Joe Biden takes battery-powered Ford F-150 for a spin in Detroit
US President drove the F-150 Lightning during his visit to Ford's new EV Centre
President Joe Biden made an unscheduled stop at a Ford Motor Co. test track outside Detroit on Tuesday, where he hopped into the company's new all-electric F-150 pickup truck and took a spin.
"This sucker's quick," Biden said after pulling up in front of reporters accompanying him.
"I'm just gonna step on it. I'll come off at 80 miles an hour," he said. "Okay, here we go. You ready?" he added, before hitting the gas - err, accelerator - in the truck and speeding across the track.
Biden said in conversation with an unidentified Ford official that the new truck, dubbed the "Lightning," accelerates from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 4.3 or 4.4 seconds - a figure that the official said hasn't yet been revealed.
"I should be quiet," Biden joked.
Ford will publicly debut the truck on Wednesday. Biden visited the company's new Rogue Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn, Michigan, to promote his infrastructure plan, which would put billions of dollars into U.S. electric car development.
The White House didn't announce the stop at the test track before Biden arrived. U.S. presidents seldom get a chance to drive vehicles themselves while in office, out of concern for their safety and security.
In remarks at the plant, Biden boasted that he's a "car guy." The president owns a General Motors Co. 1967 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray.
