The Ford F-150 Lightning OTA Knob Update Gets a Thumbs Up From Glove Users
Taking a page from Tesla, Ford significantly updates our F-150 Lightning’s software.
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One of our least favorite things about the 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning Lariat we bought for our long-term testing is its over-reliance on the dashboard's massive touchscreen. Simple tasks such as adjusting the cabin temperature and heated and cooled seats, or even changing the drive mode, has been a multistep hunt-and-peck affair—like watching your grandparents send a text. The only physical button on the whole display is a big volume knob. However, this afternoon, our 2022 F-150 Lightning received an over-the-air (OTA) software update that significantly revamps how we interact with the electric pickup, with new software taking advantage of the knob to allow it to do more things than ever before.
Available solely on upper-tier F-150 Lightning Lariat and Platinum, which come standard with the Mustang Mach E's 15.5-inch tablet display, the new Sync 4A software update reprograms the volume knob to act as a multifunction dial. Instead of tapping on the heated seat button on screen then tapping again and dragging your finger to select your heat level, Lightning owners can now tap the heated seat icon and twist the knob right to increase the seat heat or left to turn on the cooling function. The knob works the same way for both the cabin temperature and fan speed, defaulting back to a volume knob after your adjustment is completed.
In addition to the new knob functionality, Ford looks to have reorganized and improved the rest of the infotainment display's software. A new status bar on the top of the screen, which allows you to call up frequently used apps at the touch of a digital button, is the biggest change. No longer will we have to shift quickly to reverse and back to drive to call up the 360-degree camera displays—it now sits prominently next to the Alexa icon we've never touched at the top of the display. The system also shifts and reorganizes icons in a more logical fashion, making it easier to adjust functions such as one-pedal driving while on the move.
No word yet on whether Lightning XLT and Pro owners have any significant software changes to look forward to, but given the base and midlevel trucks sport 12.0-inch displays with plenty of hard buttons, we're betting they're not hurting for the update quite as bad as Lariat and Platinum owners.
In our first pass with our Lightning's revamped Sync 4A system, it seems more responsive and less laggy than before. We're looking forward to getting to know our new truck's new infotainment suite in the coming days. We'll report back on how it works in practice once we've got more time with the system under our belts.
I generally like writing—especially when it’s about cars—but I hate writing about myself. So instead of blathering on about where I was born (New York City, in case you were wondering) or what type of cars I like (all of ’em, as long as it has a certain sense of soul or purpose), I’ll answer the one question I probably get most, right after what’s your favorite car (see above): How’d you get that job? Luck. Well, mostly. Hard work, too. Lots of it. I sort of fell into my major of journalism/mass communication at St. Bonaventure University and generally liked it a lot. In order to complete my degree senior year, we had to spend our last two semesters on some sort of project. Seeing as I loved cars and already spent a good portion of my time reading about cars on sites such as Motor Trend, I opted to create a car blog. I started a Tumblr, came up with a car-related name (The Stig’s American Cousin), signed up for media access on a bunch of manufacturer’s websites, and started writing. I did everything from cover new trim levels to reviewing my friends’ cars. I even wrote a really bad April Fool’s Day post about the next Subaru Impreza WRX being Toyota-Corolla-based. It was fun, and because it was fun, it never felt like work. Sometime after my blog had gotten off the ground, I noticed that Motor Trend was hiring for what’s now our Daily News Team. I sent in my résumé and a link to my blog. I got the job, and two weeks after graduation I made the move from New York to California. I’ve been happily plugging away at a keyboard—and driving some seriously awesome hardware—ever since.
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