After what seemed like a lengthy hiatus for the Ford F-150 Lighting, Dearborn’s electric pickup will not be resuming production. The automaker confirmed Monday that the all-electric truck has been discontinued, and while a second-generation Lightning is in the works, it will be an extended-range EV that takes gas, rather than a fully battery electric vehicle.
Slotted at the end of a press release in which Ford announced a next-gen Lightning, the automaker confirmed that “Production of the current F-150 Lightning ends this year.” Like the discontinued truck, the new one will also be built at Ford’s Rouge Electric Vehicle Center. It wasn’t even two months ago that the company announced that it was diverting resources—both in terms of critical materials and manpower—to cranking out gas-powered F-150s instead of the Lightning.
Still, it’s a surprise to see the situation escalate so quickly from a hiatus to a full-on cancellation, particularly since Novelis, Ford’s aluminum supplier that was forced to shut down activity after a fire at its New York plant, was supposed to come back online in December. In another release today, the automaker reiterated that it’s redeployed Rouge employees “to Dearborn Truck Plant to support a third crew for F-150 gas and hybrid truck production as a result of the Novelis fires.”
It’s an unceremonious end after just three-and-a-half years for a truck that was supposed to usher Ford and its loyal F-150 customers into a new age. The F-150 Lightning seemed to swing heavily in price from day one until its conclusion, and Ford is no doubt hoping that an EREV or series hybrid formula will resonate better with truck buyers.
“The F-150 Lightning is a groundbreaking product that demonstrated an electric pickup can still be a great F-Series,” Doug Field, Ford’s chief EV, digital and design officer, was quoted in a release. “Our next-generation Lightning EREV is every bit as revolutionary. It keeps everything customers love—100% electric power delivery, sub-5-second acceleration—and adds an estimated 700+ mile range and tows like a locomotive. It will be an incredibly versatile tool delivered in a capital-efficient way.”