Compare the2025 Ford F-150 LightningVS 2025 Tesla Cybertruck

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the F-150 Lightning are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Cybertruck doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, Full-Time Four-Wheel Drive is standard on the F-150 Lightning. But it costs extra on the Cybertruck.

The Ford F-150 Lightning has Daytime Running Lights to help keep it more visible under all conditions. Canadian government studies show that driving with lights during the day reduces accidents by 11% by making vehicles more conspicuous. The Cybertruck doesn’t offer Daytime Running Lights.

The F-150 Lightning has standard 911 Assist, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Cybertruck doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the F-150 Lightning and the Cybertruck have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Ford F-150 Lightning is safer than the Tesla Cybertruck:

	F-150 Lightning	Cybertruck
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.8 inches

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Ford F-150 Lightning is safer than the Tesla Cybertruck:

	F-150 Lightning	Cybertruck
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	13	38
Chest Movement	.5 inches	.7 inches
Abdominal Force	117 lbs.	120 lbs.
Hip Force	112 lbs.	215 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	11 G’s	21 G’s
Hip Force	89 lbs.	341 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	427 lbs.	623 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

There are almost 14 times as many Ford dealers as there are Tesla dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the F-150 Lightning’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Ford vehicles are better in initial quality than Tesla vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Ford above average in initial quality. With 87 more problems per 100 vehicles, Tesla is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Ford vehicles are more reliable than Tesla With 13 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Ford higher than Tesla.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ March 2025 Auto Issue reports that Ford vehicles are more reliable than Tesla vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Ford 4 places higher in reliability than Tesla.

Engine

The F-150 Lightning’s optional electric motors produces 35 lbs.-ft. more torque (775 vs. 740) than the Cyberbeast’s optional electric motors.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the F-150 Lightning’s front brake rotors are larger than those on the Cybertruck:

	F-150 Lightning	Cybertruck
Front Rotors	14 inches	13.8 inches

The F-150 Lightning stops shorter than the Cybertruck:

	F-150 Lightning	Cybertruck
70 to 0 MPH	180 feet	187 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	117 feet	126 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

The F-150 Lightning Short Bed Platinum’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Cybertruck’s 65 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the F-150 Lightning Short Bed Platinum has standard 22-inch wheels. The Cybertruck’s largest wheels are only 20-inches.

Suspension and Handling

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the F-150 Lightning’s wheelbase is 2.4 inches longer than on the Cybertruck (145.5 inches vs. 143.1 inches).

The F-150 Lightning Short Bed Platinum handles at .77 G’s, while the Cyberbeast pulls only .75 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The F-150 Lightning Short Bed Platinum executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Cybertruck AWD (26.8 seconds @ .66 average G’s vs. 27.4 seconds @ .69 average G’s).

Passenger Space

The F-150 Lightning has 2.8 inches more front legroom, 5.3 inches more front hip room, 3.4 inches more front shoulder room, 1.3 inches more rear headroom, 2.7 inches more rear legroom, 5.4 inches more rear hip room and 3.9 inches more rear shoulder room than the Cybertruck.

Cargo Capacity

The Cybertruck’s spare tire is stored in the cargo area, where it diminishes the useable cargo capacity and interferes with loading and unloading. The F-150 Lightning’s spare is out of the way underneath.

The F-150 Lightning’s cargo box is larger than the Cybertruck’s in almost every dimension:

	F-150 Lightning	Cybertruck
Length (short/long)	67.1”	72.9”
Max Width	65”	51”
Min Width	50.6”	48”
Height	21.4”	19.9”

The Ford F-150 Lightning has a standard Tailgate Lift Assist, which prevents the heavy tailgate from falling with a crash and causing injury. It allows adults and children to easily open and close the tailgate with one hand to better facilitate loading and unloading. The Tesla Cybertruck doesn’t offer a tailgate assist.

The Ford F-150 Lightning offers an optional Tailgate Step, which folds out and allows for much easier access to the cargo area. The Tesla Cybertruck doesn’t offer a rear cargo step.

The F-150 Lightning has bed indentations that accommodate 2x4’s for two-tiered loading to help accommodate diverse loads; the Cybertruck doesn’t offer two-tiered loading.

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier, especially for short adults, the F-150 Lightning Lariat/Platinum has a standard power cargo door, which opens and closes automatically by pressing a button. The Cybertruck doesn’t offer a power cargo door.

Ergonomics

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the F-150 Lightning XLT/Flash/Lariat/Platinum’s available exterior PIN entry system. The Cybertruck doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the F-150 Lightning has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Cybertruck doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The F-150 Lightning’s standard side window demisters help clear frost or condensation from the side windows in the winter. The Cybertruck doesn’t even offer side window demisters, so the driver may have to wipe the windows from the outside to gain side vision.

The F-150 Lightning Platinum has standard massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the Cybertruck.

The F-150 Lightning Platinum’s Active Park Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Cybertruck doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Recommendations

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the F-150 Lightning as the 2023 North American Truck of the Year. The Cybertruck has never been chosen.

The Ford F-Series outsold the Tesla Cybertruck by almost 19 to one during 2024.

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