In just over 24 hours, Ford has managed to secure over 20,000 reservations for the new F-150 Lighting EV. Reservations opened up during the live revel last night for only $100 no matter what trim you choose. Now Automotive News reports Ford has said it will limit the production for the first year.
Ford has done something like this before. When the Mustang Mach-E made its debut last spring, there were over 40,000 reservations in the first month. But months before that, at the end of 2019, Ford laid out its plans to limit Mach-E’s production to 50,000 units for the first year. And that number wasn’t just for the U.S. It was confirmed multiple times that those 50,000 units were total for the globe. And of those, over 60 percent, or about 30,000, went to Europe.
Ford hasn’t said specifically why it’s limiting production. CEO Jim Farley said in a statement to reporters that the company did know its sales targets for the first year even with the production limits, but didn’t state a specific number.
Industry analyst estimates were much higher. One analyst Automotive News spoke with said Ford would limit production at 80,000 and that was based off of “capacity data from parts plants that supply the truck.”
But the truck could be a game-changer. As CNBC noted:
“The reservations are being closely watched by the company as well as investors to gauge the interest of customers in EV pickups, which is an unproven segment that automakers are rushing to enter.”
Its low starting price (which, if we’re going to be honest, is really in the $50,000s. That sub $40,000 price is going to be for the bare-bones commercial version) and Ford making the best selling vehicle in America an EV will broaden its appeal. Hopefully for Ford, this will bring in customers that have been on the fence about electric vehicle ownership.
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