Electric F-150 ignites buzz at local Ford dealerships

All it takes is $100 to reserve the 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning pickup truck.

 

And just two days after the May 19 reveal, Ford confirmed that 45,000 reservations have already been made for the company’s first all-electric truck. 

 

Parks Ford of Gainesville said by Friday they had at 25 reservations and Santa Fe Ford had not tallied their reservations as of Thursday but said consumers are contacting them and dropping by with questions.

 

Interested buyers can visit Ford’s website, enter their information and pay the $100 to reserve a truck. Then they choose which local dealership they want the truck delivered to when they come off the assembly line in spring of 2022.

 

The truck price ranges starting from just under $40,000 for a basic work truck up to $90,000 for the platinum model that comes with all the bells and whistles including seats with built in massagers.

 

Santa Fe Ford of Alachua salesperson Sean McCauley said on Thursday that the information about the latest Ford offering is being delivered to consumers about the same time as dealerships.

 

“They are releasing info right to the public,” he said.  

 

According to the Ford website, the new F-150 Lightning will “roll off the line next year at a new high-tech factory using sustainable manufacturing practices at Ford’s storied Rouge complex in Dearborn just outside Detroit.

 

“For both Ford and the American auto industry, F-150 Lightning represents a defining moment as we progress toward a zero-emissions, digitally connected future,” said Bill Ford, executive chair, Ford Motor Company. “F-Series is America’s best-selling truck for 44 years, the backbone of work across the country, and a trusted icon for generations of customers. Now we are revolutionizing it for a new generation.”

 

The commercial version of the truck is considered the entry model that starts at $39,974 MSRP before any federal or state tax credits, and the mid-series XLT basic model starts at $52,974 MSRP, with an offer for additional comfort and technology upgrades.

 

According to product specs provided by Ford, the F-150 Lightning “targets 563 horsepower, 775 lb.-ft. of near instantaneous torque – more than any F-150 ever – and a 0-60 mph time in the mid-4-second range when equipped with an extended-range battery, based on typical industry methodology.”

 

In Ford’s release statement they labeled the truck as for the general public.

“We’re not here to make an electric truck for the few – Ford is committed to building one that solves real problems for real people,” said Kumar Galhotra, Ford president, Americas and International Markets Group, Ford Motor Company. 

 

“F-150 Lightning delivers everything we’ve said electric vehicles can offer, plus the capability expected from a Built Ford Tough truck – not just near instant torque but powerful towing and hauling customers can depend on.”