Towing Comparison: 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning vs. 2024 Chevy Silverado EV
By Phil Royle – Jan. 12, 2022
Want an electric pickup truck? While only Rivian and Hummer have actually delivered electric pickup trucks so far, most consumers looking to purchase an EV pickup for actual utility and towing will likely be choosing between the forthcoming 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning and 2024 Chevy Silverado EV.
If all goes well, Ford will begin delivery of its 2022 F-150 Lightning electric truck in September 2022. The newly announced 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV, meanwhile, is slated to go on sale in fall 2023. So, assuming Chevy’s electric truck on-sale date will be September 2023, will the Silverado EV be worth the one year wait?
But first, let’s get things straight: There probably won’t be a one-year difference between when you can actually take delivery of these trucks. Ford has a considerable backlog of F-150 Lightning orders on the books – upwards of 200,000. Considering the company’s most recent plans to ramp up production to 150,000 units per year by 2023, any reservation placed in the immediate future likely won’t be realized until late 2023 or early 2024.
Chevy claims it sold out its RST First Edition Silverado EVs in just 12 minutes. The problem is, the company gave no indication how many RST First Editions were up for grabs.
Also, in 2019, Ford’s trucks outsold Chevy’s trucks 896,000 to 575,000. What all of this equates to is that there is less demand for Chevy trucks than Ford trucks, so while Chevy sold its First Editions quickly, the overall demand might be lower, so if Chevy can quickly ramp up production, there is a chance that the theoretical one-year delivery differential between the Silverado EV and the F-150 Lightning might work out to be closer to six months or less.
The Chevy Silverado EV’s on-sale date is a year later than it is for Ford’s EV truck. A closer look, however, indicates that might not be completely representative of your personal vehicle delivery date. (Image courtesy Chevrolet)
So, which should you buy if you intend to use your electric truck for actual truck stuff?
Before we jump in, it should be known that I hold no allegiance to Ford or Chevy. In fact, I currently own both GM and Ford truck chassis vehicles, one specifically for towing, and I wound up in this situation by evaluating stats and prices, then purchasing the best tool for the job – and both times, the decision was hard. But when I ran the 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning and 2024 Chevy Silverado EV through that same decision process, there was an obvious winner – although it might not be what you think.
Power Games
With the big-power version of the Silverado EV outputting 664 hp and 780 lb-ft of torque, the Silverado EV seems to put the smackdown on the Lightning. But it’s not that simple, as the Silverado EV’s WT version will have 510 hp and 615 lb-ft of torque, which is less power than the Standard Range Lightning. Here’s how it breaks down:
Long Range Models
Short Range Models
It’s also notable that Chevy’s power comes with an asterisk stating “With Wide Open Watts,” meaning this peak power is likely not available all the time.
Beyond that, for towing, torque is everything, so while it looks like Chevy is the obvious winner, I would say the high output versions of these two pickups are just about even for towing applications. For the lower output versions, the nod goes to the Lightning.
Going the Distance
With no real world tests or EPA numbers, all we can go off of is each manufacturer's claimed range. Therein, with a maximum stated range of 400 miles, the Silverado EV is head and shoulders above the Lightning, which has an Extended Range version with 300 miles (note, the Standard Range Lightning will travel 230 miles, and while Chevy has hinted that there will be a shorter-range version of its EV pickup, details have not been given).
The RST-trim Silverado EV has a claimed range of 400 miles, 100 mile more than Ford claims its longest range EV pickup will travel. (Image courtesy Chevrolet)
There is conjecture that Ford’s projected numbers are range while carrying a significant load. If that’s the case, this could mean the Lightning’s Extended Range version might actually have 350-400 miles of unladen range.
Pulling Power
When it comes to towing and hauling, the Standard Range Lightning is slated to be rated at 2,000 lbs of payload and 7,700 lbs of towing capability; the Extended Range comes in at 1,800 lbs of payload and a 10,000 lbs of tow rating. The Silverado EV, meanwhile, is projected to be rated at 10,000 lbs of tow capacity for its big version, while the base model WT will tow 8,000 lbs. The Silverado RST’s payload capacity is a little lower than the Lightning’s, coming in at 1,300 lbs.
Both Ford and Chevy EV trucks will have a version capable of towing 10,000 lbs. The question then becomes, how far can they tow it? (Image courtesy Ford)
Calculating a 50% range loss while towing, and assuming the claimed ranges are correct for unladen trips, the longest-range Silverado EV would be capable of towing a maximum of 200 miles before sputtering to a halt, with the Lightning going 150 miles.
One of my go-to camping locations requires climbing an 8,000-foot mountain with my 6,500 lb travel trailer in tow, and the campground has zero provisions for electricity. There is a single, (somewhat) towing friendly ChargePoint DC fast charger 28 miles from this campground so, in theory, the long-range Silverado EV could make it from my house to the campsite, hitting the charger on the way home; the Lightning Extended Range should make it, although with the Lightning, it’s likely I’d have to stop at the charger on the way there, especially if I wanted to tap into the truck’s vehicle-to-load power at the campsite (more on that later).
Obviously, the trucks would re-gen on the return trip down the mountain, but getting to the top in the first place is more important.
Charging Speed
Like with range, the Silverado EV is seemingly head and shoulders above the Lightning. The charging gap, however, might not be as dire as it seems.
