Ford Motor on Monday cut the price of its F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck by a range of $6,000 to about $10,000, the latest sign of sluggish demand for electric vehicles.
The price cuts come as inventories of unsold electric vehicles on dealer lots are rising, and several rounds of discounts are being offered by Tesla, the leading seller of electric cars.
Ford is slashing prices after temporarily halting truck production this year to upgrade its assembly line and increase output. By the fall, the company expects its Rouge Electric Vehicle Center near Detroit to be able to produce 150,000 Lightnings per year, tripling its current production capacity.
Competition in the electric vehicle business is getting more and more intense. Tesla said Saturday that it has begun production of its much-delayed Cybertruck pickup, and General Motors is expected to start delivering an electric version of the Chevrolet Silverado truck soon.
Ford will begin making the Lightning in the spring of 2022 and has raised prices several times to around $20,000, citing rising raw material costs for its batteries. At the time, demand far exceeded Ford’s production and some dealers were charging thousands of dollars more than the company’s suggested retail price.
“Soon after launching the F-150 Lightning, rapidly rising material costs, supply constraints and other factors have raised the cost of EV trucks for Ford and our customers,” said Marin Gazza, chief customer officer for the automaker’s electric vehicle division. increased.” “We have continued to work in the background to improve access to help lower prices and reduce wait times for our customers.”
Ford said the list price for the Pro model of the F-150 Lightning is $49,995, a reduction of $9,979. The XLT 312A model with the extended range battery was reduced by $8,879 to $69,995. The top-of-the-line Platinum Extended-Range model will sell for $91,995, or $6,079 less than last week.
As a result of the price cut, most Lightning models will cost less than $80,000, making them eligible for a $7,500 federal tax credit authorized by President Biden’s ambitious climate change legislation, the Inflation Reduction Act.
To further spur demand, Ford is also offering a $1,000 rebate for buyers who custom order certain models through dealers through July 31. Ford’s credit arm is also offering 1.9 percent financing on a 36-month loan.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
