Ford Motor Co. reported Thursday that electric vehicle sales cratered 40.7% in the second quarter of 2026, the latest sign that American consumers are walking away from battery-powered cars despite years of federal mandates, tax credits, and corporate promises.
The Dearborn, Michigan automaker sold 549,200 vehicles in the quarter, down 10.3% from 612,095 units a year earlier. EVs led the collapse. The F-150 Lightning tumbled 58.6%. The Mustang Mach-E fell 30.9%. Together they represent billions in losses Ford has been absorbing for years with no end in sight.
Ford CEO Jim Farley acknowledged last December that the company would record roughly $19.5 billion in special charges tied to its EV overreach. His Model e division posted EBIT losses of $4.7 billion in 2023 and $5.1 billion in 2024. Farley said at the time the company was shifting away from large EVs, noting they “will never make money,” and pivoting toward hybrids and extended-range vehicles instead.
Ford’s F-Series trucks, the best-selling vehicles in America for decades, also slipped 11% in the quarter due to supply chain disruptions from two fires at an aluminum supplier late last year. Ford expects production to recover in the second half of 2026.
For the first half of the year, Ford has sold just over 1 million vehicles, down 9.6% from the same period in 2025. Cox Automotive had projected a steeper 11.5% decline, so the final number came in slightly better than feared. Ford’s estimated June retail market share rose slightly to 12.3%.
The collapse in EV demand runs directly counter to the years-long federal push to force automakers to transition away from internal combustion engines. The Biden administration spent hundreds of billions through the Inflation Reduction Act to subsidize EV purchases and retool domestic manufacturing. Ford, GM, and others poured tens of billions into plants and battery facilities chasing mandates that consumers never asked for.
Buyers have been clear. The trucks they want are the ones that can haul a trailer, survive a Wyoming winter, and be refueled in five minutes at any gas station in America. The Lightning can do none of those things reliably. The Mach-E is a crossover SUV wearing a Mustang badge that most Mustang buyers never wanted.
Ford has now essentially admitted what market data has shown for two years: the EV transition, at the pace and scale demanded by Washington, does not reflect actual American consumer behavior.
