Ford Reports 31% Increase In EV Sales, Driven By Popularity Of Tesla Cybertruck Rival F-150 Lightning

Dearborn-based Ford Motor Co (NYSE:F) said on Friday that it sold 31% more EVs in the U.S. last month than last year, thanks to the rising popularity of its EV pickup truck.

What Happened: Ford sold 8,242 electric vehicles in July, marking a 31% growth from the 6,280 units sold in July 2023. However, electric vehicles account for only about 5% of the company’s overall vehicle sales in the month.

The drive in EV sales during the month was largely driven by an 82% jump in sales for the F-150 Lightning pickup truck, of which the company sold 2,822 units.

Ford’s other two EV offerings in the U.S.- the Mustang Mach-E SUV and the E-transit van- also saw sales grow from last year by 17% and 5%, respectively.

Why It Matters: While the Mustang Mach-E SUV is directly up against EV giant Tesla Inc‘s Model Y SUV in the mass market electric SUV segment, the F-150 Lightning is up against the company’s Cybertruck in the electric pickup segment.

Rising Cybertruck sales appear to have no effect on F-150 Lightning sales, which continue to grow this year compared to the same quarters last year. Tesla began delivering its Cybertruck only in November of last year.

In the second quarter, Ford sold 7,902 Lightning trucks, marking a 77% growth from last year despite Tesla delivering 8,755 Cybertrucks in the quarter, as per Kelley Blue Book estimates.

Ford CEO Jim Farley had dismissed concerns about the Cybertruck in June 2023, terming it a “cool high-end product parked in front of a hotel,” unlike Ford trucks “made for real people who do real work.”

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