Ford F-150 Lightning Pickup Truck Production To Be Halted Temporarily After Tesla's Cybertruck Races Ahead In Q3 (Updated)

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated with a statement from Ford.

Ford Motor Co. F will pause the production of its F-150 Lightning pickup truck for six weeks through the end of the year after Tesla Inc.’s TSLA Cybertruck took over as the most popular EV truck in the U.S. in the three months through the end of September.

What Happened: The Dearborn-based company will halt F-150 Lightning production from Nov. 18 to Jan. 6 at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Plant, a company spokesperson told Benzinga in an emailed statement.

"We continue to adjust production for an optimal mix of sales growth and profitability,” the company added.

The Lightning pickup truck is up against Tesla’s Cybertruck in the U.S. While Tesla sold 16,692 Cybertrucks in the third quarter, Ford sold only 7,162 units of the Lightning, according to data from Kelley Blue Book.

In fact, the Cybertruck even outsold Ford’s best-selling EV, the Mustang Mach-E, in the quarter.

Why It Matters: Ford sold 23,509 EVs altogether in the last quarter in the U.S., less than Tesla and also General Motors who spurred EV sales with new EV offerings.

In August, Ford said that it is killing its plans to build a three-row electric SUV, initially slated for production in 2025. The company also postponed its plans for a new electric version of its F-150 pickup to 2027 and said it will start making a new electric commercial van in 2026.

For the third quarter, Ford's EV segment called "Model e" reported an EBIT loss of $1.2 billion after cost improvements were offset by industrywide pricing pressure, taking its loss this year through the end of September to $3.7 billion. The company now expects a full-year EBIT loss of $5 billion from the segment.

EBIT refers to earnings before interest and taxes.

Price Action: Ford’s stock closed 1.7% down on Thursday at $10.29, but rose marginally by 0.2% in premarket trading on Friday. Year-to-date, the automaker’s shares are down 15.4%, according to Benzinga Pro data.

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