LOUISVILLE, Kentucky - A small team of Ford Motor Co. engineers in California launched work three years ago to develop an electric vehicle platform and production system that the Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker says will be as radical as the Model T. But executives insist that doesn't mean Michigan is being left behind.

"We're taking the fight to our competition, including the Chinese," CEO Jim Farley said this week during a presentation revealing details of the automaker's EV plans, "with teams across the United States, designers from California, engineers from Michigan, American workers right here in Louisville."

Michigan's heritage in building stuff and driving efficiency remains an important part of vehicle manufacturing, but clinging to old ways can hinder agility and innovation

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