{"id":2110,"date":"2022-05-07T09:55:19","date_gmt":"2022-05-07T01:55:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.icaridea.com\/?p=2110"},"modified":"2022-05-07T09:55:19","modified_gmt":"2022-05-07T01:55:19","slug":"a-moms-lessons-helped-get-the-electric-ford-f-150-lightning-built","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.icaridea.com\/?p=2110","title":{"rendered":"A mom’s lessons helped get the electric Ford F-150 Lightning built"},"content":{"rendered":"

close \"Electric Video <\/p>\n

Electric Ford F-150 Lightning revealed<\/h4>\n

The 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning pickup has been revealed with a starting price under $40G. The all-electric truck is the most powerful F-150 ever and offers a range up to 300 miles per charge.<\/p>\n

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!<\/p>\n

Linda Zhang is living the American dream, and making history as she does.<\/p>\n

Zhang is the chief engineer for the electric Ford F-150 Lightning, which is one of the most significant vehicles in the company\u2019s nearly 120-year history, but her story started far from Dearborn, Michigan.<\/p>\n

\"Zhang <\/p>\n

\n Zhang is the chief engineer for the F-150 Lightning.
\n (Jeff Kowalsky\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

She was born in China and moved to the U.S. with her family when she was 8 years old and didn\u2019t speak English. A decade later she was studying to be an electrical engineer at the University of Michigan and interning at Ford, where she\u2019s been for over 25 years.<\/p>\n

Today she\u2019s the mother of two and in charge of a high-profile project with the potential to make or break the automaker\u2019s future, and she thanks the work ethic instilled in her by her mother, a data analyst, for helping get her where she is.<\/p>\n

\"Zhang <\/p>\n

\n Zhang showed the truck to President Biden when he visited Ford last year.
\n (Ford)<\/p>\n

“My mom\u2019s always been hard-working, she\u2019s an ox in the Chinese zodiac,” Zhang said.<\/p>\n

“The biggest thing she\u2019s taught me is just work hard and keep focused on what it is you\u2019re trying to do, and that\u2019s how I\u2019ve continued my own career in terms of getting here and balancing work and home.”<\/p>\n

Zhang worked in manufacturing and business development and was the program manager for the Ford Explorer SUV before moving to the F-150 Lightning, but never put it in front of her own family.<\/p>\n

\"The <\/p>\n

\n The F-150 Lightning team has been working on the truck for nearly four years.
\n (Ford)<\/p>\n

“For me, the fact that I have a successful career is very important, but the fact that I have a successful life at home with two kids is more important to me,” Zhang said.<\/p>\n

“Early on, when my kids were younger, I actually took a break in my career. There were a couple of promotional opportunities that I turned down because I just wanted to make sure that I was there for my kids. I want to pick them up from school at 3:30 p.m., so I\u2019m going to work an earlier shift and get there and if I need to in the evening after they\u2019re in bed, I\u2019m happy to pick up the work again.”<\/p>\n

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP<\/p>\n

Zhang said she\u2019s counted on support from her family and friends as the work has gotten more demanding, and that Ford has been behind her all the way.<\/p>\n

“They sent me back to school for my MBA, whatever it was I wanted to do, they supported it,” she said.<\/p>\n

“I\u2019m a Ford person for life.”<\/p>\n

She\u2019s spent the past week in San Antonio, Texas, hosting dozens of journalists from around the world to tell them about her truck, but is making sure she gets home for the weekend.<\/p>\n

“I can\u2019t wait to see my kids on Mother\u2019s Day.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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