With Rivian stock collapse, Ford needs volume to offset the stock value gain last quarter. How they get Deep the spokesman to say this stuff is incredible. Granted, not safety item, but why would a customer want a vehicle at a premium price with buttons that don’t work. Are new cars/trucks like wine where they are better after aging outside in snow filled lots? Ford logic highlighted again.
Ford will soon start selling and shipping some Ford Explorers without the chips that power rear air conditioning and heating controls, according to a report from Automotive News. The automaker will instead ship the missing semiconductors to dealers within one year, which they will then install in customers’ vehicles after purchase.
Ford spokesperson Said Deep told The Verge that heating and air condition will still be controllable from the front seats, and that customers who choose to purchase a vehicle without the rear controls will receive a price reduction. According to Deep, Ford is doing this as a way to bring new Explorers to customers faster, and that the change is only temporary.
The automaker originally had plans to ship partially-built, undrivable vehicles to dealers last year, but now, the unchipped vehicles will be both driveable and sellable. As pointed out by Automotive News, Ford’s decision comes as an attempt to move the partially-built vehicles crowding its factory lots. Last month, hundreds of new Ford Broncos were spotted sitting idly in the snow-covered lots near Ford’s Michigan Assembly Plant, all of which await chip-related installations.
Like many other companies, Ford has been grappling with the constraints introduced by the chip shortage. After the lack of semiconductors forced Ford to scale back production of its popular F-150 last year (and once again earlier this month), it started giving customers the option to purchase the pickup without automatic start-stop, the feature that turns a vehicle’s engine off when it comes to a complete stop. Ford gave affected owners a $50 credit in return.