by Gabrielle DeSantis

The Tesla Cybertruck versus the Ford F-150 Lightning will be the most dramatic bout of 2022. It is a daring prototype versus America’s bestselling truck; a California startup versus a Detroit giant; the old versus the new. But does the Cybertruck or Ford Lightning offer the best value?

The Single Motor, RWD Tesla Cybertruck Price: $39,900 

In 2019, Elon Musk captured the world’s attention with his dramatic Tesla Cybertruck prototype. He also captured imaginations with the starting price: under $40,000.

The entry-level Tesla Cybertruck only has one motor. It will be RWD and not AWD. This base truck’s range is an estimated 250 miles. Its towing capacity is a respectable 7,500 pounds. It should be able to hit 60 mph in less than 6.5 seconds. A fully self-driving mode will be a $10,000 feature, but the base model will come with Tesla’s Autopilot option.

For $39,900, you will only get Tesla’s entry-level drivetrain and battery pack. But you will also get a Cybbertruck. This includes the intimidating Cyberpunk-inspired exoskeleton. The body is made of “Ultra-Hard” 30X cold-rolled stainless steel. The windows are all Tesla armor glass. The cabin offers leather seating for six people.

The base Tesla Cybertruck even comes with adaptive air suspension. This system allows you to raise or lower the truck four inches and auto-levels while loaded. On the trail, you can jack it up for 16-inches of ground clearance.

The Cybertruck does not have a bed; it has a Tesla “Vault.” This 6.5-foot load deck offers 100 cubic feet of lockable storage. This base model Cybertruck will be a capable, cutting-edge electric pickup. In many ways, the Cybertruck raised the bar. But if you need AWD or want multiple motors, you will need to shell out $49,900.

AWD Ford F-150 Lightning Starts At $39,974

In 2021, Ford unveiled the new F-150 Lightning. It is the long-awaited electric version of America’s favorite truck. Ford announced that the Lightning would start at $39,974–and the base truck will feature a dual-motor, AWD drivetrain.

The entry-level Ford Lightning Pro offers more value than any truck in 2022–either electric or traditional. The Lightning Pro matches the Cybertruck’s technology; it features Ford’s Co-Pilot 360 Driver Assist technologies and Ford Sync 4 software. The new truck even features a 12″ landscape-oriented touchscreen and fold-down workspace.

Much of the Ford Lightning Pro’s value is being-job-site ready. It provides 2.4 kW of onboard power through 120V and USB outlets. This includes outlets in the truck’s 14.1 cubic foot front trunk, the largest of any electric truck. In addition, the Lightning Pro’s 250-mile battery pack can power the average home through a three-day outage–and Ford has wired it to do so.

The Most Value Under $40,000

The Lightning Pro looks very much like a fleet truck, with vinyl seats and floor-mats and a plastic bumper. But it will cost less than a fleet-model F-150. After a $7,500 electric vehicle federal tax credit, the Lightning Pro will cost buyers just $32,473. Some states offer additional local tax credits. A similarly-equipped fleet-model F-150, with four doors and 4WD, costs $10,000 more: $42,850. The Ford Lightning Pro offers better value than any truck, electric or traditional.

Tesla, on the other hand, has run out of federal tax credits to offer its customers. Though the entry-level Cybertruck offers a lot of value, it loses this round. At the bottom of the price range, the Ford F-150 Lightning offers more value than the Tesla Cybertruck.

RELATED: 2022 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro: A Cost-Effective Ford Raptor

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by Gabrielle DeSantis

If you live in North Carolina you should be more than concerned if you own any modified vehicle. Especially if you drive a squat truck because now the state can take your driver’s license away from you. The state has added yet another wrinkle in its zeal to ban any vehicle with modifications it doesn’t like.

We covered North Carolina banning squat trucks earlier in the year. Set to become law in December, the bill (House Bill 692) includes language that says if an owner ignores the ban, he or she can lose their driving privileges. If cited three times in one year, you’re cooked. 

What modified vehicles besides squat trucks does this law apply to?

In general, the law will apply to vehicles that are both raised in the front and lowered in the rear. So technically, it can apply to lowriders and also 1960s drag racing gassers. At least lowriders have the advantage of leveling their cars through either hydraulics or air suspensions. 

Originally, the North Carolina vehicle code stated a vehicle could not be raised or lowered more than six inches from stock. Now that provision has been changed. The front fenders can’t be more than four inches higher than the rear fenders. 

Since this applies to “modified chassis, suspension, or frames,” that leaves the door open for further tweaks that could take in more vehicles. That is the problem with legislation like this. It starts focusing on a single genre of vehicle, but can actually apply to any vehicle that comes close to approaching the specified numbers.

The banned squat truck owner’s suspended license could be in effect for years

As for the license suspension, that can stay in effect for “not less than one year.” So with that wording, you could lose your license for two years or many more. It is open-ended just enough to give maximum leeway in what your punishment will be. 

What hasn’t exactly helped is that there were two dueling petitions. One petition got 70,000 people to sign to make squat trucks illegal. Another 23,000 signed a petition that is against the legislation. 

The petition for making it illegal included the specious; “All drivers usually cut off their catalytic converters.” That statement should have killed the petition before the first signature. It also stated that raised front end “causes a side collision to flip a passenger car or truck.” 

The petition in favor of the ban contained some specious claims

Yet, another claim said that a squat truck’s “braking power is worse.” We get that pedestrian visibility can be impaired, but these other “reasons” are ridiculous. It would have been helpful to have actual evidence of owners cutting off their cats and stats on how many pedestrians have been struck by a squat truck. 

Obviously, this had a lot of momentum by lawmakers greasing the skids. Now, it could become a problem for more than squat trucks. One of the few ways we see owners getting around the law is to install an air suspension that either lowers the front or raises the rear. Depending, of course, on which is easier to install and quicker to implement. 

Not that we are promoting breaking the law. It is only being offered as a possibility we could see cropping up. But we will also offer that with very minor tweaks, this legislation could easily apply to lifted 4 x 4s and lowered Porsches, just to name two. 

RELATED: Truck Trends That Need to Go Away

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