Ford CEO: I Would’ve Done The F-150 Lightning Differently

[Biker16]

Ford CEO: I Would've Done The F-150 Lightning Differently - Men's Journal

Key points

• In an interview with Car and Driver, Ford's CEO admits to many of the company's recent EV mistakes.
• Among them, Jim Farley says he would have done the F-150 Lightning "differently."
• Ford's CEO says it was behind on tech, but it has caught up now.

 

Quote

Ford CEO Jim Farley says the company made mistakes with its EV efforts, including with its F-150 Lightning.
 

Ford made, to put it lightly, a misstep on EVs. In his five years at the company, CEO Jim Farley is willing to acknowledge that. How can he not, with a $19.5 billion write-down largely as a result of changes in EV plans, the dissolution of battery plant agreements with suppliers, and the death of the fully-electric F-150 Lightning? On that last point, Ford’s CEO told Car and Driver he felt the brand could’ve approached the truck “differently.”

F-150 Lightning demand spiked during the pandemic and the subsequent semiconductor shortage. Ford, at the time, was happy to expand production. Things didn’t go as planned, though, and demand soon fell back off. “I totally would’ve done it differently. I mean, look, we didn’t know what we didn’t know,” says Farley. “COVID totally was a false signal. Post-COVID, and during the chip crisis that was a result of it, there was such high demand for all vehicles.”

Farley says that at the time, if you could build a car, you could sell it for basically “30 or 40 percent higher prices than before COVID.” That comment may go a long way to explaining why so many Americans feel they can’t afford a car. Regardless, Ford says that there was a “prejudice” towards gas cars at the brand, and that they hadn’t designed “the [electric] cars right.” People loved them, asserts Farley, but they wouldn’t fork over the cash.

When asked when he knew they’d done EVs wrong, Farley had a moment in mind: “When we ripped apart a Tesla with Doug Field [Ford’s chief officer for EVs].” Farley said he was “flabbergasted.” “The Mach-E’s wiring harness was 70 pounds heavier and 1.6 kilometers longer.”

Ford called the start of all-electric F-150 Lightning production a “Model T moment for the 21st Century.” By the end of 2025, the model was dead. Mostly. Now, Ford says that a kind of hybrid, a range-extended electric vehicle (EREV), is right for the Lightning name. The truck will still be powered exclusively by electric motors, but will also pack a gasoline engine under the hood to act as a generator, burning fossil fuels to charge the battery pack under the floor when a charger isn’t readily available.

Ford says it has another one of those “Model T moments” coming in 2027 with the debut of its latest EV platform, which will form the bones of a new electric midsize truck. Does this “Model T moment” have the makings of the last? Ford is one for three on those, but the brand and the man at the helm do seem to have learned something in the last half a decade.

 

[rmc523]

I always viewed that Lightning as a stopgap until they got a more “complete” offering together

[akirby]

24 minutes ago, rmc523 said:

I always viewed that Lightning as a stopgap until they got a more “complete” offering together

Exactly.  Done on the cheap by using existing F150 with T3 planned as the ground up EV truck.  I don't think it was a mistake in that context.  I think the mistake was overestimating actual demand.

[Trader 10]

1 minute ago, akirby said:

Exactly.  Done on the cheap by using existing F150 with T3 planned as the ground up EV truck.  I don't think it was a mistake in that context.  I think the mistake was overestimating actual demand.

The mistake was charging a hefty premium for a stopgap vehicle. 

[Motorpsychology]

2 hours ago, Biker16 said:

"Ford called the start of all-electric F-150 Lightning production a 'Model T moment for the 21st Century.'"

Turned out to be an Edsel moment.

 

My cynicism aside, I think the thing driving Ford during the Covid period was being the first on the block with a BEV, and why not electrify the number one vehicle in the US, and build  plants to be all BEV all the time? But they went at it using stale technology and the market pooped out before costs were amortized and the infrastructure half completed Meanwhile, the Chinese advanced the technology with components that they fabricate in country, leaving Ford and GM starved for chips and rare earths. I think they still have a 10-day sales mindset to a degree. Hopefully, the UEV genus will be the reset that Ford needs.

[akirby]

1 hour ago, Trader 10 said:

The mistake was charging a hefty premium for a stopgap vehicle. 

Covid/chip shortage caused most of the price increases.  And even though it was developed as a stopgap there are no real compromises with the vehicle.  Two of my neighbors have them and absolutely love them.  They are real F150s with a different powertrain.

[morgan20]

3 hours ago, akirby said:

And even though it was developed as a stopgap there are no real compromises with the vehicle.  Two of my neighbors have them and absolutely love them.  They are real F150s with a different powertrain.

 

Yea, exactly. I never thought of my 2022 F-150 Lightning as a "stopgap", just a great pickup truck - the best F-150 I've ever had among the several that I bought over the past 30 years.

 

Hopefully the lessons Ford learns with Universal Electric Vehicle Platform and Universal Electric Vehicle Production system will be applied to future F-150 Lightnings and get costs under control.

Edited March 13 by morgan20

[akirby]

It's only a stopgap in terms of the vehicle architecture not being a ground up EV which made Ford's internal costs higher.   Ut certainly not from the owner's perspective.

