Back in 2021, Ford unveiled the F-150 Lightning, an all-electric version of its venerable pickup. A single $100 payment would get your name on the truck’s waiting list, and production was expected to begin in 2022.
Despite being a twice-over Toyota Tacoma fanboy, I was excited about this announcement. The F-150 has been America’s best-selling truck for like 400 years, and making it electric seemed like a great way to get EVs into garages that would otherwise never see one. I even sent Ford $100.
Early Signs of Trouble
Once the trucks hit the street, it was clear that there were concerns. While the powerful truck could pull just about anything, towing (or even driving with heavy loads) drastically cut into the Lightning’s range. Being based on an F-150 made a lot of sense on paper, but it meant that less hardcore mid-sized truck owners who may never run into the range-while-towing challenges weren’t going to look at it due to its size.
Then there were the cultural issues. Some Americans saw the rise of EVs as a liberal movement, and the Lightning was a bad fit in their eyes. This friction is not unique to Ford, but it was a factor that the company didn’t attempt to manage at all.
Over time, the Lightning became more expensive and less popular, to the point that production pauses were ordered. The trend was troubling, but I kept hoping it would do well for a partially selfless reason:
Ford was coming to town.
Blue Oval
…well within a short drive of town. In the fall of 2021, Ford announced Blue Oval, an enormous facility about 30 minutes from Memphis. Ian Round, Bill Dries, and Rob Moore broke the news for The Daily Memphian:
Partnering with a South Korean company, SK Innovation, Ford announced a $5.6 billion investment and 5,800 direct jobs at the Haywood County site, between Memphis and Jackson. At a press conference Monday, Sept. 27, Gov. Bill Lee said it was “the largest single investment in this state’s history.” Lee, along with executives from Ford and SK Innovation, will be in Memphis Tuesday morning to make the announcement and share more details.
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