Article: How Ford’s F-150 Lightning, Once in Hot Demand, Lost Its Luster

[Txxthie]

There are a multitude of reasons for the slow down in sales. The Lightning is too well built. The economics never made sense due to battery costs. Rising interest rates eliminated Lariat trim buyers Ford needed for sales. The dealerships don’t really want to sell BEVs. The media has put a negative spin on BEVs. Tesla popped the car market bubble in Jan 2023 with the start of price cuts. Lack of public education on BEVs. The charging infrastructure sucks for non Tesla EVs.

Most people don’t want to work thru problems and also dislike change. It has to work and be easy to use. BEV price parity to ICE combined with easy charging will be required going forward. Tesla is the only company persistently driving down the price of its vehicles, has seamless DCFC, and their cars are rapidly approaching Toyota prices, even while their automotive gross margins are trending higher than the OEMs.

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[invertedspear]

The dealerships don’t really want to sell BEVs.

This is the biggest point. The sales guys know f-all about BEVs. They can't sell them, buyers have to seek them out. Service guys are actively anti-EV, even when the things they're being asked to fix are shared with ICE models. If the dealers got excited about EVs and actually learned some things about them, they'd be able to sell them.

 

[Ventorum94]

…Last year the $7500 was a credit you only get the entire amount if your tax liability is that or greater….

Just about any married-joint tax return with AGI equal to the price of a Lightning Lariat or higher is going to have a $7500 or higher tax liability (though I’m not sure anyone should be buying a vehicle that costs as much as their annual income).

 

[RickLightning]

So many people don't do research before buying ANYTHING. Many don't run the numbers to see what they can AFFORD. Many like shiny baubles.

EVs face a lack of KNOWLEDGE and EXPERIENCE in both consumers and dealers. Now add in HYPE HEADLINES and RECALLS, combined with prices going UP during the rollout, and you have a CLUSTER.

 

[kbuicker]

Who cares. I love mine. Really all that matters. I can give a flying flip what some writer says.
I didn't buy mine to tow, but can if I wanted too (once a year maybe?). Towing mileage doesn't make the truck. Mine is the absolute best commuter vehicle for me. I am so glad to be back in a truck after utilizing hybrids for good mileage. And the fact I can blow the doors off most sports cars while still fitting my 6'6" frame and family comfortably. All that matters.

I know there are those out there who have the same attitude I do about their EV. So just enjoy it. We're lucky to have it.

 

[jimfigler]

I love my Lightning as a road trip vehicle - it is fantastic! Yes, you have to do some planning and I can't wait for the infrastructure to improve, but it is VERY comfortable and easy to drive.

If you understand the limitations from the start about road trips its fine but i believe many bought them not understanding the extra planning, poor infrastructure, extra time and more often than not the extra cost once your freebee juice runs out.

 

[jimfigler]

Is it the way forward if not a stepping stone to better technologies? Yes.

I never said it wasn't.

 

[Replika]

Ford killed the Lightning.

Advertised $39,999 version to gain 200k reservations. Built mostly $80k trucks, raised the price of the $40k Pro version to $56,000.

Petty dealer markups and nonsense games killed goodwill

Subpar fast charge experience. Electrify America problems were well-known early in the Lightning development. If the Tesla agreement had been struck a few years earlier the travel dynamic would be a lot less negative. Uncertainty is the worst part of the charging experience.

All of that vastly out-weighs towing, cold weather, and highway efficiency IMO.

 

[F150ROD]

We must also remember that Ford doesn't have a cult to drive sales. Tesla's cult is strong but they are seeing that once the cult has theirs there is only a small percentage of the non cult that will but their cars unless it's super cheap.

 

[TaxmanHog]

This article is just an overview of what was posted above:

https://fordauthority.com/2024/02/ford-ev-strategy-will-now-focus-on-smaller-cheaper-models/

 

[Txxthie]

This is the biggest point. The sales guys know f-all about BEVs. They can't sell them, buyers have to seek them out. Service guys are actively anti-EV, even when the things they're being asked to fix are shared with ICE models. If the dealers got excited about EVs and actually learned some things about them, they'd be able to sell them.

It also doesn’t help that some dealerships still don’t have EV certified techs. My local dealer has 2 locations and the one that is 5 mins from me is worthless to me. Seriously, why can’t Ford provide mobile service like Tesla? I’m not bringing in my truck in for recalls and also failed OTA’s since Dec, because it’s not convenient and I am not confident in Fords ability to fix the problems. I also had a reduced power train malfunction error last summer, that was resolved with a power on/off. Calling local dealers in my area was not confidence inspiring. I would not blame someone for selling this truck because there’s not enough competent dealers.

 

[pullinggs]

I love my Lightning. I own it, title in hand, and plan to enjoy it for at least a decade. It's not getting replaced with anything anytime soon.

Couldn't agree more! Most F150s will never see gross weight and never haul a trailer (and never need 4-wheel drive). They are used to run to the grocery, pick up/drop off the kids, and just do the things we do every day around town. So long as you can charge at home, the Lightning is a wonderful vehicle for what most drivers actually need.

 

[columbiaskier]

NY TImes Business Section Article: How Ford’s F-150 Lightning, Once in Hot Demand, Lost Its Luster - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

It's behind a paywall (maybe you get a free article?). But here are some "fair use" quotes.



The guy loved the Lightning and said he'd like to buy one again someday when the range and the charging station situation are improved.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gartner_hype_cycle

So far the Lightning is tracking the hype cycle pretty well. Ford themselves got caught up in the "inflated expectations" phase when they raised prices following unanticipated demand. Now we are in the Trough of Disillusionment and looking toward the Slope of Enlightenment.

 

[LightningShow]

Hopefully they discontinue the Lightning and cancel the T3. I like driving a unicorn.

 

[Jim Lewis]

So far the Lightning is tracking the hype cycle pretty well.

If it's just a hype cycle, how come Ford is so stupid then to be massively changing its business priorities?

I love my Lightning, too. It's the best vehicle I ever owned. But it's a luxury vehicle, and my Lariat ER with Max Tow Technology is way out of the price range of the average U.S. consumer. I paid about $95K for the truck, and with all the accessories I got for it, the Ford Protect Plan, and the Home Integration System, my total price was about $110K, which I paid in cash.

The NY Times article in the OP post is a follow-up to Ford's earning call, in which Farley and other executives explained their new game plan - and it's a reaction to world economic realities, not a response to EV haters. So, the whole point of the OP article is to explain how this big switcheroo came about.

The article did not even go into Ford's problems with batteries, OTA updates, or the Home Integration System, which was originally trumpeted as a big feature of the vehicle. Even folks who love the Lightning have dismissed HIS as overly expensive and plagued by shoddy performance. Ford has not been running with the ball very well, IMHO as an owner of a shoddy HIS unit who's still waiting to have his BMS sensor replaced, etc. Knock on wood, I've had no battery module problems so far...

Related to the Lightning losing its luster even in Ford execs' eyes, I wonder what will happen to BlueCruise development. We've been wondering where PU 6.13 got to. But as Ford said in its earnings call, they will concentrate now on investing where they expect to make a good profit. If Ford is saying to make a decent profit on BlueCruise, they need to charge $800/year to offset development/maintenance costs, and we're all saying, "No way I'll pay that!" does that mean down the road they follow the money and ease up tremendously on BlueCruise development because at $800/year and ~no subscribers (kinda like the Home Integration System), it's not going to be very profitable for them? I can't imagine folks who buy a future very basic, small Ford EV will have the money to pay a hefty annual BlueCruise fee. We may be waiting for the other shoe to drop on BlueCruise...

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