Ford Cancels the F-150 Lightning

 Production had already been on hold for several weeks, but with little surprise, Ford has now cancelled production of the electric version of its pickup truck, the F-150 Lightning.

• The Lightning was the first electric pickup truck available in Canada, arriving on the market in 2022.
• Lightning sales never met Ford’s internal targets.
• Ford says it is shifting its focus toward consumer demand by stepping away from electric powertrains.

The Ford F-150 remains the undisputed sales leader in both Canada and the United States. In Canada, the pickup has sat at the top of the sales charts for more than 55 years, making it an exceptionally important model for the automaker. While the lineup offers a wide range of powertrain options, Ford broke new ground in 2022 by becoming the first manufacturer to offer a fully electric version, the Lightning.

In Quebec, the model enjoyed immediate success, but the story was quite different elsewhere in Canada and in the United States. Canadian sales figures are not publicly available, but south of the border, Ford’s Rouge plant in Michigan produced 15,617 units in 2022, 24,165 in 2023, 33,510 in 2024, and approximately 24,600 units as of October 2025. These numbers fall well short of the original projections, which anticipated annual production of up to roughly 150,000 units.

Even though the Lightning was built on an existing platform, it never reached profitability for the manufacturer. In fact, Ford was consistently losing money on every unit sold. Slower-than-expected adoption of electric vehicles among consumers is now forcing automakers to reassess the future of several EV models, and the F-150 Lightning has officially joined that list.

Ford commented on the decision through Andrew Frick, President of Ford Blue and Ford Model e: “We already stopped production of the 2025 Ford F-150 Lightning earlier this month. This decision reflects several market realities and evolving consumer preferences.”

It is also difficult to ignore the broader political context. The move comes amid sweeping rollbacks by the Trump administration on emissions regulations and pollution-related penalties. With far more freedom to operate as they see fit, U.S. automakers no longer face the same pressure to sustain electric vehicle production. This makes the decision all the more surprising given that Ford had announced a new STX version for 2026. The cancellation therefore appears abrupt and improvised.

Ram has already cancelled its fully electric pickup before it even reached the market, and now Ford is following suit. It marks yet another discouraging day for vehicle electrification.