Get ready to charge your F-150 Lightning™ -- email link from Ford

[Pelican]

I'm not ordering a Lightning until they offer wireless charging?

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[Pelican]

Before I pay for the truck?
Absolutely - with interest to go along with it

 

[Pelican]

I know nothing about solar panels, but I wonder why they couldn't be added to the roof to help recharge while you're on the road. Since it has a frunk, cant we just load all our crap in it and get a solar package to lay in the bed when we're traveling on vacation? I was not a fan of this truck because of the amount of time to recharge and the range, but I'm starting to see all the aftermarket possibilities that will be coming. Its exciting

 

[pstansel]

I know nothing about solar panels, but I wonder why they couldn't be added to the roof to help recharge while you're on the road. Since it has a frunk, cant we just load all our crap in it and get a solar package to lay in the bed when we're traveling on vacation? I was not a fan of this truck because of the amount of time to recharge and the range, but I'm starting to see all the aftermarket possibilities that will be coming. Its exciting

The efficiency on a solar panel of that size is minuscule. You would get very, very little.

 

[IdeaOfTheDayCom]

I know nothing about solar panels, but I wonder why they couldn't be added to the roof to help recharge while you're on the road. Since it has a frunk, cant we just load all our crap in it and get a solar package to lay in the bed when we're traveling on vacation? I was not a fan of this truck because of the amount of time to recharge and the range, but I'm starting to see all the aftermarket possibilities that will be coming. Its exciting

I keep thinking the same thing. Unlike a car, it's completely possible to have all sorts of charging options for going off-grid. If nothing else, you could even haul a conventional generator or portable battery pack.

Tesla claims to be working on a solar tonneau cover, and I've seen some third party panels that open up to triple the surface area when parked.

 

[Pelican]

The efficiency on a solar panel of that size is minuscule. You would get very, very little.

oh. I wasn't sure. Thinking about building a Zero Energy Ready Home and thought why not a vehicle too or at least to help minimize the need to charge.

 

[Tony Burgh]

oh. I wasn't sure. Thinking about building a Zero Energy Ready Home and thought why not a vehicle too or at least to help minimize the need to charge.

Just spitballing here. Let’s say you live in Columbus. The best insolation in July is almost 6 kwh/sq meter/day. If you put 25 sq ft of panels on the tonneau cover that‘s 2.3 sq meter. If you get 20% conversion efficiency you end up with 2.3X6X0.2 or under 3kwh each sunny July day. From November through January you get 1/3 of that.
So somebody please check my arithmetic but I think solar panels aren’t practical in this case.
BTW - I played with the numbers because I was thinking the same thing as you. Western PA gets even less sunshine than central Ohio.

 

[sotek2345]

Just spitballing here. Let’s say you live in Columbus. The best insolation in July is almost 6 kwh/sq meter/day. If you put 25 sq ft of panels on the tonneau cover that‘s 2.3 sq meter. If you get 20% conversion efficiency you end up with 2.3X6X0.2 or under 3kwh each sunny July day. From November through January you get 1/3 of that.
So somebody please check my arithmetic but I think solar panels aren’t practical in this case.
BTW - I played with the numbers because I was thinking the same thing as you. Western PA gets even less sunshine than central Ohio.

If anything, your numbers are a bit on the generous side (25 sq ft is high when you account for joints and the like, you aren't accounting for losses from the panels not being at the right angle the majority of the time, there will be losses in going from solar output to battery input, etc.). Solar tonneau's are a marketing gimmick except in very few overlanding scenarios at the limit.

 

[Pelican]

Just spitballing here. Let’s say you live in Columbus. The best insolation in July is almost 6 kwh/sq meter/day. If you put 25 sq ft of panels on the tonneau cover that‘s 2.3 sq meter. If you get 20% conversion efficiency you end up with 2.3X6X0.2 or under 3kwh each sunny July day. From November through January you get 1/3 of that.
So somebody please check my arithmetic but I think solar panels aren’t practical in this case.
BTW - I played with the numbers because I was thinking the same thing as you. Western PA gets even less sunshine than central Ohio.

Thank you for running numbers Tony. I'm in Portage County, OH. We definitely get a lot less than central OH. In fact, the US Government built an amunition facility in Portage County, OH because of the fact it is covered by cloud cover so many days a year.

