Asger Risom
After sluggish sales and mounting losses, Ford executives are reportedly weighing whether to pull the plug on the model altogether.
The all-electric Ford F-150 Lightning was once hailed as the truck that would change everything. But after sluggish sales and mounting losses, Ford executives are reportedly weighing whether to pull the plug on the model altogether.
Waning demand for an ambitious bet
According to The Wall Street Journal, Ford is considering discontinuing the Lightning, which had been projected to sell up to 150,000 units annually. The reality has fallen far short: just 33,000 trucks were sold last year.
Executives have not made a final decision, but the discussions come as Ford’s electric vehicle sales have dropped sharply—down 24% in October—after federal tax credits expired. The Lightning, long seen as a costly loss-leader, may no longer justify its place in Ford’s lineup.
Despite this, the company recently launched a campaign promoting the truck’s home energy features, including the ability to store electricity during off-peak hours and return it to the grid through participating utilities.
The policy and pricing dilemma
Several factors have combined to make the Lightning a tough sell. U.S. fuel economy standards once gave automakers a clear incentive to produce EVs to offset gas-powered vehicle emissions. But regulatory rollbacks under the Trump administration, along with new tariffs increasing production costs, have reduced that pressure.
With fewer regulatory benefits and weaker consumer demand, the case for continuing production has eroded. “The demand is just not there,” one Ford dealer told The Wall Street Journal, explaining that many dealerships have stopped ordering the trucks altogether.
Ford’s response and the road ahead
A Ford spokesperson told InsideEVs that the F-150 Lightning remains “the best-selling electric pickup truck in the U.S.” despite competition from Tesla’s Cybertruck, GM’s Silverado EV, and Rivian’s R1T. The company also confirmed it still plans to restart production at its Rouge Electric Vehicle Center once supply chain issues from a recent aluminum plant fire are resolved.
However, Ford faces a broader problem: large electric trucks remain expensive to build and difficult to sell profitably. Even with their impressive technology and performance, most buyers are unwilling to pay the steep premium over gas-powered trucks until EV costs come down.
Shifting strategy toward affordability
If the Lightning is discontinued, it could mark a turning point for Ford’s EV strategy. The company is now betting on a new “Universal EV Platform” and a smaller, $30,000 electric truck that CEO Jim Farley says will be cheaper to produce and more globally competitive.
That new generation of vehicles isn’t expected until 2027 at the earliest—leaving Ford in a difficult position. Should it continue losing money to maintain its EV presence, or pause and wait for better economics?
For now, Ford says it has “good inventories of the F-150 Lightning” and will resume production “at the right time.” But for a vehicle once expected to define the future of American trucks, the road ahead looks increasingly uncertain.
Sources: The Wall Street Journal, InsideEVs, Ford Motor Company statements.
This article is made and published by Asger Risom, who may have used AI in the preparation
