- An electric Ford won the 2024 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb
- Romain Dumas piloted the Ford F-150 Lightning SuperTruck to claim his fifth overall win at the event
- The Ford F-150 Lightning SuperTruck is a one-off demonstrator designed to dominate at the hill climb
French racing driver Romain Dumas claimed his fifth overall win in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on Sunday by piloting the wild Ford F-150 Lighting SuperTruck to the finish line in a time of 8:53.533.
The SuperTruck version of Ford’s F-150 Lightning electric pickup is a one-off demonstrator, tuned for the Pikes Peak run to deliver 1,600 hp. It’s fitted with an aerodynamics package capable of delivering more than 6,000 pounds of downforce.
Dumas was entered in the Open Class and still managed to take home the win despite the truck coming to a stop shortly after the start. Dumas completely reset the vehicle and was able to finish, though his final result was around 26 seconds slower than his qualifying time.
The second and third fastest on the day were Christian Merli and Dani Sordo, with respective times of 9:04.454 in the Unlimited Class and 9:30.852 in the Exhibition class. The record for Pikes Peak still stands at 7:57.148, set in 2018 by Dumas behind the wheel of Volkswagen’s ID.R demonstrator.
Dumas also drove a similar Ford SuperVan 4.2 demonstrator at Pikes Peak last year, setting a time of 8:47.682 in a vehicle with similar power to the SuperTruck. Ford said it used lessons from the SuperVan’s run to develop the SuperTruck.
Helping in the development of the SuperTruck’s powertrain was STARD, an Austrian company that builds electric vehicles for motorsports, especially rallying.
In addition to its potent powertrain and wild aerodynamics, the SuperTruck features carbon-ceramic brakes, Pirelli P Zero tires wrapped around forged magnesium wheels, and a custom inboard suspension system.
Ford has a long history at Pikes Peak, going back to 1916 when a driver in a Model T completed the 14,115-foot summit of the Colorado mountain in just over 28 minutes.