Ford recalling 18 electric F-150 Lightning pickup trucks after battery fire

DETROIT – Ford Motor is recalling 18 electric F-150 Lightning pickups that the company has identified as potentially having a battery cell defect that caused a truck to catch fire last month.

The Detroit automaker said Friday the small recall is for vehicles that were already delivered to customers and dealers. They were assembled with improperly produced battery cells that were built over a four-week period at a Georgia plant from supplier SK On.

A Ford spokeswoman declined to disclose how many trucks Ford has in holding that may have the issue. She said the company is “applying quality actions to already-produced vehicles with batteries built in this four-week window which we have been holding.”

The fire occurred Feb. 4 in a holding lot during a pre-delivery quality check while the vehicle was charging. Ford suspended production of the vehicles and issued a stop-shipment to dealers.

Ford previously declined to disclose details of the issue that caused the vehicle to catch fire or of the implemented solution. Additional details should be available when the National Highway Transportation Administration officially issues the recall notice.

Ford said it is not aware of any reports of accident or injury related to the battery issue or recall.

The automaker reiterated Friday that production of the F-150 Lightning is set to resume Monday at one of its Michigan plants.

The F-150 Lightning is being closely watched by investors, as it’s the first mainstream electric pickup truck on the market and a major launch for Ford. 

Ford initially opened customer reservations for the F-150 Lightning when it was revealed in May 2021. More than 200,000 reservations were placed prior to Ford temporarily closing the process to attempt to align production with expected demand.

Ford has sold fewer than 20,000 of the all-electric trucks so far.