50,000 miles - What a long, strange trip it's been.

[columbiaskier]

Yeah I admittedly don’t know too much about Toyota’s hydrogen strategy but I do live/work in fossil fuel land and hear that there is a lot of work on the infrastructure side that has to happen. Given that we’re still having trouble producing a reliable charging network, something that is much less complicated than hydrogen transportation, I’ll keep my bets with BEVs for the near future.

Thanks for paving the way on the 50k miles btw.

Sponsored

 

[Helium]

Yeah I admittedly don’t know too much about Toyota’s hydrogen strategy but I do live/work in fossil fuel land and hear that there is a lot of work on the infrastructure side that has to happen. Given that we’re still having trouble producing a reliable charging network, I’ll keep my bets with BEVs for the near future.

Thanks for paving the way on the 50k miles btw.

I'll make certain I post as things crop up. I want others to have as easy time with it as possible.

 

[02Reaper]

Man this is Awesome! Keep us updated!

 

[MickeyAO]

One of my neighbors is a diehard Toyota hydrogen fan. He thinks they are going to stop the BEVs in their tracks. He just doesn't know what a hassle the cryogenic and high pressure systems\infrastructure is going to be like.

We should actually start a sub-Forum on here called “Stuff ICE Owners Say About BEVs”.

Just ask him where the nearest hydrogen refueling station is or if he plans on producing it at home

Yes, we are testing several fuel cell (hydrogen) systems at SwRI, but the one vehicle we have is not near as much fun to drive as most BEVs.

 

[Helium]

Just ask him where the nearest hydrogen refueling station is or if he plans on producing it at home

Yes, we are testing several fuel cell (hydrogen) systems at SwRI, but the one vehicle we have is not near as much fun to drive as most BEVs.

I know you can generate hydrogen from the natural gas infrastructure so it isn't a insurmountable problem but it is a long ways away. I just don't see how they can get around the carbon dioxide generation issue getting it from natural gas. With BEVs, and especially with the new battery technologies around the corner, you can make carbon neutral electricity from nuclear plants, solar or wind stations. I just don't see the advantage to the hydrogen vehicles. It is energy intensive, needs special handling, reduces the cargo space in the vehicle in order to get decent range, etc. If people complain about BEV fires, just wait until they see what happens to hydrogen when ignited, that'll be fun. But new technologies could solve any of these issues BUT it still has to compete against BEVs. Modern BEVs are sexy because they are fun to drive and there is billions of dollars in research going into BEVs because there is a market for them.

 

[rdr854]

@ me, too

it’s been in the shop for it and they just say they can’t find codes

@Ford Motor Company - everyone’s air dam glitches constantly, please send help

How do we know if the air dam glitches?

 

[O’Majestic1’slightnigF150]

I am curious about 2 things people (me) were concerned with early on.

The front cooler (coolant radiator). How’s yours doing with all the gravel. I have a ‘99 F350 which if you can believe it has a similar location setup. Since the ‘99 was in great shape after 200k miles I went ahead with the Lightning purchase. August delivery, 10k miles.

Gravel again. How is your paint job holding up behind the wheels? How is the wheel well material taking its pounding?

thanks and great write up. Apologies if someone else asked. This is a long. thread!! I skipped ahead.

 

[cvalue13]

How do we know if the air dam glitches?

you’ll get an annoying ding and notice on dash

can’t miss it

 

[Maxx]

Great read. It puts my mind at ease knowing it may take me more than 5 years to get to 50K.

someone from Ford (will remain nameless because I don't want to get her\him into trouble) reached out about the battery pack recall (23H01) and recommended I give the Electric Vehicle Customer Service a call

Did you already get a recall notice before then? Or you were lucky that employee saw your battery health on his/her monitor by accident and called you? In other words did it sound like a lot of us are driving around with the same battery issue and will never know until our trucks are barbecued? or did it sound like everyone that should will get that call?

