The Ford F-150 Lightning has established itself as a very promising package and now, it has got better. It might have started rolling off of the production line already, but the electric pick-up truck will come with more than what we expected. Those wanting the 2022 Electric Pickup Truck have a sweet surprise from Ford as they have said that the F-150 Lightning will come with more horsepower and a higher payload capacity. What makes this even better is that it is not a particular variant that will offer more than promised, but these gains will be offered across the range.
Ford F-150 Lightning Says "Powerrr!"
The Ford F-150 Lightning, regardless of the trim, will now come with 452 horsepower. For reference, this is 26 horsepower more than before as the previous claim was 426 horsepower. As for the Ford F-150 Lightnings with the extended-range battery pack, the power output will now stand at 580 horsepower. This was earlier claimed to be 563 horsepower. This means 17 extra ponies for those who get it with the bigger battery pack.
The other improvement comes in the form of more payload capacity. Those who own the F-150 Lightning were promised a 2000-pound payload capacity. With the increase in power, that has now gone up to 2,235 pounds. Ford also adds that the limit applies to properly equipped trucks.
The range that the F-150 Lightning is offering per-charge will remain the same. This means that the Standard trim will give a range of 230 miles, the Platinum trim will be good for 300 miles per charge and with the extended battery pack, the range goes to 320 miles per charge. These figures were also better than Ford had first promised.
Ford will be first rolling out the Pro Series models of the F-150 Lightning from the production line, and it is a greener alternative to those looking for the best-selling pick-up truck in America. And with the Lightning ready to hit the roads, it also puts Ford ahead of Tesla as the direct competitor – the Tesla Cybertruck still seems far away. The F-150 Lightning is not the first electric pick-up truck in the market, though. The Rivian R1T and the GMC Hummer EV have been in production since the end of 2021. But what sets the Lightning apart is the fact that this is the only full-size pickup running on electricity with a starting price of under $40,000. And it seems set to be a big success as Ford has already crossed 200,000 reservations for the F-150 Lightning.
If this interest stays with the F-150 Lightning, Ford could meet its ambitious goal of selling over two million electric vehicles by 2026. The bigger goal of Ford is to have electric vehicles accounting for half of all its sales by 2030 and eventually, achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
Ford F-150 Lightning Highlight Reel Gets Bigger
This electric pick-up truck also has a lot more to offer other than the areas in which it is improving. For example, it comes with a full-time four-wheel-drive system, has independent rear suspension, and can go from a standstill to 60 miles per hour in about mid-4-second range. The big highlight is the "80A Ford Charge Station pro with Ford Intelligent Backup Power capability," that, in simple words, can provide household-oriented V2G power. How Much? Ford says the truck can meet the electrical needs for three to ten days of a typical American home. And if needed, the F-150 Lightning can also output 9.6 kW of power to up to eleven 120V and 240V electrical outlets.
We expect the Ford F-150 Lightning to get even better with time as Ford has said, that they will provide Over-The-Air (OTA) updates for the car. And as we have seen in the case of other, already existing electric cars, the OTA updates can make a rather significant update to the driving experience. One such area of improvement could be a better quality of driving experience in the coming time. The F-150 Lightning has an active suspension that provides a real-time load weighing function. It also has dual permanent-magnet motors. Both of these elements can be further tuned through software optimization resulting in a better experience for the owners.
With the interest that has been shown by people in the F-150 Lightning, it can be argued that the truck will go on to prove that electric vehicles can be popular too. So much so that the waiting period for the Lightning is over three years long. With the improvements being rolled out by Ford, the hype around the F-150 Lightning is only going to get bigger.
Source: Ford