Exactly, something with a look closer to a car than a truck would have massive aero improvements, with the added benefit of appealing to people who don't like the traditional blocky truck look, which is a sizable demographic.
Plus, like you said, aero and software efficiency can make a huge difference. Ford has way more resources and testing data, so I wouldn’t be shocked if they squeeze out better real-world range than the early estimates. Also, trucks in general are huge bricks aerodynamically, so even small improvements add up.
Well if I had to bet I would say "haste makes waste". In the rush to correct the first problem they may have missed something. Roof? Thick black smoke? Says to me perhaps some stack/exhaust system improperly connected and the roofing material caught fire.
Actually nissan and infiniti were the ones that introduced it, followed by Toyota. Thats why when ford revealed that they were adding it to their commercial cars, it was a big deal since it was still an industry baby, but then reneged on it. I believe the 2021 gm fs utes or the ct6 were the first gms to use the feature.