Ford slashes price of its F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck

Ford Motor is cutting the price of its electric pickup truck, the F-150 Lightning, by between $6,000 and $10,000 depending on the model.

The Michigan automaker said Monday that access to raw materials for the truck's battery is improving and that it has upgraded its suburban Detroit factors where the truck is manufactured, enabling the company to drop prices. Those developments also mean customers will get their custom-ordered F-150 Lightning much faster, Ford said.

"Shortly after launching the F-150 Lightning, rapidly rising material costs, supply constraints and other factors drove up the cost of the EV truck for Ford and our customers," Marin Gjaja, the chief customer officer for Ford's electric vehicle line, said in a statement. "We've continued to work in the background to improve accessibility and affordability to help to lower prices for our customers and shorten the wait times for their new F-150 Lightning."

Ford offers seven varieties of the F-150 Lightning, including the Pro, Platinum Extended Range and the Lariat. The F-150 Lightning Pro now costs $49,995, marking a $9,979 price cut. The Platinum Extended now costs $91,995, a $6,079 drop.

Khristopher J. Brooks is a reporter for CBS MoneyWatch covering business, consumer and financial stories that range from economic inequality and housing issues to bankruptcies and the business of sports.