F-150 Lightning: The huge Ford electric pick-up has a future in France 

Ford dared to decline its large pick-up (or pickup) F-150 in an electric version. He even did it before Tesla took out her famous Cybertruck. If the F-150 Lightning will not immediately beat the millions of copies of previous thermal versions, it begins to find its audience with already more than 11,000 sales recorded in 5 months and more than 200,000 pre-order pre-order.

Ford F-150 Lightning

The Ford F-150 Lightning is an electric pick-up that equips a 563 horsepower engine and a maximum torque of 1050 nm. On the autonomy side, a battery allows a range of 370 km depending on the EPA cycle, or a version with a larger battery allowing to reach a little more than 480 km, still depending on the cycle cycle. It has fast charge compatibility of up to 150 kW (from 15 to 80 % energy recovered in 41 minutes of load). In connectivity there is Apple Carplay, Android Auto compatibility and Amazon Alexa Assistant.

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By formalizing its electric cybertruck in November 2019, Tesla seemed to take a small step ahead of the future competition interested in this type of trendy vehicle. And how not to be, with regard to the immense success that pick-ups enjoy in the United States.

It’s simple: across the Atlantic, the Ford F-150 is the best-selling vehicle in the country. The temptation to switch to electric while retaining the main philosophy of a pick-up was therefore great. This is why the American manufacturer is now positioned on it, just as General Motors did with his GMC Hummer.

No stylistic madness

Ford F-150 Lightning. This is the name of the brand new, and especially of the first electric pick-up of Ford. As you can see, this vehicle plays the card of conservatism with a relatively classic look. The idea is therefore here to reassure consumers with a known and recognized style, although the light signature before somewhat futuristic is not to displease us.

Let’s go back to the heart of the matter with the figures relating to power and autonomy. In total, this Ford F-150 Lightning will be entitled to two battery options: one will bring an autonomy of 370 kilometers, the other of 482 kilometers. On the performance side, this pick-up will be able to shoot 0 to 100 km/h in the space of 4 seconds.

To do this, he takes advantage of a power of 563 hp for a torque of 1050 Nm. However, we do not know if these figures are to be credited by the classic model or the XLT declination, respectively marketed at 39,974 and 52,974 dollars in the United States, excluding purchase aid.

Ford F-150 Lightning: Maximum load and towing capacity

For comparison, the entry -level cybertruck tears at a price of $ 39,000, offers a radius of action of more than 402 kilometers and accelerates up to 100 km/h in 6.5 seconds. The model sold $ 49,000 climbs to 483 kilometers of autonomy and a time of 4.5 seconds to reach 100 km/h. Clearly, it’s worth.

In its press release, Ford hammered it: its electric pick-up benefits from the same capacities as another vehicle of the brand. Its slogan “Built Ford Tough” has as much meaning here as elsewhere, when the vehicle has passed the same series of tests as the pick-ups of the range.

The Ford F-150 Lightning can therefore support a maximum load of 907 kilos and offers a towing capacity of 4535 kg. Still in the comparison game, the first two Cybertruck models can assume a load of 1.59 tonnes, for a towing capacity of 3.4 and 4.5 tonnes, respectively. For the second version, the racing cars of Ford and Tesla are once again equal game.

OTA updates

Ford also wants to compete with Tesla technologically. With its Ford Power-Up, the manufacturer will be able to deploy OTA software updates (Over the Air) in order to add features and solve problems without having to go to the dealer.

The company also promises hand -free driving worthy of the name thanks to Bluecruise, an automated driving system operating on certain road portions. The Ford F-150 Lightning also hosts a series of sensors to integrate a kind of connected scale, which estimates and indicates the weight of a load arranged in the bucket.

Always in terms of technologies, the pick-up has a 15.5 inch touch screen designed to understand and assimilate driver’s habits. In short, an intelligent system that adapts to the user. This screen is associated with a 12 -inch digital instrumentation combination.

Voice command and vehicle to load

Within the cabin, the SYNC 4A is made up of a voice command, navigation connected to the cloud and compatibility with Apple Carplay or Android Auto. For its part, the intelligent store stores calculates the autonomy of the vehicle taking into account weather conditions, traffic, payload or towing weight.

Passengers will be able to charge their electrical devices on different sockets. And to avoid pumping the vehicle battery too much, the latter, thanks to its pro Power Onboard function, warns the driver when the remaining autonomy falls to ⅓. In doing so, travelers are invited to unplug their devices.

Ford F-150 Lightning: what a release date ?

The Ford F-150 Lightning has another interesting asset in its round: its ability to use its batteries to provide energy to a house and the elements that compose it. This is called the vehicle to load, or the intelligent Ford Backup Power in the case of Ford.

Finally, be aware that it is compatible with a 150 kW charger, so as to climb 15 to 80 % battery in the space of 41 minutes. For digital key enthusiasts, the Ford F-1550 Lightning will be eligible. The manufacturer announces its arrival in spring 2022, in about a year.

F-150 Lightning: The huge Ford electric pick-up has a future in France ?

Ford brought back for a few weeks in Europe the electric pick-up named F-150 Lightning. The opportunity for us to make a quick grip and question the arrival of this model in Europe.

