Ford Motor Co. is cutting 2024 production goals in half for its F-150 Lightning plug-in pickup truck — its signature electric vehicle — due to slowing demand for battery powered models.
The automaker now intends to build 1,600 of the trucks a week in 2024 at its plant in Dearborn, Michigan, down from a previous plan to manufacture 3,200 units of the model weekly, a company spokeswoman said Monday. The automaker has been informing suppliers of the production cuts on a model Chief Executive Officer Jim Farley once said was “a test for adoption for electric vehicles” in America.
The move comes as Ford scales back spending on electric vehicles by US$12 billion and downsized by nearly half a battery factory it’s building in Michigan. Farley has said the robust EV demand the company expected hasn’t materialized because potential buyers are balking at high prices and spotty charging infrastructure. The automaker also is lowering production of its electric Mustang Mach-E in Mexico and put on hold plans for a second battery factory in Kentucky.
“We will continue to match production to customer demand,” Ford said in a statement.
The latest cuts come despite the Lightning having its best sales month ever in November with 4,393 deliveries. Lightning sales in the third quarter fell 46 per cent as the automaker shut its factory for expansion and delayed delivery of the truck for “quality checks.”
It also comes as Tesla Inc. rolls out its highly anticipated Cybertruck, which takes aim at potential Lightning buyers.
Automotive News earlier reported the Lightning production cut.
Shares of Ford were little changed in postmarket trading. The stock is down about 5 per cent this year.
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