Ford Motor Company had big plans to spend $12 billion to beef up its electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing capabilities. But the company now says customers just aren’t willing to spend the premium for EVs, and is holding back that big EV push.
High financial premium for EVs slows sales
Ford says customers are buying EVs, just not as fast as the company had expected. The blue oval company says it isn’t giving up on EV production—just not pumping the money in as fast as earlier plans indicated. In a media briefing last week, Ford’s Chief Financial Officer, John Lawler, told the press: “We are … looking at the pace of capacity that we’re putting in place. We are going to push out some of that investment.”
With the high financial premium for EVs holding back expansion, where will the cutback be seen? Ford’s planned second battery manufacturing facility in Kentucky is now on hold, for one thing. Still, the new Tennessee-based EV building plant will go on.
Ford EV expansion up to customers
So when will Ford cut loose with the money? That’s up to customers. “The customer is going to decide what the volumes are,” Lawler said. “Ford is able to balance production of gas, hybrid and electric vehicles to match the speed of EV adoption in a way that others can’t.”
Will RVers fill some of the gap of unwilling buyers? That remains to be seen. As we’ve written about Ford’s EV pickups, the “entry level” Ford Lightning is the Pro fleet model. At an incredibly low cost, $39,974, the EPA estimated range is at the low end, 230 miles. This is exactly what Ford originally promised. However, the tow capacity of the Pro fleet unit is a pretty paltry 5,000 pounds. Bump up the price with the optional Max Trailer Tow package, your towing capacity jumps to 7,700 pounds. Trouble is, unless you’re a fleet buyer, a new Pro fleet model isn’t available to you. Hang around for a while—maybe you’ll find a used one retiring from a commercial buyer.
##RVT1129b
People do not want to spend all of that $$$$$ for a vehicle that for the most part is only usable around town. When it is easy, convenient, and as fast as filling a gas tank also able to be driven coast to coast and not have to look for a reliable charging station in even the most remote area of the country then and only then will I consider one.
Take away the subsidies and see what happens. Read where the cost of an EV would increase $50K w/o them.
How is the quality in the F150 Electric vehicles? Are there lots of recalls, what about the turnaround time for getting parts. Had a F150 hybrid, it had a few recalls, needed new wiper motors that took three months to get. But they were still building F150’s. A week before I totaled it, I was having issues with the A/C. How about the tail gate recall. if it opens driving down the road. We’ll fix it then and give you a 10 year, 150 thousand mile warrant in case it happens.
Finally. the cold hand of reality begins slapping down politically inspired pipe dreams.
Nailed it Roger!!!
Politically inspired pipe dreams from the virtuous dreamers that remain unaffected by the policies they create and fund with money they’ve picked from the pockets of the masses that they could not care less about. 100% virtue signaling. They can’t solve Immigration or inflation but change a planet’s climate, no problem for this group of clowns running the DC Gong Show. Just eat more bugs, solved.
Bingo! A big European wind turbine company just canceled plans for turbines off shore of New Jersey, Massachusetts & another that escapes my old brain. Beside killing whales, they figured out it wasn’t cost effective. Do tell.
Thank you, Russ and Tina! Ford will wait quite a while to make any additional EV investment if they wait on me. Electricity here in TVA-land is not cheap, so EVs are no salvation from gasoline or diesel prices. Plus, we already own all our vehicles outright. No desire to acquire debt to purchase an EV.
I think three things are affecting the sales of EVs. First, cost. How many folks have the resources to pay what the going prices are for these vehicles? Coupled with cost are today’s rising interest rates and what it would cost to finance one. Second, mileage. Urban city dwellers don’t mind the short range for many of today’s EVs. Take into account that an Mfg. reported say 300-mile range gets reduced by 25% or more in the East, cold depletes batteries, and the hot Southwest where the AC cranking on high runs the batteries down faster. Third, in the true American Spirit, Americans don’t like things shoved down their throats the way EVs are by today’s politicians.
I can see an EV in Europe where gas is $8 to $10 per U.S. gallon. They can also drive across 4 or 5 countries on a single charge (which they normally do not do in our experience); we would need two charges, at least, just to get across Texas!
At over 800 miles across I 10 I would think it would take at least 4 if you run the A/C.
Agreed!
Ford is not the only one cutting back. “Sheehy (a dealer back east), who sells a stable of brands including Ford, Hyundai, Volkswagen, and GMC, says electric cars are the slowest sellers on his lots right now. He currently has enough electric cars to last for 100 days across all brands. Even Tesla is seeing slow sales.”
This,taken from a Firefox search, shows how car manufacturers (pressured by government rebates – to everyone) rushed into this EV frenzy without checking with the public to see if we really wanted these cars. And, we don’t.
Yep the green new deal is a politically inspired idea with no science to back it up. This is a classic result of electing lawyers to represent us. I have never met a lawyer with common sense, legal mumbo jumbo is the only thing they think of.
Yet some of the states are regulating new EV only sales within 15 years. i probably won’t be around to see if it really happens.
The tow truck industry is going to make out great in those states. When all those EVs go dead and have to be towed to a recharging station that doesn’t work.
I keep wondering if the tow industry is working up any plans for dealing with these EVs? This isn’t bringing you 2 gallons of gas to get you to the nearest station or bringing a fan or alternator belt.
Unfortunately I’ll still be around to see it..😥
Ford and the other auto makers are realizing that most people don’t want them. For one thing we don’t have the infrastructure for them.
I believe the Ford Motor Company just closed a new deal with it’s unionized workers increasing the companies labor costs. Combine this with the current borrowing costs, no wonder people are not buying into EV’s as fast as some ideologies would have us believe. Next to no proper local and nationwide infrastructure and poor cold weather driving distance performance, EV’s are still a luxury for the rich who can afford it. A lot of folks today are struggling to make ends meet as it is. I think EV’s are going to price themselves out of the market as they are overall not a better vehicle choice just another accessory for the niche crowd.
Perfect Bill.
Hahahahaha. Hohohoho. Heeheeheehee. OMG, I just pee’d a little reading that. Hahaha haha. 🤣😅🤣😅🤣😅🤣😂🤣😂
Drill baby drill.
👍
“At an incredibly low cost, $39,974,” Terrible ROI
Apparently someone hasn’t been reading the automotive news, the last price increase from ford put the price over $76,000.
Good news tho, Fords latest update has them figured to only be losing $36k per EV manufacturered, down a lot from $60k reported earlier this year.