’ll take the cost competitiveness of BYD,” said Farley.
“Then we’ll compete with that platform in parts of the market where we know our customers really well,” he added.
Farley imported the SU7 into America in 2024, and it didn’t take long for him to love it.
“We flew one from Shanghai to Chicago, and I’ve been driving it for six months now, and I don’t want to give it up,” he said in 2024.
Jim Farley still has the car in 2026.
Ford also stripped the Chinese car down after receiving it, along with a Tesla Model 3.
“I was very humbled when we took apart the first Model 3 Tesla and started to take apart the Chinese vehicles,” said Farley to Office Hours: Business Edition.
The car helped inspire him to work harder and make Ford’s products better than its rivals.
With the future of EVs still up in the air, the Blue Oval will be working flat out to make its own cars the best in the world.
Henry joined the Supercar Blondie team in February 2025, and since then has covered a wide array of topics ranging from EVs, American barn finds, and the odd Cold War jet. He’s combined his passion for cars with his keen interest in motorsport and his side hustle as a volunteer steam locomotive fireman at a heritage steam railway.
