“Significant Material Cost Increases”: Ford Hikes Prices Of EV Truck By Up To $7,000

Ford Motor Company is the latest automaker to announce a price hike for its electric vehicle (EV) due to “significant material cost increases and other factors.” 

The Detroit automaker adjusted the MSRP on the F-150 Lightning for the first time since it was revealed in the spring of 2021. Since then, industrial metal prices for batteries, including nickel, manganese, cobalt, and lithium, have jumped, forcing the automaker to raise the new EV truck prices by up to $7,000, depending on the model. 

F-150 Lightning’s new MSRP is now between $47,000 to $97,000, up from approximately $40,000 to $92,000 — prices exclude destination/delivery fee plus government fees and taxes, any finance charges, any dealer processing charge, any electronic filing charge, and any emission testing charge. 

“Current order holders awaiting delivery are not impacted by these price adjustments,” Marin Gjaja, chief customer officer, said in a press release. “We’ve announced pricing ahead of re-opening order banks so our reservation holders can make an informed decision around ordering a Lightning.”

Ford is not the only automaker boosting EV prices. Tesla, Inc. hiked the prices of its EVs earlier this summer following a surge in nickel prices. General Motors increased the cost of the Hummer EV by $6,250, and Rivian Automotive and Lucid also boosted the prices of their vehicles. 

Research firm AlixPartners recently told clients that EV battery materials more than doubled during the virus pandemic. 

Commodity inflation and supply-chain disruptions have pushed average EV prices out of range for the everyday driver: 

“EVs thus far have been purchased by the most affluent consumers and mostly expensive models,” said Michelle Krebs, executive analyst at Cox Automotive, which conducts market research for dealers.

Kelly Blue Book’s sales data for average MSRP EV prices for June was around $67,000, exceeding the level of the average gasoline car MSRP of about $48,000. 

The Senate passed legislation on Sunday allowing automakers to keep offering up to $7,000 in tax credits for EVs. The House plans to interrupt summer break to reconvene on Friday to clear the bill, sending it to President Biden’s desk for signature. 

Even with tax incentives, EVs are still unaffordable for many Americans despite the Biden administration’s commitment to decarbonizing transportation. Biden recently said his 2030 goal is to have half of all new light-duty vehicles sold in the US as EVs, including “battery electric, fuel cell electric, and plug-in hybrid vehicles.”