2023 Ford F-150 Lightning is a useful pickup truck … sorta

After a week of using the 2023 Ford F-150 Lightning where we actually needed a truck, we found it was actually a great truck. It’s about not going too far.

at a glance

• Vaguely related to the rest of the F-150 lineup
• Range estimates aren’t even in the ballpark when towing or hauling
• You can literally power your home – for days
• Suitable use cases for many truck buyers

The Ford Lightning is one of the first fully production electric pickup trucks. Part of the F-150 lineup, it is the best-selling pickup in North America and is only visually related to other his F-150 options for sale. Most of the F-150 Lightning’s underpinnings have little to do with its homonymous sibling. The F-150 Lightning is heavier than its petrol brother (by a wide margin, about 2,000 lbs/907 kg), so it can’t use the same chassis.

Instead, a chassis similar to that of the Super Duty (Heavy Duty) line of trucks is used, but customized to the needs of battery electric trucks with no front and rear hoses or pipes. Instead of a driveshaft tunnel and space for fuel tanks and exhaust lines, the Lightning has a large square battery block running most of its length between the axles.

The 2023 F-150 Lightning’s bodywork is similar to the rest of the F-150 line, with much of the aluminum sheeting coming from the same stamp. Most of the differences between his standard F-150 and Lightning bodywork are subtle. Headlights, taillights, badging, ‘fuel port’ door location, and other details make up the only discernible differences.

A less obvious but primary attribute of Lightning is its extremely useful front trunk (“flank”). It’s as big as the trunk of most large sedans and fits in a realistic load height. For most people it can be the most useful part of the whole track.

Inside the Lightning, the seats and most of the control layout will also be very familiar to F-150 owners and fans. The seats are accommodating (and some), the materials look nice and sturdy, and there are plenty of plugs, storage space, etc. The Lightning is only offered as a crew cab, with a large rear seat that can seat three full-grown adults without squeezing too much.

Mechanically, the F-150 Lightning is also very different from its siblings. One of two very large battery options powers an electric motor located on each axle (the F-150 Lightning comes standard with all-wheel drive). One of these options comes in the form of a 98 kWh battery pack that provides a range of approximately 240 miles (386 km), the other is available for a range of approximately 300 miles (483 km)131. kWh battery pack. However, these range numbers are highly variable, and validating what the actual range will be is a complicated issue on this track.

We drove the 2023 Ford F-150 Lightning with a larger battery pack and at the top of the trim point. A short stint of over 45 miles per hour (72.4 km/h) around town meant we were well on our way to achieving something that matched the claimed 300 miles of range. To do. But once you hit the highway or highway, those high speed mileage is much less. After all, large vehicles expel a lot of air, so the extra speed comes at a price of about 20% of the truck’s expected range.

It’s all assuming the truck isn’t under any load at all. Nothing in the bed, no trailer attached, no extra people in the car. Adding any of them further reduces the range. sometimes dramatically.

Towing with just about any kind of trailer bigger than what you put in the back of a compact car is the deadliest range. Like many others who have tested the F-150 Lightning in tow, we found that nearly 70% of his range was lost when towing on the highway. 300 miles quickly turned him into 100 miles. The lack of access to DC fast charging and the extra time to wait for that charge to come – assuming you can afford to break the wallet that often comes with fast charging – means that towing is pretty much useless in this truck. increase.

Cargo hauling was not very good. The heavier the F-150 Lightning’s payload, the worse the range, and near the maximum payload (approximately 1 ton or 2,235 pounds / 1,013 kg), the total range is about halved. That means if you’re carrying camping gear, lumber for a new shed, bale of hay, or anything substantial, you can probably drive 150 miles (241 km) before you have to hit that charger.

For comparison, a standard turbocharged 3.5L F-150 manages over 200 miles (322 km) per tank under similar loads. Also, it takes about 5 minutes to charge, compared to 45 minutes for fast charging. Those who tow their boats out to lakes with the Lightning might push the mileage limit, but no worries with the petrol model.

However, the advantage of the Ford Lightning’s battery is that it can be used in an emergency. Ford estimates that a 100 kWh battery can power an average US home for about three days during a power outage. 100 kWh is more than three times his average daily usage in a US home (29 kWh). The Ford F-150 Hybrid can also power a home, but not at full scale.

Another advantage of the Ford F-150 Lightning is power generation at the job site. Similar to the F-150 Hybrid we reviewed a while ago, a bed-mounted bank of plugs can also power tools, lights, etc. at the same time.

The 2023 Ford F-150 Lightning fits a particular niche of truck buyers…a relatively large niche in many urban and suburban areas. These are the truck owners who use their pickups primarily as beautified sedans to carry themselves and sometimes others. Additional utility for trucks, i.e. truck owners whose towing and hauling are not regularly used items, but which are used temporarily.

If you travel to and from work every day and go to the hardware store or big outlet every couple of weeks, Lightning is a great option. However, to do more than this, we recommend choosing the F-150 Hybrid instead.

Product Page: 2023 Ford F-150 Lightning