Pickup converter steps up to aid recall efforts after EV firm goes under

When BOSSCAP – the firm responsible for the Brisbane-based right-hand drive conversions of the Ford F-150 Lightning electric pickup for Australia – entered receivership last month, it raised questions about how owners would sort out any potential warranty claims or recalls.

Those concerns were soon realised after 146 examples of the electric pickup were recalled in Australia, owing to a fault with their Combined Charging System (CCS2) charge port.

These affected vehicles were found to potentially “experience increased electrical resistance during high-power Direct Current (DC) fast charging causing the internal charging pins to overheat”, which could lead to owners being burnt if they touched the charge port pins after charging their F-150 Lightnings.

While owners were advised to avoid using DC fast chargers and instead use slower AC chargers, the disappearance of BOSSCAP’s AUSEV business meant the fault couldn’t be rectified, with the listed numbers for repairs no longer being in service.

However, owners are now being helped by Gympie-based pickup conversion firm Performax, which according to the Department of Infrastructure has taken on the task of providing recall assistance to the AUSEV-converted F-150 Lightning.

“Performax did not design or modify these vehicles or supply them to the Australian market,” the Australian Government recall notice reads.

“In the interests of public safety Performax has offered their services to rectify vehicles affected by this recall. A cost may be incurred for these repairs.”

Performax currently performs left- to right-hand drive conversions on almost every US pickup as well as other models such as the Dodge Challenger, though this represents the first work it’s done on an EV.

Australian Ford F-150 Lightning owners who require recall assistance can contact Performax by emailing [email protected].

While the Australian Government’s Workforce Australia website lists BOSSCAP as the parent of SCD Remanufactured Vehicles – previously responsible for private right-hand drive conversions of multiple pickups – a new brand in SCD Direct has been formed and is operating outside of BOSSCAP, despite also being based in the suburb of Brendale.