Ford's F-150 Lightning Price Hike Didn't Do What You'd Expect
The Ford F-150 Lightning is the first real EV truck geared toward the truck-buying public. Whereas the Rivian R1T is more of an "adventure truck" the F-150 Lightning is designed to do work, especially when considering the lower trim levels. Even with no extras, the Lightning is a serious truck. It has two electric motors that put down 775 pound-feet of torque and will go about 240 miles on a fully charged battery. That's more than can be said about CyberTruck, Tesla's EV truck offering that has not yet been offered to the public.
When the truck first debuted, it was originally priced under $40,000, or $39,974 to be exact for the 2022 model year Pro trim. That price has since been increased two times over the course of this year. Now it's $55,974 for the base model Lightning. Unfortunately, that's a common trend among EVs. Strangely, that price hike, to the tune of more than $15,000 hasn't dampened any enthusiasm for the EV truck.
Demand is still through the roof
Demand is still high for the F-150 Lightning and it seems to be following the path of its internal combustion-powered stablemate in more ways than one, namely, incredible demand and a high price tag. In fact, almost 200,000 reserved a Lightning last year when Ford started taking orders. Speaking at an event earlier this week that SlashGear attended, Ford Pro CEO Ted Cannis said that the price increase "did nothing" to change demand for the Lightning. Ford is completely sold out of commercial F-150 Lightning models in the US. If you were looking to pull the trigger on a Lightning, it looks like you may be out of luck until Ford starts making more trucks.
If you were looking for an EV wearing a Ford badge, you may have to settle for the Mustang Mach-E. If you want an EV with a bed, the GMC Sierra EV and the Rivian R1T are just about your only current (and much more expensive) options.