Electric ute comparison: Ford F-150 Lightning v Rivian R1T v Ram 1500 REV v Radar RD6

Electric utes are heating up (in a good way)

As one of Australia’s most in-demand segments, utes are common sight for equipment hauling, school runs and holiday road trips – but they're nonetheless a significant contributor of harmful exhaust fumes, yet the choice for those seeking an all-electric ute remains slim.

The Chinese-born LDV eT60 4x2 is the only new electric ute on sale from a manufacturer, with a high price tag, sub-par capabilities, and a limited features list.

In contrast, electric utes are gaining traction overseas from legacy and new automakers, particularly in the US – hailed for their effortless torque for off-roading, practicality, and low centre of gravity.

How do these key electric utes fare on paper and is there any chance of them coming Down Under amid impending fuel efficiency standards?

JUMP AHEAD

• Pricing
• Performance
• Driving range
• Dimensions
• Towing
• Cargo space
• Charging
• Features
• Safety
• Availability

Pricing

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Based on direct pricing conversions, the Chinese-born Radar RD6 is the cheapest electric ute by far – even undercutting most combustion engine powered utes today – given it’s only a two-wheel drive ‘lifestyle’ pickup similar to the Hyundai Santa Cruz or Ford Maverick overseas.

While pricing hasn’t been announced for the Ram 1500 REV, expect it to be well into six-figures in line with the Ford F-150 Lightning and Rivian R1T.

Unlike the traditional carmakers, Rivian allows buyers to pick-and-choose between different electric drivetrain and battery pack configurations, instead of preset model grades.

Most variants of the electric Ford ute, including the Pro, XLT and Lariat, come with a Standard Battery (prices listed below), but can be optioned with an Extended Range battery.

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Performance

The Rivian R1T has the advantage for power and torque outputs thanks to an optional four-motor drivetrain individually powering each wheel.

While the forthcoming Ram 1500 REV has respectable figures, it’s worth noting that the Stellantis-owned company didn’t state whether the specifications are limited to the top-spec Tungsten or across all trim grades and only disclosed ‘targeted’ numbers ahead of its launch.

The Ford F-150 Lightning falls short in power numbers, especially on the Standard Range battery, but outputs strong maximum torque.

Unsurprisingly, the Geely-owned Radar RD6 electric ute is the outlier in this list since it’s designed to mainly be an urban runabout.

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Driving range

Electric driving range remains a key barrier to adoption, but these American carmakers are countering the inefficient, high and blocky design of the ute body style with gigantic battery sizes.

The Ram 1500 REV has a targeted range of up to 800 kilometres using its largest 229kWh battery pack.

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‘Smaller’ batteries, such as the Ford F-150 Lightning’s 98kWh usable unit, delivers less range – but it’s still suitable for commercial operations that have fixed pre-planned driving routes and distances everyday.

On the other hand, the Chinese-made Radar RD6 lifestyle ute is more akin to electric passenger cars using a longer lifecycle lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) chemistry as standard, with larger packs adopting the more energy-dense nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) type.

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Dimensions

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The Radar RD6

The Ford F-150 Lighting is based on the best-selling 14th generation internal combustion engine passenger truck with a body-on-frame chassis, whereas the Ram 1500 REV uses a dedicated body-on-frame EV platform.

In contrast, the Rivian R1T and Radar RD6 adopt more passenger car-like unibody EV underpinnings.

The Ford is the biggest electric ute in this comparison, but EV startup Rivian can afford better off-roading abilities due to an adjustable air suspension system.

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Towing

The Ram 1500 REV offers the best maximum towing capabilities and payload in this comparison.

In contrast, the Radar RD6 has poor payload on all three battery sizes.

No manufacturer disclosed unbraked towing ratings.

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Cargo space

Naturally, the largest Ford F-150 Lightning boasts the biggest bed with a large electrically operated ‘frunk’ (front storage space), despite being based on a traditional combustion engine platform.

Rivian doesn’t detail the R1T’s tray capacity in litres, but is dimensionally smaller than both the F-150 EV and even the Radar RD6 as it prioritises interior space. Its tailgate can drop down to extend the cargo length, though.

All four electric utes feature sizable weather-protected frunks, with the Rivian gaining a see-through tunnel beside the rear wheel axles to hide long items.

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Charging

All electric utes are capable of vehicle-to-load (V2L) to act as a mobile power station for powering tools and devices via a bevy of outlets at the tray or frunk.

Only the Ford and Ram boast vehicle-to-home (V2H) and vehicle-to-grid (V2G) which, when connected to a compatible bidirectional charging station, can discharge their large battery packs when not in use to power homes and stabilise the electricity grid to ultimately help owners go off-grid.

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All models at least have an 11kW AC onboard charger, with the F-150 Lightning Extended Range battery benefiting from an upgraded 19.2kW AC unit.

The Ram 1500 REV has the fastest rated 350kW maximum DC charging capability, with a higher level 800-volt class battery architecture theoretically enabling ultra-rapid charging times and cooler charging thermals (thanks to lower current).

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Features

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Safety

All four electric utes include most active safety assistance technologies, such as auto emergency braking (AEB), blind-spot monitoring, and rear cross-traffic assist.

On the Ford F-150 Lightning, adaptive cruise control, lane centring assist, speed sign recognition, evasive steering assist, and AEB with intersection detection are standard or optional on higher trim grades.

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Similarly, the Radar RD6 only features adaptive cruise control and a 360-degree camera on higher-end variants.

None of the three American electric utes have been tested by the US government’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), but only the Rivian R1T has earned the highest 2023 Top Safety Pick+ award from the nonprofit Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

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Availability

The Ford F-150 Lightning remains off the cards for Australia. But, the possibility is there since the petrol-guzzling F-150 twin will land in Australia this year with a right-hand drive conversion done in Melbourne. It’ll also go global to Norway soon.

Meanwhile, the smaller Ford Ranger-sized Rivian R1T could come Down Under in the future, with the startup’s business plans previously outlining Australia for a potential global rollout. It brought two examples here in 2021 for climate testing, but don’t expect it to come anytime soon as it establishes itself in the US first.

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The Ram 1500 REV is looking most likely for Australia, with the current V8 petrol-powered Ram 1500 dominating the American ute sales charts locally and a right-hand drive conversion facility (via the Walkinshaw Group) recently expanding in Melbourne.

There’s even a possibility for the Radar RD6 to be imported to Australia via Geely-owned counterpart Volvo Australia – but nothing is firm yet.

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