Ford has had an impressive streak fo success when it comes to its growing lineup of electric vehicles. The Mustang Mach-E and the Ford F-150 Lightning have proven to be very popular with customers, but it appears that the sheer amount of demand is pushing the limits of Ford's production facilities and the company cannot make them fast enough according to a new report.
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Ford's commitment to dominating the EV marketplace is rapidly becoming a fact that cannot be ignored. The Ford Mustang Mach-E is smashing sales expectations, and the Ford F-150 Lightning has logged so many reservations that the company actually closed the order books for the model. But while this early success is pointing to a sunny future, a new report from Bloomberg suggests that it's straining Ford's production capabilities.
Ford Underestimated EV Demand
On the surface, it appears that Ford grossly underestimated demand for EV vehicles. The F-150 Lightning pickup, for example, is not even in full-scale production yet, but the company has already logged over 200,000 reservations and was actually forced to close the order books. That's an impressive number of early adopters, but the factory producing the Lightning can only build a max of 80,000 units per year. That's way short of that number, and it will undoubtedly lead to a long wait for buyers depending on when they got in on the act.
A similar story exists with the Ford Maverick Hybrid which also saw a surge of pre-orders that forced Ford to close ordering for that model as well. However, the Maverick has the advantage of mechanical flexibility, and Ford is still producing the non-hybrid version of the truck for dealers to sell.
Ford CEO Jim Farley is aiming to enhance production numbers and revealed in a tweet earlier this month that the company will be expanding production for its other EV model, the Mustang Mach-E.
It's hard to produce Mustang Mach-Es fast enough to meet the incredible demand, but we are sure going to try. So starting in 2022, we are increasing production and expect to reach 200,000+ units per year for North America & Europe by 2023. That's 3x our annual output
Ford Is Already Making Adjustments
For its part, Ford is already making some adjustments to try and adapt to the growing demand. A separate report revealed that the company is maximizing space at its Mexico-based assembly plant for Mach-E production. That move also caused the company to delay EV versions of the Ford Explorer and the Lincoln Aviator to focus on the Mach-E fully.
However, look for supplies to still be tight for the foreseeable future with the company still navigating through the economic and supply effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Photo Credit: Ford Motor Company
Carl Malek has been an automotive journalist for over 10 years. In addition to his specialization with Ford, he grew up in a General Motors household and is extensively familiar with their products too. Contact Carl on Twitter at @CarlMalek3, on Instagram and Facebook for automotive news to send news tips.
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