Any rumors about the next wave of orders and MY 2023 orders?

[jb56]

I'm in Utah and I reserved my Lightning in the first few minutes of the presentation. I didn't make the cut for 2022. Utah is not a ZEV state and I know I"ll have to continue to be patient. Also, just to short circuit the inevitable comment: I know that we don't know anything for sure. I know we have to be patient. I know that we'll hear when we hear.
But that just isn't fun. So if any of you have heard anything from your dealer or Ford customer service about when orders will start up for 2023, let me hear it!

Sponsored

 

[sotek2345]

I'm in Utah and I reserved my Lightning in the first few minutes of the presentation. I didn't make the cut for 2022. Utah is not a ZEV state and I know I"ll have to continue to be patient. Also, just to short circuit the inevitable comment: I know that we don't know anything for sure. I know we have to be patient. I know that we'll hear when we hear.
But that just isn't fun. So if any of you have heard anything from your dealer or Ford customer service about when orders will start up for 2023, let me hear it!

A mid July date has been circulating on the Forum based on some documents from Ford.

 

[jb56]

A mid July date has been circulating on the Forum based on some documents from Ford.

You reserved a Lightning on 6/3/21 and got to order this year? You lucky dog.

 

[Nick Gerteis]

I asked Farley directly on Twitter and, surprise! No answer. We’ll see some movement soon, I’m just hoping there won’t be any more dealer/ZEV prioritization. I didn’t like it the first time, Ford repeating the same mistake would just be an insult at this point.

 

[bosox8]

How about finishing / delivering those sitting in parking lots before sending out more invitations?

 

[jb56]

I asked Farley directly on Twitter and, surprise! No answer. We’ll see some movement soon, I’m just hoping there won’t be any more dealer/ZEV prioritization. I didn’t like it the first time, Ford repeating the same mistake would just be an insult at this point.

If Ford is really going to ramp up production to 150,000 (or even at 80,000), you would think the ZEV thing wouldn't be as big of a deal.

 

[jb56]

How about finishing / delivering those sitting in parking lots before sending out more invitations?

But these two things really don't have anything to do with each other.
I get that I can't trust anything Ford says, but it would be nice to be able to have some semblance of a plan. Even if Ford would tell me that I won't get a truck until August of 2023, that would at least let me make decisions.

They should absolutely deliver on existing orders and make that a priority, but Ford can do that while being transparent with the rest of us. I reserved within 20 minutes of the presentation starting and I honestly have no idea if I'll get a truck in December of this year or December of next year. That's ridiculous.

 

[bosox8]

But these two things really don't have anything to do with each other.
I get that I can't trust anything Ford says, but it would be nice to be able to have some semblance of a plan. Even if Ford would tell me that I won't get a truck until August of 2023, that would at least let me make decisions.

They should absolutely deliver on existing orders and make that a priority, but Ford can do that while being transparent with the rest of us. I reserved within 20 minutes of the presentation starting and I honestly have no idea if I'll get a truck in December of this year or December of next year. That's ridiculous.

Completely agree but from a marketing / customer relations standpoint if they do ramp up production to their stated MY23 goal they cannot keep rolling them off and parking them. There is discontent now amongst us early invitees, wait until you go from 15,000 to 80,000.

 

[jb56]

Completely agree but from a marketing / customer relations standpoint if they do ramp up production to their stated MY23 goal they cannot keep rolling them off and parking them. There is discontent now amongst us early invitees, wait until you go from 15,000 to 80,000.

That is an excellent point. Production numbers mean nothing if deliveries aren't keeping up.

My Bronco that we reserved two years ago is finally in production and my "blend date" is today. And I honestly have no idea when it will arrive. Ford is pissing pretty much everyone off and it's still sitting pretty cashing in.

 

[greenne]

Completely agree but from a marketing / customer relations standpoint if they do ramp up production to their stated MY23 goal they cannot keep rolling them off and parking them. There is discontent now amongst us early invitees, wait until you go from 15,000 to 80,000.

Short answer-- gotta keep that assembly line running like clockwork. Slowing the line is probably the worst thing to do from an efficiency standpoint unless there is no other choice.

Longer answer(related question)-- Does anyone know when a truck is labeled as "done" for financial/stockholder purposes? When Ford reports they have completed XXX trucks on the quarterly reports, does that account for incomplete trucks that left the line but are missing a chip and/or are waiting for shipping?

Not to dive too deep into conspiracies, but that could be at play.

 

[RickLightning]

Completely agree but from a marketing / customer relations standpoint if they do ramp up production to their stated MY23 goal they cannot keep rolling them off and parking them. There is discontent now amongst us early invitees, wait until you go from 15,000 to 80,000.

Run rate by mid-2023 is 150,000.

I do laugh though. Mach-E buyers waiting months on delay for chips (like everyone else). Mine took 6 weeks to build (1/19 - 3/1), then was into the chip hold lot. Followed Ford's FILO (First In, Last Out) mindset, sat in the lot for over 2 months. From order (not reservation) until delivery was 50.4 weeks.

 

[sotek2345]

You reserved a Lightning on 6/3/21 and got to order this year? You lucky dog.

Completely agree, I didn't expect it at all when I got the chance in Wave 6. I think it is a combination of ZEV state + higher throughout dealer + being willing to take a Lariat ER when the trim selection was low.

Still waiting on a build date though.

 

[FlasherZ]

Short answer-- gotta keep that assembly line running like clockwork. Slowing the line is probably the worst thing to do from an efficiency standpoint unless there is no other choice.

Longer answer(related question)-- Does anyone know when a truck is labeled as "done" for financial/stockholder purposes? When Ford reports they have completed XXX trucks on the quarterly reports, does that account for incomplete trucks that left the line but are missing a chip and/or are waiting for shipping?

Not to dive too deep into conspiracies, but that could be at play.

To recognize the revenue, the vehicle must be out the door to the dealership as a complete unit. Anything else is just considered part of inventory (whether raw materials, work in progress, or completed inventory). The only exception to this is if the dealer has agreed to accept an incomplete unit to be cured later - but we're not hearing about that happening.

The market typically wants short-term results, so it's generally more important to ship as much as a company can within a financial period. However, there are some companies that "play to expectations" -- one company for which I used to work was notorious for stopping manufacturing the moment that they knew they had met the market's expectations for earnings by about a penny a share. You could drive past the parking lot on the last Friday & Saturday and have a clue as to whether they were going to make earnings expectations.

I doubt that Ford is playing these games - given the market right now, they'd probably want to get as much shipped as they can, and play the gamble that they can use a potential forthcoming recession as an excuse for missing Q3 earnings.

Sponsored