New here with some stupid questions

[carys98]

Thanks for your input.
Maybe an ev isn't for me.
Which is why I joined this forum, to get an education in ev workings, instead of just buying one.
If I don't go ev, it would likely be a Ram diesel.

Honestly I am a bit surprised that some feel at home charging is the only answer though, with 240 a must. I don't add gas to my ram every trip to town, its only 60 kms round trip to town. That should be a small fraction of the batteries charge used, is all. We typically shop on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, and then go to church Sunday, is our only trips to town.

It is a change in thinking. Some days I drive 0.8 miles round trip to the grocery store and when I get home I immediately plug in and top my battery back up to 80%. It takes me about 15 seconds to grab the cable and plug in. The upside is I never have to spend time going to a gas station. I also don’t think of “filling up” anymore. Today I took a trip and I needed about 110% of my battery capacity to make the trip. I started the day at 100% and on the way home I stopped and added 20% at a DC charger. In an ICE vehicle I would have filled that tank all the way up but I knew I could recharge when I got home while I’m sleeping.

As I said I think all of the lifestyle changes are positive and if you approach it with an open mind you will love having an EV. If you try to treat it the same as an ICE vehicle you will be frustrated. But for me the ability to charge at home is the number one advantage. Even if you only get a 24A charger (same as a dryer or water heater circuit) that will be enough.

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[RickLightning]

As others have said, if you aren’t going to use 240v at home during those really cold days, don't buy an EV. Any EV.

As to visiting your daughter, same thing. If it is -40, you want the truck plugged into 240v. If you are at her house often during extreme temps like that, and not going to install 240v at her house, don't buy an EV.

 

[LightningB514]

Not sure if it’s been mentioned but your range will be almost cut in half in cold weather. I live in the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. I’ve been in below zero weather and the truck does ok but have had issues with public charging. I also garage my Lightning and have a 240 split from my dryer. You will definitely need Level 2 charging or it will be a complete nightmare. Honestly, if I were in your position, I wouldn’t suggest an EV. So much can go wrong especially if you are in very cold weather.

 

[climateguy]

When I shopped for my 2024 Flash, I found it impossible to avoid getting the Ford mobile charger included in the deal. It is an L2 charger that can charge from a 120 volt or 240 volt outlet. What I wanted to do was save the $500 Ford requires a customer to pay for this, and buy a better mobile charger I could use with this truck.

Perhaps things have changed and Ford and its dealers sell these trucks without forcing the Ford mobile chargers onto their customers.

I don't understand why someone who is willing to pay for one of these trucks (the MSRP on my Flash was $67,995) who is unwilling to pay the cost to put in a 240 volt outlet in the garage that they own. I put my outlet in for the cost of the circuit breaker, a few feet of wire, and the outlet. Obviously, the cost of putting in an outlet can be more expensive, if you have to hire an electrician, or increase your service size to accommodate the extra load. Whatever.

In the end, the factors that seemed worth considering before I bought my electric car and electric truck faded away and I took the plunge. I take the attitude that as far as I'm concerned, ICE vehicles do not exist for me as an option.

When anyone starts in questioning why I would accept whatever inconvenience they think using electric vehicles means for me, I just say "I want to stop using fossil fuels". In rare cases, I've said variations of what kind of civilization is this, we're going to tell our descendants, as we hand the huge problem of climate change to them, we just couldn't stop filling the atmosphere with garbage that will end this age of life and possibly end civilization because fossil fuels were too convenient?

 

[cal]

I think all the advice is excellent and you might be missing their point. You’ll figure it after the 1st year. I got my maxed out 22 lariat in 23 after the previous owner gave up on his unrealistic view of Ev’s. He had a lot of $ and just wanted to get rid of it. My point is that he just didn’t understand how the vehicle works and had unrealistic expectations. E.g. 75mph on the highway and not getting 320 miles range. And the estimated daily range started to drop as the truck recognized he was a heavy lead foot. Just a few of the newby complaints that we hear all the time.

 

[potato]

Our daughter who lives in Mcbride, the 260 km regular trip we make, just 10 kms away in town, are charging stations. We can easily go there and charge it during our trip, and top off there before we head home to. While its rare for the temps to be -40 while we are there, it has been in the past.

