Dealerships killed the F-150 Lightning — and it has nothing to do with the truck. The Lightning is legitimately awesome. Quick, smooth, quiet, practical, and it tows/hauls like a real truck. But the buying experience around it? Terrible. Here’s why Lightning momentum cooled off (and why a lot of would-be buyers never make it past “interested”): 1) The dealership model is built to extract, not educate EV buyers show up with real questions: charging, winter range, road trips, home install, adapters, real-world efficiency. What they often get instead: “Uh yeah it’s basically the same as a gas truck” Confidently wrong info A vibe that you’re annoying for asking details Or the classic: “We can figure that out after you sign” 2) Markups + games turn excitement into disgust Nothing makes a customer feel dumber than: A surprise “market adjustment” Mandatory add-ons Finance office nonsense that drags for hours People don’t leave thinking “EVs are bad.” They leave thinking “I’m not rewarding this.” 3) Dealers don’t believe in the product, so buyers don’t either You can feel it. Some dealers treat the Lightning like a compliance unit sitting on the lot—something they have to carry, not something they’re proud to sell. If the person selling it doesn’t even sound convinced… why would a buyer be? 4) And when the truck has a weird moment, it becomes a headline My Lightning “failed” in the most confidence-destroying way: 0% displayed SoC and stranded, even though there was still energy left. That’s not just a “range” story — it’s a trust story. And dealership weirdness on top of that is how you go from “this thing is incredible” to “I’m out.” What @Ford should do: Standardized, transparent pricing EV-specific sales requirements (actual training, not vibes) No forced add-ons Make buying a Lightning feel like buying the future, not buying a used Altima in 2009 Or more boldly? Find a way to go around dealerships completely with a new brand. Because the Lightning isn’t losing on product. It’s losing at the point of sale. If you’ve bought an EV from a legacy OEM… did the dealer help, hurt, or just waste your time? What about buying direct to consumer? (Tesla, Rivian, Lucid) I have a whole rant in my latest Lightning video here at timestamp 09:58 - lnkd.in/ei56MsFh

Dealerships are the absolute worst and should not exist in 2025