Ford will soon begin selling and shipping incomplete but drivable vehicles that come without the chips that power certain non-safety devices, according to a report from Automotive News†The automaker will instead ship the semiconductors to dealers within a year, who will then install them in customers’ vehicles after purchase.
There is still no information about the affected vehicle models or features. Ford originally had plans to ship partially completed, non-drivable vehicles to dealers last year, but now the non-chopped vehicles will be both drivable and salable.
As indicated by Automotive News, Ford’s decision comes as an effort to relocate the partially built vehicles crowding the factory sites. Hundreds of new ones last month Ford Broncos Were Spotted While Unemployed on the snowy lots near Ford’s Michigan Assembly Plant, all of which await chip-related installations.
Like many other companies, Ford is struggling with the limitations of the chip shortage. Last year, a shortage of semiconductors forced Ford to cut production of its popular F-150, and in November Ford and General Motors announced a deal with chip maker GlobalFoundries to help reduce the shortage.
Other automakers have also had to make sacrifices because of the chip shortage, with GM dropping wireless charging. HD radios, and a fuel management module that allowed some pickup trucks to operate more efficiently. Meanwhile, Tesla sold some cars without USB ports and made them installable at a later date. Luxury cars aren’t exempt from the deficit either, as Cadillac has scrapped its hands-free driving feature in its 2022 Escalade, while BMW has started shipping some cars without touchscreens.
The edge reached out to Ford with a request for comment, but didn’t hear back immediately.