I live in PG. The good thing about McBride is whichever way you are coming from, there's a "plan B" available - there is emergency "fast" charging (25 kW) at Slim Creek, and a proper 100 kW in Valemount.

260 km would be touch and go in -40. Maybe if you drove really slowly. *but* I would not let the battery get that low in those conditions. If anything goes wrong it goes sideways pretty quickly. I would plan on extra charging stops to give you that margin of error, and just drive normally to preserve sanity.

Last winter it approached -40 for a couple of days but there were only 5 or 6 days where it dropped below -30 here in PG (since I got the truck in January anyway). In those conditions driving at normal highway speeds I was getting about 45 kWh / 100 km efficiency. So 50% worse than in summer. I did a round trip to Williams Lake in -25 to -30 to test exactly that.

I agree that without level 2 charging, you're more likely to run into trouble. But at home with heated garage you're OK, and you're probably OK in McBride, with both BC Hydro and Tesla chargers there now... I think...

 

[Maybe Going EV]

Thanks everyone.
My concern about the slim creek charger is it being the only 1, it not working if i need it.
Down in the bowl it seems to be several degrees warmer than where i live west of PG off hwy 16 towards Vanderhoof. My daughter lives on the other side of McBride, about 10 kms towards jasper.
If I want to add a 240 plug to the house garage, we would have to lose something else, and I'm not willing to do that. I don't care if ford wants to pay me to put the charger in, I'm still not giving up on anything else that we have, for example my hot tub.
Anyone who tried to steal my hot tub will be shot.
The cold, and inconvenient shop has 240, but is less than ideal for parking the pickup in.

I may just wait until technology is betrer in the ev world, and keep driving my ram, option 1.
Buy a lightning and plug it into 120 volts at home, and if if needs a top off in town occasionally, not a big deal, that's option 2.
Or wait a year and buy a ram with the big battery pack, but also has a gas engine that will start if needed on really long trips, option 3.
Shop for a lightly used and low km ram ecodiesel since they stopped building new ones, option 4.

There are 168 hours in a week, so if its plugged into 120 volts, for 155 to 160 hours on a typical week, that should add a very significant amount of charge, often just leaving it on a float mode at 80% where it would be set to not charge past, unless planning a big trip in the near future.
I'm also not a lead foot, tearing off every time a light turns green, or my driving speed on the hwy.
Generally on the hwy I do maybe 101 or 102 kms/hr in a 100 zone, so nobody behind me can complain that I'm driving to slow.
Haven't received a speeding ticket in more than my last 5 million kms driven.
I've read every comment in this thread, and appreciate your input, even if you say don't buy an ev. Potato, glad to know that someone on here lives not too far away from me.
Did you buy it at pgmotors, or go to Quesnel or Vanderhoof like many do. We went to town today, had lunch at Grammas inn on central, and got talking to a lightning owner there, while eating. He loves his lightning, lives on north nechako road, and only plugs his into 120 at home as well. Like me, his is garage kept, not sitting outside in the sun, or -40 when at home. My garage is typically 5 C to 25 C, maybe on occasion it reaches 30 C.

 

[potato]

Bought from PG Ford but probably should have shopped around more. I park outside for now... haven't gotten around to clearing out the garage enough, and it would be a tight fit anyway. Realistically it'll probably stay outside lol.

I would add that in the much more typical -10 to -20 temperatures around here, 260 km would be no problem for an ER. I did the 300 km from my house north of PG to the Mt Terry Fox rest area by Mt Robson using 80%. -12 or so when I left, -7 on arrival. -40 is really an outlier temperature and for me, honestly, it'd be a shelter in place situation, no matter what I am driving, gas diesel or electric. Things go from bad to worse really really fast if anything goes wrong in those conditions.

The Ramcharger will be a great option especially for people who tow. You give up the frunk, but range anxiety is completely gone. Hopefully it's priced sanely.

The Silverado with the gigantic battery might be another option. 700 km range (in ideal conditions) is a little crazy lol. A friend here bought one and is happy with it. I'd think it would be good for 400 km even in really bad winter weather.

