Bidenflation: Ford Boosts Price of Electric F-150 Lightning Truck Due to 'Significant Material Cost Increases'

Ford is increasing the starting prices of its electric F-150 Lightning truck by as much as $8,500 due to “significant material cost increases and other factors.”

CNBC reports that Ford said on Tuesday that it would be increasing the starting prices of its electric F-150 Lightning pickup truck due to “significant material cost increases and other factors.” The automaker said that the price increases, which are between $6,000 and $8,500, will not impact customers who have already ordered the vehicle and are awaiting delivery. President Joe Biden infamously test drove an electric F-150 in 2021. Biden shared his opinion on the truck, saying ““This sucker’s quick.”

James Farley, president and chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co. (Photographer: Emily Elconin/Bloomberg)

In the front of the F-150, where the engine would be, is a large, easy-access storage trunk, commonly referred to as a frunk. (Youngrae Kim/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

The 2023 F-150 Lightning will now range from $47,000 to $97,000, up from approximately $40,000 to $92,000 for the 2022 model. Ford is the latest in a long line of automakers increasing the prices of their electric vehicles amid rising inflation and development costs. General Motors raised the price of its Hummer EV by $6,250, EV startups Rivian Automotive and Lucid also increased the cost of their vehicles. Tesla increased the price of all models earlier this year.

During the coronavirus pandemic, the cost of raw materials used to develop batteries for electric vehicles doubled according to a report by the consulting and research firm AlixPartners. Ford’s price increase comes ahead of the automaker reopening order for the F-150 Lightning on Thursday.

Far from discussing price increases, Ford CEO Jim Farley recently stated that he believes that the electric car market is about to enter an intense price war as more affordable models become available. Due to production issues and strong demand, there is nothing close to a price war in the EV market, but Farley believes that is likely to change soon.

“So I believe there will be, our industry is definitely heading to a huge price war,” said Farley. He noted that the Mustang Mach-E battery pack alone costs Ford $18,000 to build, a production price that he hopes to lower in coming years.

“Half the fixtures, half the work stations, half the welds, 20% less fasteners. We designed it, because it’s such a simple product, to radically change the manufacturability,” said Farley.

Despite Farley’s enthusiasm for the Mustang Mach-E, Ford was forced to temporarily halt sales of the vehicle due to a safety defect that impacted about half of all Mach-E vehicles that it had produced.