Ford Motor's electric cars are not selling well? Only half of the car dealers plan to sell pure electric cars next year.
Ford Motor announced that among certified dealers, only half of them have chosen to sell pure electric vehicles next year, which is lower than two-thirds of last year. Last week, Ford Motor decided to halve the production of the F-150 Lightning electric truck next year, stating that production will be aligned with customer demand.
The road to new energy transformation for the long-established American car company seems to be bumpy.
On Thursday, December 21st, Eastern Time, Ford Motor announced that only half of its 1,550 certified dealerships have chosen to sell pure electric vehicles next year, a decrease from last year. Last year, two-thirds of the dealerships stated that they would sell electric vehicles this year.
Among those dealerships that did not choose to sell pure electric vehicles, they either plan to sell traditional internal combustion engine vehicles or hybrid electric vehicles.
A spokesperson for Ford Motor later stated that the adoption rate of electric vehicles varies in different regions of the United States, and we believe that our dealerships know their markets best.
The intention of the dealerships on Thursday is the result of Ford Motor relaxing its requirements, highlighting the lack of interest from dealerships in selling electric vehicles. In January of last year, Ford Motor reduced the number of L2 chargers required for dealerships and extended the installation requirements.
Previously, Ford Motor required certified dealerships to spend $500,000 to purchase a public DC fast charger. If they wanted to become elite electric vehicle dealerships, they would have to spend a total of $1 million, including the aforementioned $500,000, as well as $500,000 to purchase a fast charger and demonstration equipment. Such costs deterred dealerships.
Last week, Ford Motor already signaled weak demand for electric vehicles. Ford Motor decided to reduce the planned production of its F-150 Lightning electric truck by half starting next year. From January next year, the weekly production of F-150 electric trucks will be reduced from 3,200 to 1,600. A spokesperson for Ford Motor stated that the company's production will match customer demand.