2024 Ford F-150 Lightning prices rise again

Prices of certain versions of the 2024 Ford F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck are going up, while others go down, Ford revealed Tuesday, in a recalibration of costs for the electric truck as the automaker prepares to cut production.

The base Pro grade, aimed primarily at fleet buyers, will now start at $57,090 including the $2,095 destination, up from $52,090 before. This brings the entry price not quite as high as its March 2023 peak of $61,869 (or nearly 50% higher than the original price quoted by Ford at the Lightning’s unveiling), but almost. Ford began lowering Lightning prices later in 2023, but that trend appears to have been short-lived.

Meanwhile, the XLT with the standard range battery pack reportedly gets a $10,000 price hike—or a $7,500 hike versus 2024 pricing Ford had already released—to $67,090. Ford is also reportedly eliminating the extended range battery option for the XLT, as well as the standard range battery for the Lariat grade. That brings the starting price of the Lightning with the larger pack and 320-mile range to the Flash version, at $75,590. The extended range Lariat gets a $2,000 price increase, bringing its starting price to $81,590.

Ford announced the 2024 F-150 Lightning Flash model in October 2023, adding a heat pump and positioned between the XLT and Lariat.

2024 Ford F-150 Lightning

2024 Ford F-150 Lightning

On the other hand, Ford is cutting prices on top-trim versions of the Lightning. The Platinum goes down $5,000 versus what Ford had already announced for 2024, to $87,090, as does the Platinum Black, at $95,090.

“We are making adjustments to pricing, production and trim packages to achieve the optimal mix of sales growth, profitability, and customer access to the IRA tax benefit,” explained Ford spokesperson Marty Günsberg.

Ford notes that changes don’t apply to existing 2023 F-150 Lightning models, still at dealerships.

2024 Ford F-150 Lightning Flash

2024 Ford F-150 Lightning Flash

The latest round of price changes comes amid planned production cuts. Last October, Ford announced that it had opted to slow F-150 Lightning EV production rather than lower the price. At the time, Ford reportedly told suppliers to anticipate production volumes of 1,600 Lightnings per week in 2024, compared to its previous target of 3,200 per week.

That followed a move earlier in the summer, in which Ford lowered EV targets for 2023, pointing to cost. The automaker had previously discussed reaching annual production of 600,000 EVs sometime in 2023, but now aims to reach that volume this year.

Ford’s scaling back of EV goals also included a smaller version of the Michigan LFP battery factory it had touted as a key for affordable EVs—including pending versions of the Lightning.

With additional reporting by Bengt Halvorson

Source link