Ford has officially unveiled the F-150 Lightning, the all-electric version of America’s best-selling vehicle from the last 39 consecutive years. Ford believes (and rightly so) the F-series is the winning formula and it will help persuade people to switch to EVs.
The 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning appears identical to its gas-powered sibling, can hit 96 km/h (60 mph) faster than any other F-series pickup on sale today, and should deliver 483 km (300 miles) of range. It will go on sale in spring next year and will compete against trucks from GMC, Tesla and Rivian.
Design
Taking its name from the Ford F-150 SVT Lightning, the new electric pickup truck from blue oval is a completely fresh start rather than a revival. The F-150 Lightning has a simple design unlike its competitors such as the GMC Hummer EV and Tesla Cybertruck which feature a flashy styling. The grille, which you can set up in three different ways according to the trim, boasts a light bar above it, meeting the headlights. The taillights also feature a linking light bar (for high-end variants only). The company is just offering a SuperCrew model with a 5.5-foot box right now. It’s 1.0 inch lengthier and 1.7 inches higher than the identically furnished gas-powered truck. The wheelbase and width are the same.
Batteries, Range, and Performance
Ford offers two lithium-ion battery packs – a Standard Range pack with an EPA-estimated range of 370 km (230 miles), and an Extended Range battery delivering 483 km (300 miles) between charges. While the official press release didn’t tell us the capacity of each battery, we believe these will be 115 kWh and 150 kWh.
The 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning with the smaller battery will generate 426 horsepower. Replacing that with the more powerful pack would bump the power output figure to 563 horses. The Lightning comes with a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive setup only.
Whatever battery you choose, the torque rating stands at 775 pound-feet (1,051 newton-meters), which is 205 extra than the F-150’s new PowerBoost hybrid V-6. Ford claims the F-150 Lightning featuring a bigger battery will zoom to 96 km/h in 4.4 seconds. Comparing it to the gas-powered F-150, the fastest C&D ever tested was the 2017 F-150 Raptor, hitting the mark in 4.9 seconds.
Contrary to the regular F-150 truck employing a live rear axle, the Lightning comes equipped with an independent rear suspension setup. With this change along with a lower center of gravity, it should be the easiest to handle pickup truck on the market.
Coming to the most important part i.e. the battery charging time. The company claims the Lightning with a bigger battery can add 54 miles (87) in 10 minutes only using a 150-kilowatt DC fast charger or juice up from 15 to 80 percent in 41 minutes.
When you hook up the Lightning to Ford’s standard 80-amp home charging station, it can provide up to 9.6 kilowatts to the home during power outages. When the power resumes, the Lightning will restart charging. The company claims the electric pickup can power homes for approximately three days if fitted with the bigger battery pack.
There is so much more we need to tell you about the 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning. We will post another article tomorrow to throw light on other aspects of the all-electric F-series truck.
Source: CarandDriver
Images: Motor1