Is the Pickup Truck Shortage Getting Worse?
It might be a bad time to buy a truck. The ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak led to a pickup truck shortage in 2020 that we are still facing. Now the global computer ship shortage may cause more delays.
Is a larger pickup truck shortage coming?
Maybe. According to CNN, the global computer chip shortage is starting to hit automakers hard. A majority of full-size trucks and SUVs will be sitting on the sidelines until more parts come in.
Since the chip shortage started, automakers have been committed to using the supplies they have available to continue building their most popular options.
However, now manufacturers like Ford and Stellantis may have difficulties delivering popular vehicles to dealerships on time. Allocating the chips to be used in their most profitable vehicles was only a temporary solution.
How are truck manufacturers handling the chip shortage?
Ford is working to continue building the nation’s best-selling vehicle, which is the Ford F-150. However, they are building 2021 Ford F-150 models and storing them until more chips arrive.
The unfinished trucks will be completed when the missing chips arrive. The trucks will then be tested to ensure that they meet high-quality standards before being shipped to dealers.
The Ford Bronco has also been delayed due to the semiconductor chip shortage. Ford also temporarily shut down one of the three shifts at the Kentucky Truck plant, where the Expedition, Lincoln Navigator, and Super Duty pickups are manufactured.
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Add the 2021 Ram 1500 to the pickup truck shortage too. Stellantis announced that nearly completed models of the 2021 Ram 1500 Classic will be placed in shipping containers when they’re nearly finished. Then the chips will be added once they arrive.
They could be stored for a few weeks, but exactly how long the delays will last is unknown. Stellantis has an excess supply of the Ram 1500 Classic. There is a 143 supply will the average is a 59-day supply for full-size trucks in the industry.
Chevy is taking a slightly different approach. General Motors is building the Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra without a chip in the fuel management module that improves mileage by about one mpg. The chips can’t be added afterward. However, GM has had three plants in North America closed since February. The factories may remain shut down until April too. These plants don’t manufacture large trucks and SUVs, though.
Are truck prices increasing?
The pickup truck shortage may cause prices to increase, but it’s hard to gauge because it’s unclear how long the delays will last. Ford and General Motors have warned investors that the chip shortage may reduce their earnings by over a billion dollars.
According to Cars.com, there has been a 27-percent decrease in Toyota Tundra dealership inventory, but prices have only increased by $133. But Toyota Tacoma inventory is down by 4-percent, and prices are up by about $584.
The IHS market predicts that there will be 672,000 fewer light vehicles produced in the first quarter of 2021. More changes will come to the automotive industry as manufacturers adapt to the chip shortage, and the future seems unpredictable right now.
