Ford Latest to Cut EV Prices, Dropping Lightning as Much as 7.5%

Ford is the latest automaker to cut the price of an electric vehicle, shaving as much as 7.5% off the F-150 Lightning pickup truck. The move comes as the automaker resumed deliveries of the pickup — and several others.

The price of the Lightning has yo-yo’ed in recent months. In January, the company raised prices on the electric pickup as it cut production of the new vehicle. However, as there’s going to be a massive influx of not only F-150 Lightning pickups but gas-powered models as well as the new Ranger midsize pickup, the electric model needs to be more compeititive.

The biggest drop is $5,500 on the Flash extended-range model, which now starts at $67,995, the automaker said. Additionally the XLT is getting a $2,000 cut to $62,995 while the upscale Lariat extended range model saw a $2,500 drop to $76,995. The Pro model remains unchanged at $54,995.

So many price cuts

The Lightning cuts are just the latest in a long line of price cuts and or incentives used by automakers to help move EVs. In fact, it’s just the latest cuts by Ford, which responded to sluggish Mustang Mach-E sales with price cuts and zero-percent financing to draw in buyers. Ford’s efforts with the Mach-E worked as sales jumped immediately, tripling in the last month.

Other companies offered big cuts during the first quarter. Nascent EV maker Rivian cut $3,100 off the base models of its R1T pickup and R1S SUV. The original prices were $74,800 and $79,800 delivered, but the RiT dropped $71,700 with shipping, and the R1S in the same configuration starts at $76,700.

Nissan made cuts to the Ariya’s price to stay competitive against rivals. The price cuts came across the entire trim lineup with the base $40,980 Engage trim benefiting from a $3,600 reduction. The rest of the trim ladder also got pricing adjustments as well with the Venture+ and the Empower+ now starting at $42,580 and $45,580 respectively.

Even the dual motor equipped all-wheel drive models saw price reductions. The most prominent one is the range-topping Platinum+ e-4ORCE which now starts at $55,580 (a $6,000 decrease versus the 2023 model).

Really big cuts

Startup EV maker Fisker, desperate to stay in business, cut prices across its portfolio by as much as 39% a few weeks ago, which drove the price of one of its vehicles to just under $25,000.

The company lowered the sticker price on its 2023 Ocean Extreme model from $61,499 to $37,499 — a $24,000 cut. Additionally, the company’s 2023 Ultra trim drops from $52,999 to $34,999 and the Ocean Sport falls to $24,999 from $38,999. All of the vehicles involved in the massive price cuts are 2023 models with 2024 Ocean OS 2.0 installed, the company notes.

More EV Price Cut News

• Tesla Offering Big Discounts a Week After Raising Model Y Price
• Nissan Slashes 2024 Ariya Prices To Spur Demand and Respond To Competition
• Fisker Cuts Prices Up to 39% as it Battles to Stave Off Bankruptcy

Then there is Tesla

After raising prices on the Model Y April 1 by $1,000, the EV sales leader came back four days later and made cuts across the board. Tesla is sitting a massive inventory of unsold vehicles — a new problem for the company.

To move the more than 46,000 vehicles, CEO Elon Musk got out a machete and went to town.

Some versions of the Model Y rear-wheel drive can be had for as much as $7,520, according to Electrek. This is reportedly before the federal and state tax credits.

The long-range and performance Model Ys are discounted by at least $5,000. These discounts are before any federal or state tax c, redits are applied. The rear-wheel drive Model 3 is also down as much as $4,000. A dual motor, all-wheel Model S demo model has received a more than $8,200 discount.

Sales were down on a year-over-year basis for the first time in nearly four years.

The EV maker produced 433,371 vehicles and delivered 386,810 vehicles. The deliveries were down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predicted delivery totals ranging from 449,080 to 454,200 vehicles.