The Aptera electric two-seat trike has a smaller high pressure zone than the F-150's mirrors. In testing they noticed the windshield didn't collect bugs at all.

your 500 mile Cybertruck may have less of that problem with the mirrors and the smaller front face . It may be easier to clean the bugs off the steel. With their supercharger network, you may not need a 500 mile truck. Around me, there are a lot trips with my pro that makes me dependent of 50Kw or slower Charger so we take my wife’s ICE. I would take the same trips with my Pro if Tesla network was open.

 

[Helium]

Did you already get a recall notice before then? Or you were lucky that employee saw your battery health on his/her monitor by accident and called you?

During that time I was getting a lot of spam calls, I wasn't picking the phone when the official customer service team was trying to reach me by phone. So if they haven't reached out to you, then you are probably good. If you are at concerned, give the EV Customer Service team a call.

My other mistake was assuming the correct path was to go through the dealership and all would be well. DO NOT DO THIS. Go through the EV Customer service team. Give them a quick call if you are concerned.

 

[Helium]

I am curious about 2 things people (me) were concerned with early on.

The front cooler (coolant radiator). How’s yours doing with all the gravel. I have a ‘99 F350 which if you can believe it has a similar location setup. Since the ‘99 was in great shape after 200k miles I went ahead with the Lightning purchase. August delivery, 10k miles.

Gravel again. How is your paint job holding up behind the wheels? How is the wheel well material taking its pounding?

thanks and great write up. Apologies if someone else asked. This is a long. thread!! I skipped ahead.

I haven't had any issues with either the cooler, wheel wells, or the paint that I have noticed. Since I have running boards but somehow don't have mud flaps I'm a bit surprised there isn't at least some paint damage. If yours doesn't have running boards and\or mudflaps I might suggest getting that taken care of.

 

[Maxx]

During that time I was getting a lot of spam calls, I wasn't picking the phone when the official customer service team was trying to reach me by phone. So if they haven't reached out to you, then you are probably good. If you are at concerned, give the EV Customer Service team a call.

My other mistake was assuming the correct path was to go through the dealership and all would be well. DO NOT DO THIS. Go through the EV Customer service team. Give them a quick call if you are concerned.

Thanks for a very helpful info. My battery health on ODBII reads at 100% and I have less than 3K on it. Usually running it between 30%-70% SOC. So I am not worried yet. I assume, I would have to call general customer service and ask for EV customer service? Or they have a dedicated number? It was a pleasure reading your original post. Keep writing.

On a different note, I have seen a screen shot of what Ford technicians see (a matrix of voltage on each cell). If anyone reading this knows how to get that info periodically without having to stand over the shoulder of a Ford technician, please do share.

 

[FirstF150InCasco]

Well not 50,000 miles but how about 49,534 miles since June 6th 2022 in my Rapid Red Ford F-150 Lightning Lariat. Gather around children, sit back, and listen to my tail of woe. It has thrills, chills, spills, and kills!

Again not quite, it has been pretty boring, with minor irritations along the way.
Just to put it out there, I live in a rural area of the country that is flat and spread out. I don't get the typical EV advantage like you might if you lived in a city nor do I get amazing regen rates from hills or mountain passes. I normally drive within 5 miles of the speed limit which I estimate 80% is 60-65 mph. I also estimate my city driving is less than 5%. My expressway/interstate driving is probably around 10% with the rest being on gravel roads.

General

1. I charge at home with the Ford Charge Station Pro better than 95% of my charge sessions.
2. I use Electrify America almost exclusively when traveling
3. When tripping, I always stop and charge twice as often as theoretically necessary in case a station is out of order, this distrust has served me well.
4. I normally charge to 90%, but occasionally charge to 100% right before I leave to go a significant distance.
5. If I'm charging at a fast charging station, I'll charge it to 80% as the rule but I have pushed that to 90% out of distrust of the EA infrastructure.
6. The Ford Charge Station Pro is de-rated to 66 amps since it throws fewer errors than at 80 amps, but it still throws faults.
7. Averaged 2.1 m/kWh. The absolute best I've seen on the readout for any significant length of time (47 miles) was 3.6 m/kWh (warm day, tail wind, it was glorious)
8. Actual Range is about 275 miles on a full charge
9. Still have 312 miles of the original 320 miles of estimated range at 66F.
10. When charged at home, it costs me about $0.035 per mile
11. I have spent less than $2,000 dollars to cover 49,534 miles
12. Gas in my Silverado would have cost me around $14,860 at 13 mpg at $4.00 a gallon (approximate average cost of gas over the past year)
13. The tread life on my tires has been amazing. I fully expect them to last another 10-15K miles more.

