

That's right: at 6855 pounds, our top-trim Lightning Platinum, 1500-pound battery pack and all, weighed more than 300 pounds less than the smaller R1T. Many other pickups handle the abuse without complaint, including the heavier Rivian. Although our test may seem extreme, it gives us pause about using the upper reaches of the Lightning's maximum 10,000-pound towing capacity (8500 pounds max for Platinum trims like ours). Although it delivered a solid 180-foot stop (we report the second-best number of the six), after the third one a warning light came on to indicate the brakes were overheating, along with significant fade and smoke, to the point that the truck couldn't keep ABS engaged on the later stops. Where the R1T's 908 pound-feet of torque is ramped in smoothly, the Lightning's 775 pound-feet hits hard when smacking the accelerator, to the point that it chirps the front tires at speeds up to 30 mph or so, which tends to generate spontaneous giggles from the power-drunk pilot standing on the pedal.īraking was a different story, with the Lightning's stoppers fading significantly during our six-stop routine from 70 mph. But, surprisingly, in our 30–50-mph and 50–70-mph passing tests, the Lightning essentially ties the Rivian (0.1 second quicker in the former, and 0.1 second slower in the latter). The Rivian R1T is substantially quicker-nearly a second in the quarter-mile-and is still the quickest pickup we’ve ever tested. And a Mustang Mach 1 would have to be exceptionally well driven to open up the narrowest of gaps in the quarter. Even a Mach-E GT is no quicker in the quarter-mile. The performance of this first electric F-150 positively dominates any other in Ford's truck lineup, including the Raptor, by more than a second in either metric.

Our test vehicle was a top-trim Platinum that includes the larger, 131.0-kWh battery pack, and, with a couple of minor options, wore a sticker price of $93,609. Tested: How Towing Affects EV Pickup Range.
