Ford Dealers Hope to Capture Lightning

BROOKLYN, NY –  The ’24 Ford F-150 Lightning Platinum Black, a new, range-topping version of the full-size battery-electric pickup, is going to be scarce when it goes on sale in early 2024 – on average, fewer than one per U.S. dealer.

“We’re excited for this special package,” says dealer Mike Marcotte, president of Marcotte Ford, Holyoke, MA. “We’re hoping to get at least one.”

That could take some doing. Ford intends to build only 2,000 units of the ’24  Ford F-150 Lightning Platinum Black. The Ford brand has roughly 3,000 U.S. dealers.

Marcotte says fullsize pickups are popular in western Massachusetts, which is more rural than the eastern part of the state. At the same time, there are a lot of colleges and universities in western Massachusetts, too. Some of those schools have purchased electric vehicles, the dealer says.

He believes customers will like the flat-black look of the Lightning Platinum Black, a look many owners try to achieve on the aftermarket.

“The matte finish is really special,” Marcotte says. “We see that a lot, especially on high-end vehicles. Three months after the fact, they put the matte on.”

At a press event, Vince Mahe, chief engineer, F-150 Lightning, describes the flat-black look as “sinister.” Everything gets the blacked-out look, even the usually blue Ford oval logo, he says.

The price tag will undoubtedly limit demand for the  Lightning Platinum Black. Pricing starts at $99,990, including a $1,995 destination charge. The next-less-expensive version is the ’23 Ford F-150 Lightning Platinum Extended Range, at $93,990 with destination.

Ford offers a half-dozen other versions of the ’ 23 F-150 Lightning. The base model is the Ford F-150 Lightning Pro, at $51,990, with destination. In July Ford cut prices on the ’ 23 F-150 Lightning lineup in response to price cuts at Tesla, and also to stimulate demand as the automaker ramps up production.

It’s also significant whether a model is priced above $80,000, the cutoff under the new rules for federal tax credits for EVs. A sticker price above $80,000 means no federal tax credit, says Marjace Miles, Ford F-150 Lightning brand manager.

It’s probably no coincidence Ford’s recent price cut brought the ’23 F-150 Lightning Lariat Extended Range variant to just below $80,000.

The 2,000 units of the ’ 24 Lightning Platinum Black are a drop in the bucket in terms of Ford F-Series sales overall, but they’re a significant number in terms of Lightning sales to date.

Year to date through August, F-150 Lightning sales were 11,327, up 65.6% vs. a year ago, Ford says. Lightning production launched in late April 2022.

Ford reports F-Series sales for 2022, including variants besides the F-150, totaled 653,957, making it America’s best-selling truck for 46 straight years. In 2023, year-to-date F-Series sales through August were 514,716, up 22.3%, according to Ford.