Chevrolet lists the Silverado EV as being capable of 350 kW DC fast charging, with Chevy claiming 100 miles of range being added in just 10 minutes. The Ford Lightning’s charging speed is limited to 150 kW, with Ford stating the Lightning’s DC fast charging adds 54 miles of range in 10 minutes on the Extended Range truck, and 41 miles of range on the Standard Range model.
Chevy’s Silverado EV beats Ford’s F-150 Lightning in peak charging capability “at the pump,” but that will only make a difference when using chargers capable of outputting greater than 150 kW. (Image courtesy Ford)
The hands-down charging winner is Chevy, right? Not so fast. Remember that ChargePoint DC fast charger near my favorite camping spot? That unit caps out at 62.5 kW. So at least for this specific application, now it’s down to the charging curve, which we don’t know yet.
But yes, generally speaking, the advantage goes to Chevy for charging speed.
Vehicle-to-Load
Ford all but set the standard for vehicle-to-load power via its Pro Power Onboard feature in its F-150 PowerBoost Hybrid. That truck is capable of doling out 7.2 kW of juice via its bed-mounted power outlets. The Lightning then wowed with 9.6 kW of off-boarding power capability. Chevy entered the scene last week with an announced 10.2 kW of available juice from its Silverado EV.
Chevy has the bigger number, yes, but for most people (myself included), this difference doesn’t actually make a difference.
Ford set the bar for V2L power with 9.6 kW of available juice from its F-150 Lightning. Chevy has since exceeded that output, but does the difference make a difference? (Image courtesy Ford)
Bed Size
The Silverado EV offers its unique Midgate design, which extends the truck’s bed into the cab, growing the 5’11” bed to more than 9’. The Lightning sports a more traditional 5’6” bed.
Although I can see some real-world utility of the Midgate, I don’t see this as something I’d pay for. Lowering the Midgate to fit longer items simply means my kids are now stranded at the store. But it’s possible that Chevy will charge for the feature on the Silverado EV, making that a bit of a moot point for me – I’d save my cash and not select the feature when ordering.
The Silverado’s Midgate offers options no other EV truck can match. (Image courtesy Chevrolet)
In my travels, I’ve found any truck bed shorter than 6’ to be too small for my needs. As such, a 6’ or longer bed with a camper shell is my jam, which leads to me to believe the Silverado EV would also be my truck of choice based on bed size alone.
My concern is that due to the slope of the metal spanning the roof to the bed, a camper shell would look as awkward on the Silverado EV as it did on the Chevy Avalanche. The Ford, meanwhile, will look like any F-150 does with a camper shell, which is to say, not awkward.
Cash is King
Price is a push. Both Ford and Chevy intend to introduce $40,000 work-truck versions, with prices increasing exponentially from there. The most exclusive Silverado EV is supposedly going to top $105,000; meanwhile, I built a Platinum edition F-150 Lightning on Ford’s configurator for $94,504.
It’s likely that most people will spend $60,000 to $80,000 on their EV pickups. That sounds like a lot, but I recently tested a well-equipped Silverado LT with the 3.0L Duramax, and that sported a $55,565 sticker price. Trucks are expensive, but a $60,000 half-ton EV would quickly make up a $5,000 price delta when fuel savings are factored in.
And The Winner Is?
I expected the battle between Ford’s and Chevy’s half-ton EV pickups to be close, but I can’t say it is. In fact, it’s a runaway.
For me, the determining factors are twofold. First is the bed size. A 5’11” bed might only seem marginally longer than a 5’6” bed, but for me, those inches mean the world.
The second major factor is charging speed. For the next few years, the Lightning’s lower charging cap wouldn’t be that big of an issue – in my neck of the woods, 350 kW DC fast chargers are rare, which means charging time on the go will likely be comparable between the Lightning and Silverado EV. However, Chevy’s 800v architecture acts to future-proof the truck. With time, 350 kW chargers will (hopefully) be plentiful, and when they are, I want a vehicle that can take full advantage of every watt offered.
The cherry on top is Chevy’s additional 100 miles of claimed range vs. the Lightning.
Which would I buy for my towing needs? In my book, the battle between the 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning and 2024 Chevy Silverado EV goes to the Silverado EV not by an inch, but by a mile.
But here’s the twist: I wouldn’t buy either.
In the Ford vs. Chevy pickup war, it sure seems the Silverado EV has the advantage. But wait, is something better on the horizon? (Image courtesy Chevrolet)
If your towing habits resemble mine – or are more intense – you’ll likely find yourself better off waiting for an HD iteration of the Silverado EV in WT trim, which GM claims will be rated to tow 20,000 lbs. With that kind of tow rating, I’m expecting the HD version of the Silverado EV to be capable of 500 miles of range sans trailer, or 250 to 300 miles pulling my 6,500 lb trailer. Add in 350 kW charging and presumably a 6’ or 6’6” bed, and this is everything I’m looking for in an EV pickup.
Also, if Chevy keeps to its existing ICE truck pricing structure, you should be able to buy a lightly optioned HD pickup for the price of a nicely equipped half-ton EV truck, which is to say, probably $60,000 to $70,000.
GM says its HD EV truck will be released in 2025. And while Ford has yet to publicly speak of electrifying its Super Duty lineup, that will undoubtedly come with time. Perhaps, in irony of ironies, one year after the Chevy HD truck hits the road.
Hear more about the 2024 Chevy Silverado EV on this episode of The Watt Car Podcast:
(Main image courtesy Ford)
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