It was three years between the announcement of Ford’s F-150 Lightning and when the vehicle finally entered production. Upon debuting last year, the electrified version of the company’s flagship pick-up truck has been divisive amongst enthusiasts. But that doesn’t change the fact that it’s an important new direction for American automobiles and the pick-up class as a whole. If the biggest marque in the country’s history is willing to electrify, despite its old-school, work-horse reputation, then what vehicle wouldn’t be off the table? Ford has now doubled down on battery power with a new EV truck called, for now, Project T3.
If the Lightning were an introduction, then Project T3 will be a reinvention. We’re led to believe this will be an entirely new platform and model for the marque — one made with innovation and cutting-edge software and aerodynamics. Even though Project T3 will be the second electric pick-up from Ford, the Lightning has already been accompanied by the likes of the Mustang Mach-E, the E-Transit van, and the recently-announced electric Ford Explorer.
The announcement comes out in tandem with updates for Ford’s BlueOval City, a West Tennessee mega-campus, which we now know will be the main production facility for Project T3. It will also create 6,000 new jobs upon completion in 2025 — the same year the new truck will enter production. According to Ford president and CEO Jim Farley, this will be the “modern-day equivalent of Henry Ford’s Rouge factory” and “a factory of the future that people from all over the world will want to tour.” The facility is the company’s first carbon-neutral vehicle manufacturing and battery site, a big step towards plans to make every Ford campus around the world carbon-free by 2035.
Of course, there are very few details regarding Project T3 electric pick-up truck but you can head over to Ford’s media site to learn more about the vehicle as well as the upcoming BlueOval City facility.
