By Anan Ashraf
Ford Motor Co (NYSE:F) CEO Jim Farley shared insights from his road trip on the F 150 Lightning electric pickup, shedding light on the state of charging infrastructure across the country.
During his journey, Farley made a notable stop at a 350 kW charger in Baker, California, expressing his enthusiasm for the quick and easy charging experience.
“On our drive to Las Vegas, we had a great experience at this popular (and huge!) charging stop in Baker, California. Was so quick and easy. Really highlighted the difference that nice stations and fast charging can make on the overall EV experience,” said Farley in a short video shared on social media platform X.
This experience, according to him, underlines the significant impact of efficient charging stations on the overall electric vehicle (EV) user experience. While this charging station was a positive highlight, Farley also recounted his encounter with slower stations, emphasizing the challenges that many EV users face.
One of his stops included Tesla Inc‘s (NASDAQ:TSLA) supercharger at Baker Shell, equipped with 40 superchargers. “Charging has been pretty challenging,” said Farley in another post, recounting his experience of stopping to charge at Harris Ranch in Coalinga, California, wherein he waited 40 minutes to get to 40%.
“It was a really good reality check of what our customers go through and the importance of fast charging. This is why we’re working w/ Tesla to provide Ford drivers access to +12,000 superchargers & our EV-certified dealers are installing fast chargers at their dealerships,” said Farley
Farley kickstarted the road trip on the Lightning electric pickup on Monday last week. Thus far on the journey, he visited several Ford dealers and met with several EV customers and advocates.
“There are things you can’t learn in an office or from a PowerPoint,” Farley said in a post at the onset of the journey, which started in Silicon Valley and was set to cover Los Angeles, Route 66, and Las Vegas.
Addressing problems like charging experience are going to be crucial to EV adoption in the next few years, as the industry heads for a plateau in EV segment growth. Ford already appears to be reacting to this slow in the growth curve. After electric Mustang Mach-Es started piling up at dealerships this summer, Ford adjusted its ambitious EV production goals for the year and appeared to abandon plans to build 2 million EVs by the end of 2026 according to the Business Insider.
Produced in association with Benzinga
Edited by Eunice Anyango Oyule and Judy J. Rotich