DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. will idle production of its highly profitable F-150 pickup truck at a plant in Michigan through Sunday due to the global semiconductor chip shortage.
Ford and other automakers have stressed they are trying to protect production of their profitable vehicles, but the company has been forced to curtail F-150 output multiple times since the start of the year.
Ford’s plant in Dearborn, Mich., will be idled from Friday through Sunday, and resume operations on Monday. A spokeswoman declined to say how much volume would be lost.
The No. 2 U.S. automaker previously said it would assemble the flagship F-150 truck, redesigned for 2021 and its most profitable model line, without certain parts and hold them for a “number of weeks” until they can be completed and shipped.
Ford said the latest action is reflected in a prior forecast that the chip shortage could shave $1 billion to $2.5 billion off 2021 profits.
Ford previously cut some February production shifts at its two F-150 plants — Dearborn and Kansas City, Missouri — due to the shortage, and also sent workers home early a few times in January.
The automaker’s head of U.S. sales, Andrew Frick, mentioned the F-150 as one of a handful of nameplates that have been especially impacted by the shortage in a letter to dealers earlier this month.
AutoForecast Solutions estimates Ford’s lost more than 20,000 units worth of production between the two pickup plants.
The chip shortage came as North American auto plants were shut for two months during the COVID pandemic last year and chip orders were canceled, and as demand surged from the consumer electronics industry as people worked from home and played video games. That has now left carmakers competing for chips.
Semiconductors are used extensively in light vehicles: To monitor engine performance, manage steering or automatic windows, and in sensors used in parking and entertainment systems.
On Wednesday, Ford said it would cut output this week of the Transit van at the Kansas City assembly plant due to the shortage. Production of the flagship F-150 pickup at the factory is not affected.