The fully-electric F-150 Lightning has been scrapped as Ford's flagship EV will gain a gas engine

Having only stepped into the fully-electric hot seat in 2022, Ford has announced its intentions to shelve the EV and revert the Ford F-150 Lightning to a new long-range gas engine hybrid.

Fifty years after being created, the Ford F-150 is still the flagship truck in the brand’s ever-growing arsenal.

While it may have spawned bigger brothers and sisters with the Super Duty range, the F-150 has become the standard by which all pickup trucks are measured.

But as we go into 2026, the range is going against the electrical grain and shelving its full-electric Lightning

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Ford F-150 Lightning will no longer be an EV in 2026, but boasts 700 miles of range

The all-electric truck has had a staggered journey in its debut as an electric vehicle.

But just as the brand rolls out the most powerful model in the electric range yet, Ford has announced that the EV is being dialled back to a hybrid powertrain.

Rumors of this change have been circulating for a few months, but the American brand confirmed the change in a blog post.

Instead, the Ford F-150 Lightning with be an Extended Range Electric Vehicle (EREV), with an engine doing a lot of the heavy lifting for an estimated range of over 700 miles.

As to what the powertrain will be, well, Ford still promises that it will still be ‘propelled 100 percent by electric motors,’ allowing for rapid acceleration.

But it will still use the engine to eliminate the need for frequent charges on long-haul journeys.

The details of the engine itself haven’t been revealed, although we can hazard a guess.

The last F-150 featured a supercharged 5.2-liter V8 engine nicknamed ‘Carnivore’, and introduced for the Raptor, which seems unlikely for the new hybrid powertrain.

Instead, the 3.5-liter PowerBoost Full-Hybrid V6 (or EcoBoost) might be more in line with what we can expect to see.

However, the F-150 Lobo did recently house a V8.

Ford promises ‘revolutionary’ improvements with new extended-range F-150 design

While many might see this as a step back in technology, Ford executives are promising that this is a ‘revolutionary’ change for the better.

“The F-150 Lightning is a groundbreaking product that demonstrated an electric pickup can still be a great F-Series,” Ford Chief EV Design Officer Doug Field said.

“Our next-generation Lightning EREV is every bit as revolutionary. It keeps everything customers love – 100 percent electric power delivery, sub-5-second acceleration – and adds an estimated 700+ mile range and tows like a locomotive.

“It will be an incredibly versatile tool delivered in a capital-efficient way.”

Production of the current generation of the Ford F-150 Lightning ends this year, with the new EREV being assembled at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn in the new year.

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