Ford wants 2023 Maverick buyers to stop placing reservations for the new unibody pickup. Demand has overwhelmed the automaker, and its anticipated production capacity for the first year was hit a while back. But pesky Maverick buyers keep ordering more. So it wants the orders to stop now, refusing to accept any more. 

Ford doesn’t want another Bronco and F-150 Lightning situation

Because of the order backlog with the Bronco and Lightning, it makes sense that Ford wants to throttle back on hoovering up more reservations. It sent memos to its dealers it is suspending orders according to the Wall Street Journal. The WSJ added, “Ford told dealers Monday that it is suspending customer orders for the Maverick pickup truck because it is already straining to fill a backlog. The company will resume taking orders for the 2023 Maverick in the summer.”

Ford has struggled to have a semblance of production benchmarks based on past assembly line performance. But the chip shortage has stymied them for the last couple of years. However, this isn’t about the shortages. This is about demand overwhelming projections. 

Here’s why the Ford Maverick pickup is getting reservations

And while the F-150 is the king of pickup demand, the Maverick is hitting a sweet spot for a number of reasons. First, the price is attractive. Starting at around $20,000, that price resonates with many. 

Another reason is that it isn’t a humongous truck, which appeals to many looking for a reasonably-sized pickup. Not everyone wants an eight-foot bed and massive frame. Some just need a pickup for less rugged needs, where loads under 1,000 lbs are more the norm.  

And finally, it comes standard with a hybrid powertrain, so gas mileage should be fantastic. Especially with the price of gas reaching new heights. The Maverick appears to be the right truck for those shocked at the prices seen at gas pumps. 

Entry-level sedans always sold well, but there are no comparable pickups

When cars, as in sedans and coupes, were the mainstream products of automakers, entry-level models sold incredibly well. But with the takeover of trucks and SUVs, we haven’t seen that approach applied to pickups; until now. It seems like a no-brainer to apply the successes of the sedan era to trucks. Hyundai applied that to its Santa Cruz which has met with huge enthusiasm from enthusiasts.

Ford paved the path for a mainstream manufacturer to show how to do an all-electric full-size pickup with the Lightning. Now, it looks like it is doing the same for entry-level ones too. When could we expect similar entries from Chevy and Ram?

Ram and Chevy already have similar pickups-but not here

Both manufacturers have small, unibody pickups they make for other countries. Ram currently has the Ram 700 in Mexico, which is also sold as the Fiat Strada. And Chevy has a new S10 it makes in Brazil.

Ram is working on both a new midsize Dakota and a smaller pickup it is considering calling Rebel. It currently makes a Rebel edition of the Ram 1500, so this would be a rebranding of the name for a small, unibody pickup like the Maverick.