Maintenance Issues\drama:
So, as you might expect, there must be at least one maintenance issue. Turns out, there have been two. Battery fault and air dam fault. The air dam fault gets thrown randomly when passing through the 45-50 mph speed zone though it has popped up at lower and higher speeds. 2 visits to the shop, no resolution.

The battery fault is the one that got to me. So, let's bring a touch of drama to this tale. I receive multiple emails telling me my battery has thrown a fault. I, being a loving and caring Lightning owner, call the shop immediately and get scheduled in for service. I can't let MY BABY! be neglected. The day before I took it to the shop, I received a letter in the mail with the line: "You are receiving this letter because you have not responded to our attempts to contact you...." Now I'm really concerned, there must be something really terribly wrong with the battery. OH NO! MY BABY IS SICK! I took her to the shop the next day. Since the shop is 28 miles away, I take the afternoon off from work because "MY BABY IS SICK!"

The dealership tech and the service manager had no idea why Ford was insistent I bring my truck in. The BEV support desk didn't either. 2 weeks later, the Ford tech that was supposed to look at the scans and tell the dealership tech what parts to replace didn't know what parts needed to be replaced. We are still waiting to hear, and it has been months.

Disaster Strikes!
The fateful morning was awash in oppressive foreboding. You could tell the day wasn't going to end well. The animals were nervous. Dogs barking at nothing. Chipmunks and squirrels constantly snapping their heads left and right, looking for danger. I just knew something was off when I rolled out of bed. It was probably the fact I was somehow wearing my girlfriend's underwear, my god, that was painful.

Outside, in the front yard, the water company was repairing the fire hydrant. I decided to move my vehicles to a short access road next to my property to get them out of the water company's workers' way because accidents do happen (notice the foreshadowing there, heightens the drama, I can tell a story!). This was the fateful decision that would bring me to tears eight hours later. One of the contractors working on the house across the street decided to back into the access road so he could turn his pickup and trailer around and leave. 3 people witnessed the terrible event. 2 of them are unable to return to work and are seeing a therapist daily. I am certain you are wailing into the night with tears running down your face, "Say it ain't so! How could this hardworking, beer drinking, flag waving, apple pie eating every man be so careless!"

His trailer tire rubbed the corner of my bumper. When I was alerted to the issue, I ran to MY BABY's side, to not just comfort and console, but to heal if I could but I knew I couldn't make it right! I was helpless! I...had....failed...her! How could she ever forgive me?! That feeling of when something is done and there is no going back. I was wracked by sobs as I felt MY BABY's pain. It tears at your soul and makes you curse Einstein for not allowing us to travel back through time to fix terrible wrongs and tragedies alike. "Nay", he says, "You shall not pass! Embrace your suffering you ignorant fool!" Einstein was like that, cold and merciless.

Anyway, the guy had left but he came back and gave me his insurance information. It costs the insurance company about $625 to fix. No wait on parts, no problem, good job though I had to take it to the Chevy dealership for the body work...talking about embarrassment.

Observations
It is a 90% solution as far as trucks go. The truck does what it is advertised to do. I can do everything I want to do with it but then again, I did not buy it to pull big bulky trailers. When it comes to that, it is not necessarily the trucks' fault but the infrastructure. If we had as many charge stations as gas stations, even this would not be a problem. People forget that this is a Lightning. The last version of the Lightning could not carry more than 500lbs in the bed. I can carry 1800lbs with my configuration.

