Yes & no.

Yes there is truth that Ford can't get as many of these batteries as they'd like. HOWEVER, it's not as bad as it was in years past. They are able to get a lot more... just not as many as they'd like. However... they *are* making the FEH and they *are* taking orders.

As for the X-Plan. They are selling this on X-Plan, but before you start doing cartwheels down the hall... the X-Plan on _this_ car only drops the price by about $50.

As for the amount of time you have to wait... with gas prices what they are, pretty much all hybrids are in demand and nothing is just sitting around on dealer lots waiting for a buyer. If you want a hybrid (not just the FEH... ANY hybrid), you'll need to order it and be prepared to wait, but the wait is usually about 3 or 4 months. The idea that an FEH ordered today wouldn't show up until the middle of calendar year 09 is wrong.

The dealer may not be so much trying to mislead, but possibly just uninformed. There are MANY dealer sales people that have never ordered or sold an FEH.