Ford dared to decline its large pick-up (or pickup) F-150 in an electric version. He even did it before Tesla took out her famous Cybertruck. If the F-150 Lightning will not immediately beat the millions of copies of previous thermal versions, it begins to find its audience with already more than 11,000 sales recorded in 5 months and more than 200,000 pre-order pre-order.

The different generations of the Ford F series models are a real institution across the Atlantic. This reference is the best-selling in this category for 44 years in the United States. Apart from a few imports, the F-150 is not present in Europe. In addition to his very American template, his big engines were a brake when he arrived in Europe. Now that it is available in 100 % electric, would it be possible to see it land in France ?

The idea of ​​the F-150 Lightning in Europe is not completely excluded by Ford

Do we really need an electric pick-up of this size in Europe ? Probably not, pick-ups are a niche market, especially used by professionals in our European regions. Unlike the USA, where an F-150 is one of the common vehicles of the home, in Europe, the pick-up almost 6 meters long has trouble finding its place.

Except that, to achieve the objectives set by the European Union for 2035, of personal and professional vehicles only in zero-emission, it will take many products to meet the needs of. For the pick-up category, the Ford F-1550 Lightning has its place, while waiting for the hypothetical arrival in Europe of a rivian R1T or a Tesla Cybertruck.

The Ford F-150 Lightning encounters the same problem as other electric vehicles, such as Hummer EV, with an imposing template. With a minimum of 2.8 tonnes with the “small” battery of 98 kWh and more than 3.1 tonnes with the largest of the 131 kWh batteries. Once the bucket is loaded, the weight of the machine can exceed 3.5 tonnes, which then requires a heavyweight permit to drive it. This will necessarily limit possible drivers to take the wheel. It is essentially this subtlety that can lead to complicating the situation as to the arrival of such a machine in Europe.

Sitting at the wheel of the Ford F-150 Lightning

We quickly understand why Americans are attached to their F-150. On board, we are as well installed there as in a living room. With the difference that this soft chair can also take us from point A to point B quickly and in silence. Passengers, in the front as at the rear, benefit from a more than comfortable space and dominate the road.

Inside, we find the big central screen that we know of the Ford Mustang Mach-E. Here it finds its place in this large interior space. As it is a vehicle designed to seduce the Americans, the central armrest turns into an ideal tablet for putting a computer, making a quote, or eating your burger with its fries out of bad weather. To do this, the gear lever folds down thanks to an electronic command, history that nothing bothers the tablet. It’s gadget, but smart.

If the high finish, Platinum, is quite opulent, it remains a vehicle adapted to American customers. We are quite far from the qualities of the end of the interiors that we are looking for in Europe. This is not a premium sedan, it is a utility vehicle.

Surprising track performance

The Ford F-150 Lightning is available in two versions:

F-150 Lightning	Standard battery	extended battery
Power	452 hp	580 hp
Couple	1050 Nm	1050 Nm
Useful battery capacity	98 kWh	131 kWh
Autonomy (US cycle EPA)	send. 386 km	from 482 to 515 km

Here we will not talk about the consumption of the Ford F-150 Lightning. Such a vehicle can never offer record autonomies. In addition, far from being a road test like the others, we were able to test a stopped departure and towers on a test track, which did not necessarily spare consumption of the pick-up.

The 0 to 100 km/h is quite confusing. Without being literally glued to the driver’s seat, we can appreciate the thrust of acceleration. The power and the torque, transmitted to the 4-wheel drive, are there. When we bring this to a weight of 3 tonnes to move, it is with surprising ease that the F-150 Lightning lends itself to the exercise. It will take more than a large vitamin V8 to bring a similar sensation.

The F-150 Lightning is not intended to become a racing car, despite its 580 hp announced, but it was on a track of the Ford test center that we tested it. Again, the contrast is striking between the size and the mass of the machine, compared to the ease of taking it in hand and leading it on the winding track. Ultra-assisted direction, electronic aid, suspensions worked, you don’t really feel like driving a “truck”, as Quebecers call this category of vehicles.

Launched on the road, nothing distinguishes it from another large SUV, except only once loose in our villages, we risk being confronted with the not optimal turning department and with clearly unatlazed dimensions for We. But after all, it is the size of a utility vehicle, it just doesn’t look like it.

The size of the front trunk is a real surprise

A big pick-up is above all thought to load your skip and be able to tow. On this, the F-150 Lightning can meet these needs:

• Maximum payload: 900 kg
• Towing capacity: 4,500 kg

The F-150 with its large V8 can do better, but it still corresponds to the capacities of models with smaller thermal engines. It’s far from being a bad result.

The most of this electric version is its front trunk (also called fruit), in which you can store a standard human. It’s ridiculous, yes … but we have tested it. There is even a button to be able to open the trunk from the inside, in case you are locked up inside. With 400 liters of storage available, the front trunk is almost as large as the rear trunk of an e-tech mega (440 L). So there is enough to store business in an electrically closed chest, this is a real asset for this pick-up.

Prices in the United States are approximately € 53,200 excluding tax, for entry-level, at more than € 99,000 excl. Tax for our test version, with the large battery and the high-end Platinum finish. The model is not really affordable, and if it were to arrive in Europe, it would be with even higher prices.