Ford F-150 Lightning Pro electric work truck: 300-mile version will add $10,000
Optioned with the extended-range battery that will allow a targeted EPA range of 300 miles, the F-150 Lightning will cost just $49,974 in its base Lightning Pro work-truck guise, Ford revealed Monday morning.
That’s exactly a $10,000 premium over the $39,974 base price announced for the 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning last week—a price that doesn’t include a potential $7,500 EV tax credit and other incentives.
Ford hinted that many fleet and work customers might not opt for the big battery, though, as they typically don’t buy more than they need. According to more than 145 million miles of Ford’s telematics data, 95% of daily travel adds up to less than 174 miles.
2022 Ford F-150 Lightning Pro makes a great work truck—here’s why
“These customers are extremely pragmatic, and they aren’t going to over-index on product features and benefits when it isn’t necessary to get the job done,” summed Ted Cannis, Ford’s general manager of commercial business. Cannis noted a “no more, no less” approach to winning fleet customers, and called the Lightning Pro “a serious truck for serious truck owners.”
The actual energy capacity of the two battery packs hasn’t yet been disclosed. The packs will use new “Nickel 9” NCM cells from SK Innovation, sourced from an American joint venture between Ford and the battery supplier.
The company has positioned the Lightning in a way that it hopes commercial and work customers will find irresistible, with a big emphasis on low ownership costs. It’s offering a fleet planning tool to crunch the numbers, including purchase costs, incentives, energy costs, and a projected 40% reduction in maintenance costs over eight years and 100,000 miles.
2022 Ford F-150 Lightning Pro makes a great work truck—here’s why
As Ford detailed last week, the Lightning is built with the same military-grade aluminum alloy body as the gasoline versions of the F-150, however a different frame helps accommodate the battery packs. Ford has tested the Lightning and its cooling systems for towing, hauling, and off-roading at temperature extremes, and it has underbody protection for the battery and dual inboard motors—chosen in type and location for toughness.
The base version of the F-150 Lightning Pro makes 426 horsepower and 775 pound-feet of torque, while the extended-range model makes 563 horsepower with the same torque rating. Payload ranges up to 2,000 pounds, and towing capability up to 10,000 pounds.
The F-150 Lightning comes only in a five-passenger SuperCrew layout, with a 5.5-foot bed length.
2022 Ford F-150 Lightning Pro makes a great work truck—here’s why
The Lightning’s frunk will hold 14.1 cubic feet and will carry 400 pounds, which Ford says adds up to eight bags of Quickrete. It’s water-tight and has a drain plug, as well as four 120-volt AC outlets and two USB ports. Altogether, the Pro Power Onboard power capability in the Lightning adds up to 9.6 kw, including two AC outlets in the cab and two in the bed.
F-150 Lightning Pro versions will come with easy-clean vinyl seats, and include Ford’s Sync 4 system with a 12.0-inch touch screen. A full-size spare and Class IV trailer hitch will be standard features, as will a set of driver-assist active-safety features.
Ford says that the Lightning will calculate its range based on terrain, weather, and even cargo and trailer load—using an onboard-scale system to monitor load. With a Power My Trip feature, the system can dynamically reroute the driver to the nearest charging station—part of the company’s FordPass app and network of 63,000 affiliated charge connectors.
2022 Ford F-150 Lightning Pro makes a great work truck—here’s why
Both through the touchscreen and via a remote Ford Telematics dashboard, operators will have access to remote preconditioning, remote locking and unlocking, vehicle health monitoring, as well as live tracking of vehicles, trip history, and energy usage, with a driver behavior and scorecard feature. The Pro, as with the other Lightning models, will get periodic over-the-air updates that could potentially improve vehicle performance.
On a 150-kw DC fast-charger, Ford says that the Lightning will get from 15% to 80% in 44 minutes for the standard-range battery or 41 minutes for the extended-range one.
Ford is assuming that work-truck operators won’t be fast-charging as much, but they’re providing multiple ways for a full overnight charge on 240 volts AC. With a 48-amp Ford Connected Charge wall unit, it estimates 10 hours with the standard-range battery or 13 hours for the extended-range one. With an 80-amp Ford Charge Station Pro and dual onboard chargers on the extended-range version, it can get to a full charge in just 8 hours.
2022 Ford F-150 Lightning Pro makes a great work truck—here’s why
The latter system permits an Intelligent Backup Power function for the home—with additional hardware, including an inverter—and future Intelligent Power functionality that will help limit smooth home or business power demands around peak times.
Ford last week has also revealed that the XLT, more oriented toward personal use, would start at $52,974 and the range would cost up to about $90,000. The 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning lineup will arrive in spring 2022 and be built in Michigan.