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Farley Says Commercial Ford EV Demand Stronger Than Expected

Recently, much ado has been made about the fact that following years of tremendous growth, demand for all-electric vehicles, in general, has failed to meet expectations over the past few months, even though sales continue to increase. However, this isn’t universally the case, of course, as there are some exceptions to that rule. One of the biggest – as Ford CEO Jim Farley revealed during the automaker’s Q4 2023 earnings call – comes from the commercial side of the business.

2024 Ford E-Transit - Exterior 002 - Front Three Quarters

“Now, it turns out, which has not been reported, and I’m a bit disappointed, maybe it’s part of our fault is, the EV adoption on Pro is actually going much better than we thought,” Farley said. “It’s not a huge market, but they use the vehicles more intensely, so the operating cost advantages on the energy side are much better, much better than they thought. So we can’t make enough E-Transits or Pro versions of Lightning, but the base cost of Lightning is too expensive.”

While this hasn’t been widely reported as Farley notes, the fact that the automaker has faced higher demand for its EVs from commercial customers compared to retails ones is nothing new, really. In fact, Farley first discussed this phenomenon back in 2022, and Ford Pro CEO Ted Cannis reiterated it a few months later, all while the automaker has been working to ramp up E-Transit production to meet demand.

Ford E-Transit CalVans - Exterior 002 - Front Three Quarters

It’s a stark contrast to the retail side of the business, where slowing demand has prompted Ford to shift its focus toward smaller, cheaper EVs. In fact, Ford CFO John Lawler recently stated that larger all-electric models will be limited in scope for the foreseeable future, and the automaker recently announced that it’s pushing back the planned production start dates of both the three-row Ford Explorer EV and the next-generation Ford F-150 EV.

We’ll have more on Ford’s EV strategy soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for non-stop Ford news coverage.

Brett's lost track of all the Fords he's owned over the years and how much he's spent modifying them, but his current money pits include an S550 Mustang and 13th gen F-150.

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Comments

  1. How could he mention it in a 4th quarter 2024 call when we are in the 2nd quarter of 2024?

    Reply
  2. Yea right! That is why the grassroots boycott against EVs is forcing billions in EV cancelations. America hates EVs…rightfully so!

    Reply
    1. ” Forcing billions in EV cancelations”. You’re delusional. Local ford dealer here had 6 mach Es on their lot here in trump country ten days ago. Today, sold out. So much for this so called boycott.

      Reply
      1. Every automotive news article is talking about how their is hardly any demand for EVs and how sales fell far short of expectations. Most manufacturers scaled back production quite significantly.

        Reply
      2. NY Times 3 days ago “EV sales are slowing, Tesla’s are slumping”

        Reply
  3. Not sure if any of you know how to count but Tesla model Y alone sold 1.2 MILLION last year. If that is your definition of nobody wants electric then I am sure they will be fine.

    Reply
  4. Commercial demand makes sense as those vehicles are CONSTANTLY running all day. ( in most cases). Therefore there is a case to get off gas that gets pricey and more repairs. It all depends of the needs. That’s why Akio Toyoda advocates for OPTIONS.

    Reply
    1. Except that Consumer Reports recently rated EVs considerably less reliable than ICE vehicles. You are wrong.

      Reply

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