Ford's EV Sales Crashed As Buyers Flock To Hybrids And Gas Cars
The automaker is facing a 25 percent decline in EV sales for May and an 8.3 percent drop so far this year
- Ford's overall May sales rose 15.2 percent despite a major drop in EV deliveries.
- EV sales fell 25 percent in May alone, dragging Ford's electrified progress down.
- Lincoln sales jumped 39 percent with Navigator surging 133 percent year over year.
We're approaching the halfway point of the year, and things have already been wild. Tariffs, both the ones in effect and those merely looming, have changed the automotive industry, regulations are changing, and automakers are trying to keep up.
For its part, Ford has managed to have a positive year so far. Sales across the Ford and Lincoln brands are up 6.1 percent in the USA. At the same time, its EV business just took a huge hit during the month of May.
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It was only a couple of months ago that Ford's EV sales looked like they were sliding, but not by too much. After April, they were down 2.9 percent year over year. That, though, seemed like it could be an aberration since sales in April alone were down 39.4 percent. With this new sales data in hand, it seems clear that buyers are flocking away from EVs and toward hybrids and gas-powered cars.
Ford doesn't break up sales figures for its hybrid Lincoln products, but as a group, hybrids were up 28.9 percent in May. They outperformed every other propulsion type by at least ten basis points or more. Internal combustion cars came in second with a 17.2 percent bump over last year's sales. Electric vehicles were down a whopping 25 percent. Due to the heavy volume of hybrid and internal combustion sales, the group was ultimately up 16.3 percent in May.
FORD AND LINCOLN SALES
| Propulsion Type | May-25 | May-24 | Diff. | YTD-25 | YTD-24 | Diff. | |
| Total Electrified Vehicles | 29,442 | 26,597 | 10.7% | 131,255 | 111,257 | 18.0% | |
| Electric Vehicles | 6,723 | 8,966 | -25.0% | 34,132 | 37,208 | -8.3% | |
| Hybrid Vehicles | 22,719 | 17,631 | 28.9% | 97123 | 74,049 | 31.2% | |
| Internal Combustion | 191,517 | 163,417 | 17.2% | 799,670 | 766,428 | 4.3% | |
| Total vehicles | 220959 | 190,014 | 16.3% | 930,925 | 877685 | 6.1% | |
Digging a little deeper into the data provides further insights. For example, the Mustang Mach-E continues to be a hit among consumers despite the EV downturn for Ford. It was up 11 percent in May and is still up 2.8 percent year over year. That's a big rebound after it was down 40.2 percent in April. The big issues for Ford's EV business seem to be the work vehicles.
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The F-150 Lightning was down 41.7 percent in May and is down 17.3 percent year over year. The E-Transit saw a sales drop in May of 93.3 percent and is down 24.8 percent for the year. It appears that buyers are leaning into the middle ground more than ever at Ford. The automaker's hybrid business is up 31.2 percent this year.
The Bigger Picture
Incentives likely helped boost May's overall results, with employee pricing offers and consumer concerns about incoming tariffs giving shoppers extra motivation. Several models posted standout gains. The Bronco surged 51.1 percent year over year in May and is now up 46.5 percent for 2025. The Ranger also turned in a strong performance, rising 34.4 percent for the month and jumping 157.9 percent for the year.
On the flip side, the Mustang, despite having the ICE muscle car segment to itself, continues its downward trend, slipping 3.2% in May and falling 18% since the start of the year.
Lincoln had a solid month as well, climbing 39 percent in May and 13 percent for the year so far. The Navigator was a key driver of that growth, rocketing 133 percent in May and up 75.5 percent year to date.
FORD US SALES
| Model | May-25 | May-24 | Diff. | YTD-25 | YTD-24 | Diff. |
| Bronco Sport | 14,472 | 9,933 | 45.7% | 59,721 | 49,175 | 21.4% |
| Escape | 17,395 | 14,076 | 23.6% | 67,655 | 63,006 | 7.4% |
| Bronco | 14,629 | 9,679 | 51.1% | 61,624 | 42,061 | 46.5% |
| Mustang Mach-E | 4,724 | 4,255 | 11.0% | 19,258 | 18,737 | 2.8% |
| Edge | 0 | 4,808 | -100.0% | 3,040 | 47,823 | -93.6% |
| Explorer | 20,504 | 16,728 | 22.6% | 88,807 | 94,487 | -6.0% |
| Expedition | 11,298 | 7,892 | 43.2% | 35,896 | 37,335 | -3.9% |
| Ford SUVs | 83,022 | 67,371 | 23.2% | 336,001 | 352,624 | -4.7% |
| F-Series | 79,817 | 69,467 | 14.9% | 342,971 | 286,978 | 19.5% |
| F-150 Lightning | 1,902 | 3,260 | -41.7% | 10,829 | 13,093 | -17.3% |
| Ranger | 6,319 | 4,703 | 34.4% | 28,238 | 10,948 | 157.9% |
| Maverick | 15,508 | 13,616 | 13.9% | 73,706 | 64,754 | 13.8% |
| E-Series | 3,379 | 3,572 | -5.4% | 16,757 | 16,904 | -0.9% |
| Transit | 15,219 | 15,862 | -4.1% | 62,139 | 68,164 | -8.8% |
| E-Transit | 97 | 1,451 | -93.3% | 4,045 | 5,378 | -24.8% |
| Transit Connect | 0 | 847 | -100.0% | 0 | 6,925 | -100.0% |
| Heavy Trucks | 1,112 | 1,076 | 3.3% | 4,885 | 5,333 | -8.4% |
| Ford Trucks | 121,354 | 109,143 | 11.2% | 528,696 | 460,006 | 14.9% |
| Mustang | 5,010 | 5,174 | -3.2% | 19,309 | 23,538 | -18.0% |
| Ford Cars | 5,010 | 5,174 | -3.2% | 19,309 | 23,538 | -18.0% |
| Total | 209,386 | 181,688 | 15.2% | 884,006 | 836,168 | 5.7% |
LINCOLN US SALES
| Model | May-25 | May-24 | Diff. | YTD-25 | YTD-24 | Diff. |
| Corsair | 2,483 | 2,352 | 5.6% | 10,957 | 10,875 | 0.8% |
| Nautilus | 3,498 | 2,821 | 24.0% | 16,003 | 14,934 | 7.2% |
| Aviator | 2,749 | 1,933 | 42.2% | 10,313 | 10,213 | 1.0% |
| Navigator | 2,843 | 1,220 | 133.0% | 9,646 | 5,495 | 75.5% |
| Total | 11,573 | 8,326 | 39.0% | 46,919 | 41,517 | 13.0% |