Ford has announced it will temporarily pause F-150 Lightning production from mid-November until at least the end of the year. Due to low demand and the state of dealership stock, Ford’s electric pickup production line in Dearborn will shut down at the end of the day on November 15. As of now, manufacturing is expected to start back up after the new year, on January 6.
“We continue to adjust production for an optimal mix of sales growth and profitability,” said Ford in a statement, according to Automotive News.
This news comes after a recent Q3 earnings call in which Ford CEO Jim Farley stated that the brand’s electric vehicle business lost $1.2 billion this past quarter. Farley also expects a $5 billion loss for its EV division in 2024.
Ford’s EV losses aren’t entirely resting on the F-150 Lightning’s shoulders, though. The automaker has a 100-day supply of F-150s, per Auto News, though it didn’t specify how much of that supply is represented by Lightnings. Considering Ford is willing to pause production for almost two months, I’d reckon the percentage of electric pickups in its dealer stock is high. But it also has a 130-day supply of Mustang Mach-Es and a 128-day supply of e-Transit vans.
Farley says that things should be looking up for Ford’s EV business in 2025, although it’s unclear if he expects that progress to come from increased sales or reduced costs. According to Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas, Ford’s EV losses are projected to drop from $5 billion to $4.4 billion in 2025.
The future of Ford EVs seems murky at the moment. This past August, it pushed back its next-gen electric pickup truck until 2027, delayed its new electric commercial van until 2026, and switched its plans for an electric three-row SUV to a plug-in hybrid. However, during this latest earnings call, Farley said Ford’s EV direction is “an area of strength” and that he “wouldn’t trade [it] for any of our competitors.”
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