SPY PICS: Electric Ford F-150 Lightning snapped

UPDATED 11/05/2021 9:55am: Ford has confirmed its first full-size electric pick-up will indeed be called the Ford F-150 Lightning, and that its reveal at Ford World Headquarters in Dearborn at 9:30pm EDT on May 19 will be live-streamed.

“Every so often, a new vehicle comes along that disrupts the status quo and changes the game … Model T, Mustang, Prius, Model 3. Now comes the F-150 Lightning,” said Ford President and CEO Jim Farley.

“America’s favorite vehicle for nearly half a century is going digital and fully electric. F-150 Lightning can power your home during an outage; it’s even quicker than the original F-150 Lightning performance truck; and it will constantly improve through over-the-air updates.”

Original article published 05/05/2021 9:20am: The first all-electric version of Ford’s top-selling F-Series pick-up has been caught testing on US roads – and it will reportedly revive the F-150 Lightning name.

According to US website Car and Driver, the Lightning name was confirmed via an official Ford document provided by a source but is yet to be confirmed by Ford itself. 

As we’ve reported, Ford says its upcoming F-150 EV will be the most powerful version in the full-size pick-up truck range, offering plenty of hauling and towing capability, and will also double as a mobile generator.

Ford hasn’t revealed full powertrain details yet, but it has confirmed a dual-motor all-wheel drive powertrain.

What’s more, a removable petrol-powered range extender could come as an option later on, for longer distance driving.

The 2021 Ford F-150 EV is also said to come with a giant ‘frunk’ (front trunk), which will be capable of carrying “hundreds of pounds”, says Ford.

Not a great deal can be ascertained from this latest batch of spy pics, other than the full-width LED light bar up front.

But the well-camouflaged test mule pictured here does lack an exhaust outlet and its undercarriage does appear to package electric motors and a high-voltage battery instead of the mechanicals of its conventional siblings.

Set to enter production next year at Ford’s Michigan truck plant, the ground-breaking new F-150 EV will go up against a new wave of full-size electric American pick-ups including the Rivian R1T, GMC Hummer and Tesla’s wacky Cybertruck.

While the Rivian R1T and its R1S sister SUV have been earmarked for Australia at some stage, the Tesla Cybertruck and GMC Hummer, which will also be produced in SUV form, are yet to be confirmed for local release.

The 14th-generation Ford F-150, meantime, remains off-limits to Australians – at least via official channels – because like a range of Ford’s latest models it is not produced in right-hand drive.

What’s more, the complexity and ownership support requirements of the F-150’s EV drivetrain could prove hurdles too big to jump for the independent local conversion companies that currently import other F-Series models.

What do you think? Would you buy a full-size electric pick-up? Have your say in the comments below.