The longer term is electrical, and Ford is eager to convey its huge dealership community alongside for the journey. The automaker’s latest seller conferences in Las Vegas outlined a plan for sellers to change into licensed in EV gross sales, with the objective of changing into extra EV pleasant for patrons with charging capabilities, clear pricing, and intensive gross sales coaching. But it surely requires hefty investments on the seller aspect, and a choice should be made quickly.
At this level, you seemingly have two questions in thoughts: How a lot, and the way lengthy? Our colleagues at InsideEVs attended the occasion and received the news on all the main points, together with a presentation by Ford CEO Jim Farley on how the corporate and its community of practically 3,000 sellers can evolve for EV gross sales.
At a minimal, Ford estimates a $500,000 funding from sellers to improve amenities, however that may broaden to $1.5 million for places that go for the very best attainable EV certification. These are hefty numbers, and sellers solely have till October 31 to decide. Nonetheless, there is a bit extra to it than that.
For starters, sellers should not required to change into EV licensed. They will soldier on as-is, however as of January 1, 2024, they will be unable to promote any Ford electrical automobiles just like the Mustang Mach-E. Additionally, the October 31 deadline is not a one-and-done deal. Ought to sellers determine later to make the EV funding, one other window will open in 2025 with EV gross sales eligibility starting in 2027. In principle, Ford may have many extra EVs in its portfolio by then, which might persuade extra places to change into licensed versus making the investments now. After all, the funding prices will seemingly enhance as time goes by.
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Sellers that select the EV funding now may have two certification choices: Mannequin E Licensed, or Mannequin E Elite Licensed. As you possibly can guess, going elite is the costliest choice, requiring sellers to put in at the very least two DC quick chargers and one stage 2 charger. Moreover, at the very least one DC quick charger should be out there for public use. Mannequin E Licensed sellers solely want a single DC quick charger, additionally out there to the general public. However at this stage, there will likely be a restrict to what number of EVs the seller can promote.
The infrastructure upgrades ought to represent a bulk of the associated fee, however coaching and establishing clear on-line gross sales by the dealership are additionally a part of the plan. It is all designed to assist Ford be extra cost-competitive with Tesla, one thing Farley talked about in the course of the seller occasion.
“We have been learning Tesla intently, particularly with how their model has scaled with models and operations in Norway,” stated Farley. “And what we have seen is that they’ve virtually 1,200 workers now, they usually have very a lot dealer-like amenities. And we expect that is the path they will go as they scale their operations in the USA.”
For a deeper dive into the main points of Ford’s EV gross sales plan, take a look at the excellent report at InsideEVs.
