Ford F-150 Lightning production halt continues, battery issue identified

Ford said today it would suspend F-150 Lightning production for another week after identifying issues with battery cells provided by supplier SK.

Ford halted production of the F-150 Lightning on February 14 after citing potential battery issues when a vehicle displayed “a potential battery issue,” which the company said was identified during pre-delivery quality inspections. “We are holding vehicles while we investigate,” Ford said at the time.

Ford pauses F-150 Lightning production, citing potential battery issue

Ford then extended the stoppage through the end of this week, stating last week that it had identified the issue and expected to conclude its investigation by the end of this week.

However, Ford will continue the halt in production “through the end of next week,” it told Teslarati in a statement. This means the halt will persist through March 3, 2023.

“The teams worked quickly to identify the root cause of the issue,” Ford told us in a statement. “We agree with SK’s recommended changes in their equipment and processes for SK’s cell production lines. SK has started building battery cells again in Commerce, Georgia.”

Ford said it would take time for SK to ensure that it is once again building high-quality cells for the F-15o Lightning and that it would be suspending production “through the end of next week.”

Ford did not issue a stop sale of F-150 Lightning units that had already arrived at dealer lots when the issue was spotted. However, the automaker did issue a temporary halt on production and a stop-shipment of units until it could confirm its vehicles were unaffected by the cell issue.

Ford’s full statement is below:

“The teams worked quickly to identify the root cause of the issue. We agree with SK’s recommended changes in their equipment and processes for SK’s cell production lines. SK has started building battery cells again in Commerce, Georgia. It will take SK time to ensure they are back to building high-quality cells and to deliver them to the Lightning production line. Ford’s Rouge Electric Vehicle Center will suspend production through the end of next week, and we’ll continue to provide updates.”

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