Earlier this year, Ford unveiled the all-new F-150 Lightning electric pickup. Demand has been far higher than Ford anticipated, with the truck offering quite the compelling value proposition — and plenty of crossover appeal to non-truck buyers. Still, the question has remained: when exactly will all those interested people actually be able to order an F-150 Lightning?
Well, we now have a bit better of a picture — after the Lightning Owners forum uncovered Ford’s playbook for dealer orders (first spotted by The Drive).
Per the document, Ford will open up orders to F-150 Lightning reservation holders starting in January. The company will proceed in waves until the 2022 production allotment is filled. Customers who can’t get their preferred configuration can opt to postpone their reservation or get a full refund. Reservation holders who aren’t selected for 2022 can transition to 2023, or receive a refund.
In other words: if you don’t currently have a reservation, landing an F-150 Lightning could take some time. Ford shut down new F-150 Lightning reservations last week with around 200,000 in the books. Not all those reservations — made with a $100 refundable deposit — will become orders, but even a reasonable percentage of reservation holders following through could well exceed Ford’s production capacity.
Ford has doubled its production targets for the F-150 Lightning twice, with the current goal to hit 160,000 F-150 Lightning trucks per year by 2024. However, the current production capacity will be significantly less. And there’s no word yet on when Ford will open reservations back up to the public. Ford says F-150 Lightning production and deliveries will start in Spring 2022.
Ford has been on a tear of late, releasing tons of cool new vehicles. Three new Ford products were featured in this year’s GP100. But having groundbreaking new cars is only valuable if customers can buy them. And extensive production delays have plagued both the new Bronco and the hybrid version of the Maverick.
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