Tesla beware! As of yesterday, Ford’s first-ever all-electric F-150 named the Lightning seems to the be next hot item EV world.
Ford (F) has amassed 120,000 orders for the Lightning, CEO Jim Farley told investors on an earnings call Wednesday evening. About 75% of the orders are from those people new to the Ford brand, Farley said.
In late May, Ford said it had 70,000 orders for the Lightning.
“I would say what we’ve learned so far [from Lightning orders] is that the customers are largely new to Ford, but they aren’t new to the segment. These are customers who really like these silhouetted vehicles. What is really interesting for me is some would portray the full-size truck industry as kind of a conservative customer. It’s not what we’re seeing. In this very large order bank for F-150 Lightning, they’re new to BEV [battery electric vehicle], and they are excited to move to BEV. More than half of them are pickup truck customers,” explained Farley.
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The extended range, battery-powered Lightning promises 10,000 pounds of towing capacity, over the air software updates and the ability to power your home via backup power capability. This version — which starts at around $50,000 — boasts a 300-mile range on a charge, 563 horsepower and travels 0 mph to 60 mph in about 4.4 seconds.
Ford’s F-150 Lightning is set to begin production in mid-2022.
Meanwhile, it’s unclear when the all-electric Tesla Cybertruck will go into production as Elon Musk focuses on securing supplies of batteries and chips for its mass market sedans.
Ford shares rose 5% in pre-market trading Thursday as investors embraced the orders for the Lightning and an upcoming hybrid pickup called the Maverick.
Amid a boom in new car demand, Ford also lifted its full-year adjusted operating profit guidance by about $3.5 billion to a range of $9 billion to $10 billion. Sales volume in the second half of 2021 is seen rising 30% as Ford anticipates a better flow of semiconductors after shortages for most of the year.
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