Ford says the nearly 200,000 reservation figure is just for retail orders and does not include anticipated fleet sales the automaker is targeting through its new Ford Pro commercial unit.
A spokesman declined to say how exactly Ford planned to boost production or whether the latest announcement would mean additional jobs or investment. Ford’s September production boost was part of a $250 million investment and addition of 450 new jobs at plants in southeast Michigan.
Ford said it is working with the UAW and suppliers to find ways to increase capacity of EV parts at plants that support the Lightning.
“The pride and quality UAW members are putting into building the iconic Ford F-150 Lightning is evident in the high preproduction demand for the new F-150 Lightning electric vehicle,” UAW Vice President Chuck Browning said in a statement. “UAW members are leading the way in doubling the amount of vehicles Ford is producing for this game-changing model of our legendary union-built vehicle.”
Production of the Lightning is scheduled to start this spring. Ford said it will start inviting reservation holders to order their truck later this week. The company plans to work its way down the reservation list in waves. A spokesman declined to say how many customers would be part of the first wave.
CEO Jim Farley told Automotive News in November that he thinks more than 80 percent of Lightning reservation holders will go through with buying the truck, topping the roughly 65 percent reservation-to-sales conversion rate seen for the Bronco SUV.
Farley says 70 percent of Lightning reservation holders are new to Ford and to pickups.