New here with some stupid questions

[Maybe Going EV]

What kind of trucks did you own? I work for Volvo Trucks as a Manufacturing Engineering Product Owner in the assembly plant, so I’m hoping you say Volvo or Mack!

Over the years I did have some Volvos, when I sold them all I had 3 of them, also KW, and WS.
All truck brands have good and bad things about them, Volvo are just as good as the rest. If I was going to go buy a new truck today, there is a decent chance it would be a Volvo. A customer who I hauled for many years, keeps asking me to buy a couple trucks, and pull for him.
Honestly I have considered it.
Just buy 2 trucks and 2 trailers, hire 2 drivers, i can do the maintenance on them, and drive when they need a day off or take vacation time. I must be crazy to even consider getting back into it. A pair of day cabs, like the VNX300 in tri drive, with tri axle trailers. Hopefully its just temporary insanity, and the thoughts pass soon of getting back into it.

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[Maybe Going EV]

Yesterday we ordered a Lighting.
Correction, my wife ordered it, I looked around at vehicles on the lot. She is the one who wants it, and i despise salesmen and business office people.

 

[potato]

Yesterday we ordered a Lighting.
Correction, my wife ordered it, I looked around at vehicles on the lot. She is the one who wants it, and i despise salesmen and business office people.

Guess you will have to change your user name

 

[Maybe Going EV]

Guess you will have to change your user name

Maybe in time

 

[hturnerfamily]

my wife really didn't understand my own desires and reasons to go 'EV', with our former Leafs, and now our LIGHTNING, and even her new KIA EV9... but...

give it some time, and....


now, she would never consider going 'back' to gas ...
she has gotten very used to the 'silence' of an EV...
she has gotten very used to the simple 'go' when pressing the pedal - no more 'waiting' for the engine and transmission to figure out what to do, and when to do it...
she has lost any knowledge of what gas smells like anymore...
she has gotten used to 'plugging in' the KIA...
she has gotten used to never having to stop at a gas station, even with a 65 mile daily commute...
she has grown accustomed to stopping very infrequently, as needed, for longer trips, whether in the EV9, the Lightning, or while TOWING the camper with the Lightning...

she doesn't give any of it a second thought, anymore...

 

[Ragman]

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

You are likely to both love and hate a Lightning. We ran the trucks in -35 some foul weather last year, best truck I’ve driven in that weather and at same time I’ll now wait before ever driving in it again.

The SR I would not trust past 125 km in arctic cold, the truck can’t keep the battery pack warm and most you’ll see at a DC charger is 40 kWh. The ER’s not much past 150km - the worst I’ve seen is 50kw/100 km but a lot of mid 40s.

In winter you don’t want to really go below 25% and which leaves you about 70-90 kw depending on battery pack.

I run off a 120 at home but I have 10 chargers at work. In the -35 the truck still got its 1kw but the battery is cold soaked so forget getting far range wise. Hit the interior warmer and plugging in all night is gone.

If you do get one put a 40 amp plug it’s cheap. Under $200 in material and use the portable in winter.

Your actual range is completely a function of driving habits, if you do 90 km instead of 125 km your range will double to triple. Pull that enclosed at 130 km and if you get 150 km with the ER pack you must be going downhill.

The trucks pull like a dream but take your peddle off the gas - speed is exponential in reducing range.

Check where Tesla chargers are, though Parkland is installing decent ones in BC - Tesla is really the only reliable charger in Canada - buy the adaptor (forget waiting for Ford one) and then any road trip becomes “fun” vs a nightmare.

 

[Henry Ford]

Yesterday we ordered a Lighting.
Correction, my wife ordered it, I looked around at vehicles on the lot. She is the one who wants it, and i despise salesmen and business office people.

Trim? Options? Color?

