Yahoo Autos 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning XLT Road Test: Leaves no trace
GRANITE FALLS, Wash. — The sign in the Verlot Ranger Station explained to visitors an important backcountry rule, and it answered the question of why Sasquatch remains so elusive: “Bigfoot’s been doing it for years: Leave no trace.”
The sign also made us realize we were enjoying this Saturday afternoon lap of the Mountain Loop Highway in the North Cascades in a leave-no-trace vehicle: a 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning XLT.
The absence of emissions from the truck would normally help us feel one with nature out here among the rocks and trees. But on this day, what we avoided spewing from a tailpipe was negligible compared to what else was happening around us. This being late summer/early fall in the Northwest, a wildfire had sprung up overnight along U.S. Highway 2 west of Stevens Pass. That’s about 20 miles south of where we were on the Mountain Loop.
The Bolt Creek fire was not close enough to be a direct threat, but the normal restorative dose of crisp mountain air and clear vistas on a backcountry outing wasn’t going to be possible. The peaks were shrouded in smoke, and at one point in the afternoon the sky glowed an ominous red. This eased as we headed north, away from the fire. As of this writing, the Bolt Creek fire has burned more than 13,000 acres, is far from contained, and a pall of smoke hangs over the Seattle area for weeks.
The F-150 Lightning got sprinkled with falling ash, which stood out against its dark Antimatter Blue paint. Which made me realize one weird advantage of EVs that maybe no one has considered before: If ever another volcano blows around here — Rainier, Baker, Glacier Peak, take your pick, we've got plenty — electric cars don’t have engine air filters and internals to foul. Back in 1980, Mount St. Helens ashfall trashed a lot of vehicles. EVs, the cars of the apocalypse!
Authorities say the Bolt Creek fire appears to have been caused by humans, rather than by lightning — just as mankind has had a hand in creating the hot, dry climate conditions that feed the flames. It's a reminder why the auto industry is transitioning to EVs in the first place. I’ve lived in the Northwest for nearly 40 years. Only in the past five or six years have Western Washington summer skies been choked with wildfire smoke. It's now an annual event. The new normal-not-normal.
This Lightning was in XLT trim. We’ve written a lot about Ford’s EV truck, but this is the first XLT we’ve gotten our hands on for more than a few minutes. It's a step above the basic Lightning Pro work truck, with the 2022 XLT starting at $54,769 including the $1,795 destination fee. That’s $7,500 more than the Pro, and it buys you additional standard equipment that includes the BoxLink cargo management system, 360-degree cameras, the distinctive Lightning front lighting, running boards, heated side mirrors, cabin fold-out work surface and more. The Pro, being a work truck, has vinyl seats, whereas the XLT has cloth. And the XLT has the potential to add quite a few more options — in particular, the extended-range battery.
This particular XLT had that 131-kWh battery, a $10,000 upgrade that offers an EPA-estimated 320 miles of range in XLT (300 miles in Lariat). Adding the big battery requires adding the 312A equipment group for another $9,500, which includes 20-inch dark carbonized wheels, 9.6-kW ProPower, more advanced Co-Pilot 360 driver assists, approach-detection cabin access, heated steering wheel and 10-way driver seat, and a power tailgate with step and work surface. Other options were the Tow Technology Package at $1,395 (which you’ll hear more about in our upcoming Tech of the Year testing), lockable underseat storage at $225 and spray-in bedliner at $595.
Grand total, $76,484.
That’s right, $76K, and cloth seats. Ford says the Lariat is the more popular trim, as a few grand more gets you leather. If you’re eating a cow, why choke on the tail?
