Ford CEO Jim Farley publicizes at a press conference that Ford Motor Company shall be partnering with the worlds largest battery company, a China-based company called Contemporary Amperex Technology, to create an electric-vehicle battery plant in Marshall, Michigan, on February 13, 2023 in Romulus, Michigan.
Bill Pugliano | Getty Images News | Getty Images
DETROIT – Ford Motor is recalling 18 electric F-150 Lightning pickups that the corporate has identified as potentially having a battery cell defect that caused a truck to catch fire last month.
The Detroit automaker said Friday the small recall is for vehicles that were already delivered to customers and dealers. They were assembled with improperly produced battery cells that were built over a four-week period at a Georgia plant from supplier SK On.
A Ford spokeswoman declined to reveal what number of trucks Ford has in holding which will have the difficulty. She said the corporate is “applying quality actions to already-produced vehicles with batteries in-built this four-week window which we’ve been holding.”
The fireplace occurred Feb. 4 in a holding lot during a pre-delivery quality check while the vehicle was charging. Ford suspended production of the vehicles and issued a stop-shipment to dealers.
Ford previously declined to reveal details of the difficulty that caused the vehicle to catch fire or of the implemented solution. Additional details needs to be available when the National Highway Transportation Administration officially issues the recall notice.
Ford said it shouldn’t be aware of any reports of accident or injury related to the battery issue or recall.
The automaker reiterated Friday that production of the F-150 Lightning is ready to resume Monday at certainly one of its Michigan plants.
The F-150 Lightning is being closely watched by investors, because it’s the primary mainstream electric pickup truck available on the market and a serious launch for Ford.Â
Ford initially opened customer reservations for the F-150 Lightning when it was revealed in May 2021. Greater than 200,000 reservations were placed prior to Ford temporarily closing the method to try to align production with expected demand.
Ford has sold fewer than 20,000 of the all-electric trucks thus far.
