Ford Cancels the Electric F-150 | This Review Explains Why
Back in the heat of summer Ford sent us an Electric F-150 to test out for a week or so. IMO, this particular truck was spec’d perfectly. It was an Oxford White XLT, with cloth seats and the extended range battery. If I were to purchase an F-150 EV with my own money, it would have been this one. I spent my time with it going through my normal test driving routine for a truck, and it performed flawlessly up until a point. However, that inflection point showed exactly why Ford is now discontinuing its electric truck offering.
This is the second electric F-150 that I’ve had the pleasure of having as a test vehicle, and I really do mean pleasure. Outside of the Raptor (and especially the Raptor R), the Electric F-150 is the best riding and driving ½ ton truck Ford builds. The steering and brakes are perfect, the ride is firm and controlled without being harsh, the interior comfort and NVH levels are top of the line, and the acceleration capability is simply intoxicating. Throw in a ton of useful storage space (the frunk) and tech (on-board 30 amp power supply) and you have a great all around package. However, this video highlights the truck’s fatal flaw:
The Electric F-150 fails at one of the most fundamental tasks buyers expect to be able to perform with a truck, towing. Sure, it makes gobs of power and can move a load with ease; but you better not expect to take it very far. During my time with this EV F-150 I planned to take my NoBo 19.6 camper on a 30’ish mile trip to spend a night at a local winery (buy enough booze and they let you camp in a field). It was a hot July day, so I was hoping to use the on-board A/C power supply capabilities of the truck to power my air conditioning (it was July in South Carolina) in the camper as well. All loaded up for the night the camper probably came in at around 4,500 pounds.
This little camper ended up being way more of challenge for this truck than I anticipated.
These headlight are some of the best we've experienced on any new vehicle.
I think this is a pretty good looking combination.
We started out from the house with about 65% juice in the battery, which would normally deliver about 195 miles of range. As soon as we hooked the camper to the truck, the computer recognized we were towing and reduced the expected range to a bit over 100 miles. Not great, but I should still have had enough cushion for a 60 mile round trip. I would likely have to find a place to plug in an extension cord if I wanted AC in the camper that night as the truck’s battery definitely wasn’t going to have the excess energy for that. However, we were soon about to find out that was just the tip of the energy deficiency iceberg.
About 10 minutes into our trip a notice popped up on the dash letting us know that due to the exterior temperature and load from towing that our expected range had dropped from 95 miles to 77 miles. That definitely took me out of the comfort zone for making my little 60’ish total mile overnight camping trip. So at the next opportunity I threw in the towel, made a u-turn, and headed to the house. It’s pretty disheartening that such an expensive truck that tows so well was incapable of comfortably pulling a small camper to the next county over on what was basically ¾ of its full capacity charge.
I'd love to see Ford bring the Lightning nameplate back for a proper performance truck, perhaps with a Predator 5.2L V8 under the hood.
I'm not 100% sold on fully digital dashes, but if one ever made sense it would be on this truck. It looks good and provides a ton of info.
This is my favorite new (non-specialty) Ford interior. It has all the tech I'd want in a DD, without being too loaded up, and looks fantastic. This isn't your dad's XLT F-150.
The really sad thing with this Electric F-150 is that it drives and tows great. Its tremendous curb weight, which is basically the same as an F-250, makes it feel supremely planted and stable. The suspension handles the weight of the trailer with absolutely no complaints. The motors provide torque like a fully spooled turbo diesel under load. This thing pulls fantastically, that makes the overall package even more disappointing. It’s a fantastic truck that is held back by battery pack that simply lacks the energy density of traditional fuel sources. I really enjoy driving it, but its towing capabilities completely negate any consideration I would give it as a truck I’d want to own.
I’ve always contend that if you all you have to tow is a boat to the local ramp and back an electric truck will serve you well (just pay very close attention not to back too far down the ramp). However, much beyond that the Electric F-150 is incapable of towing in a manner a truck owner would find acceptable. For that reason alone I will not mourn the loss of this iteration of the F-150 EV. The Powerboost F-150 is already a superior truck product with its limited hybrid system. With Ford working on an EREV F-150 it looks like the future will be bright for those who want an electrified F-150 with the range reliability of traditionally fueled truck.
This suspension is awesome. It would be awesome if Ford threw a 9.75 center section in it and, used it as the basis for the suspension of a proper V8 Supercharged F-150 Lightning.
These wheels look great and are designed to improve the range of the truck.
IMO, these are some of the best seats in an F-150. They are supremely comfortable and look great. I'm a sucker for a good cloth interion.
So while the Electric F-150 may have been a flop in the market, Ford seems to have learned some good lessons from the entire affair. If government regulatory meddling and market manipulations are kept to a minimum I believe Ford will be able to refocus their efforts and give the truck buying public the types of electrified vehicle that actually provide the ownership experience they are looking for. The base Maverick Hybrid is a good example of building a well rounded electrified product with a clear purpose in mind, as is the Powerboost F-150. If the new EREV F-150 lands somewhere between this test truck and my neighbor’s King Ranch Powerboost F-150, I think it will be something worth checking out. I’m interested to see how it shakes out, how about you?
-SID297
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