Holding a patent protects your idea or design, even before you ever bring it to market—if you ever do that. Plenty of patents cover ideas that won't ever see the light of day, but could. That's why manufacturers like Ford will still patent rather outlandish ideas for current and future vehicles, just in case. One latest example seems to be forward thinking in the literal sense with a storage idea for the frunk, or front trunk, of future electrified pickups and that idea extends into an interesting image of an unnamed pickup. Could it be another tease of Project T3, Ford's next-gen EV pickup?
The storage idea in this patent is simple at first blush, as it's a cabinet to store tools inside the frunk space of an electric pickup truck like the Lightning. The less simple idea is integrating a sliding, stacked shelf that looks to be integrated into the front grille and upper portion of the front bumper. Considering that can you have great amount of room in the front of an electric pickup truck, this sliding shelf idea sounds great for those looking to maximize the cargo space of the frunk. But there is a unique issue: the current F-150 Lightning's frunk wouldn't really allow for this design.
Another Hint At Project T3?
That's when we see another interesting image in this patent. It's a line drawing of a cab-forward pickup truck, in which the passenger space nestles up against the front wheels, like on a front-wheel-drive car. This would require a new frunk design with its minimized front overhang and reduced space behind its front wheels. In this case, a sliding, stacking shelf is the perfect solution to retain a key feature that only an EV pickup could have. What we wonder is if maybe Ford is giving away the future design of its next-generation electric pickup, otherwise known as Project T3.
One of the designs of Project T3 calls for a "Ranger-sized" pickup truck, and going to a cab-forward design like this would allow for a midsize pickup to utilize the same architecture as a larger EV F-150 and do so without compromising the space for a bed or the cabin. We'll continue to keep our eyes out for any further hints in future Ford patents, as this wouldn't be the only design idea that would require some unique thinking for a shrunk-down body on a communized electric pickup architecture. Something like needing a new steering system, for example, or a new crush structure might be needed to make this a reality, if it's really pointing towards a cab-forward electric pickup from Ford.
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December 20, 2023 at 05:38AM
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Ford Patents Frunk Storage Idea, Hints at Unconventional Truck Layout - MotorTrend
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