Ford Begins F-150 Lightning Pre-Production, Adds 450 American Jobs

By Michael S. Palmer - September 16, 2021

With $250 Million invested and 450 new American jobs at three plants, Ford should be able to produce up to 80,000 F-150 Lightning all-electric trucks annually.

A year ago, Ford broke ground on the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn, Michigan. And today the company saw the first pre-production F-150 Lightning trucks roll off the new line. In addition to producing the first new all-electric Ford trucks, Ford announced an additional $250 Million investment in the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center, Van Dyke Electric Powertrain Center, and Rawsonville Components Plant.

Ford’s goal is to add 450 additional jobs across those three facilities while boosting production capacity to 80,000 trucks a year. Which is a good thing because Ford already has 150,000 online Lightning reservations. Granted, reservations don’t equate confirmed orders, but Ford’s first EV truck should be quite popular when it launches next year. So the Blue Oval is going to need to ramp up production as quickly as possible or face Bronco-esque delays.

F-150 Lightning Basics

For those who haven’t been following the F-150 Lightning story so far, Ford’s first all-electric truck will start at just $40,000 for the standard-range Pro trim level. The standard-range battery, by the way, is good for 230 miles of range along with 426 hp, 775 lb.-ft. of instant torque, and a 5-ish-second 0-60 run. Step up to the extended range battery and Ford’s targeting a 300-mile range along with 563 hp, 775 lb.-ft. of torque, and a mid-4-second 0-60 time. Ford also plans to offer XLT, XLT Premium, Lariat, Lariat Premium, and Platinum trim levels with prices ranging from $53,000 to $90,000. (All prices before tax and title as well as any federal or state tax credits.)

Now, you may be asking yourself, how can these be the first F-150 Lightning when there are several out there already? In fact, just last week, Ford Truck Enthusiasts got to ride in and explore three Lightnings first hand. (More on this very soon, but imagine the same interior of a 2021 F-150 mounted onto the smoothest, fastest, best-handling truck of all time.) The current testers you may have seen on YouTube or in other articles are actually hand-built prototypes. These newer Lightnings are pre-production models. They’ll be used to refine the manufacturing process, test for mileage and safety ratings for government agencies, and, eventually, media and press coverage.