Photo: Jim Farley
Ford began producing the F-150 Lightning on Tuesday, the legacy automaker’s first-ever all-electric pickup truck, according to the American automaker.
Production of the Ford F-150 Lightning is taking place at the automaker’s historic Rouge Complex in Michigan, where the company has established a moving assembly line.
Ford Executive Chair Bill Ford called the electric pickup’s production the “Model T moment,” referring to the company’s first breakthrough car and assembly line nearly a hundred years ago.
In a press release, Ford said, “Today we celebrate the Model T moment for the 21st Century at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center.”
The chairman added, “The Rouge is where Ford perfected the moving assembly line, making it a fitting backdrop as we make history again. The stunning anticipation for F-150 Lightning is a credit to the work of our Ford engineers and designers, and the UAW team members who are building these trucks with pride.”
Ford has received 200,000 reservations for the F-150 Lightning, showing high demand early on. The Rouge EV Center has plans to ramp production up to 150,000 trucks per year in 2023.
The company says it has invested over $1 billion alone in Michigan for the F-150 Lightning, creating 1,700 jobs across five Ford plants in the state.
Ford Announces F-150 Lightning Launch Event on April 26 https://t.co/wv9w9p7ttR
— TeslaNorth.com (@RealTeslaNorth) April 13, 2022
The F-150 Lightning extended range can tow up to 10,000 pounds and features a 320-mile range per charge.
Additionally, the extended-range variant of the vehicle includes 563 horsepower, and can accelerate 0 to 60 mph in just 4.4 seconds.
Starting at about $50,000, the F-150 Lightning also lets users power their homes using a backup power function.
In a statement, Ford CEO Jim Farley said, “America’s real transition to electric vehicles starts now.” Ford says it is on track to deliver over 2 million EVs annually by 2026.
Last month, Ford unveiled separate electric vehicle (EV) and internal combustion engine (ICE) divisions, a move that Farley hopes to use to help Ford reach Tesla-like valuation levels with its EV business.
