Ford suspends F-150 Lightning production over EV battery issue

Ford Motor Company has suspended the production and shipping of its F-150 Lightning trucks over an electric vehicle battery issue it recently discovered. The company said it could take weeks to get back on track.

Ford spokesperson Emma Bergg wouldn’t elaborate on the specific battery issue but told Straight Arrow News it was discovered during a standard pre-delivery quality inspection.

“One vehicle displayed a battery issue. We believe we have identified the root cause of this issue,” Bergg said in an email. “By the end of next week, we expect to conclude our investigation and apply what we learned to the truck’s battery production process; this could take a few weeks.”

She said Ford is holding already-produced vehicles while they work through the issue, adding that they are not aware of any issues with trucks already on the road. Production at the Ford Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn, Michigan, will be suspended at least through next week.

The timing is serendipitous for rival Dodge, which just a few days earlier aired a 60-second Super Bowl commercial about “premature electrification,” teasing its electric Ram truck REV that isn’t expected to hit the market until the end of 2024.

Ford beat Dodge and even Tesla to the market with an EV truck but is struggling to ramp up production to meet the fervent demand for the Lightning. Ford just announced Monday plans to build a $3.5 billion electric vehicle battery plant in Michigan to serve new and existing Ford EV models.

Faulty EV batteries have been known to cause overheating and even fires that can burn for hours. General Motors ended up recalling 140,000 Chevy Bolts over fire risks, a decision that cost the company more than $1 billion. And the National Transportation Safety Board investigated Tesla after some of its cars spontaneously went up in flames.