 

[Maybe Going EV]

my wife really didn't understand my own desires and reasons to go 'EV', with our former Leafs, and now our LIGHTNING, and even her new KIA EV9... but...

give it some time, and....


now, she would never consider going 'back' to gas ...
she has gotten very used to the 'silence' of an EV...
she has gotten very used to the simple 'go' when pressing the pedal - no more 'waiting' for the engine and transmission to figure out what to do, and when to do it...
she has lost any knowledge of what gas smells like anymore...
she has gotten used to 'plugging in' the KIA...
she has gotten used to never having to stop at a gas station, even with a 65 mile daily commute...
she has grown accustomed to stopping very infrequently, as needed, for longer trips, whether in the EV9, the Lightning, or while TOWING the camper with the Lightning...

she doesn't give any of it a second thought, anymore...

That's awesome!

 

[John Becker]

How do you "order" a Lightning? I thought FMC stopped taking orders for MY 2024 and MY 2025? Isn't shopping for what is on the dealer lot or in-transit the only option?

 

[Maybe Going EV]

You are likely to both love and hate a Lightning. We ran the trucks in -35 some foul weather last year, best truck I’ve driven in that weather and at same time I’ll now wait before ever driving in it again.

The SR I would not trust past 125 km in arctic cold, the truck can’t keep the battery pack warm and most you’ll see at a DC charger is 40 kWh. The ER’s not much past 150km - the worst I’ve seen is 50kw/100 km but a lot of mid 40s.

In winter you don’t want to really go below 25% and which leaves you about 70-90 kw depending on battery pack.

I run off a 120 at home but I have 10 chargers at work. In the -35 the truck still got its 1kw but the battery is cold soaked so forget getting far range wise. Hit the interior warmer and plugging in all night is gone.

If you do get one put a 40 amp plug it’s cheap. Under $200 in material and use the portable in winter.

Your actual range is completely a function of driving habits, if you do 90 km instead of 125 km your range will double to triple. Pull that enclosed at 130 km and if you get 150 km with the ER pack you must be going downhill.

The trucks pull like a dream but take your peddle off the gas - speed is exponential in reducing range.

Check where Tesla chargers are, though Parkland is installing decent ones in BC - Tesla is really the only reliable charger in Canada - buy the adaptor (forget waiting for Ford one) and then any road trip becomes “fun” vs a nightmare.

Thanks you!

 

[Maybe Going EV]

Trim? Options? Color?

The wife did her research on what to get, and ordered a blue lariat, with charge cord, spray in box liner, and I think that was all.

 

[Maybe Going EV]

How do you "order" a Lightning? I thought FMC stopped taking orders for MY 2024 and MY 2025? Isn't shopping for what is on the dealer lot or in-transit the only option?

It will be a 2025, and from what my wife was told, the order holds a spot, and it will be soon open to be sent in by the dealer. Maybe i used the wrong word, but to me that is ordered. Over decades of ordering class 8 trucks, that was often the same thing. If any major changes popped up, then I would get a call letting me know that options have changed. It sounds like the 2025 lariat is the same as the 2024. It automatically comes with larger ER battery, and tow package, just not max tow, which i don't feel like we need, as we don't do heavy towing.

 

[RickLightning]

The wife did her research on what to get, and ordered a blue lariat, with charge cord, spray in box liner, and I think that was all.

You should remove the charge cord, and buy a cheaper one from Amazon. The Ford Mobile Charger is a piece of junk, and overpriced.

 

[John Becker]

It will be a 2025, and from what my wife was told, the order holds a spot, and it will be soon open to be sent in by the dealer. Maybe i used the wrong word, but to me that is ordered. Over decades of ordering class 8 trucks, that was often the same thing. If any major changes popped up, then I would get a call letting me know that options have changed. It sounds like the 2025 lariat is the same as the 2024. It automatically comes with larger ER battery, and tow package, just not max tow, which i don't feel like we need, as we don't do heavy towing.

So, your wife was not able to order a specific color or factory built options?
Please correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[Maybe Going EV]

You should remove the charge cord, and buy a cheaper one from Amazon. The Ford Mobile Charger is a piece of junk, and overpriced.

Thanks for this tip.
Can you recommend one on Amazon Canada for us.
Thanks again.

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