- A game changer
- Road friendly
- Tech overload for the F-150 Lightning
- Setting the tone for what’s to come
- FAST FACTS
Image: Ford
Image: Ford
Image: Ford
Image: Ford
Image: Ford
Image: Ford
Image: Ford
The Detroit Auto Show heralds America’s best annual automotive achievements and big news to come out of the country. CAR Magazine editor Damian Adams got a conclusive look at Ford’s future-proof facilities and even took the F-150 Lightning for a jaunt around the State. Here are his thoughts on electrified bakkies.
Image: Ford
DETROIT – The Ford F-150 Lightning is far removed from what we know EVs to be especially when compared to the all-electric cars already on sale here in Mzansi. The big difference is that it’s a large bakkie (or a full-sized pick-up truck) for the market in ‘Merica and could arguably be the most important vehicle of the 21st century setting the tone for the future of America’s most popular bakkie
A game changer
The sentiment behind its design is uncomplicated: it should feel, look and perform like it’s your run-of-the-mill F-150, the US’s best-selling bakkie for the last 45 years (based on 1977-2021 sales). This Lightning model certainly looks like it’s piston-powered siblings to the untrained eye, and it just happens to be powered exclusively by an electric powertrain and aims to tick all the boxes a F-150 owner may have. It’s clear then that the challenge is that this car is all about changing the perception of EVs across America, and if it succeeds it may well ignite a wildfire that could spread to other areas of Ford as well as other manufacturers across the globe.
Image: Ford
Ford CEO Jim Farley called the Ford F-150 Lightning a “Model T” moment, the vehicle that revolutionised mass production. “The Model T changed the world not because it was beautiful or slick, but because it was ingenious. Our customers found ways of using the Model T for all sorts of things that no one predicted at the time like school buses and ambulances. Some enterprising folks took off the back to make the world’s first pickup trucks. With the F-150 Lightning, I believe Ford is tapping into the same spirit of innovation that fuelled the early models my grandfather worked on.” On first impressions after a 50 minute drive in the countryside not far from where the F-150 is built in Dearborn, Jim might be right.
Road friendly
If the all-electric $47 000 Lightning Pro were to go on sale here right now, it would be priced well below the R900 000 mark at a direct Dollar-Rand exchange at R18,00. This figure sounds ludicrous for a vehicle with a curb weight of 2 728 kg, one that’ll hit 100 km/h from standstill in a claimed 4,5 seconds and is crammed full of modern touches underneath the skin like an aluminium body and load bay, independent double-wishbone suspension up front and an independent trailing arm arrangement for the rear.
Handling isn’t the strong suit of any bakkie or near three tonne vehicle, but the Lightning proved to be easy going and stress-free on both congested urban streets and open backroads. The Lightning’s one-pedal drive was intuitive, predictable and easily potent enough to bring itself to a complete stop without using the mechanical brakes. With a gargantuan 1 050 N.m at a beckoning call, the giant wave of oomph is just a twitch of your right foot away. The Lightning is brutally quick and pins occupants to their seats under hard acceleration.
The fully independent suspension, near ideal weight balance, and low centre of gravity are thanks to the large battery situated in the floor between the wheels, the Lightning is without question the best-riding bakkie I’ve driven. Sure, it’s massive by our standards but it felt just as eerily smooth and whisper-quiet to drive as any EV I’ve experienced. Double glazed glass and rolls of sound deadening material no doubt assist in providing the hushed interior ambience.
Tech overload for the F-150 Lightning
Inside high-definition screens dominate the space and play host to a variety of onboard technology features using Fords Sync 4A system. Sync 4 from the upcoming Ranger (read all about it here) and 4A are 99% the same in their look and operation, the big difference here is that in the Lightning and the Mach-E for that matter the climate control settings are operated within the touchscreen.
Image: Ford
Upper-end models are fitted with a massive 15,5-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, as well as a 12,0-inch driver’s display while the base model Pro features a still sizeable 8,0-inch unit. I had the opportunity to try the “BlueCruise” autonomous driving system which allowing for hands-free driving. The system worked well for the brief time that I used it on the road and steered the bakkie between the lines while imperceptibly regulating the brakes and throttle.
Image: Ford
The F-150 Lightning has among other impressive features (which need a dissertation of words to delve into), a “Backup Power” system, this effectively makes use of the large battery to turn into a power source for your home or campsite. Something that would come in handy with us battling Eskom and level 6 load shedding. Here up to 9,6 kW of power can be offloaded from the vehicle to keep lights, appliances and more operational.
Setting the tone for what’s to come
Ford has unprecedented demand for F-150 Lightning with 200 000 reservations and is expanding the Rouge plant where it’s built to ramp up production to a planned 150 000 units by the end of June 2023. The Blue Oval has invested a total of $950 million and created 750 jobs at the facility with 1 700 jobs created among five Ford plants in the state of Michigan, including Van Dyke Electric Powertrain Centre, where Lightning electric motors, transmissions and electric transaxles are assembled.
Image: Ford
Given the immense popularity of pick-ups in America and bakkies in South Africa for that matter, it’s hard to downplay how crucial it is for Ford to score a home run with the electric F-150. After a drive, factory tour and walk around with Linda Zhang the vehicles chief program engineer, it looks like Ford has hit the nail on the head and built not just an innovative pick-up truck that also happens to be a great EV but has beaten its mainstream rivals to it and the order book reflects this. An electric bakkie for South Africa may be years away but if the Lightning is anything to go by the future certainly looks bright.
FAST FACTS
Model: Ford F-150 Lightning Pro
Drivetrain: Dual electric motors, four-wheel drive
Power: 337 kW (433 kW with extended-range battery)
Torque: 1 050 N.m
0-100 km/h: 4,5 seconds
Top speed: N/A
Battery capacity: 98 kWh (433 kW with extended-range battery)
Front boot capacity: 400 L
Towing Capacity: 2 268 kg (4 500 kg with extended-range battery & max tow package on XLT/Lariat)
Ground Clearance: 213 mm
Range: 370 km (515 km with extended-range battery)
Rivals: Rivian R1T, Hummer EV, non-existent Tesla Cyber Truck
If you could buy a converted to right-hand drive F-150 would you? We’d love to hear your thoughts at [email protected]. This drive of the F-150 Lightning is just one piece of what we got to see and experience in Detroit with Ford of which the main attraction was attending the reveal of the seventh generation Mustang. Stay tuned for further updates.
Keyword: DRIVEN: Ford F-150 Lightning