One of the largest traditional automotive companies has seen early success with a transition to electric vehicles.
The company recently filed several trademarks for new brand names that suggest it could be transitioning several of its existing gas-powered vehicles to new electric vehicle models.
What Happened: Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) filed trademarks for potential electric versions of its Ford Maverick and Ford Ranger pickup trucks, as highlighted by Electrek.
The Maverick and Ranger pickup trucks are smaller than the F-150, which is one of the bestselling vehicle models in the world.
Ford’s trademark filings in Europe include the brands “Maverick Lightning” and “Ranger Lightning.”
In the U.S., Ford filed trademarks for “Maverick Thunder” and “Ranger Thunder.”
This could suggest Ford has not determined the brand name it will use for the new vehicle models going forward. Ford also trademarked the term for pickup trucks and electric vehicles, which could mean it has new non-electric versions of the trucks coming.
Ford also filed the term “F-150 Thunder” in the U.S. last month, which could mean more versions of the F-150 could be included in uniform branding of either Thunder or Lightning.
Related Link: Here's How Much It Costs To Fill A F-150 Gas Tank: Is This Playing A Role In Ford F-150 Lightning Strong Sales?
Why It’s Important: When Jim Farley took over as CEO of Ford in 2020, he highlighted electric vehicles as one of the key pillars in Dearborn's growth plan.
“Turn around automotive operations; allocate capital to Ford’s strongest franchises and high-growth opportunities; produce compelling, uniquely Ford electric vehicles at scale; and stand-up new AV-enabled businesses,” the plan said.
Farley has made it known that Ford wants to be a leader in electric pickup trucks. The company has a good lead with the F-150 Lightning.
Ford reported the F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck was the bestselling electric truck in the month of June. Ford reported 1,837 F-150 Lightning units sold in June. The company has now sold 2,296 F-150 Lightning trucks since the vehicle launched.
Ford’s overall electric vehicle sales were up 76.6% year-over-year in the month of June, hitting a total of 4,353.
Ford reported that 75% of people who reserved the F-150 Lightning came from other brands, which could suggest the company could gain market share in the truck sector.
Adding the smaller Maverick and Ranger brands to its lineup of electric pickup trucks could help Ford take on rivals like Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ:RIVN), General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) and Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) in the highly anticipated electric pickup market share race.
The additional models could lower entry price points for customers to make the switch to Ford or to shift from Ford gas-powered vehicles to Ford electric vehicles.
F Price Action: Ford shares were up 2.13% Tuesday at $11.53.
Photo courtesy of Ford.
