Ford slims down dealership EV requirements after pushback

Ford’s Model E dealership certification program is getting stripped down to allow all locations access to EV inventory. As reported by CNBC, Ford is revising its strategy of requiring dealerships to invest up to $1.2 million for certification that includes mandatory on-site EV chargers, upgrades, and advanced staff training.

In an email to The Verge, Ford Model E COO Marin Gjaja wrote that starting July 1st, the company is “expanding EV sales and service to all 2,800 of its US dealers,” which replaces the Model E dealership program first introduced in 2022. Gjaja wrote that approximately 1,400 dealerships had enrolled in the old program.

The move to dismantle EV certification requirements was rumored to be underway last month in dealership meetings. Ford was at odds with dealerships after being accused of violating state franchise laws while also losing leverage as sales of popular EVs like Teslas slowed — even though Ford’s own EV and hybrid sales are up.

The old program had as many as two-thirds of Ford dealerships previously agreeing to sign up for an EV “Certified” tag. It included the premium (and most expensive) “Elite” tier and a standard one that only needed investments of up to $500,000. The standard tier was initially only good for about 25 EV allocations per year, while Elites would get far more.

Ford originally wanted dealerships to install multiple chargers, with some available for public use, but pushback made the automaker revise those requirements in November. Now, without requirements to install EV chargers, customers may endure more difficult delivery processes at dealerships, some of which are hostile to the idea of selling EVs anyway.