Enthusiasts should probably get used to their truck icons living on almost exclusively as electrified vehicles. The Hummer is an EV pickup and SUV, the Jeep Wrangler has a plug-in hybrid variant and will add a full-EV option soon, and now the F-150 will revive its Lightning nameplate as an all-electric model.
Performance truck fans will remember the Lightning was first introduced in 1993 for the ninth-generation F-150. A product of the newly minted SVT (Special Vehicle Team), the F-150 Lightning was only offered as a single-cab short bed packing a beefed up version of the Blue Oval’s 5.8-liter Windsor V8 engine. Just over 11,500 examples of the first generation Lightning were produced. Gen 2 debuted in 1999 with a 5.4-liter Triton V8, Eaton supercharger, and 360 horsepower. Following an increase of 20 hp in 2001, the Lightning could hit 60 mph in just 5.2 seconds and was pegged and the world’s fastest truck in 2003. The Lightning ended production in 2004.
V8 engines and forced induction will find no home in the next generation Lightning, however. According to Car and Driver, the new, all-electric F-150 Lightning will go on sale in the middle of 2022, competing with the Hummer EV Pickup, Tesla Cybertruck, and upcoming Chevy Silverado EV. Ford will need to target at least 350 miles of range to match its rivals. We don’t yet have any specifics about the F-150 EV’s powertrain, but it will likely use a dual-motor setup to deliver all-wheel drive. Ford has declared the F-150 Lightning will have more horsepower and torque than any F-150 on sale, and will be the quickest accelerating F-Series. Currently, the most potent and quickest F-150 is the Raptor, with 450 horsepower and a 0 to 60 mph sprint of 5.0 seconds. Using the 305-mile Mustang Mach-E as a guide, there’s a good chance Ford will be able to fit a larger battery pack into the F-150’s bigger body and therefore achieve more range.
The Ford F-150 Lighting and its batteries will be produced at a new electric vehicle facility at Ford’s Rouge Center in Dearborn, Michigan.