[jpd80]

42 minutes ago, akirby said:

It's only a stopgap in terms of the vehicle architecture not being a ground up EV which made Ford's internal costs higher.   Ut certainly not from the owner's perspective.

And for money invested the Lightning was well spent in getting a place holder in there against the BEV sSilverado 
 

Interestingly, Ford first delayed and then canceled its ground up designed BEV replacement for the Lightning,

I think the truth was it wasn’t all that different to the Chevrolet BEV Silverado that gets modest sales…

 

I just think that Ford and GM thought they could replicate Tesla’s success with BEVs but with big profitable vehicles,

it was a Cha Ching moment from word go, they thought they were going to cash in big time while still selling

their highly profitable full sized ICE trucks……both brands drank the Kool aid and didn’t see the warning signs

[Texasota]

21 hours ago, jpd80 said:

And for money invested the Lightning was well spent in getting a place holder in there against the BEV sSilverado 
 

Interestingly, Ford first delayed and then canceled its ground up designed BEV replacement for the Lightning,

I think the truth was it wasn’t all that different to the Chevrolet BEV Silverado that gets modest sales…

 

I just think that Ford and GM thought they could replicate Tesla’s success with BEVs but with big profitable vehicles,

it was a Cha Ching moment from word go, they thought they were going to cash in big time while still selling

their highly profitable full sized ICE trucks……both brands drank the Kool aid and didn’t see the warning signs

Henry Ford had a famous saying about mistakes:

Quote

The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing.

Seems like Ford did learn and it resulted in the genesis ce1.  Lets hope it is successful.

[jpd80]

23 minutes ago, Texasota said:

Henry Ford had a famous saying about mistakes:

Seems like Ford did learn and it resulted in the genesis ce1.  Lets hope it is successful.

Ah but see, this is also a sizeable bet, Ford already has $5 billion invested in CE1 and setting up Louisville.

So let’s say the process does indeed yield a $40,000 vehicle with a healthy profit margin, that’s half the job.

The other half of the job is building the size and styling of vehicles that appeal to enough buyers to give it a go.

Then there’s another piece to the puzzle that has been alluding Ford…..how many buyers actually want a BEV?
 

Im not knocking the project, it’s just that this is now Ford’s fourth go at developing an affordable Electric vehicle

and some level of skepticism is to be expected, especially when every other  time Ford was convinced that the

vehicle would succeed until it was realised that it wouldn’t…

[morgan20]

30 minutes ago, Texasota said:

Henry Ford had a famous saying about mistakes:

Seems like Ford did learn and it resulted in the genesis ce1.  Lets hope it is successful.

Yea, exactly. Ford made many mistakes in which we learned nothing throughout its history. The success (or lack thereof) of CE1, Universal Electric Platform, and Universal Electric Production system will be an epochal moment for the company.

 

I’m cautiously optimistic that it will be a success

[morgan20]

3 minutes ago, jpd80 said:

how many buyers actually want a BEV?

In the U.S. market over the past six or seven years, surveys indicated that between 21% and 27% of new vehicle buyers overall actually want a BEV. That proportion is likely to increase as more affordable priced BEV from Ford and others are introduced, figure about 30% of new vehicle buyers overall wanting a BEV by the time Ford starts sellin’ CE1 products in a few years.

[jpd80]

1 hour ago, morgan20 said:

In the U.S. market over the past six or seven years, surveys indicated that between 21% and 27% of new vehicle buyers overall actually want a BEV. That proportion is likely to increase as more affordable priced BEV from Ford and others are introduced, figure about 30% of new vehicle buyers overall wanting a BEV by the time Ford starts sellin’ CE1 products in a few years.

Maybe if gas goes up to $7/gallon, they will be hugely popular….

Edited March 14 by jpd80

[twintornados]

2 hours ago, jpd80 said:

Ah but see, this is also a sizeable bet, Ford already has $5 billion invested in CE1 and setting up Louisville.

So let’s say the process does indeed yield a $40,000 vehicle with a healthy profit margin, that’s half the job.

The other half of the job is building the size and styling of vehicles that appeal to enough buyers to give it a go.

Then there’s another piece to the puzzle that has been alluding Ford…..how many buyers actually want a BEV?

 

1 hour ago, morgan20 said:

In the U.S. market over the past six or seven years, surveys indicated that between 21% and 27% of new vehicle buyers overall actually want a BEV. That proportion is likely to increase as more affordable priced BEV from Ford and others are introduced, figure about 30% of new vehicle buyers overall wanting a BEV by the time Ford starts sellin’ CE1 products in a few years.

 

Count me in as one of those looking forward to CE1 - My commute has changed since I retired and I believe an EV will be my next daily driver and the CE1 truck seems like a natural progression from my Maverick hybrid....

 

ADD ON: Seeing the roll out of Rivian's R2 SUV, it would be right up my alley, but...being Ford centric, I will reserve judgement until CE1 comes to market.

