Ford is discontinuing the delivery of the 2024 F-150 Lightning.
Ford has halted deliveries of all 2024 model year F-150 Lightning electric trucks due to an undisclosed quality issue, while deliveries of some 2024 model year gasoline-powered F-150s have started this week, after hundreds, potentially thousands, of trucks had piled up in storage lots around Detroit since production began in December.
The delivery stop order for the F-150 Lightning took effect on February 9, said Ford, and it is unclear when it will be lifted. The company continues to produce Lightning trucks at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn, Michigan.
The 2024 model year F-150 and F-150 Lightning, part of the country’s best-selling vehicle range, are the first in a series of high-profile launches this year, coming as company leaders have promised to address Ford’s long-standing quality issues.
While initial deliveries of both gasoline and electric trucks are in line with Ford’s announced sales timeline, some F-150s have been sitting in storage lots since late December. A commercial customer in the eastern United States told Automotive News that the delivery date for their order of nearly 100 trucks has been delayed by eight weeks so far.
A Ford spokesperson declined to specify if there are currently quality issues preventing the delivery of certain gasoline F-150s, although they said it is part of the standard launch procedure not to release products until they have undergone a series of thorough inspections.
Ford mentioned that a “supplier parts issue” had halted production of gasoline F-150s and Lightning electric F-150s for about a week at the end of January. However, the company did not specify if the issue pertained to vehicles produced before or after production was halted.
CEO Jim Farley, speaking during Ford’s fourth-quarter earnings call this month, said the launch of the 2024 gasoline and hybrid F-150 was “very important for our business.” Farley emphasized quality after admitting regrets and mistakes that have impacted the company for years.
Ford has recently revamped its vehicle testing and launch processes, starting with last year’s redesigned Super Duty. Farley said Ford lost $1 billion in pre-interest and tax profits last year due to a “significant slowdown” during the Super Duty launch in the name of quality.
This is a lesson that Ford’s rival, General Motors, is also learning. This week, GM announced the postponement of initial sales of the 2024 model year GMC Canyon and Chevrolet Colorado midsize trucks to ensure the vehicle software is functioning properly.
Storage lots around the Detroit metropolitan area have recently filled up with F-150 trucks. A parking lot at Ford’s former Regent Court office building in Dearborn, Michigan, was overflowing with hundreds of F-150s this week. A fleet customer with an order of about 100 trucks said they were concerned that their vehicles had not yet been delivered after being built in late December and had virtually no communication from Ford regarding the delays.
With information from Automotive News
The text Ford cesse la livraison de F-150 Lightning 2024 is from L’annuel de l’automobile – Actualité automobile
