Is the F150 Lightning a local commuter (based on real world data)?

[RickLightning]

He'll open it up. It will happen on Elon Time™. Definitely don't hold your breath.

Tesla will open the SuperCharger network when:

- he gets access to part of the billions of dollars in grants
- he can make good money on it

The two may not match up, the government may try to tie his hands on rates before giving him money.

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[FordLightningMan]

I bought a SR XLT, because I always looked at the Lightning as my local driver. Even if I sprung for an ER, my M3P would be the vehicle I take on road trips due to the charging network, so there was no reason to add the bump in cost. There are places I drive where there is genuinely no public charging network besides Tesla, until rural EV adoption increases, that won't change. These are places infrequently visited, so the only reason to install fast chargers would be to service locals, where I assume current EV adoption rates are < 3%. No rural charger in these communities could ever turn a profit when there are only a few EVs in the whole town.

My hope is that in 3+ years the infrastructure catches up and I could even take my SR anywhere. In the meantime, I'm not going to be as brave as others taking their Lightnings on a road trip. Though I'd love to hear some stories from brave SR owners that try some trips!

 

[metroshot]

I bought a SR XLT, because I always looked at the Lightning as my local driver. Even if I sprung for an ER, my M3P would be the vehicle I take on road trips due to the charging network, so there was no reason to add the bump in cost. There are places I drive where there is genuinely no public charging network besides Tesla, until rural EV adoption increases, that won't change. These are places infrequently visited, so the only reason to install fast chargers would be to service locals, where I assume current EV adoption rates are < 3%. No rural charger in these communities could ever turn a profit when there are only a few EVs in the whole town.

My hope is that in 3+ years the infrastructure catches up and I could even take my SR anywhere. In the meantime, I'm not going to be as brave as others taking their Lightnings on a road trip. Though I'd love to hear some stories from brave SR owners that try some trips!

Same here.

My Lightning will be a daily urban commuter vehicle leveraging the HOV / Carpool exemption (solo driver) sticker for CA..

I don't get the chance to drive past 50 MPH on my commute as we are congested daily. And driving under 50 MPH will yield the best range, mixed with city stop and go traffic.

I don't have range anxiety like a lot of newbies have so getting an ER battery for an extra 90 miles of range is not a worthwhile option for me.

On the plus side, I never see a "winter" or cold months as I live in the hot desert southwest.

Having driven a PHEV for 4 years, I have learned a lot about using EV range, regen, and other ways to extend driving range.
My PHEV gets 100%-140% range everyday due to the warm weather year round so I expect my Lightning to be similar.

If I take a long distance drive - I have mapped lots of DCFC and L2 chargers on the route are not an issue for me.

 

[beatle]

It’s going to get better rapidly over the next few years but many places have pretty spotty CCS coverage right now. You’ll definitely need to plan more or adjust trips until CCS catches up with SC.

That's the thing - the CCS networks are not expanding very much. EA is currently only growing at a 10% rate which is pretty slow given its small footprint of ~750 stations.. Further, those chargers that do break, stay broken for a while. There is one 350kw EA station on I-81 in SW VA that will be a regular stop for me when I head down there, but it has had issues for several weeks: https://www.plugshare.com/location/146815

Having a station or two offline isn't that big of a deal when you have 8-16 of them to choose from, but when you only have 4, it can be a real issue, especially since there may not be any other options if you roll in with 10% or even 20% SoC. For example, that one station is 67 miles from the nearest 150+kw station. There are a few 50kw stations within 17 miles though.

Northern PA / western NY is another charging desert.

 

[sotek2345]

That's the thing - the CCS networks are not expanding very much. EA is currently only growing at a 10% rate which is pretty slow given its small footprint of ~750 stations.. Further, those chargers that do break, stay broken for a while. There is one 350kw EA station on I-81 in SW VA that will be a regular stop for me when I head down there, but it has had issues for several weeks: https://www.plugshare.com/location/146815

Having a station or two offline isn't that big of a deal when you have 8-16 of them to choose from, but when you only have 4, it can be a real issue, especially since there may not be any other options if you roll in with 10% or even 20% SoC. For example, that one station is 67 miles from the nearest 150+kw station. There are a few 50kw stations within 17 miles though.

Northern PA / western NY is another charging desert.

Western NY isn't too bad along the I-90 corridor, and NY is expanding charging along both I-90 and I-87 by rebuilding all of their rest stops and adding DC fast chargers to all of them. Once done, that will give you a DC fast charge opportunity every ~30 miles.

Reference, I did the Albany -> Pittsburgh drive (and back) with 0 issues in our Mach-e.

