says it aims to restart production on March 13, a few weeks after it put the EV on hold. It sent a stop-shipment order to dealers after a battery issue caused one of the trucks to catch fire in a holding lot on February 4. It’s unclear what exactly caused the fire or how Ford resolved the issue. problem, although the company says there is no indication that a billing error is to blame.
The automaker said that setting a March 13 target gives supplier SK On more time to ramp up battery production at its Georgia factory and deliver packages to the F-150 Lightning plant in Michigan. “In the coming weeks, we will continue to apply our learnings and work with the SK On team to ensure that we continue to deliver high quality battery packs – right down to the battery cells,” said Ford. “Like REVC [Rouge Electric Vehicle Center] Ramping up production, we will continue to hold existing vehicles while we work through updating engineering and parts.
Since the first in April, Ford has sold less than 20,000 EVs. Still, the F-150 Lightning is in high demand. Ford at the beginning of 2021 before. The early popularity of the truck is not a surprise, however – the F-Series has been in America for 41 years.
Ford expects F-150 Lightning production to reach 150,000 trucks per year this year. Last year, the company said it would help hit a global production rate of 600,000 EVs per year by the end of 2023. However, it is unclear how much the downtime has affected those plans.
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