Ford Motor Co.’s CEO and his wife have donated to Pope Leo XIV a secretly built, customized 2026 Ford Explorer hybrid SUV built in the pope’s native Chicago.
Jim and Lia Farley gifted the vehicle in the presence of the Pontiff during a ceremony that took place on Feb. 28, marking the first time a Ford CEO has had an audience with the pope at the Vatican, Ford spokesperson Dan Barbossa said. The CEO took a drive with the pope and demonstrated some of the vehicle’s advanced features, as well as some of the unique nods, including to the Vatican and his Chicago upbringing. Employees at Chicago Assembly Plant knew the vehicle was being made for a VIP, but are just learning who it was because of confidentiality.
“He noticed and appreciated the personal touches — details like the Chicago skyline stitching and the Chicago flag seat tags,” Farley said in a statement. “We even took a quick drive, and I can confirm the Holy Father enjoys driving a sporty ride. But more than anything, what stays with me is the feeling of gratitude and joy we experienced meeting him and sharing this small gesture — one that reflects the pride and care of the Ford team back home in Chicago.”
Farley for years has volunteered at Detroit’s Pope Francis Center, including its St. Antoine Street center downtown that serves hot meals and the Bridge Housing Center in the Core City neighborhood near Interstate 96 and Warren Avenue that offers places to stay for men who are homeless and resources for transitioning to permanent housing.
Farley said he reached out to the Vatican several months ago about the gift, given the pope’s connections to the city’s South Side where Ford has operated for more than a century. There was interest in a hybrid, but Ford for the 2025 model year had stopped making a retail hybrid version of the Explorer A hybrid Police Interceptor version remains in production; its powertrain was used in the SUV for the pope.
Pope Leo XIV received a black Platinum AWD model with a 3.3-liter V-6 hybrid powertrain and 10-speed hybrid transmission and EU-spec radio hardware. In addition to Chicago flag seat tags and Chicago skyline stitching on the center console, the vehicle featured engraved scuff plates with a Chicago-to-Vatican design.
The high-end Platinum Explorer starts at $50,965, but the customizations would add thousands of dollars more.
Chicago employees also included with the vehicle a picture of employees at the plant, handwritten letters, a Chicago Assembly Plant recognition coin and a pizza box from Aurelio’s Pizza, a favorite hometown restaurant of the pope. There also were vanity plates stating “LEO XIV” and “DA POPE” — a reference to “Saturday Night Live’s” Bill Swerski’s Super Fans skit featuring fans of “da Bears,” Chicago’s NFL team. That skit featured Farley’s cousin, the late comedian Chris Farley.
Ford employees in Chicago involved in the project said it was a career highlight and an honor.
“I graduated from Saint Rita in 1986, so knowing that the Pope who once taught me is now driving something I helped assemble — it’s unbelievable,” Adolphus Harper, pre-delivery specialist, said in a statement provided by the automaker. “I am proud to be part of this. To see someone connected to my own education become part of something so historic — it’s amazing. ”
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