Ford to Resume F-150 Lightning Production After Battery Fire

After a battery fire halted production of the Ford F-150 Lightning, the U.S. automaker will restart production in March.

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March 2, 2023

Ford to Resume F-150 Lightning Production After Battery Fire — Ford said it paused production of the F-150 Lightning the day after the battery fire.
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Ford Motor Company announced it will restart production of its F-150 Lightning on March 13, as first reported by Reuters.

Ford stopped production of the electric vehicle after a battery fire in February. An EV truck caught fire on Feb. 4 during a pre-delivery quality inspection in a company holding lot in Dearborn, Michigan, and spread to two other trucks, according to Ford.

There is currently no timetable for Ford to resume deliveries.

"We will continue holding already-produced vehicles while we work through engineering and parts updates," Ford said in a statement.

The company said the production restart date allows time for SK On, the automotive battery unit of SK Innovation, battery cells to be built into battery arrays and packs delivered to the Lightning production line.

According to its recent earnings call, Ford has set aggressive targets for EV production for the next two years. Ford said it remains on track to produce 50,000 EVs per month and 600,000 EVs globally by the end of this year. Ford’s run rate in Q4 2022 was only about 12,000 units.

Ford claims to be still on track to produce 2 million EVs globally by the end of 2026.

Topics:Ford F-150 Lightning Ford Electric Trucks Green Fleet

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