Ford changes EV plans, will delay pickup truck, axe three-row SUV

The Ford F-150 Lightning displayed at the Philadelphia Auto Show, Jan. 27, 2023, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

DETROIT — Ford Motor is reshuffling its electric vehicle plans, killing its three-row SUV and delaying its next-generation pickup while adding a new pickup and van to its future lineup as it adjusts to slower-than-expected EV growth.

The automaker will take a special non-cash charge of about US$400 million for the write-down of certain assets for the previously planned three-row SUVs, which may also result in additional expenses and cash expenditures of up to $1.5 billion.

The slowdown in demand for EVs has caused automakers such as Ford, General Motors and others to delay or cancel plans to avoid spending heavily on vehicles that consumers are not buying as quickly as anticipated.

Ford CEO Jim Farley has been touting the company's team in California which has been developing an architecture for affordable EVs. The first vehicle on that new technology will be a mid-size electric pickup released in 2027, the company said Wednesday.

"The work of this highly talented team has evolved into a critical enabler of our electric vehicle strategy. These electric vehicles will be lower cost, and not compromised in any way," Farley said in a statement.

Ford shares rose 1.4 per cent in premarket trading.

The automaker will roll out an electric commercial van at its Ohio Assembly plant starting in 2026, hoping to capitalize on its success in the gas-engine commercial vehicle space.

Meanwhile, the long-awaited successor to Ford's F-150 Lightning electric truck is again delayed, now to the second half of 2027 from an initially planned 2025 launch, a move the company said will allow it to take advantage of lower-cost battery technology.

While Ford is shelving plans to produce an electric three-row SUV, it is moving to hybrid vehicles in that segment, aiming to woo customers with longer-range vehicles for road trips.

(Reporting by Nora Eckert, Editing by Louise Heavens and Bernadette Baum)