Photo: GM | Edited
General Motors and Ford have both vowed to surpass Tesla and yet they don't seem to be making much progress. GM has reported more than 20,000 EV sales in the first quarter, almost twice as many as Ford, but only 970 on the Ultium platform, with GMC Hummer EV accounting for just two. This points to potential production problems for the Ultium EVs.
There's a funny development in the U.S. EV market as more carmakers chase Tesla. Bold statements and billions of dollars pledged for EV development are dwarfed by hilarious results, like when General Motors announced it sold just two GMC Hummer EVs. The slide in the shareholder deck was even funnier, stating that "Factory ZERO is building and shipping GMC Hummer EV Pickup and new Hummer EV SUV." It must've been embarrassing to have to use the singular form there.
General Motors may have sold twice as many EVs as Ford, thanks to the resilience of the Chevrolet Bolt. But we're still watching the biggest American companies dueling for a consolation prize. Ford reported 10,866 EVs in the first three months of the year, while General Motors reported 20,670 in the same period. Both have reasons to be optimistic, with Ford enjoying a 40% increase over Q1 2022, while GM announced that 2023 would be a breakout year for EVs, as it wants to sell 100,000 EVs by the end of the year. Ford announced last month that it's still on track to reach a production capacity of 600,000 EVs by the end of 2023, and we have a hard time imagining this is still possible.
GM has massive problems with its Ultium platform, considering that almost all sales in the quarter were Chevrolet Bolt. This is troubling, considering that GM sells the Bolt at an almost breakeven price. With less than 1,000 Ultium vehicles sold in the quarter, we wonder what would happen with the Chevrolet Silverado EV, expected to launch in the coming months. The Silverado EV was supposed to be a volume model, but we have doubts that GM could produce enough to challenge Rivian R1T and Ford F-150 Lightning.
Speaking of which, Ford probably lost the number one position in electric pickup trucks to Rivian, having sold only 4,300 F-150 Lightning trucks. The EV startup reported 8,000 EVs sold in the first quarter. While it doesn't break down the numbers, the R1T makes most of the sales. Ford F-150 Lightning production has been halted for most of February following a battery fire. Ford's results were also affected by the closure of its plant in Mexico, where the Mustang Mach-E was produced.
While General Motors and Ford are dueling for the number two spot in the EV market, Tesla has reported record deliveries in the first quarter of the year, at 423,000 EVs. Whatever Ford and GM combined delivered in the first quarter, Tesla can supply solely from its Berlin gigafactory in half the time. So far, Tesla has managed to increase its sales exponentially, while traditional carmakers have barely kept their market share, in best cases.
General Motors may have sold twice as many EVs as Ford, thanks to the resilience of the Chevrolet Bolt. But we're still watching the biggest American companies dueling for a consolation prize. Ford reported 10,866 EVs in the first three months of the year, while General Motors reported 20,670 in the same period. Both have reasons to be optimistic, with Ford enjoying a 40% increase over Q1 2022, while GM announced that 2023 would be a breakout year for EVs, as it wants to sell 100,000 EVs by the end of the year. Ford announced last month that it's still on track to reach a production capacity of 600,000 EVs by the end of 2023, and we have a hard time imagining this is still possible.
GM has massive problems with its Ultium platform, considering that almost all sales in the quarter were Chevrolet Bolt. This is troubling, considering that GM sells the Bolt at an almost breakeven price. With less than 1,000 Ultium vehicles sold in the quarter, we wonder what would happen with the Chevrolet Silverado EV, expected to launch in the coming months. The Silverado EV was supposed to be a volume model, but we have doubts that GM could produce enough to challenge Rivian R1T and Ford F-150 Lightning.
Speaking of which, Ford probably lost the number one position in electric pickup trucks to Rivian, having sold only 4,300 F-150 Lightning trucks. The EV startup reported 8,000 EVs sold in the first quarter. While it doesn't break down the numbers, the R1T makes most of the sales. Ford F-150 Lightning production has been halted for most of February following a battery fire. Ford's results were also affected by the closure of its plant in Mexico, where the Mustang Mach-E was produced.
While General Motors and Ford are dueling for the number two spot in the EV market, Tesla has reported record deliveries in the first quarter of the year, at 423,000 EVs. Whatever Ford and GM combined delivered in the first quarter, Tesla can supply solely from its Berlin gigafactory in half the time. So far, Tesla has managed to increase its sales exponentially, while traditional carmakers have barely kept their market share, in best cases.
Google News