In the third quarter, Ford Motor’s dominance in EV sales was overtaken by rival General Motors, located across town, as the automaker’s EV growth stalled.
Ford announced on Wednesday that sales of new cars in the United States increased by 0.7% in the third quarter, with EV sales up by 12.2% over the previous year.
Ford’s third-quarter statistics helped to propel EV sales this year through September to 67,689 units, a 45% rise. That compared with GM on Tuesday reporting EV sales of 70,450 vehicles through September, including a roughly 60% year-over-year gain during the third quarter.
In terms of EV sales, Ford and GM still lag behind Hyundai Motor, which includes Kia, by at least 18,000 vehicles. In terms of EV sales in the United States, the South Korean carmaker behind market leader Tesla by a wide margin.
GM has been dramatically boosting its number of EV vehicles, notably by selling eight “Ultium-based” EVs for consumers – alluding to its electric vehicle design and battery technology. Ford, on the other hand, now only offers three EVs and is prioritizing the short-term expansion of hybrid cars.
According to a statement, Andrew Frick, president of Ford Blue and customer service, “different lifestyles and use cases require unique types of power.” “We’ve paid attention to what customers want, and we’ve responded by offering them cars with powertrains that specifically suit their needs, which validates our product strategy.”
Ford has downplayed its intentions to sell electric vehicles in the near future, although business leaders including CEO Jim Farley have praised the brand’s sales position.
The Detroit carmaker claims that Ford is still the second-best selling brand, trailing only Tesla.
In terms of total sales for the third quarter, Ford is anticipated to have surpassed the industry. Forecasters in the auto industry, including Cox Automotive and Edmunds, predict that overall third-quarter sales will be down around 2% from the same period last year.
Gains in Ford’s EV and hybrid vehicles, which together accounted for 14% of its sales in the third quarter, were the company’s main drivers. The automaker’s sales of traditional cars decreased by 2.8% in the previous year.
Over 1.5 million Ford automobiles were sold in the United States as of the third quarter of this year, a 2.7% increase over the same period last year.