 

[hturnerfamily]

the 'solar panels on the roof' has already been debunked by all of the manufacturers, from a cost-versus-outcome financial scenario. the miniscule trickle charging would amount to you trying to run your stove, on high, off a iphone charger brick - it's just a matter of numbers as why it doesn't work.
if you look at the average home that has went to the expense to install solar on their roof, that amount of solor would still not charge your truck's battery during a FULL day of sunlight, in summer. The power that is needed to charge one of these 100-125kw batteries is enormous.

 

[stimpy]

the 'solar panels on the roof' has already been debunked by all of the manufacturers, from a cost-versus-outcome financial scenario. the miniscule trickle charging would amount to you trying to run your stove, on high, off a iphone charger brick - it's just a matter of numbers as why it doesn't work.
if you look at the average home that has went to the expense to install solar on their roof, that amount of solor would still not charge your truck's battery during a FULL day of sunlight, in summer. The power that is needed to charge one of these 100-125kw batteries is enormous.

This. I have 27 solar panels on my roof that work out to be 7.2 KW of peak power. I get on an average sunny day 30-40 KWh of energy production. It would take me 3 peak days of production to charge the Lightning from 15-80%.

I typically drive less than 30-40 miles most days and that works out to about 10KWh of energy in my Tesla. So my house solar array covers all of my daily driving, but you are not going to get much useful production from an array the that fits on the roof of your car. If you are off grid and using very little electricity, then yes these small arrays can be useful, but for driving, not so much.

 

[jazzmanmonty]

Finally got around to checking out the ford email. Not happy about no more affordable 48 amp charger.. 15 hours to charge Pro with standard charger?! They need to come out with the 48amp charger and price it around $650. There's no reason to spend $1310.00 for 80 amp and deal with the extra electrical install problems if it doesn't charge a Pro in 8 hours.

 

[IdeaOfTheDayCom]

Finally got around to checking out the ford email. Not happy about no more affordable 48 amp charger.. 15 hours to charge Pro with standard charger?! They need to come out with the 48amp charger and price it around $650. There's no reason to spend $1310.00 for 80 amp and deal with the extra electrical install problems if it doesn't charge a Pro in 8 hours.

You can find quite a few good chargers out there including the ChargePoint Flex that will give you decent charge rates at a good price.

The main reason for the higher priced Charge Station Pro is the feature to use your truck to power your home.

If you need backup power for your house on a regular basis, it's not a bad option because it's still cheaper than a Tesla Powerwall. Of course, that also means you need to remain parked outside, so it's not something I would need.

Meanwhile, there is still yet another option for people who want to deliver backup power to their home... the jacks in the truck bed, especially with the 9.6 upgraded power. You could tap into the same kinds of transfer ports used by gas powered generators.

I rarely lose power, so in the unlikely event of a sustained power outage, I'll just run a couple of extensions to some essentials like my fridge.

 

[Tony Burgh]

Finally got around to checking out the ford email. Not happy about no more affordable 48 amp charger.. 15 hours to charge Pro with standard charger?! They need to come out with the 48amp charger and price it around $650. There's no reason to spend $1310.00 for 80 amp and deal with the extra electrical install problems if it doesn't charge a Pro in 8 hours.

Although I only have 150 service, I will install the Pro that comes with the ER battery with 100 amp breaker but dial it down to 48 amps. That should be better for the truck and not strain the house electrical system. But if I need to charge at 80 amps, I’ll shut down other circuits and run at fast charge if I need to.

 

[gorwell]

They need to come out with the 48amp charger and price it around $650

I just bought and installed this (hardwired, 6awg thhn wire):

Emporia Smart Level 2 EV Charger | Up to 48 Amp | WiFi Enabled Electric Vehicle Charger | NEMA 14-50 or Hardwired | Indoor/Outdoor Charging Station | 24-Ft Cable https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09BP1GM76/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_i_SY5911HWXWRKC9P7MTNT

Will max out standard range charging speed only $399.

App works well gives full read out of costs and full scheduling. Syncs with ultity for pricing (from a third party source). On the fly amp changes ( don't always need to pull max).

Using it for my ioniq 5 right now.

Only complaint I have for it is the cable is pretty thick (in comparison to the chargepoint). But I guess it's some security so I don't accidentally cut it somehow.

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