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The base ‘Pro’ trim is now around $60,000, when it originally announced as a sub-$40,000 EV in 2021.
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Ford is raising the price of the F-150 Lightning for the fourth time — the base “Pro” trim has gone from $55,974 to $59,974, not including a $1,895 shipping charge. When the company announced the Lightning in May 2021, the starting price for the Pro was $39,974, $20,000 less than where it’s sitting now. Other models in the lineup, such as the Lariat and Platinum, are also getting price bumps.
According to Automotive News, the Lariat trim has gone up $1,500 to $77,869, and the Platinum model is now $99,969, up by $1,200. (Those prices do include the shipping charge.) The slightly more attainable XLT trim is the only one that appears to be unaffected — its price rose to $63,474 in December and seems to have stayed there. Even that, though, is quite a jump from its original sticker price of $52,974.
The company has faced several challenges since launching the electric pickup. Perhaps the most notable was a battery fire that forced the company to pause production and shipments for weeks as it worked on a fix and recalled over a dozen trucks. That wouldn’t be great under any circumstances, but it’s especially fraught as the company is putting an intense focus on electrification — and making big cuts to its workforce as part of that push.
While CNBC reports that the company has restarted Lightning production, it doesn’t necessarily mean that the truck is going to be more accessible to consumers. The company’s consumer and pro sites both note that “the current model year is no longer available for retail order” due to high demand. And, of course, the higher prices.
Its competition isn’t faring much better. Rivian’s R1T starts at around $73,000, and the company is telling people making reservations today that they shouldn’t expect delivery until at least fall 2023. In the meantime, prices are subject to change, and delays are always a possibility.
Meanwhile, pricing, availability, and the windshield wiper status of Tesla’s Cybertruck are all still up in the air.