Ford’s approach, although more adaptable, has riled vendor groups throughout the country, who accuse the company of being unfair and breaking state franchise laws. According to the head of Ford’s vendor council, the company has received 32 letters from state organisations and is working with the council to iron out changes aimed at soothing some of the concerns.
The improvements would include decreasing the differences between this system’s two levels, one of which restricts EV sales in exchange for a lower investment in charging hardware.
The approach seeks to alter some marketing-related benefits that “certified elite” dealerships would have over those who choose the less expensive “certified” tier. As of today, licenced dealers will not have their EVs posted on Ford.com and will not be able to get EV demo cars.
Hovik also claimed that Ford is thinking about relaxing the need for dealers to provide 24-hour public EV charging.
Finally, Ford may alter how future EVs are distributed. For the time being, those in the licenced tier will be restricted to selling 25 EVs every year, while Hovik noted the boundaries want to shift to a more equal allocation structure comparable to how current models are distributed.
“I believe the methodology will wind up being close in numbers to the cap,” Hovik said, “but I believe altering the allocation formula might allow dealers a chance to expand, which is exactly what we want.”
Approximately 1,000 Ford dealers chose not to invest in the EV initiative; they will continue to sell Ford vehicles but will be limited to selling gasoline-powered and hybrid models. In 2027, Ford will offer these sellers another option to add this technology.
According to Cadillac officials, more than one-third of its 875 dealers accepted a buyout offered by the model beginning in 2020, bringing the number of U.S. dealerships to about 560. The usual offer ranged from $300,000 to $500,000.
Cadillac spokesperson Michael Albano noted that the model has subsequently incorporated three elements in New York, Los Angeles, and Atlanta.
