School me (us) on smart chargers

[shutterbug]

Thanks for all of the input.

As follow up. I am thinking to wait until closer to when I expect to take delivery of the Lightning (probably late 2023, I'm guessing) to get the charger and risk (what I think is a low probability) that the rebate may not be available then. My thinking is that charger technology may improve in the next year or 2.....maybe not at the pace of battery technology, but appreciably.

Does it make sense to wait?

It probably makes sense to wait if you're not getting the EV for 2 years. However, currently there is a 30% tax rebate for installing EVSE. That expires at the end of 2021. The congress may extend it (they have done it a couple of times), but who knows. Combining the rebate with the $500 that your utility gives you may be compelling.

I suggest you first check with a couple of electricians and get a quote for installing the charger. I'm told that the cost of this work has gone up quiet a bit since last year, due to higher cost of wiring.

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[Fordskeptic]

Thanks again for the input.

 

[3putter]

Will the Ford 80A work with most other EVs? I definitely want to get the 80A when I have my Ligntning, but I may buy a used starter EV in the meantime and don't want to have to buy a EVSE now and then replace it with the Ford 80A when I eventually get my 150L.

 

[sotek2345]

Will the Ford 80A work with most other EVs? I definitely want to get the 80A when I have my Ligntning, but I may buy a used starter EV in the meantime and don't want to have to buy a EVSE now and then replace it with the Ford 80A when I eventually get my 150L.

It is believed so (confirmed by a few reps at events), but not officially stated by Ford. I am still taking the risk and planning on the 80A EVSE to charge both my Lightning (someday) and my wife's Mach-e. Given the time gap, I am installing a 40A Grizzl-e now and will replace it with the 80A unit when I get the Lightning. If figure I can sell the Grizzl-e get some/most of the money back and have the added convenience in the mean time. We don't have a garage and I didn't want to rely on an outdoor plug and the mobile charger in the mean time. I am having the higher gauge wiring run now so I only have to do that once.

 

[adoublee]

Will the Ford 80A work with most other EVs? I definitely want to get the 80A when I have my Ligntning, but I may buy a used starter EV in the meantime and don't want to have to buy a EVSE now and then replace it with the Ford 80A when I eventually get my 150L.

The biggest risk is if the Ford 80A EVSE is equipped with a CCS connector that works with all CCS EVs. I could see staff saying all EV's will work since most are CCS, but be incompatible with Nissan Leaf that has J1772 and an adjacent CHAdeMO. You might avoid Leaf as your gap EV, and/or bark at Ford to release the full specs on the 80A EVSE.

 

[3putter]

The biggest risk is if the Ford 80A EVSE is equipped with a CCS connector that works with all CCS EVs. I could see staff saying all EV's will work since most are CCS, but be incompatible with Nissan Leaf that has J1772 and an adjacent CHAdeMO. You might avoid Leaf as your gap EV, and/or bark at Ford to release the full specs on the 80A EVSE.

Thanks. I'm leaning toward a Hyundai Ioniq EV for my gap car. Pretty sure all the ones I have seen use CCS.

 

[Roy2001]

The standard battery comes with the 32-amp Ford Mobile Charger. This will charger a standard battery overnight at 240V in 14 hours, which is good enough for me.

14 hours is 0-100%. In real world, you never drive down to 0% and seldom charge to 100%. So most of the time, you just need to charge 5-10 hours.

 

[shutterbug]

14 hours is 0-100%. In real world, you never drive down to 0% and seldom charge to 100%. So most of the time, you just need to charge 5-10 hours.

Based on the comments in MME forum, the Ford mobile charger is more susceptible to failure in extreme heat.

 

[Fordskeptic]

That's interesting. Need to research chargers anyway and it is unlikely that I will go with the Ford 48 amp.

 

[MikePinkston]

If this is off topic please direct me to the proper area.

I will be ordering the Lightning on the 26th. It will be my first experience with electric vehicles and I do have range anxiety. I may want to pull a travel trailer with this truck. It will be the standard battery. I don't mind the extra time added to the trip for charging but I don't want to end up on the side of the road either.

So, I had this idea. Why not carry along a 50 amp 240v generator? Would the generator be clean enough to charge the batteries?

 

[adoublee]

If this is off topic please direct me to the proper area.

I will be ordering the Lightning on the 26th. It will be my first experience with electric vehicles and I do have range anxiety. I may want to pull a travel trailer with this truck. It will be the standard battery. I don't mind the extra time added to the trip for charging but I don't want to end up on the side of the road either.

So, I had this idea. Why not carry along a 50 amp 240v generator? Would the generator be clean enough to charge the batteries?

Don't do it. You don't yet know the feeling of range anxiety. You just have range concern at this point.

 

[TRP]

If this is off topic please direct me to the proper area.

I will be ordering the Lightning on the 26th. It will be my first experience with electric vehicles and I do have range anxiety. I may want to pull a travel trailer with this truck. It will be the standard battery. I don't mind the extra time added to the trip for charging but I don't want to end up on the side of the road either.

So, I had this idea. Why not carry along a 50 amp 240v generator? Would the generator be clean enough to charge the batteries?

First let's really think about what you're asking here. Carry a generator with you. Weight is the bane of EV range (one of them anyway). What does that generator weigh? You're defeating yourself here. Second, you start the generator to charge your truck.....you get 25 miles an hour sitting there. You can open an app and find a DCFC (fast charger), drive to it and get 50% of your battery charged in about 30-40min or so. You could find a Cracker Barrel with a L2 charger and get that 25 miles per hour of charge while you're having lunch. You could get a hotel room and use their L2 charger to charge up completely overnight.

Range anxiety, or more accurately, charger anxiety is real. It can be overcome easily on your first short trip tho. Get a couple of apps, plugshare and ABRP (a better route planner). Choose the Lightning as your vehicle and look for fast chargers along a given route. They are out there and easy to find with the right tools. You do need to plan a bit more than with your ICE vehicle but it's not hard to do and can be done from your couch. Plan a couple fo trips and see how easily it can be done. You will stop more often than in an ICE (maybe) but you'll find it doesn't add that much more time to your overall trip if you plan charge stops with your meal stops

 

[Roy2001]

So, I had this idea. Why not carry along a 50 amp 240v generator? Would the generator be clean enough to charge the batteries?

Then why not buy a ICE F150?

 

[Brian Head Yankee]

Look at the Roadie. Our company is looking for fleet solutions so I scheduled a Zoom call with them. They told me they sell a lot of roadies to people who toss it in the trunk just in case. $12,000 for a level 1 system isn't terrible.

Roadie

 

[MikePinkston]

Then why not buy a ICE F150?

I want to do the right thing by the environment otherwise I'd get a Raptor.

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