Ford says it is recalling 18 F-150 Lightning pickups due to a “battery cell manufacturing defect.” Ford said all 18 affected trucks will receive new batteries during the repair Autoblog.
This recall involves an F-150 Lightning battery that caught fire on February 4th of this year during quality control at Ford facilities. After the fire, Ford issued a stop-build and shutdown order for the Lightning while it investigated the problem. On March 2, Ford announced the end of the investigation and set March 13 as the date for restarting production.
Ford didn’t release details about the Lightning investigation at the time, but this recall notice provides more details to follow. Ford’s statement is included in its entirety below.
“Ford is recalling 18 F-150 Lightnings due to a battery cell manufacturing defect that occurred during a four-week period beginning late last year. We recently determined that 18 cell vehicles from that four-week period were delivered to dealers and customers.
“During a standard quality check on February 4, one of the vehicles developed a battery fault and caught fire. The identified root cause is related to the production of battery cells at SK On’s plant in Georgia. Ford is not aware of any accidents or injuries related to the recall. Together with SK On, we confirmed the root causes and implemented quality measures. Production is on track and will resume on Monday with a clean battery pack.”
In summary, Ford suggests that the original fire was caused by a battery cell manufacturing problem at the SK On plant. All 18 affected trucks will receive new battery packs, and Ford says customers will receive a loaner vehicle while the work is done. Ford also told us it’s safe for customers to continue driving and fueling their trucks, but encourages them to make an appointment with their dealer as soon as possible.
In addition to the recall details, Ford confirmed that production of the F-150 Lightning will restart on March 13 with new batteries, using the lessons learned from Ford’s investigation.
