Ford to add gasoline engine to F-150 electric pickup

Ford F-150 Lightning is a groundbreaking pickup, offering many of the qualities buyers love about America’s best-selling vehicle while adding zero-emissions driving, instant torque and even the ability to power a home.

But unfortunately for the Lightning, it has also become known for its shortcomings. Many customers are unhappy with its high price and limited range when towing and hauling. Sales trail gasoline and hybrid F-150 models. When Ford sells an F-150 Lightning, it loses money.

As a result, Ford has announced revised plans for the next-generation F-150 Lightning: adding a gasoline engine and turning it into an extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) — a trend many other automakers are also adopting.

Ford officials said production of the current Lightning will end, and plans for the next generation — known internally as Ford T3 — will be scrapped. Instead, the new Lightning will be an EREV, with a gasoline engine helping charge the battery. With this addition, Ford expects the new Lightning to deliver a range of more than 1,126 km.

Andrew Frick, president of Ford’s gasoline and electric vehicle division, called the Lightning EREV "a big step forward" because it runs mainly on electricity, but has a gasoline engine to provide "range confidence" and towing capability over longer distances. It will also be able to power a variety of electrical devices, like the current Lightning.

EREVs have recently emerged as a popular alternative to all-electric vehicles, although perhaps only conceptually, since none are currently sold in the US. But these models are becoming increasingly popular in China, and several other automakers are planning them for the North American and European markets.

An EREV typically includes an electric-vehicle platform, complete with a large-capacity battery, advanced electrical architecture and modern features such as software updates, but adds a gasoline engine that works as a kind of generator — not to drive the wheels as in a traditional hybrid. When the Lightning EREV goes on sale, it could compete with the upcoming Scout Harvester and Ram 1500 REV.

Ford’s other plans also indicate a scaling back in electric vehicles after entering the segment relatively early with products such as the Lightning and Mustang Mach-E.

A new electric commercial truck project for the European market has been canceled, and at Ford’s BlueOval City complex, the Tennessee Electric Vehicle Center will be renamed the Tennessee Truck Plant. There, the plant will produce new affordable gasoline-powered trucks. An electric-vehicle battery plant in Kentucky will also be used to produce battery energy storage systems, including for AI data centers.