The one thing about all this range discussion... the single biggest factor is wind, more than temperature. And that's really hard to plan for.

 

[Kev12345]

Why wouldn't you set up a 240v charger at home? Forget about plugging it in to a 120v outlet. If you don’t have a place to charge at home don’t bother with an EV.

 

[Maxx]

Level 1 vs Level 2 charging:

 

[Henry Ford]

If I want to add a 240 plug to the house garage, we would have to lose something else, and I'm not willing to do that.

What is your familiarity with home electrical panels? It is rarely the case that a level 2 charger can't be added to a home electrical system. It's not impossible but it is something that is frequently misunderstood, which is totally understandable.

The reason people keep coming back to a 240V charger is because we can't imagine living without one. I relieved on 120V for a couple weeks before my charger was installed and it was a bad experience. The charger greatly improves the utility of the truck in most instances.

 

[Kev12345]

Thanks everyone.
My concern about the slim creek charger is it being the only 1, it not working if i need it.
Down in the bowl it seems to be several degrees warmer than where i live west of PG off hwy 16 towards Vanderhoof. My daughter lives on the other side of McBride, about 10 kms towards jasper.
If I want to add a 240 plug to the house garage, we would have to lose something else, and I'm not willing to do that. I don't care if ford wants to pay me to put the charger in, I'm still not giving up on anything else that we have, for example my hot tub.
Anyone who tried to steal my hot tub will be shot.
The cold, and inconvenient shop has 240, but is less than ideal for parking the pickup in.

I may just wait until technology is betrer in the ev world, and keep driving my ram, option 1.
Buy a lightning and plug it into 120 volts at home, and if if needs a top off in town occasionally, not a big deal, that's option 2.
Or wait a year and buy a ram with the big battery pack, but also has a gas engine that will start if needed on really long trips, option 3.
Shop for a lightly used and low km ram ecodiesel since they stopped building new ones, option 4.

There are 168 hours in a week, so if its plugged into 120 volts, for 155 to 160 hours on a typical week, that should add a very significant amount of charge, often just leaving it on a float mode at 80% where it would be set to not charge past, unless planning a big trip in the near future.
I'm also not a lead foot, tearing off every time a light turns green, or my driving speed on the hwy.
Generally on the hwy I do maybe 101 or 102 kms/hr in a 100 zone, so nobody behind me can complain that I'm driving to slow.
Haven't received a speeding ticket in more than my last 5 million kms driven.
I've read every comment in this thread, and appreciate your input, even if you say don't buy an ev. Potato, glad to know that someone on here lives not too far away from me.
Did you buy it at pgmotors, or go to Quesnel or Vanderhoof like many do. We went to town today, had lunch at Grammas inn on central, and got talking to a lightning owner there, while eating. He loves his lightning, lives on north nechako road, and only plugs his into 120 at home as well. Like me, his is garage kept, not sitting outside in the sun, or -40 when at home. My garage is typically 5 C to 25 C, maybe on occasion it reaches 30 C.

slim creek shows a coming replacement/upgrade in 2025. 25kW doesn’t cut it anymore. Northern BC finally getting some love thanks to BC Hydro as well. 400kW chargers incoming . Maybe Tesla will finally complete a route to Alaska.

 

[Shawnson]

Hi.
I live in BC Canada, so very mountainous, and vast regions of remote terrain without chargers.
So before I trade my beloved 2014 Ram 1500 in, want to know how the lightning does in the mountains, cold, towing, and sometimes sitting weeks untouched.
In the summer we tow our boat which is about 5700 lbs all in, including trailer and gas. We also have an enclosed trailer that we haul our 2 quads in. In winter we won't be towing, but it will be -40 some days. At least once a year sit outside at the airport for a month while we go to Mexico in January. I have no plans to put in a 240 volt charger at home, just plug into 120, as it will frequently be used no more than twice a week to go to town and back, which is a 60 km ( 40 mile ) round trip each time. I'm mostly retired now, work 6 weeks a year, driving for two O/O's when they take vacation time for themselves. Spent 40 years driving truck before semi retiring.
We live on an acreage out of town, and as mentioned it won't be driven every day normally, except on vacation road trips, which will be up to 3,000 kms round trip sometimes, and yes we understand stopping to recharge, we aren't doing 3,000 in a day, more likely 800 kms maximum per day.
Also do they only come in 5.5' box, not longer?
Lariat have the long range battery standard equipment?
Is 260 kms without recharging possible at -40?
I last bought a ford F150 in 2007, it had the 5.4 liter gas engine, and wasn't a bad truck...is the lightning fairly reliable?