The FUD out there about electric vehicles is astounding. Everything from about how they will bring down the electrical infrastructure (OH NO! it isn't like we haven't double the capacity of the electrical infrastructure 3 times since the 1970s) to how toxic the batteries are (have you taken a whiff out of diesel tail pipe lately), to how much it cost to recharge (these people don't know how to read their electric bill and do the math).

Either I am extraordinarily lucky, or Ford went into the EV truck space in a serious manner. I have read that the Lightning is so good it forced Tesla into a redesign. I do not know what the truth\reality is, but my truck has been amazingly trouble free. For my use case it checks nearly every box.

I used to get stopped all the time by people asking questions about it. The newness in this area has warn off so it does not happen as much. I have my tour of the truck down pat enough that I get asked if I am a salesperson for Ford. I have noticed attitudes change dramatically when I mention how much I save on maintenance and fuel. I have about 10% of people say they would never own one, but they do not really have a rational\technical\pragmatic reason. I suspect it has more to do with politics than the actual vehicle.

I was incredibly surprised at how many women like the truck, with a few noting the remote frunk opener would be amazingly handy.

I have never felt the punch in the chest on acceleration but passengers and the one and only person that I let drive MY BABY! said they felt it. As with nearly all electric cars, it accelerates faster than you will ever need with only minor torque steer.

I am tempted to install a small diesel-powered heater on the battery for winter. Where I am at it is not terrible but if ever move further North, I will do it in a heartbeat. Using a gallon of diesel to add significant range to my battery for several months of the year seems like an obvious compromise. I'm willing to bet it would not be that difficult to do so.

Things I would change:
More range. I have come home at night with only 5 miles left on the charge. 320 miles of theoretical range is not enough, I have to think too much about range\charging. If caught on a 20F day, into a head wind, on the expressway, I can lose 40% of my range. Seeing 1.2 m/kWh on the display is not comforting at all. Due to this, if I am more than a hundred miles from home and there is a charger handy, I will stop and charge it to 80%. But because I am very conscientious of ensuring I am constantly charging if I am at home, I have never really been gripped by range anxiety. I have only been denied going somewhere a couple of times because of the charge level.

More on range. It appears Ford has "tuned" the configuration and shape of the truck to get the most out of it. It appears any minor change, from tires to aerodynamics, just reduces range. Combining this with environmental conditions, road surface, etc. Makes mods a no go.

I really do want factory installed refrigerated cup holders in the center console. This is such a no-brainer.

The front grill is ugly, and it collects bugs like an entomologist.

The lights that run across the tail gate and front grill should be tinted the color of the vehicle, so they don't stand out during the day.

Finally, there are a lot of bells and whistles on the Lariat trim level that I'll never use but everyone else that sees them loves them.

edit: fixed a lot of typos

GREAT write up. Well written, and interesting. One question: Have you throught about an after-market solution to the very ugly front grill? It really detracts from the truck's looks.

 

[Nikos]

I haven't had any issues with either the cooler, wheel wells, or the paint that I have noticed. Since I have running boards but somehow don't have mud flaps I'm a bit surprised there isn't at least some paint damage. If yours doesn't have running boards and\or mudflaps I might suggest getting that taken care of.

I haven't had any issues with either the cooler, wheel wells, or the paint that I have noticed. Since I have running boards but somehow don't have mud flaps I'm a bit surprised there isn't at least some paint damage. If yours doesn't have running boards and\or mudflaps I might suggest getting that taken care of.