 

[Mr. Flibble]

My hope is that in 3+ years the infrastructure catches up and I could even take my SR anywhere. In the meantime, I'm not going to be as brave as others taking their Lightnings on a road trip. Though I'd love to hear some stories from brave SR owners that try some trips!

Two years ago I was talking with my in-laws about having an EV. In their town, there were no chargers at all, and there were none on the highways around them. The nearest single charger to them was in Macomb, an hours drive away. Today, when you look at their town in plugshare you see this:

Something everyone needs to remember is that it is still early days. EV's account for only 5.2% of vehicle sales in the US. Sure, to a lot of us who have had EV's for some time, and were early-early adopters, it starts to feel like there are chargers on every corner.

This situation is only going to improve over time - and if it is profitable for businesses, they will get installed even faster.

The SR F150 is way better than the Kia Soul EV we have. At the rate chargers are going up, I am sure it will become capable for road trips in only a few years.

Look at Buc-ee's gas stations. They are massive. It won't be long before there are similar things for EVs as adoption goes up. It makes sense, as EV's have to sit at the chargers longer, meaning more profits for business owners.

The stations are coming faster than you might think.

 

[beatle]

Western NY isn't too bad along the I-90 corridor, and NY is expanding charging along both I-90 and I-87 by rebuilding all of their rest stops and adding DC fast chargers to all of them. Once done, that will give you a DC fast charge opportunity every ~30 miles.

Reference, I did the Albany -> Pittsburgh drive (and back) with 0 issues in our Mach-e.

That's good to hear. I'm coming from the DC area, and once I hit Dubois there really isn't anything until I get to Jamestown. To be fair, Tesla isn't really much better here from a station standpoint.

 

[FordLightningMan]

The issue isn't the 40,000 people towns like Quincy, there is an economical reason to add charging infrastructure in and near these places. The problem is the 1,000 people towns, like the one I grew up in. I still visit these places regularly to see old friends, many of them are an hour from the nearest interstate, which are dotted with chargers off exits. Add in cold weather in the northeast, you definitely are in a charging desert. I do not see a viable way to use my XLT SR visiting these remote areas and it will be years before that changes, unless I find a nice friend with a level 2 charger.

It's all about use case though, in 95% of instances the SR Lightning will work. Visiting these areas is one of those 5% cases which is problematic. The main reason I bought my Lightning is I like to visit and setup shop at flea markets, I couldn't haul enough in my car to setup a table before. The Lightning saved the day, plus now I can have a grill, refrigerator, TV, etc. with me, it will be fantastic!

 

[Theo1000]

I will be using my Lightning for long distance driving. Don't anticipate too many problems.

Per OP's post. JMT but think the folks made some elementary errors in the CCS charging world.

I say this a someone who drives a Etron, MachE, Volt and I3 and drive fairly long distances here in the MW and been driving EV’s since 2002. The options today are truly amazing.

Regularly make trips in my Etron and MachE to Colorado, Texas, Chicago area, Dakota’s (yes Dakota’s). Even driven to Destin Florida.

Keep in mind folks also decided to skip a EA fast charger, when you always stop at EA fast chargers even if you only get 10%-20%. Never skip an EA charger. Doubling back is never a happy situation.

In fact I’m driving to Eastern Indiana next week in my Etron and have my route already mapped with back up options. I don’t anticipate any issues.

First rule of CCS EV world for long distance travel. ABC. Always Be Charging. Even if on 110 v.

Second up check plug share and the comments always before planning your stops. Most CCS stations work these days but not all. Plugshare will let you know. Check the comments folks, this is important not optional.

Third up always carry a cheapo 110 volt EVSE. It will default to 12 amps but still get you a few extra miles. (hint- does not need a ground).

Fourth up anyone who read up even a little on the MachE forum would know to ignore the Ford charger navigation. Plan your charging with ABRP or Plugshare.

Finally always carry the following in your frunk. Get this before your lightning gets here. I already have my pack ready.

• Cheapo 110v EVSE
• 100’ of heavy duty extension cable.
• Dryer extension cable.
• L2 EVSE, usually comes with vehicle.

Also these 1.8 type numbers came from folks coming from ICE trucks. I guarantee once the EV folks like me get hold of the truck much better number will come along. On the Etron, ICE folks talk of 1.9 to 2.2 for regular riders but I usually get 2.6-2.9. Even in winter I rarely dip below 2.4. And I like to use the massager and use the het pump liberally. I won’t have any issues staying above 2.0 on the Lightning.

Also WRT TSLA, the range is inflated as they typically drop on the lower end. It will say you have 80 miles and will be lucky to get 50 miles out of it on the bottom end. BTW now that the congress bill to send money to TSLA to open their network is pretty much dead, the chance of the TSLA opening its network is about Zero to less than zero. Never going to happen. TSLA already loses tons of money on its charge network, it is more likely that they will spin it off and dump it rather than subsidize it for CCS folks. This was another elon bad decision.