Thanks

Where in BC do you live, Southern BC is filled with DC Fast Chargers.

Towing weight is not an issue for Lightning, towing range can be, but how far are you towing? Less than 100km? You’ll have an amazing experience.

-40 some days…. Well ICE cars do not love -40C either, but if you keep it plugged in you’ll be fine. If you plan to leave it at an airport, why not just take another vehicle or cab/uber? If you don’t want to baby it, just make sure when you leave it its only at about 50% charge. It will be fine. They sit on dealer lots and dealers don’t baby them.

EVs are not really for people who want to argue about 240V vs 120V, can 120V work, yes, but you’ll hate the experience. Just pull the permit and go to 240V with a NEMA 14-50 outlet, you can use it for welders, heaters, anything. It’s a good, multi-use investment. It’s like saying i want a gas vehicle, but I don’t want to use gas stations, so I want to fill it up with Jerry-cans. Can it be done, sure, but you’re being silly if you can avoid it.

My family chooses to roadtrip our Lightning or Model 3 over our ICE subaru, every time. So don’t worry about road trips, just learn the theory on how to roadtrip effectively. Stop often, get your high speed charging in, and get a move on to the next stop. Focus on charging speed for your stops, and not percentage added (and stop at 80 MAX).

1 side bed length.

You can get 260KM when it’s really cold, but make sure it’s pre-conditioned (you’ll need 240V). Manage your heat reasonably. You’ll be fine. But make sure you know where you’re charging at the end of that 260….

 

[Shawnson]

What is your familiarity with home electrical panels? It is rarely the case that a level 2 charger can't be added to a home electrical system. It's not impossible but it is something that is frequently misunderstood, which is totally understandable.

The reason people keep coming back to a 240V charger is because we can't imagine living without one. I relieved on 120V for a couple weeks before my charger was installed and it was a bad experience. The charger greatly improves the utility of the truck in most instances.

Load Splitters….. Simple Switch is a good one and available in Canada. Most electricians know very little about EV options. OP just needs to find one that does, they will make it work. I have splitters on splitters. You understand Electricity and you can do a lot of things, VERY. SAFELY

 

[Maybe Going EV]

Bought from PG Ford but probably should have shopped around more. I park outside for now... haven't gotten around to clearing out the garage enough, and it would be a tight fit anyway. Realistically it'll probably stay outside lol.

I would add that in the much more typical -10 to -20 temperatures around here, 260 km would be no problem for an ER. I did the 300 km from my house north of PG to the Mt Terry Fox rest area by Mt Robson using 80%. -12 or so when I left, -7 on arrival. -40 is really an outlier temperature and for me, honestly, it'd be a shelter in place situation, no matter what I am driving, gas diesel or electric. Things go from bad to worse really really fast if anything goes wrong in those conditions.

The Ramcharger will be a great option especially for people who tow. You give up the frunk, but range anxiety is completely gone. Hopefully it's priced sanely.

The Silverado with the gigantic battery might be another option. 700 km range (in ideal conditions) is a little crazy lol. A friend here bought one and is happy with it. I'd think it would be good for 400 km even in really bad winter weather.

The one thing about all this range discussion... the single biggest factor is wind, more than temperature. And that's really hard to plan for.

Great information, thanks very much.

Also yes a long trip at -40 isn't likely, but I like to plan for worst case scenario.
Probably wouldn't buy another GM product, had 2, and they were both terrible.
We just spent 5 days at our lake cabin, where if we drove an EV it would be parked outside, plugged into 120 volts. It was 117 kms each way, towing our boat, plus one round trip to the store and back of 14 kms total, not towing. That is a fairly typical trip to the lake, so it would have plenty of time plugged in, and if need be Vanderhoof has charging stations, and we go right through it.

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