Hello Helium....
50K.... that's a lot of miles.
I thought 25K for a year were a lot.
We got our Lightnings at the same time. The same trim also. I don't know where the middle of nowhere is for you, but for me is in the middle of a neighborhood in NW South Carolina.
Just 11K on mine but quite wonderful experience so far.
No issues yet but the air dam issue was occasionally popping up 5 months ago. I believe an OTA updates took care of that issue, unless a sensor is malfunctioning. The OK button on your steering wheel will reset the fault, as you know, and hopefully wouldn't see it again for awhile. I saw it pop once 3 days ago, while towing my 5K camper to the coast. Saw it once. I reset it again. No issues since then.
I have taken my truck through National Forest gravel roads for overnight camping. The truck does very well. Haven't noticed any paint erosion or damage. It seems like Ford didn't intended to put mudflaps on this vehicle. When I inquired at the dealership, they had them for regular F150s but not for the Lightning.
Weathertech hasn't made any also, yet. It must be something about the aerodynamics and the tuning of the truck for max efficiency. If you look at your wheel wells, everything is covered in ballistic plastic. Any aftermarket mods and definitely altering the efficiency of the truck.
Although I don't like the tires the truck came with, I do agree, they seem to hold up very well so far, but I am looking for an alternative.
It seems you meet almost the same kind of people everywhere you go.
I get to talk to naysayers but 90% are impressed, interested and willing to try this truck. Unless you are willing to change your thinking process, maybe then they should wait for another day in the near future for an EV.
People stick to what is comfortable for them, by choice.
It seems that range anxiety is not an issue, like the rest of us. We plan ahead and make sure it doesn't bite us in the ass. Yes.....we all would like a little bit more range from our trucks, but we are first adaptors.
We all thought Tesla will be the first with a truck, but Ford delivered it first.
Now the rest are watching and hoping their trucks will have bigger batteries so they can crow that they have longer range. In the meantime, we wait for the next thing.
Well.....as you described, my truck cost me $40-$60 a month using the Ford Charge Pro wallbox set at 80amps.
In my area the KW is priced at 13 cents. The naysayers I work with at least get that math. Charge my truck at off peak times for $5 a charge versus $80-$90 a tank full.
Ohh....yes....the battery recycling issue.
That stupid argument of ignorance when they don't even know what happens to the lead acid batteries they replace regularly other than paying $5 for the old dead battery.
Check Johnson Controls and Florence SC about lead acid battery recycling.
What a poisonous mess this was.
As you said, stick your nose for a minute at a diesel tailpipe.
Every disruptive technology has resistance to adaptation.
The naysayers would let the first ones try it first, see how it works out and then maybe jump in much later. There is a lot of hesitation/making excuses to try something completely new.
I also agree with trying to solve some of the issues you have with a phonecall to Ford Customer Support. They will open a case # and try to resolve your issues, but you have to be patient. It is in their best interest to resolve any issues you have with the truck.
Helium.....this is the only Real truck other than the Rivian R1T. Never owned a truck. This is the first and my favorite. It is a tool, it is a truck and yes it tows. It tows my 5000lbs travel trailer like a freight locomotive on steroids. Screeching tires on command. Just once or twice. Just enough to put a smile on my face and see the look on everyone's face as they watch me pull away.
Now about that 50K milestone.
You got me beat. I have couple years before that mark is reached.
Don't loose any sleep about battery degradation. When the temps are above 65°, you will get 320 + 10-15miles when you charge to 100%. I get that in mine now. Yes, cold weather is an impediment. Got to stay warm, yourself and the battery.
As you mentioned, EA is your preferred option to fast charge. Of course, yourself, as the rest of us have found, EA isn't perfect. It's okay, but not what they promised. In some locations it plainly SUCKS. Can't wait for Tesla's supercharger adaptation.
I am glad you are having fun with your truck. I do also.
My wife jabs me because she call the truck" PRECIOUS".
I call it " ZEUS ". The god of Lightning.
Have fun with it.
Good luck.

 

[Bills R Electric]

Well not 50,000 miles but how about 49,534 miles since June 6th 2022 in my Rapid Red Ford F-150 Lightning Lariat. Gather around children, sit back, and listen to my tail of woe. It has thrills, chills, spills, and kills!

