DETROIT — Ford Motor Co mentioned on Thursday it for now will assemble its flagship, extremely worthwhile F-150 pickup vans and Edge SUVs in North America with out sure elements and idle two meeting vegetation as a result of world semiconductor chip scarcity.
The U.S. automaker mentioned the chip scarcity, mixed with the scarcity of a component brought on by the central U.S. winter storm, is prompting it to construct the automobiles after which maintain them “for plenty of weeks” till they are often accomplished and shipped. The affected automobiles quantity within the “hundreds,” a spokeswoman mentioned.
Ford mentioned it’s also idling manufacturing at vegetation in Louisville, Kentucky, and Cologne, Germany.
The prices related to these actions are coated within the Dearborn, Michigan-based firm’s earlier forecast that earnings this yr could possibly be hit by $1 billion to $2.5 billion as a result of chip scarcity.
The scarcity, which has hit automakers globally, stems from a confluence of things. Carmakers shut vegetation for 2 months in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic final yr and canceled chip orders. In the meantime, demand for chips susred from the patron electronics trade as individuals labored from dwelling and performed video video games. Now carmakers should compete for chips.
Final month, Ford minimize shifts at two vegetation that construct the full-size F-150 vans, a transfer that adopted manufacturing cuts of different automobiles. Ford, like different automakers, has mentioned it would prioritize and allocate chips to its highest-margin automobiles when it may possibly.
On Monday, Basic Motors Co mentioned it was constructing some light-duty full-size pickups with no gasoline administration module, shaving a mile per gallon from gasoline financial system. GM beforehand mentioned the chip scarcity may minimize as much as $2 billion from this yr’s earnings.
The Ford vans and SUVs being assembled with out sure elements embody some digital modules with the scarce chips, Ford mentioned. It didn’t establish suppliers of the affected elements, however a spokeswoman mentioned the elements wanted for the F-150 and Edge automobiles are tied to fundamental capabilities, resembling windshield wiper motors and infotainment techniques.
Ford is canceling the late shift on Thursday and each shifts on Friday at its Louisville Meeting Plant, which builds the Ford Escape and Lincoln Corsair SUVs. Manufacturing is anticipated to renew on brief shifts on Monday and full manufacturing the next day.
In Cologne, the place the Fiesta automotive is constructed, the plant is being idled March 1-16 and March 22. The corporate didn’t say what quantity was being misplaced resulting from that motion.
