This should come as no surprise. Frankly, we expected this to have happened already. Ford has now closed reservations for the 2022 F-150 Lightning. Per F150gen14, this has been confirmed by an official Ford email sent to a reservation holder. It states the order bank for those who placed a $100 reservation in time will be opening next month. Preparing for that required the automaker to shut down the online reservation system beginning December 8. The link has since been removed from Ford's website.

Production should get underway this spring with the first customer deliveries expected shortly thereafter. Some 2022 model year reservation holders are going to be disappointed, however.

Ford has informed dealers that not every 2022 F-150 Lightning reservation will become an order due to high demand. Those buyers will have to wait until the 2023 models become available to order. Chances are these buyers will be allowed to order first.

Earlier this week we reported that the F-150 Lightning is running behind production schedule with first deliveries not expected until next September. Today's report appears to contradict that. We reached out to Ford seeking clarification and can confirm, via a spokesperson, deliveries will begin come springtime. Production schedules for all vehicles have fallen behind schedule to varying degrees over the past 18 months due to the fallout from the pandemic.

Lockdowns, a lack of semiconductor chips, and other general supply issues have been the result. To date, around 170,000 reservations have been placed, far exceeding initial expectations. Many of those reservations were supposedly placed by fleet buyers though Ford hasn't provided a precise breakdown.

Now, here's where things get fuzzy: Ford plans to build 15,000 examples in 2022, 55,000 in 2023, and 80,000 in 2024. That only adds up to 150,000. So unless Ford finds a way to boost output by at least another 20,000 units, more F-150 Lightning reservation holders could end up disappointed, too. Why stop in 2024? Because the next-generation model is due in 2025.