The electric Ford F-150 Lightning is not set to be delivered until the spring of 2022, but Ford has confirmed that the first pre-production units are already being built in the factory that will produce consumer versions next year.
These pre-production Lightning F-150 trucks will be used for real-world testing, according to Ford. It’s not uncommon for such versions to be used for final validation procedures, developmental tweaks to vehicle systems, or adjustments to the assembly process.
With this announcement, Ford unveiled plans for a $250 million investment expansion that, as reported earlier, will help Ford double Lightning’s annual production to 80,000 units by 2024, up from the initial target of 40,000 units by then.
This adds to the $700 million investment the factory was already slated to receive. The expansion will create an additional 450 jobs per hour, Ford anticipates, with most of them at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center, a manufacturing base for the Lightning in the midst of Ford’s historic Rouge complex. The battery packs for the F-150 Lightning will come from a nearby facility in Michigan, while another will manufacture electric motors and electric gearboxes.
