We told you this would happen. Now, with 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning EV trucks sold out, it’s time to order a 2023 model before it gets sold out, too. So how are some dealers helping buyers do that? By attaching huge markups over MSRP. Some have, so far, hit the $150,000 mark. Where will it stop?

We don’t know the answer to that. What we do know is that reportedly, Ford is fining dealers up to $25,000 for going against Ford’s edict, which is that it wants all dealers to sell Lightnings for MSRP. But with markups showing prices of $150,000 and maybe more, the profit is more than enough to cover the fine, and still walk away with $20,000 to $40,000 more. 

So which dealers have these crazy Lightning markups?

Check around, you’ll find plenty of dealers have tacked on markups well above MSRP. Take DCH Ford in Thousand Oaks, California. Thousand Oaks is rather affluent, so its citizenry can afford the markup DCH is applying. A 2022 F-150 Lightning Platinum is advertised for $145,309. Pricing it out, the MSRP is roughly $95,000. We don’t know the exact amount because the dealer doesn’t advertise the MSRP, as you would expect. 

Doing the math, DCH Ford will see a fine customer pay $50,000 over MSRP. Such a deal! But other dealers aren’t shy about advertising those silly MSRP numbers. Up in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Dorsch Ford has listed a Lightning with a $92,569 list price. Dorsch’s price, though, is $132,569. 

Lightning dealers are looking to get at least $40,000 over MSRP

As you can see, that’s $40,000 over the advertised sticker price. Minus a hypothetical $25,000 smackdown from Ford, Dorsch walks away with $15,000 plus whatever dealer markup is already factored in there. This friendly Ford dealer seems to have some unfriendly markups. 

Again in California, Ford Authority reports that Napa Ford has a Platinum Lightning advertised at $133,854. The suggested retail price is $93,854. So another dealer is looking for that $40,000 booyah. Or anticipating the Ford MSRP directive, it seems Napa will settle for $15,000, plus whatever the baked-in dealer markup is. 

What can you do about it?

So what if you want a new Lightning but have the audacity to want it for MSRP? The obvious course of action is to shop around. Don’t settle for heading over to Dorsch or DCH Ford just because they’re the closest dealer to you. Not every Ford dealer is in a gouging mood. And according to Ford, almost all of its dealers are as pure as the white-driven snow. 

The other thing to do, if you can, is to wait. Maybe in a year or so prices will have settled down. Especially, if dealer lots start stacking up with Lightnings, it won’t want to sit on them for long. For them, it is about moving the metal and making a buck. 

At least Ford says it wants markups to cease after corporate had problems with the launch of the Mustang Mach-E and Bronco. GM has said the same over its GMC Hummer EV. So suddenly, there is a run on everything EV. Apparently, it’s the hottest thing on the block right now.