Ford’s electric pickup is suddenly selling like hotcakes at 50% off used — SkimNews
Get the Energy newsletter
Daily energy & climate — solar, EVs, oil, the policy fights and tech bets shaping the transition. Free.
- Ford ended F-150 Lightning production last December after CEO Jim Farley concluded that EVs priced between $50,000 and $80,000 "just weren't selling," according to the source.
- Used F-150 Lightnings are now moving in about 20 days — less than half the 44-day US used-vehicle average — at 50% to 60% off original sticker, with prices up 4% to roughly $50,000 year-to-date per Edmunds.com.
- Jimmy Douglas, CEO of wholesale EV dealer Plug, told Bloomberg that close to one-third of used Lightnings are being sold by rival dealerships rather than flipped back to Ford, citing strong direct demand.
- Ford's first-year F-150 Lightning carried an average transaction price of about $79,000 because Ford focused on higher trims, and the company lost more than $100,000 per EV built in Q1 2024.
- Ford will relaunch its electric pickup play with the Fathom in 2027, starting at $28,350 (under $30,000 with delivery), built on its new Universal Electric Vehicle (UEV) platform with integrated Apple Maps and a NACS port.
- Farley told the 2026 Automotive News Congress that selling the Fathom at scale, at cost, and on time "is going to be a heck of an effort," and Ford reportedly targets about 100,000 Fathoms in year one.
Why it matters: Ford effectively confirmed its first EV pickup was mispriced — a $79,000 average transaction price versus a used sweet spot near $50,000 — and the Fathom at under $30,000 represents Ford's admission that affordability, not capability, was the Lightning's missing ingredient, with 100,000-unit ambitions riding on the bet.
Ask SkimNews
