The Ford F-150 Lightning Just Got More Horsepower and Towing Capability
Even as it starts production, Ford has not stopped working on the F-150 Lightning truck. Ford has some new horsepower and towing numbers for the Lightning electric truck higher than initially promised. Plus, new features called Intelligent Range and FordPass Power My Trip are going to help alleviate any fears potential buyers might have making the switch from a conventional truck to an EV.
The Ford F-150 Lightning electric truck got a horsepower bump
Ford announced that the F-150 Lightning will get even more payload capacity and range than the automaker initially estimated. The numbers initially noted in 2021 had the Standard Range battery getting 426 hp, which has not gone up to 452 hp. That’s up 26 hp over the original numbers. For the Extended Range F-150 Lightning, the new estimate is 580 hp. The initial number had it right around 563 hp, up 17 hp.
For both trucks, the payload also got a slight bump. The payload for certain configurations of the Extended Range battery are up by 235 pounds, while the Standard Range is up to 2,235 pounds. The automaker also confirmed that the range of the XLT and Lariat Lightning trims will get 320 miles of range on the Extended Range battery.
Ford is working on the “under promise, over-perform” aspect here by offering better numbers in the production version of the trucks.
Towing with the Ford F-150 Lightning should be easy
The automaker has made it clear it wants to deliver the 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning as soon as it can without sacrificing the build. With more than 200,000 reservations on file, Ford is focusing on the Pro Work Truck trim level first. That is the more fleet-focused work truck version. Ford plans to continually work on the Lightning to improve even after it is in customer’s hands.
One way it hopes to do that is with new towing technology. With FordPass Power My Trip, the F-150 Lightning uses real-time information to offer the range. Ford says the more drivers use it, the more accurate the range will be. Intelligent Range is a cloud service that uses various data from other trucks to calculate a precise range.
Since one of the main concerns with an electric truck is that it won’t be able to tow as much as a conventional gasoline-powered truck, this is important. Intelligent Range and FordPass Power My Trip will help drivers accurately tow to the destination or easily find charging stations along the way.
FordPass Power My Trip and Intelligent Range are important new technology
Linda Zhang, Ford F-150 Lightning Chief Engineer, said the automaker is trying to anticipate the needs of many first-time electric vehicle buyers.
“We know many F-150 Lightning customers will be first-time electric vehicle owners who expect that familiar Built Ford Tough capability along with robust towing.”
Linda Zhang | Ford
Zhang went on to say that this is why Intelligent Range and FordPass Power My Trip are so important. “That’s why we created smart technologies to help take the worry out of towing long distances by giving customers more reliable and accurate range calculations, and then automatically locate charge points along the way, if needed.”
Ford says that it hopes customers can take this information and make towing easier than ever. By doing that, it will move past some of the perceived downsides of an electric truck. The Ford F-150 Lightning has so much technology, that it is worth getting past the initial uneasiness that some people feel about EVs. Plus, who doesn’t need more horsepower?
