When it was unveiled in 2021, the Ford F-150 Lightning was meant to symbolize the American brand’s bold transition to electric mobility. Today, however, that project has turned into a growing challenge, one that Ford may soon be forced to abandon entirely.
Ford F-150 Lightning struggles: production may soon be halted
The story of the F-150 Lightning began as a direct response to the Tesla Cybertruck. As soon as Elon Musk revealed his futuristic pickup, Ford got to work developing a model that could combine the legacy of its most iconic vehicle with the innovation of electric power. In May 2021, the Dearborn-based automaker presented the zero-emission version of its long-time best seller, the most popular pickup in America for over forty years.
But things didn’t go as planned. The U.S. public, still deeply attached to combustion engines, didn’t embrace electrification with the enthusiasm Ford had hoped for. In the first nine months of 2025, Ford sold just 23,034 units of the F-150 Lightning, despite having built a factory capable of producing over 150,000 vehicles a year. The result is a massive gap between capacity and demand, leading to unsustainable costs and a growing inventory backlog.
Production at Ford’s Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Michigan has already been halted several times to reduce stockpiles, with many workers temporarily reassigned to the nearby Dearborn Truck Plant, where the gasoline versions are built. According to internal sources, the future of the Lightning is now the subject of heated debate among Ford executives. Once the flagship of Ford’s EV strategy, the F-150 Lightning has become a financial black hole, and the possibility of permanently ending production is becoming increasingly real.
The crisis, however, isn’t limited to Ford. General Motors is facing a similar situation: its electric pickups, the Chevrolet Silverado EV and GMC Sierra EV, together totaled just 15,526 registrations over the same period, far short of expectations. Even the Hummer EV, the oversized and luxurious symbol of “green mobility,” has failed to turn things around and may also soon be put on hold.
For now, the future of electric pickups remains highly uncertain, and both Ford and GM will need to rethink their strategies before these ambitious projects fade into history.
