As Ford Authority reported yesterday, Ford F-150 Lightning production at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center was recently paused due to a potential battery issue discovered during pre-delivery quality inspections, though the automaker didn’t provide any specific details as to what that problem might be. As a result, Ford issued a stop-shipment last week, and has also idled production of the EV pickup. The Blue Oval noted that it is investigating the matter, and had no timeline on when production and shipments will resume. Now, according to Automotive News, that production stop will extend through next week.
Ford F-150 Lightning production is expected to be down through at least the end of next week, though the automaker also noted that it believes its engineers have found the root cause of the problem – which has thus far only been discovered on one vehicle. FoMoCo’s investigation is expected to be completed by the end of next week, at which time the company will make some adjustments to its battery production process that could take several more weeks to implement.
Ford still hasn’t revealed what this battery issue might be, though it’s worth noting that the F-150 Lightning’s batteries come from SK On, a South Korean manufacturer that is also part of the a joint venture with the automaker called BlueOvalSK. Ford noted that it is not aware of any issues present in pickups that have already been delivered to customers and dealers, and the latter can continue selling stock that’s already on hand.
Ford has faced its fair share of quality issues in recent months, also pausing 2023 Ford Escape production this week due to a software problem. In an effort to take action and make quality a point of focus in its operations, CEO Jim Farley recently brought in turnaround expert Josh Halliburton to be the company’s new executive director of quality. However, while Halliburton believes Ford’s quality woes will begin to subside this year, Farley isn’t quite as optimistic.
We’ll have more on this issue very soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for the latest Ford F-Series news, Ford F-150 news, F-150 Lightning news, and 24/7 Ford news coverage.
Comments
I feel sorry for Brett for having to create 150 ways to say “Ford has faced its fair share of quality issues in recent months” in all these articles. I guess that is the new “F-150.”
Such a long pause makes me wonder if the pipeline is full of defective components, batteries and vehicles, or if there is a process issue that Ford has to address.
Am wondering if plant caught first unit with defect or if a latent defect just happened to flag itself super early in the plant.
Just a(nother) bump in the road that will get sorted. Good on Ford for stopping the line to get it right.
Go ANDON !
Way to go Ford, go ANDON!
Headline ‘news’ on CNBC for 2 days now. Where’s their probe into why the Tesla Cybertruck production line is shut down? You know, the one that was promised by the end of 2021?
Just wondering when Mr Halliburton will visit the Ranger Thailand plant, everyday we’re hearing more and more issues from electronics, electrical and mechanical faults with the next gen Ranger. In a few cases, that we’ve heard about, they’ve even brought back or exchanged the lemons. Not a good look for a new vehicle.
The QC issues and recalls just never stop, regardless if the battery was built by a supplier they are inspected by Ford before acceptance. It’s really getting embarrassing now.
Nonsense, inspect a sealed battery pack? Should Ford also tear apart every electronic module shipped in and inspect every solder joint?
Is anyone actually buying these POS ‘s ????
Have had one for 8 months now and love it. NO issues. NO warranty claims. NO service dept visits. Perfect since day 1.
Oh boy, has big idiot fume sniffing Steve rebranded with last name Marshall now? If not he’s going to be happy to have found his twin.
This issue was a result of production line changes to the battery pack. Affects only the current model year. Prior to this change, none of the Lightnings have had a battery fire. My 2022 Lightning has been perfect since day 1. Built in June 2022, delivered in July 2022, no visits for any service at all. Saving $300/ month on gas. Every gas station I pass, makes smile!
Thanks Pat for the real world breath of fresh air!
👍🇺🇸💪
Not a surprise the fake truck is having issues just like the fake Mustang. Test showed the Lighting can barely tow a light load for 70 miles before dying on the freeway. Farley has destroyed Ford with his broken EV push.
The Lightning is not currently a replacement for an equivalent ICE or Diesel truck, just like every EV in existence can’t match their ICE equivalent. You buy a Lightning after being well informed based on your use case. Ford will have 2 years of Lightning production in before a single customer gets a Tesla CyberTruck, or a Ram REV 1500, and 1.5 years before the Chevy EV Silverado.
Hard agree Mackie. Thanks for the good summary!
100% correct. Lightning is not a towing nor hauling truck like the ICE gasoline HD/SD or diesel. It’s a light duty truck meant for occasional hauling and trailering. Since I never tow nor haul, drive in urban LA in bumper to bumper traffic, I get to enjoy what it was meant to do: drive efficiently. I get 260-290 miles range per charge on an EPA sticker 231 mile EV…
And when you need to haul, or take a longer trip, outside of your normal use patterns, you still can do it with some planning aforethought.
K-street J(ust for)D(ummies) with more of his scripted nonsense.
He is trying to scare off buyers by calling both Mustang ME and Lightning “fake” because they aren’t equipped with last century’s technology and can’t put revenue in the pockets of his sociopathic Big Oil paymasters.