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Ford formally unveilied the brand new electrical F-150 Lightning pickup on Might 19, 2021 at its world headquarters in Dearborn, Mich.
Michael Wayland / CNBC
DETROIT — If anybody doubted the significance of the electrical Ford F-150 Lightning to Ford Motor, they should not after the automobile’s theatrical debut on the automaker’s world headquarters this week in Michigan.
Ford turned its 12-story residence — often called the “Glass Home” for its boxy, glass-clad fashionable design — right into a 64,000-square-foot projection display screen for the automobile’s official unveiling Wednesday night time. It was an over-the-top presentation that spoke to the importance of the automobile and Ford’s pickup truck franchise, which hauls within the lion’s share of the corporate’s earnings.
Ford Chairman Invoice Ford known as it a “defining second” and a “historic day” for the corporate. Ford CEO Jim Farley mentioned it was a “second of super satisfaction” and would check whether or not mainstream People really need electrical autos.
Ford did all the pieces it might to make the automobile interesting to pickup truck prospects — from its value to its performance and design. It additionally added some shocking options that will not be doable with a gas-powered automobile, equivalent to an infinite entrance trunk, or frunk, and the power to energy a home for days.
Here is extra on these options in addition to different issues to know concerning the truck.
Anti-Tesla design
The pickup resembles the automaker’s present F-150 however consists of new inside and exterior options. It is powered by two electrical motors and a battery pack as a substitute of a standard fuel engine. It is going to be provided in two battery choices with focused ranges of 230 miles or 300 miles, Ford mentioned.
The design and performance of the F-150 Lightning pickup is supposed to be a truck, “not a science experiment,” in response to Linda Zhang, chief engineer of the automobile.
A promotional shot of Tesla’s Cybertruck.
handout
Taking a jab at Tesla’s Cybertruck design, Jasen Turnbull, advertising supervisor for the Lightning, put it a unique manner: “Our prospects instructed us they need one thing fashionable and superior, however didn’t need their truck to appear to be a doorstop or a spaceship,” he mentioned. “They needed one thing distinct however not totally different.”
Tesla’s upcoming Cybertruck has a novel and polarizing design that was impressed by the movies “Blade Runner” and “The Spy Who Liked Me.”
It will probably energy a home
The F-150 Lightning is out there with 11 outlet plugs, together with 4 within the frunk and one 240-volt within the pickup field for heavy-duty tools. Utilizing the automobile’s battery, the truck additionally works as an electrical generator. Relying on the quantity of electrical energy being drawn, it might energy a home for as much as 10 days, Ford mentioned.
Ford is partnering with photo voltaic firm Sunrun to provide an at-home EV charger and an inverter that will robotically draw energy from the truck when it is plugged in — sufficient to energy a whole residence or sure important merchandise throughout an influence outage. They’re going to additionally provide photo voltaic set up for house owners.
A present hybrid electric-gas mannequin of the 2021 F-150 additionally options an electrical generator however not the extent of energy of the EV model.
The F-150 Lightning is estimated at as much as 563 horsepower and 775 pound ft of torque — about 130 horsepower and 200 pound ft of torque greater than the top-rated model with an engine.
‘Frunking superior’
The Lightning additionally boasts a large entrance trunk, or frunk.
The frunk, positioned the place the engine would usually be, is exclusive, because the automobile’s grille is built-in into the hood. It creates an open, flat space that is simpler to load and unload than a bin-type frunk discovered on most EVs. It provides 14.1 cubic ft of secured storage for dry or moist objects. For the latter, it additionally encompasses a drain on the backside.
2022 Ford F-150 Lightning
Ford
“I prefer to say it is frunking superior,” mentioned Nancy Reppenhagen, Ford supervisor of worldwide function course of who led improvement of the frunk. For tailgating, she mentioned, it might be used as a cooler, desk or stand for a big flat-screen TV.
The frunk additionally options 4 110-volt outlet plugs and two USB ports for charging. It’s designed to retailer as much as 400 kilos.
Value and earnings
The automobile’s value, very like the standard F-150, has a large bandwidth. Ford mentioned a work-oriented model of the truck will begin at $39,974. Extra consumer-centric fashions will begin at $52,974 and high out at round $90,000.
The “74” on the finish of the value has a hidden which means, a Ford spokesman instructed CNBC. It is a nod to the 74th anniversary of the Ford F-Collection in 2022, which is the primary mannequin yr of the F-150 Lightning.
Ford mentioned the automobile shall be worthwhile, nonetheless, executives declined to touch upon whether or not each mannequin would generate profits.
It’s anticipated to be one of many first mainstream electrical pickups, if not the primary, when it arrives in seller showrooms by mid-2022.
Reservations
Ford is taking refundable $100 reservations for the F-150 Lightning on its web site. It took greater than 44,500 reservations in lower than 48 hours after the truck’s official debut, Farley tweeted Friday morning. That was up from greater than 22,000 as of Thursday morning.
“The response has been nice,” Farley mentioned throughout an interview Thursday on CNBC’s “Squawk Field.”
The sturdy response just isn’t distinctive. Two days after unveiling the Tesla Cybertruck in November 2019, CEO Elon Musk tweeted that the corporate had taken 146,000 reservations for the metal trapezoid-shaped pickup.
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