This ended up a little long...

 

[sotek2345]

The issue isn't the 40,000 people towns like Quincy, there is an economical reason to add charging infrastructure in and near these places. The problem is the 1,000 people towns, like the one I grew up in. I still visit these places regularly to see old friends, many of them are an hour from the nearest interstate, which are dotted with chargers off exits. Add in cold weather in the northeast, you definitely are in a charging desert. I do not see a viable way to use my XLT SR visiting these remote areas and it will be years before that changes, unless I find a nice friend with a level 2 charger.

It's all about use case though, in 95% of instances the SR Lightning will work. Visiting these areas is one of those 5% cases which is problematic. The main reason I bought my Lightning is I like to visit and setup shop at flea markets, I couldn't haul enough in my car to setup a table before. The Lightning saved the day, plus now I can have a grill, refrigerator, TV, etc. with me, it will be fantastic!

Do your friends have a dryer outlet? Could always use the mobile charger and J1772 extension cable. Should cover most situations. Toss them $10 for the electricity (which will be more than it actually is unless you are there overnight).

 

[greenne]

Western NY isn't too bad along the I-90 corridor, and NY is expanding charging along both I-90 and I-87 by rebuilding all of their rest stops and adding DC fast chargers to all of them. Once done, that will give you a DC fast charge opportunity every ~30 miles.

Reference, I did the Albany -> Pittsburgh drive (and back) with 0 issues in our Mach-e.

i88 is a little sparse but getting better.

But then again its not just chargers-- not much between Albany and Binghamton...

 

[greenne]

That's good to hear. I'm coming from the DC area, and once I hit Dubois there really isn't anything until I get to Jamestown. To be fair, Tesla isn't really much better here from a station standpoint.

There just isn't much between i80 and i90 except snow....

 

[Mr. Flibble]

The issue isn't the 40,000 people towns like Quincy, there is an economical reason to add charging infrastructure in and near these places. The problem is the 1,000 people towns, like the one I grew up in. I still visit these places regularly to see old friends, many of them are an hour from the nearest interstate, which are dotted with chargers off exits. Add in cold weather in the northeast, you definitely are in a charging desert. I do not see a viable way to use my XLT SR visiting these remote areas and it will be years before that changes, unless I find a nice friend with a level 2 charger.

It's all about use case though, in 95% of instances the SR Lightning will work. Visiting these areas is one of those 5% cases which is problematic. The main reason I bought my Lightning is I like to visit and setup shop at flea markets, I couldn't haul enough in my car to setup a table before. The Lightning saved the day, plus now I can have a grill, refrigerator, TV, etc. with me, it will be fantastic!

I have been to some small towns that have no gas stations for quite some distance. I have been in remote areas where I have needed extra jerry cans of diesel.

The upshot around EVs is that in most of these remote locations there is often still power. Installing an EV charger is much easier than building a gas station. Sure, L3 stations are unlikely to be found in small towns - but I anticipate we start to see L2 chargers become common place.

The anticipated date for EV sales parity is 2030. Thats only 8 years away. If 50% of all new car sales are EVs, this means that the need for chargers will increase. I suspect we see L3 chargers on most large/medium highways, and L2 chargers at most small towns/stops. If L3 chargers become profitable for businesses to install, they will appear even faster.

Sure, right now small towns with only 1000 people are difficult to reach with EVs. This will change.

 

[beatle]

I had a similar experience just a month after I bought my Model S

I do not see a viable way to use my XLT SR visiting these remote areas and it will be years before that changes, unless I find a nice friend with a level 2 charger.

I had an experience like that back in 2019 just a month after I bought my Model S. It was November and I was visiting a big group of friends in Blacksburg to see a football game. He only had a 120v receptacle in his garage and I planned to sleep in my car, so I knew I wouldn't recover much in the way of range. The nearest supercharger was Wytheville, just over 50 miles of highway up a mountain. The next nearest was Lexington, 84 miles the other direction. It was going to be close even if I charged to 100% in Lexington.

I found a residential EVSE on Plugshare in Blacksburg owned by a Leaf driver. Bonus points - he was within walking distance of my friend's place. I explained my situation and asked if he would mind if I charged there for a few hours - he kindly obliged and saved the day.

Clearly this was not ideal, but it made the trip possible and a lot less stressful.

 

[F150ROD]

I’ll be taking 1800 mile trips in my Lightning, but it will be planned out with option a b and c, just like when I owned a Model 3. Tesla has issues with chargers being available during weekends/holiday, not a big deal.

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