Again not quite, it has been pretty boring, with minor irritations along the way.
Just to put it out there, I live in a rural area of the country that is flat and spread out. I don't get the typical EV advantage like you might if you lived in a city nor do I get amazing regen rates from hills or mountain passes. I normally drive within 5 miles of the speed limit which I estimate 80% is 60-65 mph. I also estimate my city driving is less than 5%. My expressway/interstate driving is probably around 10% with the rest being on gravel roads.

General

1. I charge at home with the Ford Charge Station Pro better than 95% of my charge sessions.
2. I use Electrify America almost exclusively when traveling
3. When tripping, I always stop and charge twice as often as theoretically necessary in case a station is out of order, this distrust has served me well.
4. I normally charge to 90%, but occasionally charge to 100% right before I leave to go a significant distance.
5. If I'm charging at a fast charging station, I'll charge it to 80% as the rule but I have pushed that to 90% out of distrust of the EA infrastructure.
6. The Ford Charge Station Pro is de-rated to 66 amps since it throws fewer errors than at 80 amps, but it still throws faults.
7. Averaged 2.1 m/kWh. The absolute best I've seen on the readout for any significant length of time (47 miles) was 3.6 m/kWh (warm day, tail wind, it was glorious)
8. Actual Range is about 275 miles on a full charge
9. Still have 312 miles of the original 320 miles of estimated range at 66F.
10. When charged at home, it costs me about $0.035 per mile
11. I have spent less than $2,000 dollars to cover 49,534 miles
12. Gas in my Silverado would have cost me around $14,860 at 13 mpg at $4.00 a gallon (approximate average cost of gas over the past year)
13. The tread life on my tires has been amazing. I fully expect them to last another 10-15K miles more.

Maintenance Issues\drama:
So, as you might expect, there must be at least one maintenance issue. Turns out, there have been two. Battery fault and air dam fault. The air dam fault gets thrown randomly when passing through the 45-50 mph speed zone though it has popped up at lower and higher speeds. 2 visits to the shop, no resolution.

The battery fault is the one that got to me. So, let's bring a touch of drama to this tale. I receive multiple emails telling me my battery has thrown a fault. I, being a loving and caring Lightning owner, call the shop immediately and get scheduled in for service. I can't let MY BABY! be neglected. The day before I took it to the shop, I received a letter in the mail with the line: "You are receiving this letter because you have not responded to our attempts to contact you...." Now I'm really concerned, there must be something really terribly wrong with the battery. OH NO! MY BABY IS SICK! I took her to the shop the next day. Since the shop is 28 miles away, I take the afternoon off from work because "MY BABY IS SICK!"

The dealership tech and the service manager had no idea why Ford was insistent I bring my truck in. The BEV support desk didn't either. 2 weeks later, the Ford tech that was supposed to look at the scans and tell the dealership tech what parts to replace didn't know what parts needed to be replaced. We are still waiting to hear, and it has been months.

Disaster Strikes!
The fateful morning was awash in oppressive foreboding. You could tell the day wasn't going to end well. The animals were nervous. Dogs barking at nothing. Chipmunks and squirrels constantly snapping their heads left and right, looking for danger. I just knew something was off when I rolled out of bed. It was probably the fact I was somehow wearing my girlfriend's underwear, my god, that was painful.

Outside, in the front yard, the water company was repairing the fire hydrant. I decided to move my vehicles to a short access road next to my property to get them out of the water company's workers' way because accidents do happen (notice the foreshadowing there, heightens the drama, I can tell a story!). This was the fateful decision that would bring me to tears eight hours later. One of the contractors working on the house across the street decided to back into the access road so he could turn his pickup and trailer around and leave. 3 people witnessed the terrible event. 2 of them are unable to return to work and are seeing a therapist daily. I am certain you are wailing into the night with tears running down your face, "Say it ain't so! How could this hardworking, beer drinking, flag waving, apple pie eating every man be so careless!"

