Ford CEO Farley Says 2022 F-150 Lightning Won't Be Emulated

[ice-capades]

Ford CEO Farley Says 2022 F-150 Lightning Won't Be Emulated

https://fordauthority.com/2022/06/ford-ceo-jim-farley-says-2022-ford-f-150-lightning-wont-be-emulated/

 

“In a kind of weird way, it’s kind of too bad that Lightning winds up being our most successful vehicle today because it feels so derivative from the F-Series. It’s not our only truck and the other trucks won’t look anything like it,” said Farley. While that statement may seem radical, it isn’t completely out of line with how the company is thinking about its future as an electric vehicle manufacturer. The 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning is simply an electric variant of the Ford F-150 and rides on the same basic platform. Going forward, that is not how Ford will develop its lineup, as it intends to do more than make carbon copies of its internal combustion lineup. As Ford Authority recently reported, that may even spell the end of established and popular vehicles like the Ford Escape, since the company’s pivot is geared toward icons and commercial vehicles.

 

Edited June 3, 2022 by ice-capades
Additional Content

[rperez817]

Great news, thanks for sharing ice-capades! Farley's comments reinforce how well he understands the importance of dumping legacy ICE baggage when it comes to the design, engineering, marketing, and distributing BEV at Ford.

[jpd80]

So Ford needed the Lightning to look like an F150 but everything else can be completely different…..

[akirby]

1 hour ago, jpd80 said:

So Ford needed the Lightning to look like an F150 but everything else can be completely different…..

Even the next Gen Lightning will look different is what he’s saying.  Lightning was a one off.

[jpd80]

1 hour ago, akirby said:

Even the next Gen Lightning will look different is what he’s saying.  Lightning was a one off.

And is Farley about to mess with the look of a slam dunk success, a Lightning that looks like an F150?

Maybe part of the surprise with Lightning orders has been the belief that the T3 Lightning get through has told Ford not to mess up the looks too much…..
 

TE3 Lightning to look different but use the same name but further down the article, the discussion changes to Ford not necessarily developing BEV versions of existing ICE vehicles. Still speculation but evidence that coming BEVs will not only look different but  possibly be large than the ICE vehicles they intend replacing.
 

The above is an indication of how the plan changed from Hackett ‘s vision of of a slow transition to BEV and building those vehicles as an extension of the ICE vehicle in the home  production facility. Everything changed once Farley got into the chair, he realised that plan wasn’t going to work. So the idea of all existing ICE plants and their vehicles surviving is now in doubt, Louisville workers need to know their future, it’s close to new Battery facilities but no word yet….

 

Edited June 3, 2022 by jpd80

[bzcat]

The logic is pretty simple... to optimize efficiency and aerodynamics, BEV can't really share much with ICE. So TE1 Lightning won't look the same as T3 F-150. Just like GE2 Explorer won't look like CD6 counterpart. 

[jpd80]

58 minutes ago, bzcat said:

The logic is pretty simple... to optimize efficiency and aerodynamics, BEV can't really share much with ICE. So TE1 Lightning won't look the same as T3 F-150. Just like GE2 Explorer won't look like CD6 counterpart. 

Does the customer get a say in that?

It sounds like buyers love the traditional square shape of F150 and Explorer, go messing with that and there could be some backlash. Maybe the super strong response to T3 Lightning gives Ford an opportunity to rethink what it thinks is the right/logical  choice when emotions play a big part in vehicle sales……

Edited June 3, 2022 by jpd80

[silvrsvt]

14 hours ago, jpd80 said:

Does the customer get a say in that?

It sounds like buyers love the traditional square shape of F150 and Explorer, go messing with that and there could be some backlash. Maybe the super strong response to T3 Lightning gives Ford an opportunity to rethink what it thinks is the right/logical  choice when emotions play a big part in vehicle sales……

 

I wouldn't expect anything like the Cybertruck going forward, but at the same time, I don't think there is going to be a huge change in styling either.

 

Aerodynamics really don't play a factor till you hit 65-70 MPH. What the big deal will be is how the frame and batteries interact with one another and how that can be shared across the lineup. 

[92merc]

I think at some point, Ford will want to have a high end EV half ton.  Having it look the same as the regular EV F150, won't help sales.

 

For a brief period, it wouldn't surprise me to have an EV based on the F150 like it is now.  And a new edition based on the new platform. 

[7Mary3]

This is not a surprise.  the F-150 Lightning was a quick conversion of the existing F-150.  It's a good truck but full of compromises, particularly from a manufacturing standpoint.  An effective stop-gap, never intended to be anything more.  

[Harley Lover]

18 hours ago, bzcat said:

The logic is pretty simple... to optimize efficiency and aerodynamics, BEV can't really share much with ICE. So TE1 Lightning won't look the same as T3 F-150. Just like GE2 Explorer won't look like CD6 counterpart. 

 

And EV Bronco won't look like IC version. Right? I don't think so...