Even though Ford’s F-150 Lightning truck sits shiny and pretty on the Celebrity of Toms River dealership floor, that’s apparently the only place the car is going.
"It's a really beautiful truck, but we're having some trouble getting it off of our lot," Veronica Maoli, America’s youngest female Ford dealer, told FOX Business’ Jeff Flock on "Mornings with Maria" Monday.
"There's a lot of charging concerns. A lot of commercial companies don't really want to have to spend the time to charge," she continued. "And they add weight to the back of the truck. It's a little bit of a struggle right now."
Maoli claimed the sales for the electric version of Ford’s iconic F-150 truck have been dismal at her New Jersey dealership. Her comments come just days after the U.S. automaker announced it would dial back production of the electric truck as demand wanes.
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The company said it will reduce the number of shifts at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center, where it builds the EV pickups, to one, beginning April 1.
The move will affect some 1,400 workers, including 700 who will move to the company’s Michigan Assembly Plant. Some employees will be placed in roles at the Rouge complex or other Ford facilities in southeast Michigan, and others can "take advantage of the Special Retirement Incentive Program agreed to in the 2023 Ford-UAW contract," Ford said.
"I think that we all know, and we all talk about how… the infrastructure is not there yet for EVs," Maoli added. "And I think that they're trying to move a little bit too fast."
Ford started making the F-150 Lightning in April 2022, but the company’s stock plunged 12% in October after it reported a $4.5 billion loss in its electric vehicle market.
For American drivers, Maoli noted how hybrid models are a "happy medium" car choice.
"You don't have to worry about always having to charge. You have the option to have that eco-mode. But you don't have to have the charger, you don't have to depend on that," she said.
Hybrids are also more affordable – according to data from Fortune, the average car sales price for an EV was $60,500 as of November. An average hybrid costs $42,500 while a gas-powered engine will run you $47,500.
"We're still doing a lot of research and data analytics on EV. We don't know what the value is of the cars after, we don't know even the battery life capability right now. So that's one of the big concerns," Maoli explained.
But for now: "[We're] not going to ever put a customer in a car that I think they're going to be unhappy in."
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In a Ford statement, CEO Jim Farley said the company is taking advantage of its manufacturing flexibility to offer the best choices for customers.
"We see a bright future for electric vehicles for specific consumers, especially with our upcoming digitally advanced EVs and access to Tesla's charging network beginning this quarter," the CEO said.
FOX Business’ Aislinn Murphy contributed to this report.
