Honestly, the “frunk,” as it’s being referred to, is pretty clever, and this promo shot shows that.
I know that’s a term usually reserved for a deity or some sort of religious belief, but I believe it applies here too. Does it exist? Yes, or at least it’s going to go into full production soon, anyways. Does that have any effect on me at all? Absolutely not. I’m not in the market for a new pickup, not even a new-to-me pickup, and especially not a brand new machine that just rolled out of the prototype stage. If, or even when I see one on the street, I might not even be able to pick it out from the basic F-150 unless it’s dark out and I spot the corner-to-corner lights on the front and rear, or someone loading something into the “frunk.” What’s that word, you ask? According to Microsoft Works circa 2008, it’s a typo. According to either Motor Trend or Ford Motor Company or both, it’s that space under the hood where the engine used to be, but now it holds toolboxes and grocery bags. Novel use of otherwise wasted space, I suppose, and an idea I always thought about incorporating on my rear-engine C10 pickup if time, money, and shop space weren’t a factor during a long winter. Also, it pushes out 563 horsepower and 775 pound-feet of torque, a new record for the F-150. It exists, but only after two other Lightning pickups existed previously.
Very few people know about the first-gen Ford Lightning, produced from 1993 to 1995. Packing a 351 Windsor under the hood, it was capable of 240 horsepower and 340 pound-feet of torque, both numbers less than half that of the new Lightning. For the record, it also had seventeen-inch wheels on all four corners at a time when fifteens were still fairly common. However, it’s not my favourite Lightning as that honour goes to the 1999 through 2004 with the supercharger and nice seats that it just loves to throw you back in. With a 5.4 litre V8 under the hood, the second-generation Lightning made 380 horsepower and 450 pound-feet of torque at the top, more than half that of the new Lightning, but still a far cry. I always kind of wanted one of those trucks, in red, of course, but they’ve held their value quite well, and a lot of them aren’t without issue two decades later. What do both old Lightning pickups have in common, you ask? A few things. First, both were promoted in red, a colour that the Ford F-series has always worn well, a colour that looks fast, grabbing the eye of both customers and cops. Second, and most importantly, both sound like an F-150, which the new Lightning just can’t do. I may be biased towards General Motors, but I’ll always admit that Ford’s sound better, and although I’m mostly Lightning agnostic, it pleases me that General Motors pickups finally sound better than the brand new Ford.
Have a question or comment for Kelly? Post it at lmtimes.ca/kirk
