The Ford F-150 Lightning sees more interest from buyers than any other electric pickups on the market, according to Cox Automotive.
Ford has seen relatively high demand for the battery-powered pickup, especially when compared to its other EVs. Vanessaw Ton, senior manager of market and customer research at Cox Automotive, says this is no surprise, given the brand’s long track of success in the truck segment. “Our studies continue to show the importance of brand strength, and that is particularly true in the full-size pickup truck segment, where brand loyalty often runs deep and fierce.” The automotive platform’s survey reflects this sentiment. In terms of consideration, the F-150 Lightning beat comparable models from Ram and Chevy by 4%, GMC and Rivian by 19% and Tesla by 38%. The pickup scored first place across all five categories rated by participants: driving range, performance, price, appearance and technological advancement.
The study suggests that Ford competitors may find it more difficult to break into the pickup market. Tesla’s placement at the bottom of the list is especially of note. On paper, the EV brand is dominating its peers in the electric pickup segment, even though it has yet to release a product. Earlier this year, a crowd-sourced tracker suggested that the Cybertruck had received 1.9 million pre-orders. In comparison, Ford sold a combined total of 8,757 F-150 Lightning trucks in Q1 and Q2 this year. However, Tesla has yet to confirm whether the tracker is accurate. Pre-orders may also prove irrelevant when the Cybertruck launches since buyers may decide to cancel their reservations. Ford was also forced to suspend production earlier this year when a battery-related fire broke out at one of its Lightning warehouses, briefly putting deliveries on pause.
While time will ultimately tell whether Ford can retain its lead in the electric pickup segment, Cox Automotive’s study does indicate that traditional truck buyers are likely to stick with a brand they trust. This means two things for the company’s competitors. First, legacy automakers will need to prove themselves capable of producing models with the same perceived quality as the F-150 Lightning if they hope to gain traction among truck enthusiasts. Second, newcomers such as Tesla may be better advised to court non-traditional truck buyers in order to spur sales.