Edited March 14 by twintornados

[jpd80]

44 minutes ago, twintornados said:

 

 

Count me in as one of those looking forward to CE1 - My commute has changed since I retired and I believe an EV will be my next daily driver and the CE1 truck seems like a natural progression from my Maverick hybrid....

 

ADD ON: Seeing the roll out of Rivian's R2 SUV, it would be right up my alley, but...being Ford centric, I will reserve judgement until CE1 comes to market.

R2 looks like a restyled version of the Lincoln that Ford was considering a few years back..

It would be wise for Ford to style its CE1 as both a BEV Bronco and an upmarket Land Rover styled Lincoln…

[02MustangGT]

“I Would’ve Done The F-150 Lightning Differently”

…then why didn’t he?   After all, he is the CEO of Ford Motor Company.  Admitting mistakes is one thing, but repeating mistakes time and time again is another.  

[Texasota]

3 hours ago, morgan20 said:

In the U.S. market over the past six or seven years, surveys indicated that between 21% and 27% of new vehicle buyers overall actually want a BEV. That proportion is likely to increase as more affordable priced BEV from Ford and others are introduced, figure about 30% of new vehicle buyers overall wanting a BEV by the time Ford starts sellin’ CE1 products in a few years.

I think 30% is optimistic, but I really hope ce1 is successful. I also want to see ce1 elements spill over into ICE and hybrid vehicles.

[mackinaw]

29 minutes ago, 02MustangGT said:

“I Would’ve Done The F-150 Lightning Differently”

…then why didn’t he?   After all, he is the CEO of Ford Motor Company.  Admitting mistakes is one thing, but repeating mistakes time and time again is another.  

 

Remember the Lightning was introduced in 2021 meaning it was developed in 2020 or earlier.  Think bad to the EV frenzy of several years back where every OEM was trying to be the next Tesla.  Getting your EV out first was essential, if you wanted to impress Wall Street.  So decisions were made.  It's easy to play a Monday Morning Quarterback now that several years have gone by.

[jpd80]

17 minutes ago, mackinaw said:

 

Remember the Lightning was introduced in 2021 meaning it was developed in 2020 or earlier.  Think bad to the EV frenzy of several years back where every OEM was trying to be the next Tesla.  Getting your EV out first was essential, if you wanted to impress Wall Street.  So decisions were made.  It's easy to play a Monday Morning Quarterback now that several years have gone by.

Remember, Jim Hackett hit the ground running when Fields was fired in 2017,

Lightning was a direction from the top (make this happen) and it was in quick time.

After covid, Ford’s battery costs blew right out and made the long range very expensive.

 

Jim Farley could not have done things differently because he had an expectant Bill Ford

encouraging him and Ford execs to ramp up production but in the end, they never got that

deep into forward ordering and production volume never hit ramp up targets anyway.

Edited March 14 by jpd80

[02MustangGT]

2 hours ago, mackinaw said:

 

Remember the Lightning was introduced in 2021 meaning it was developed in 2020 or earlier.  Think bad to the EV frenzy of several years back where every OEM was trying to be the next Tesla.  Getting your EV out first was essential, if you wanted to impress Wall Street.  So decisions were made.  It's easy to play a Monday Morning Quarterback now that several years have gone by.

Remember that Farley has been CEO since 2020.  Not every OEM made the same decisions regarding the EV’s.  The Lightning was somewhat successful and market/government pressure can be unpredictable for sure.  But this isn’t a “Monday morning quarterback” situation when the same CEO continues to make public statements about regretful decisions.  

[Texasota]

1 hour ago, 02MustangGT said:

Not every OEM made the same decisions regarding the EV’s.  

In regards to domestic full size pickups, they mostly did. Ford, GM and RAM all went down the same path with full size BEV pickups. Ram cancelled theirs shortly before launch, Ford after a few years of disappointing sales and GM is still pregnant (as Farley would say) with three versions of full size BEV pickups.

 

Toyota is the only one that read the tea leaves correctly.

[Sherminator98]

8 hours ago, Texasota said:

Toyota is the only one that read the tea leaves correctly.

 

I wouldn't say that, they are coming out with four new EV products this year...almost everyone else has cancelled them or drastically cut back on them. 

[morgan20]

On 3/14/2026 at 6:44 PM, 02MustangGT said:

Admitting mistakes is one thing, but repeating mistakes time and time again is another.  

 

The big shots at Ford are really good at the latter. That's what they do best. They rarely ever do the former. So Jimbo should get partial credit for admitting mistakes 😄

[morgan20]

On 3/14/2026 at 7:11 PM, Texasota said:

I think 30% is optimistic, but I really hope ce1 is successful. I also want to see ce1 elements spill over into ICE and hybrid vehicles.

 

13 hours ago, Sherminator98 said:

I wouldn't say that, they [Toyota] are coming out with four new EV products this year...almost everyone else has cancelled them or drastically cut back on them. 

 

Yea, I'm (cautiously) optimistic that CE1 will be the game changer Ford big shots claim it is in terms of bringing affordable EV to the masses, and that they won't screw up this Model T moment. Especially since Toyota, of all companies, now seems to be a leader gettin' new EV to market quickly. 😮

 

I don't think Jimbo wants his previous employer to beat Ford in the EV game!