Adventures
RACING LIGHTNING
Introduced through mutual friends at the first supercar rally SWAE ever attended, Jeffery and Christian of JR's Garage have become fast friends. In an industry overloaded with entitled trust fund beneficiaries and egomaniacs, Jeffery and Christian are self-made men - having forged success through a keen eye for resale value in everything from classics, supercars, and airplanes. Doing most of the refurbishing and restoration themselves - we couldn't have asked for better partners in the industry.
For this adventure, the boys bought a new Ford Lighting and took it for an extended drive through some of the most sparse regions for electric car outlets, northwest Montana. Due to recent gas hikes and inflation, EVs (electric vehicles) have become incredibly sought after. Still, the infrastructure to keep your car on the road can be complicated in more rural regions. Thus began a two-part video series showing what the truck is capable of and how difficult it might be to navigate the landscape of Montana in an electric vehicle.
After some initial snags, the boys arrived safely in the Flathead Valley, looking to test the capabilities of their new electric ride. We, of course, would be more than happy to oblige them in a race on the airstrip adjacent to their new property situated high atop a mountain overlooking beautiful Flathead lake.
Friendships Forged in Speed
Trevin set off with the orange Performante, ready to see what this new lightweight electric vehicle could do against all the horsepower a Lamborghini can muster. So, on a beautiful sunny summer afternoon, with the lake resting peacefully in the background, the cars lined up on the starting line. Now, a compromise had to be made to allow for a fair race. First, Trevin couldn't use "launch" mode. Second, the Performante had to be left in "Strada" mode drive settings. This is the mode used for the best fuel economy, so between the EV and Strada mode, this might have been one of the most environmentally friendly drag races ever.
As the two vehicles took off at full speed, the hillsides echoed with the sound of the V10 engine engaging and thrusting Trevin forward. Without launch mode engaged on the Lambo, the Ford Lighting jumped off the line considerably faster. With far higher torque and than the Performante, the Ford lighting was off to an electric start.
As expected, though, once the acceleration test was over, the pure speed went to the gas engine, as the Lambo quickly took multiple car lengths on the pickup. We verified why these two cars aren't in the same class after a few more tests with different settings, always with similar results. The truck held its own, better than any other pickup of the same size could hope to do against a supercar, but the Performante remained the champ.
Smiles spread across everyone's faces as we marveled at how excellent the day had been. We'd done something no one else had ever done. To our knowledge, this was the first drag race ever recorded between a Lamborghini and a Ford Lighting. For a video of the race with the Ford Lightning, head to JR's Garage YouTube channel and view the whole story. Also, to see the Ford Lighting's trip from Bozeman up to the Flathead Valley, It's worth the watch.
