Ford EV Growth Surges
A great deal has been said about Ford’s EV sales failure. Both the company’s F-150 Lighting and Mustang Mach-E sold poorly. The incentives for Mach-E purchasers became unusually aggressive. However, Ford pulled back from an EV investment program that went into the billions of dollars. In the first quarter, although sales remained modest, the increase over the same period last year was the best in the sector.
EV Challenge –Who Will Repair Them?
Cox Automotive published EV sales figure for the first quarter. Among all brands that are not Tesla, Ford’s unit growth was up 87% to about 20,000. Total EV industry sales, which included Tesla were 269,000 up less than 3% compared to the same quarter in 2023. Other winners were Rivian (up 59%), Hyundai (up 57%), Mercedes (up 67%) and BMW (up 63%). None sold over 10,000 units.
EV Trouble Remains
The data tell a pessimistic story about EV sales in America. Car companies can post huge percent increases in sales, but sell very few cars. This will not change. The public’s resistance to EVs is too great because of battery range, lack of charging stations, and relatively high sticker prices.
The market has swung to hybrids, which are considered more affordable and easier to use. They offer the comfort of a fossil fuel engine, but high gas mileage.
Ford has a good quarter based on growth, but not sales.
