Ford said Feb. 24 it will suspend F-150 Lightning production for another week after identifying issues with battery cells provided by supplier SK.
Ford halted production of the F-150 Lightning on Feb. 14 after a vehicle displayed “a potential battery issue,” which the company said was identified during pre-delivery quality inspections. “We are holding vehicles while we investigate,” Ford said at the time.
Ford then extended the stoppage through Feb. 24, stating the week before it had identified the issue and expected to conclude its investigation.
However, Ford will continue the halt in production “through the end of next week,” it told Teslarati in a statement. This means the halt will persist through March 3.
“The teams worked quickly to identify the root cause of the issue,” Ford said in a statement. “We agree with SK’s recommended changes in their equipment and processes for SK’s cell production lines. SK has started building battery cells again in Commerce, GA.”
Ford said it would take time for SK to ensure it is once again building high-quality cells for the F-150 Lightning.
Ford did not issue a stop sale of F-150 Lightning units that had already arrived at dealer lots when the issue was spotted. However, the automaker did issue a temporary halt on production and a stop-shipment of units until it could confirm its vehicles were unaffected by the cell issue.
