The rollout of the 2024 Ford F-150 Lightning has encountered a roadblock. According to reports, deliveries have been placed on hold since February 9th, 2024, due to an undisclosed quality issue identified by Ford. This comes just after the 2024 model year trucks began arriving at dealerships in January.
Production of the F-150 Lightning, however, continues uninterrupted. Assembly lines remain operational, building the trucks, but they are not being shipped to dealerships or customers until the quality concern is fully addressed.
“We started shipping the first newly designed F-150 pickups to dealers this week,” Ford said in a statement. “MY24 Lightnings started shipping last month. We expect to ramp up shipments in the coming weeks as we complete thorough launch quality checks to ensure these new F-150s meet our high standards and delight customers.”
Read: Ford F-150 Lightning Looks To Electrify Norway As Deliveries Begin
It is not just the 2024 F-150 Lightning that is proving slow to reach dealers. Auto News reports that hundreds, and potentially thousands, of combustion-powered 2024 F-150 models have been sitting in holding lots in Detroit since December. One commercial customer says the delivery date for an order of almost 100 vehicles has been delayed by eight weeks.
Ford has not said why these F-150 models are piling up in holding lots, other than stating it is standard practice for it to not release products until they have received thorough inspections.
The Dearborn-based automaker is eager to improve the quality of its vehicles having been plagued by recalls in recent years. It revamped vehicle testing and launch quality processes with last year’s new Super Duty.
“Some launches are more critical than others, and no vehicle is more important to Ford’s bottom line and reputation than one with an F-Series badge — and two F-Series models have recently experienced hang-ups,” AutoPacific analyst Paul Waatti told Autonews. “Holding deliveries of the F-150 and F-150 Lightning until any issues get ironed out stings, but much less so than prematurely launching them with known problems.”
