Ford releases 3rd-quarter sales report: Which vehicles sold well

The F-Series pickup truck continues to be the lifeblood of Ford Motor Co., holding its sales lead in the industry and driving the third quarter, the automaker announced Wednesday.

Ford reported a 7.7% sales gain Wednesday for the months of July, August and September in the U.S., with 1,508,072 vehicles sold overall this year and 500,504 in the third quarter. Ford has seen an overall sales gain of 9.2% year-to-date from a year ago, said Erich Merkle, Ford U.S. sales analyst.

The increase reflects strong sales of traditional gas trucks and F-Series while also recording solid sales of the hybrid F-150 and Maverick trucks. The Mustang Mach-E is driving electric vehicle sales for Ford.

On Tuesday, General Motors reported a third-quarter sales gain of 21% from a year ago, and Stellantis reported a 1% dip in sales.

While the UAW strike on the Detroit Three began in mid-September during the final two weeks of the quarter, Ford did not mention any sales disruption Wednesday in their report. The UAW initially targeted Michigan Assembly, which builds the Ford Bronco and Ranger, and then Friday targeted Chicago Assembly, which builds the Ford Explorer and Lincoln Aviator. Not any of those vehicles has been a primary sales driver.

Which Ford vehicles sold well

All-new Super Duty pickups delivered in a big way, up 17.6% in the quarter from a year ago. The small Maverick pickup, a key driver in sales a year ago, continued to attract buyers, with sales up 83.4%. And while the Transit van rarely makes headlines, it continues to be a go-to product for small business owners, with sales up 28.3%.

Ford pointed to these highlights:

• Ford F-Series sales rose 13.4% in the quarter over last year on sales of 190,477 trucks. Year-to-date, F-Series sales totaled 573,370 trucks, outselling the second-place Chevrolet Silverado by 169,949 trucks.

• Ford overall third-quarter truck sales, including pickups and vans, are up 15.3% over last year on sales of 275,554 vehicles.

• Bronco and Bronco Sport saw a 24.8% sales increase with sales of 66,120 SUVs, with the Bronco Sport selling a few more more at 33,232.

• Ford’s overall full-size van segment share grew to 42.1% — up 3.4 points from a year ago.

Ford often compares its sales data in the U.S. to crosstown rival GM, and noted that the company sold 825,179 pickups and vans through September of this year, leading GM in that category by about 64,000 vehicles.

Trucks and vans generate big profits for the automakers, and sales are essential to help fund the transition to electric vehicles.

Solid hybrid sales

Ford CEO Jim Farley has said full-size truck owners may be more comfortable moving to hybrid vehicles more quickly than to the all-electric F-150 Lightning. And that's key to Ford's future sales strategy of the F-150.

"As America’s best-selling hybrid truck, F-150 hybrid sales expanded 46.9% on sales of 12,311 trucks," Merkle told the Free Press. "Maverick hybrid now represents 56.5% of all Maverick trucks sold."

Maverick sales totaled 23,931 trucks, an increase of 83.4% from a year ago in the third quarter.

Electric sales apart from F-150 Lightning

The Dearborn automaker reported its best-ever electric vehicle sales in third quarter, thanks to the Mustang Mach-E and E-Transit van.

Ford said the F-150 Lightning is expected to see a sales increase next quarter as a result of production capacity updates at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center. Ford sold only 3,503 Lightning trucks during the quarter.

For six weeks, Lightning production was down. The plant went back online the first week of August and now the company is focusing on F-150 Lightning quality updates, Merkle said. "We expect vehicle flow to improve across the fourth quarter."

Year to date, Ford has sold 12,260 Lightning trucks. The company revealed its 2024 Lightning last month.

Ford reported these EV and hybrid sales tidbits for third quarter:

• Ford’s EV sales grew 14.8% with 20,962 vehicles. Sales of Mustang Mach-E, which debuted in 2021, spiked 42.5% with 14,842 vehicles.

• E-Transit saw its best-ever quarterly sales results of 2,617 vehicles, an 89.8% increase.

• Escape Hybrid and plug-in hybrid sales are overwhelmingly selling on presold customer orders

Lincoln sales weak

Lincoln sales focus on the Corsair, Nautilus and Navigator. The Aviator sales were directly affected by a recall for a defective 360-degree camera, and only now are parts are starting to arrive at retail stores, Ford said.

Overall, Lincoln sales were up 1.8% for the quarter and down 5.5% from a year ago, Ford said.

Contact Phoebe Wall Howard: 313-618-1034 or phoward@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @phoebesaid.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Ford 3rd-quarter sales up 7.7% with mix of hybrid, gas-powered trucks