Ford has vast experience with designing hard-working pickup trucks. But designing a pickup truck to do that work using purely electric power stored in its battery pack and driving through electric motors presented new challenges for the team working on the F-150 Lightning EV. Chief engineer Linda Zhang recalls her team's effort to ensure sufficient cooling of the electric drivetrain and related components throughout Ford's rigorous testing.
The challenge should come as little surprise because the Lightning is rated at 562 horsepower and 775 lb.-ft. of torque. When it is not towing heavy loads up steep hills, the Lightning can accelerate to 60 mph in as little as 4.3 seconds. But what matters more to truck buyers is that it can pull a load up a big hill on a hot day and make it to the top. Zhang explains how Ford ensured this outcome.