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Electric power is just the beginning of what makes America’s best truck even better.
The 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning is the most important new vehicle of the decade. It’s the first all-electric version of America’s most popular passenger vehicle, so how it resonates with the buying public will shape the country’s view of EVs for years to come. Ford couldn’t mess this one up. It didn’t.
The Lightning is one of the best-driving pickups on sale today. While it may look like a lightly disguised version of the gas-powered truck fit for a background role in Minority Report, it’s virtually new underneath, with a revised frame, a fully independent suspension, and an electric motor at each axle. All of that translates to a uniquely refined driving experience that, most of the time, seems like you’re driving a six-figure luxury SUV rather than a pickup truck.
It all starts with the drivetrain. Buyers have a choice of a 98-kWH or a 131-kWh battery pack snug between the truck’s frame rails, there to power the standard dual in-board motors. The bigger pack delivers 580 hp, while the smaller unit comes up with a respectable 452 horses. No matter which battery you choose, you get an immense 775 lb-ft of torque, the most of any F-150 model, ever. Ford estimates a 0-60 time in the mid-four-second range, but the bigger-battery model—the one Ford had available for a brief first drive—feels quicker. Stomp the pedal at any speed under 50 mph, and the truck will briefly light up the front tires. Keep your foot in it, and you wouldn’t believe how quickly the 106-mph electronic speed limiter comes. If there was ever any doubt as to whether this truck would be a proper successor to the original Lightning, forget those thoughts right now.
It’s not just the speed that impresses. The powertrain is well-tuned to deliver a smooth driving experience without any jerkiness from the electric motors or the regenerative brakes. Turn one-pedal driving off, and the F-150 Lightning will creep forward like any other gas-powered car. And when you hit the brake pedal, it feels like a tight, well-tuned pedal rather than what it actually is—the regenerative brakes working their magic. Go deeper into the pedal and you won’t even notice the transition from regenerative braking to calipers gripping rotors. It’s clear engineers spent a lot of time to make this system seamless. It all just... works.
Stuffing a gargantuan battery and two electric motors to the underside of the F-150 meant Ford had to get clever with the suspension. Out back there’s an independent setup for the first time ever, there to make room so the rear motor could sit between the wheels under the bed. Thankfully, Ford didn’t half-ass the execution. This is the best-riding pickup in the game. All of the typical body-on-frame jitters you’d expect from a pickup of this size have been erased. At slow to medium speeds, bumps, potholes, and other imperfections in the road are shrugged off at the level you’d expect of a new Mercedes or BMW. Get over 65 mph, though, and you’ll start to experience a bit of floatiness from the springs. While I always prefer a suspension that’s too soft over one that’s too hard, especially for a truck like this, it might bother people who commute on high-speed, undulating highways.
A low center of gravity from the floor-mounted batteries means you can actually hustle the F-150 Lightning through corners, if you really want to. This gigantic truck is no sports car, but it’ll munch through a back road way quicker than any gas-powered truck on sale today thanks to its seemingly endless corner-exit traction. The steering is lifeless, even in Sport mode, so it’s tough to be precise with inputs. Will most prospective buyers care? Probably not. But we're the vocal minority.
One of the best decisions Ford made when building the Lightning was starting with the gas-powered F-150, rather than from scratch. In addition to driving down costs, it means the truck has the same proportions and interior layout as its ICE-powered counterpart. And that means the perfect ergonomics, wonderful cabin design. and great visibility from the normal F-150 are carried over into this truck. The XLT trim uses a landscape-style 12-inch touchscreen to control things like infotainment, navigation, and drive modes. It’s easy to navigate and quick to respond to inputs. Underneath the screen you’ll find, importantly, physical controls for the HVAC system. Upgrade to the Lariat or Platinum trims, and you get a bigger 15.5-inch portrait-style screen that does everything the smaller screen does, plus climate control. Further down you’ll find a traditional gear selector that, when a button is pressed, folds down into the center console, allowing you to fold out the armrest to use as a makeshift work table. It’s a wildly practical place to spend time, though hopefully that folding shifter will stay working reliably after 10-plus years of use. That will be answered if owners start to get stranded because they can’t put their truck into Drive.
Another unfortunate downside of the interior is the lack of physical buttons to turn off one-pedal driving and to engage the locking rear differential. Struggling to find those switches buried in the screen isn’t very fun, especially while the truck is in motion. On the upside, the Lightning’s cabin feels like one of the quietest places on the planet. The electric motors can only be heard under 10 mph. After that, the only things you’ll hear are faint tire and wind noises... and all of the other cars on the highway around you. There’s also the Mega Power Frunk, a lockable, drainable, 14.1 cubic-foot front trunk that can handle up to 400 pounds. It’s perfect for securely storing things you don’t want to keep in the bed, or electronics you need to charge.
The Ford F-150 Lightning is the best introduction to EVs America will ever get. It checks every box, all while delivering a supremely comfortable and relaxing driving experience with hardly any faults. All it’ll take for skeptics to get onboard with electric cars is a five-minute test drive, or perhaps just seeing it and hearing the potential. Seeing as how Ford has had to increase production capacity for the Lightning twice before it started rolling off the line, that seems to be exactly what’s starting to happen. And because every buyer who opts for the extended-range battery will also get a Ford Charge Station Pro (Ford’s in-home wall charger) thrown in, range anxiety won't even be an excuse anymore.