His trailer tire rubbed the corner of my bumper. When I was alerted to the issue, I ran to MY BABY's side, to not just comfort and console, but to heal if I could but I knew I couldn't make it right! I was helpless! I...had....failed...her! How could she ever forgive me?! That feeling of when something is done and there is no going back. I was wracked by sobs as I felt MY BABY's pain. It tears at your soul and makes you curse Einstein for not allowing us to travel back through time to fix terrible wrongs and tragedies alike. "Nay", he says, "You shall not pass! Embrace your suffering you ignorant fool!" Einstein was like that, cold and merciless.

Anyway, the guy had left but he came back and gave me his insurance information. It costs the insurance company about $625 to fix. No wait on parts, no problem, good job though I had to take it to the Chevy dealership for the body work...talking about embarrassment.

Observations
It is a 90% solution as far as trucks go. The truck does what it is advertised to do. I can do everything I want to do with it but then again, I did not buy it to pull big bulky trailers. When it comes to that, it is not necessarily the trucks' fault but the infrastructure. If we had as many charge stations as gas stations, even this would not be a problem. People forget that this is a Lightning. The last version of the Lightning could not carry more than 500lbs in the bed. I can carry 1800lbs with my configuration.

The FUD out there about electric vehicles is astounding. Everything from about how they will bring down the electrical infrastructure (OH NO! it isn't like we haven't double the capacity of the electrical infrastructure 3 times since the 1970s) to how toxic the batteries are (have you taken a whiff out of diesel tail pipe lately), to how much it cost to recharge (these people don't know how to read their electric bill and do the math).

Either I am extraordinarily lucky, or Ford went into the EV truck space in a serious manner. I have read that the Lightning is so good it forced Tesla into a redesign. I do not know what the truth\reality is, but my truck has been amazingly trouble free. For my use case it checks nearly every box.

I used to get stopped all the time by people asking questions about it. The newness in this area has warn off so it does not happen as much. I have my tour of the truck down pat enough that I get asked if I am a salesperson for Ford. I have noticed attitudes change dramatically when I mention how much I save on maintenance and fuel. I have about 10% of people say they would never own one, but they do not really have a rational\technical\pragmatic reason. I suspect it has more to do with politics than the actual vehicle.

I was incredibly surprised at how many women like the truck, with a few noting the remote frunk opener would be amazingly handy.

I have never felt the punch in the chest on acceleration but passengers and the one and only person that I let drive MY BABY! said they felt it. As with nearly all electric cars, it accelerates faster than you will ever need with only minor torque steer.

I am tempted to install a small diesel-powered heater on the battery for winter. Where I am at it is not terrible but if ever move further North, I will do it in a heartbeat. Using a gallon of diesel to add significant range to my battery for several months of the year seems like an obvious compromise. I'm willing to bet it would not be that difficult to do so.

Things I would change:
More range. I have come home at night with only 5 miles left on the charge. 320 miles of theoretical range is not enough, I have to think too much about range\charging. If caught on a 20F day, into a head wind, on the expressway, I can lose 40% of my range. Seeing 1.2 m/kWh on the display is not comforting at all. Due to this, if I am more than a hundred miles from home and there is a charger handy, I will stop and charge it to 80%. But because I am very conscientious of ensuring I am constantly charging if I am at home, I have never really been gripped by range anxiety. I have only been denied going somewhere a couple of times because of the charge level.

More on range. It appears Ford has "tuned" the configuration and shape of the truck to get the most out of it. It appears any minor change, from tires to aerodynamics, just reduces range. Combining this with environmental conditions, road surface, etc. Makes mods a no go.

I really do want factory installed refrigerated cup holders in the center console. This is such a no-brainer.

The front grill is ugly, and it collects bugs like an entomologist.

The lights that run across the tail gate and front grill should be tinted the color of the vehicle, so they don't stand out during the day.

Finally, there are a lot of bells and whistles on the Lariat trim level that I'll never use but everyone else that sees them loves them.

edit: fixed a lot of typos

"The FUD out there about electric vehicles is astounding. "

The person that cuts my hair said....."I would never get an Electric Vehicle, because those batteries throw off a lot of lithium dust, and it is very toxic. It will make you really sick." Palm to face.