Famous tech reviewer and EV aficionado Marques Brownlee recently posted a video about the Ford F-150 Lightning. He recently had a drive in the brand new Ford F-150 Lightning EV. And the car impressed him.
Ford’s F-150 Lightning makes a great first impression
The new Ford F-150 Lightning
The F-150’s specs
The Ford F-150 is at the lower end of the price spectrum in the EV market. While at just under $40,000, the starting price isn’t particularly reasonable, it is still cheaper than the Teslas and the upcoming Rivians. There are two options, the other one being just under $50,000. While the initial range figures of 230 miles for the cheaper version and 300 miles for the more expensive one aren’t impressive, there is more to the numbers than meets the eye. However, we will get to that later. The truck has a towing capacity of 10,000 pounds. The official size of the battery hasn’t been released. However, if we compare the Lightning’s range and power requirements to the Tesla Model S, we can estimate it to be between 140 to 200 kWh.
The F-150’s interiors and other features
The F-150 has good quality interiors. While the model in the video was the Platinum version, Ford has a decent track record when it comes to interiors. The F-150 has a full-sized panoramic sunroof as well. The truck looks similar to the ICE-powered F-150 apart from a few Lightning badges that stand out. Ford has also made some changes to the lights to help differentiate between the two. The F-150 has a flatbed of 5 and a half feet. This figure is at par with the standard F-150. The truck also has sufficient utility that will be very attractive for current truck users. Ford’s entire focus on this truck is to make the transition of ICE truck owners to electric power. The Lightning has 11 power outlets across the bed, the cabin, and the frunk. These outlets are strong enough to power heavy tools and heavy-duty lights.
Intelligent Backup Power
The F-150 Lightning has a unique feature. Ford calls it Intelligent Backup Power. Intelligent Backup Power allows the owner to use the truck as a power source for their home. This is in case of an emergency due to which there is no electricity supply. The truck can power a whole house for 10 days straight. This of course depends on the amount of power used by the house. But it can power a house for 3 days without any problems at all. This is a highly convenient feature. It also means that if used as a generator, the truck can power a lot of different tools.
The Intelligent Backup Power feature can be very handy
Revolutionizing the Frunk
The Frunk is a new concept introduced by EVs. EVs don’t have an engine. So the bonnet is used as an extra storage compartment. This is generally not very large because EVs try to reduce the size of the front area for better aerodynamic efficiency. However, to retain the truck shape for the F-150 Lightning, Ford hasn’t discarded the bonnet area. Instead, it has gone all out with the frunk and has completely changed the outlook towards it. The frunk is big enough to fit two full golf bags. It has a whopping 400 liters of storage which is better than most small cars. This frunk can store as many as 3 suitcases. It is also completely weatherproof which makes it even better. Ford has also added a drain hole to the frunk. This can potentially allow customers to use the frunk as an icebox as well.
The frunk on the F-150 Lightning is more than some bonus storage
The range of the F-150
The Ford F-150’s range of 230/300 miles depending on which variant you purchase might seem quite low. However, what is interesting is that this range is the EPA estimated rating with 1000 pounds (450 kgs) of cargo in the truck. This means that an empty truck can go a very impressive 450+ miles. Although most truck owners hardly drive around with an empty truck, it does mean that the figures that have been officially released are much closer to what the owners should expect from their F-150 Lightning.
As said before, the whole thought process behind making the truck is to ensure that the current truck owners can switch to electric trucks without an issue. And so far, the F-150 has delivered in this aspect.
Why the F-150 Lightning is the most important EV launch this year.
The Ford F-150 is the most popular car sold in the United States of America. Ford sold 198,388 F-150s in the fourth quarter of 2020. This was despite the slowdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic. To put things in perspective, Tesla sold 180,570 units of all models combined in the same time frame. The numbers of the Ford F-150 are staggering. If 1% of the F-150 buyers go electric, the truck alone would outsell half of the EV field. That is an insane statistic that further cements the F-150 as one of the biggest names in the USA car market. With the Lightning, Ford is now increasing the potential of the F-150.
The Lightning is a battery-powered monster that can make the Teslas and the Rivians of this world cry with its utility. It has great features, a very decent range for a first-gen EV, arguably more utility than an ICE-powered F-150, and is a solid package in all. On top of this, Ford is an already well-established player in the car market, which means that it already has an edge over Tesla and Rivian since it already makes cars. The only difference is that now its most popular one is going electric. The F-150 Lightning might just be the most complete EV.
The point of an EV is to do everything a normal car does while using a battery-powered motor. Although all the vehicles currently on sale in the market are very close to achieving that, the F-150 does it best. It does everything that its combustion version does and then does a lot of things better than it. It is more practical with the frunk in place, it has the ability to power your home, it can be used as a clean generator, and it is doing all of this while being very green. This makes it the most complete, exciting, and potentially successful EV yet.
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