- The Ford F-150 Lightening is THE vehicle to have in the coming year, with well known fans including the current President of the United States!
- The Lightening F-150 entails all the features in its predecessor models, but it’s all electric.
- Find the Ford F-150 Lightening truck for sale at Metro Ford of OKC.
By Michael Kinney
NEW YORK- Less than a year ago Ford shook up the world with a simple test drive. It just happened to be the president of the United States who was behind the wheel, but more importantly, it was what he was driving that really had people really excited.
The vehicle was Ford’s all-electric F-150 Lightning pickup truck. Having the president unveil the prototype was a stroke of genius that is still paying dividends today as the first wave is set to hit the streets.
“We revealed the F-150 Lightning last May and since then we’ve got over 200,000 reservations for it,” said Dan Barbossa, who is with Ford Communications. “We’re in production now and then we’ll be delivering to customers this Spring. So, everybody’s really excited about it when you electrified the best selling vehicle in the United States, it’s going to cause some excitement.”
Barbossa was at the 2022 New York International Auto Show introducing the Lightning to media and dealership representatives on April 13. Since the New York show was canceled last year, this was the truck’s first public showing at the most important car show of the year.
Ford Put The Best Parts Of The F-150 In It’s All-Electric Truck
Barbossa realizes his most important job is to show customers that everything they love about the standard F-150 will still be part of the Lightning.
“Basically what we did is we’re taking the F-150, all that’s great about it,” Barbossa said. “The toughness, the smartness, the capability of it, and we’re electrifying and making it better. As you saw in the front, we have this big mega power frunk that has 400 pounds of capacity. It can fit me in there. If you wanted to, it can fit two suitcases, two golf bags.”
Ford officials understand there will be some hesitancy from long-time F-150 drivers. When they open the hood and see nothing but added storage space, it may feel different.
However, Barbossa highlighted the advantages that come with an all-electric F-150.
“We know range anxiety is going to be an issue but a lot of people do not travel on the daily more than 60 miles. So if you have a charging station at home, this should not be a problem at all,” Barbossa said. “ And it’s very easy to do a charging station at home. We have the ability for, I think it’s maybe $600 you can install a 240-volt charging station in your home. That means you’re getting a full tank of gas or electricity every night while you’re sleeping. And we have the Ford Blue Oval Charging Network. That is probably one of the largest in the country. By using charge point and other sorts of partners to kind of extend that so people don’t have that range of anxiety when they’re making bigger trips.”
Ford Lightning Is More Than Just An EV
The Lightning is more than just an electric vehicle though. It comes with all the frills and necessities Ford customers have come to expect and a few they didn’t.
“If you look in the interior of it, it kind of looks like a regular F-150. That is until you see that big 17-inch touchscreen in there, which looks amazing,” Barbossa said. “And now it comes with Blue Cruise, which is our hands-free driving technology with that. So, if you’re on Blue Cruise map roads, you’re able to take those hands off the wheel while the vehicle actually monitors your eyes to make sure you’re not texting and driving, which you’re not supposed to be doing anyway.”
The Ford Lightning comes in four models: Pro, XLT, Lariat, and Platinum. Starting prices range from $39,900 to $90,000, depending on the model.
Ford wanted the Lightning to be a combination of the toughness of the F-150 with next-generation technology. It looks like they have done it.
“If you want to go to the mountains, if you want to tow your boat, if you want a take it grocery shopping, you can put all your groceries in that trunk. It’s amazing” Barbossa said. “The technology on it. You can use literally your phone to start the car. Precondition the vehicle so it’s ready to go for when you’re ready to go. The digital experience on this F-150 Lightning is really what I would say I’m really excited about over all things.”
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