The F-150 truck is currently the king of the American car market. But Ford recognized that EVs may soon take over and is preparing an F-150 version to compete with the Cybertruck. So far, excitement hasn't been that high, and this could be down to the design.
It's amazing to think that the most popular vehicle in America is going electric after fourteen generations and about seventy years of production. But the F-150 EV prototype they showed just looked like any old truck, which is boring when you compare it to the Cybertruck.
While Volkswagen or Tesla use dedicated platforms, some manufacturers develop their EVs from normal models. This has advantages like brand familiarity or reduced costs. But you still need to use a new front fascia just to let everybody know that's the green version.
In his latest YouTube rendering video, TheSketchMonkey tries to do that with the 2021 Ford F-150, and he starts by praising the work of the original designers. According to him, the lights are some of the nicest around, but to make them better suited to an EV, they're connected by an LED strip just under the hood.
Most of the grille gets blocked off, but the mesh within a Ford logo is left there, apparently to cool the electric hardware. It's not that different from a regular F-150, but you can still spot it from a mile away.
While America was initially unwilling to switch to electric cars, Tesla has changed many minds. Not just because it's efficient or better for the environment, but because it's a cool car brand. TheSketchMonkey argues that the instant torque from electric motors is actually more useful on an off-roader than on a commuter.
Ford already has experience at adapting cars to be EVs. Back in 2011, it began offering the Focus Electric which eventually had a range of 115 miles (185 km). But the F-150 EV feels like a more ambitious project. After all, they did pull an entire train as a publicity stunt, and losing to yet another segment to Tesla would be embarrassing.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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