President Joe Biden got an exclusive look at the all-new Ford F-150 Lightning on Tuesday. He was also lucky enough to take the all-electric pickup truck out for a spin. But President Biden didn’t just get to test drive the F-150 Lightning. He also used his visit to Ford’s Michigan-based plant to advocate for electric vehicles (EV) in the U.S.

President Biden took the stage to talk about EVs

Now, the president didn’t just visit Ford’s Dearborn plant to test drive the Ford F-150 Lightning. The real reason for his visit was to advocate for EVs in the U.S. He focused on the production of EV batteries and semiconductor chips. 

He called for increased investments in local semiconductor production to ensure the U.S. auto industry doesn’t face another chip shortage, similar to the one it’s facing now. The president reiterated support for new EV incentives, too, adding, “The future of the auto industry is electric. There’s no turning back.” 

Biden also jokingly remarked during his speech that he would like to drive the electric F-150 if he could “lose the Secret Service and go out to the track,” CNBC reports. Fortunately for the president, Ford was more than willing to make that happen. Though, the president didn’t actually ditch Secret Service once he got behind the wheel. 

‘This sucker’s quick,’ said President Biden after test driving the F-150 Lightning

President Biden is a car guy, making it no surprise that he would want to test drive the Ford F-150 Lightning himself. Fortunately, the president was treated to a test drive when making an unscheduled visit to Ford’s driving course, which is where the automaker’s safety tests are usually conducted, CNN reports.

After taking the EV pickup out for a spin, the president told reporters, “This sucker’s quick.” When reporters asked if he would buy the F-150 Lightning for himself, Biden said he would. “Man, you’re going to like it.” The president added, “It feels great. I’ll tell you what, these electric vehicles, now I don’t know if anyone has a stopwatch, but these vehicles can go from 0 to 60 in 4.4 seconds,” the president continued.

But, as it turns out, that last bit of information wasn’t supposed to be shared ahead of the pickup’s official reveal. The good news is that a Ford representative said it was OK and laughed, CNN reports. However, they did not confirm whether the president’s estimations match official estimates, Kelley Blue Book reports.

When does the Ford F-150 Lightning go on sale?

Here’s the thing, the Ford F-150 Lightning hasn’t actually been revealed just yet. That will happen at 9:30 p.m. EDT, May 19. The reveal will take place at Ford World Headquarters and will be broadcast live across multiple social media channels. It will also be live-streamed in Times Square in New York City and Las Vegas Boulevard. 

Further, production of the all-new pickup is scheduled to begin next spring. Meaning, the Ford F-150 Lightning likely won’t go on sale for quite some time. Until then, we’ll just have to live vicariously through President Biden, one of the first to be treated to a Ford F-150 Lightning test drive.