zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Culture
/
Ford Tried To Be Tesla, And It Cost The Company Billions
Ford Tried To Be Tesla, And It Cost The Company Billions-April 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:11:54

Ford CEO Jim Farley pats a Ford F-150 Lightning truck before announcing at a press conference that Ford Motor Company will be partnering with the world's largest battery company, a China-based company called Contemporary Amperex Technology, to create an electric-vehicle battery plant in Marshall, Michigan, on February 13, 2023 in Romulus, Michigan.

tried really hard to be , and by most accounts, so far, it hasn’t quite worked. Ford attempted to copy Tesla’s script for according to : ramp up production, leverage economies of scale to lower costs, and make enough for a mass market.

It’s a plan that has worked out really well for Tesla. The outlet reports that the , even as it has cut the prices of its cars. Ford, on the other hand? Well, things haven’t gone so well. , and it wiped out about $3.6 billion in market value in just one day.

According to Bloomberg, Ford has announced it is going to triple the production rate of its electric pickup, which was initially supposed to sticker at around $40,000. Prices never really got close to that, though. The COVID-19 pandemic led to parts shortages and inflation issues that saw the F-150 Lightning get more expensive. Now, by thousands of dollars in an attempt to maybe get costs back where they should be.

Investors didn’t like the move of cutting prices by as much as 17 percent, apparently. Ford shares dropped 5.9 percent — its biggest drop in five months, according to Bloomberg. It should be noted that even with those cuts, Ford is still charging about $10,000 more per truck than it initially planned. Even Tesla CEO Elon Musk is calling the F-150 Lightning expensive.

It should definitely be noted that Ford’s Lightning price cuts also coincide with Tesla announcing it . At the same time, Rivian is reportedly ramping up output of its R1T pickup.

Ford is counting on demand for combustion F-Series trucks — the top-selling vehicle line in the US since the Reagan administration — carrying over to the electric versions. In addition to targeting a 150,000 annual run rate of F-150 Lightning output after its Michigan factory reopens next month following a few weeks of downtime, a second-generation electric pickup will go into production starting in 2025. The new factory for that model, sprouting up in Tennessee, will have the capacity to make half a million vehicles a year.

That’s what may have been most unsettling of all about Ford’s announcement for investors — that the company would drop prices this much and this early in its transition to electric trucks.

Investors fear this fits recent noted themes of high US EV inventories,” . “Time will tell if the Ford price cut was demand or supply.”

That being said, the analyst did say it was probably a little bit of both. If Ford has taught us anything, it’s that it ain’t easy bein’ blue.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Culture
I Entered My Lifted Miata In A Real Off-Road Race, Here's What Happened
I Entered My Lifted Miata In A Real Off-Road Race, Here's What Happened
I have two automotive loves: The first is the Miata, the second is off-road racing. For a while I raced air-cooled Volkswagens in the deserts of California and Nevada and I was lucky enough to co-drive in a class 11 stock bug in the Baja 1000 a few years...
Apr 21, 2025
2024 Kia EV9: What Do You Want To Know?
2024 Kia EV9: What Do You Want To Know?
At long last, we are about to get behind the wheel of for the first time. Sure, , and sure, , and sure , but hey — what can you do? Anyway, before we get behind the wheel of this three-row electric beast, we want to know what you...
Apr 21, 2025
Watch ABS Fail When MotorWeek Tests A 1997 Chevy S-10
Watch ABS Fail When MotorWeek Tests A 1997 Chevy S-10
MotorWeek’s is some of the on the internet. The long-running automotive news magazine has a treasure trove of tests after being on the air for over 40 years. Where else can you find detailed instrumented testing of long-forgotten cars like the or a ? MotorWeek’s recent Retro Review upload is...
Apr 21, 2025
Subaru Had It Right All Along
Subaru Had It Right All Along
When first came to the United States, it sold small funky cars that were decidedly un-American. As the company grew its own identity and became more established in the U.S., it became the first automaker to offer an all-wheel-drive passenger car in 1975. Subaru was also an early-adopter of...
Apr 21, 2025
I Can't Get Enough Of This YouTuber Who Builds Tiny, Fully Functional Scale-Model Cars
I Can't Get Enough Of This YouTuber Who Builds Tiny, Fully Functional Scale-Model Cars
I love tiny, of . I have a that is roughly half the size of a normal cat, and she’s perfect. I own a 2013 , which is like the miniature version of a normal-sized vehicle (at least here in Texas) — but beyond that, I also own a Hot...
Apr 21, 2025
Toyota Is Moving A Prewar 700-Ton Press Machine Halfway Around The World
Toyota Is Moving A Prewar 700-Ton Press Machine Halfway Around The World
closed its São Bernardo Plant in November 2023, marking the end of its first overseas production facility. The closure caps off a period of continuous car production in São Paolo, , lasting over 60 years. The plant was home to a Komatsu 700-ton press that predates itself. And now...
Apr 21, 2025
Copyright 2023-2025 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved