Electric Vehicle Program Cancellation Costs Ford $100 Million, Ford Stock (NYSE:F) Slips

Development programs cost money. This is inevitable; progress has a price. And even when canceling a project, there are often costs to bear with shutting down. A new report notes that legacy automaker Ford (F) found this out first-hand recently with the shutdown of some of its electric vehicle (EV) projects. And that cost ended up costing Ford a fractional loss in its shares for Friday afternoon’s trading.

The cancellation in question stemmed from two different SUVs with third-row seating that would be all electric, and would be built at the Oakville Assembly plant. Originally, those vehicles were just going to be delayed, pushed back from 2025 to 2027, the report noted, but ultimately, the vehicles were canceled instead.

At the time, Ford noted that the cost to cancel the project would yield a “special non-cash charge” of, roughly, $400 million, and potentially, other expenses that would send the price tag up to around $1.5 billion. A look at Ford’s first quarter 2025 financial reporting found a $300 million charge in the fourth quarter of 2024, attributed to “Extended Oakville Assembly Plant Changeover.” Thus, the $100 million difference would be coming up in 2025’s figures, as Ford reconfigures Oakville to start putting together hybrids, a major part of Ford’s strategy going forward.

Breezy Wheels

We likely do not think much about wheels on our cars, except when something goes wrong with them, particularly in terms of the tires. But now, Ford is making something special out of the wheels, according to a recently-revealed patent. Ford is working on what it calls “air flow-adjusting wheels,” and this has an unexpected effect.

Remember how Ford is constantly looking to keep up with its own “no boring cars” mandate? This in turn is fueling a lot of interest in racing at Ford, and airflow wheels are part of that racing concept, reports note. Active aero, as it is called, is showing up in a lot more places, and mostly, vehicles with racetrack performance get a particular focus. But now, Ford seems to be looking to bring the tech to the everyday driver, and would either allow air into the vehicle body, or help prevent it. Such a move might even have an impact on fuel performance, if it ever actually makes it into a production model.

Is Ford Stock a Good Buy Right Now?

Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Hold consensus rating on F stock based on two Buys, 12 Holds and three Sells assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 14.14% loss in its share price over the past year, the average F price target of $9.63 per share implies 7.27% downside risk.

See more F analyst ratings

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