Photo: Jim Farley via Twitter | Edited
Ford CEO Jim Farley teased the souped-up F-150 Lightning concept prepared by Ford Performance. Last week, when it announced the return to Formula 1, Ford hinted at a new pickup truck in its EV performance demonstrator lineup.
Ford F-150 Lightning is Ford’s most important EV, considering America’s love for pickup trucks. Unlike the Mustang Mach-E, the Lightning doesn’t have many competitors besides the Rivian R1T, but that doesn’t mean Ford wants to lag behind. Offered in several variants, from the affordable Pro variant to the all-inclusive Lariat, the F-150 Lightning is one of the most successful Ford products of the past years. Nevertheless, it lacks a sports-oriented variant worthy of a Ford Performance badge.
Not that it would need one, considering that the most powerful versions deliver 580 horsepower and accelerate from 0 to 60 mph (96 kph) in less than four seconds. But with power, as with money, you’ll never have enough, so people’s imagination went a little crazy when Ford hid an interesting teaser in an otherwise boring press release about the Blue Oval’s return to Formula 1.
The teaser was hidden in plain sight in an infographic illustrating the circular connection between production vehicles and race cars. The picture revealed that Ford is preparing three new performance models, all quite interesting. The first one is a new Mustang flavor dubbed a “racing Mustang,” while the second depicts what appears to be a Maverick or a Ranger in the offroad/dirt motorsport category. Nevertheless, the third one is the most exciting, as it previews a Ford Performance work of art based on the F-150 Lightning.
The truck’s silhouette sits in the EV Performance Demonstrators category, which leaves no doubt about what it might hide. Rumor has it that the F-150 Lightning demonstrator might feature double the power of a production version, at more than 1,000 horsepower. Considering the extreme specifications of another EV demonstrator, the Mustang Mach-E 1400, we wonder why Ford would be so shy with the powertrain. After all, the series-production Lightning is already pretty powerful. It would take a lot more to impress anyone at this point.
Details about the new concept are scarce, but thankfully, Ford CEO Jim Farley felt the need to brag about it on Twitter. Supposedly, Farley showed the concept to Formula 1 driver Daniel Ricciardo, who looks positively impressed in the picture. The image shows Farley uncovering the front part of the truck, revealing a blue-and-white color scheme in a mellow finish, performance wheels, and an aggressive front spoiler.
Although unclear from the picture, the truck seems to sit closer to the ground than a regular F-150 Lightning. This is appropriate considering its sporty ambitions. There’s also something hidden underneath the cover at the back, and we can only guess it might be a rear spoiler or another aerodynamics part. As with other demonstrator EVs, don’t expect to enter production.
Not that it would need one, considering that the most powerful versions deliver 580 horsepower and accelerate from 0 to 60 mph (96 kph) in less than four seconds. But with power, as with money, you’ll never have enough, so people’s imagination went a little crazy when Ford hid an interesting teaser in an otherwise boring press release about the Blue Oval’s return to Formula 1.
The teaser was hidden in plain sight in an infographic illustrating the circular connection between production vehicles and race cars. The picture revealed that Ford is preparing three new performance models, all quite interesting. The first one is a new Mustang flavor dubbed a “racing Mustang,” while the second depicts what appears to be a Maverick or a Ranger in the offroad/dirt motorsport category. Nevertheless, the third one is the most exciting, as it previews a Ford Performance work of art based on the F-150 Lightning.
The truck’s silhouette sits in the EV Performance Demonstrators category, which leaves no doubt about what it might hide. Rumor has it that the F-150 Lightning demonstrator might feature double the power of a production version, at more than 1,000 horsepower. Considering the extreme specifications of another EV demonstrator, the Mustang Mach-E 1400, we wonder why Ford would be so shy with the powertrain. After all, the series-production Lightning is already pretty powerful. It would take a lot more to impress anyone at this point.
Details about the new concept are scarce, but thankfully, Ford CEO Jim Farley felt the need to brag about it on Twitter. Supposedly, Farley showed the concept to Formula 1 driver Daniel Ricciardo, who looks positively impressed in the picture. The image shows Farley uncovering the front part of the truck, revealing a blue-and-white color scheme in a mellow finish, performance wheels, and an aggressive front spoiler.
Although unclear from the picture, the truck seems to sit closer to the ground than a regular F-150 Lightning. This is appropriate considering its sporty ambitions. There’s also something hidden underneath the cover at the back, and we can only guess it might be a rear spoiler or another aerodynamics part. As with other demonstrator EVs, don’t expect to enter production.
.@FordPerformance has built some really special EV performance demonstrators. I gave @danielricciardo a sneak peek of the latest concept at our design studio today. More soon! pic.twitter.com/Bq1CoJihZR
— Jim Farley (@jimfarley98) February 9, 2023
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