How does one find less expensive charge stations on road trips?

[Cutlass70]

Will be picking up a '24 Flash in CA and driving it back to AZ. Never owned an EV. Recently downloaded the Plugshare app to experiment with. Seems pretty handy. But are there different costs at different locations? Does it matter what time of day you charge? What would be a good way to map out charge points along the way. The drive will be about 350 miles.

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[RickLightning]

Yes, every location is a different price (or can be). Every network can have different prices. Some networks, like Tesla and EVGo, have TIME OF DAY pricing at SOME locations.

To see accurate pricing, you need to use each network's app and lookup that location.

Since you won't have a Tesla Supercharger adapter (see below), you don't have to worry about their pricing unless you find a Magic Dock location.

Use ABRP (A Better Router Planner) to plan your trip (I use PC version, then save to my account, and retrieve on my phone). Use PlugShare to check each location. Make sure on both you enter your vehicle info first.

A 350 mile trip is at most 2 stops, assuming the dealership charges to 100% for you. Make your life easy. Setup your Ford account ahead of time, and put in a credit card for BlueOval network. Turn on Plug and Charge in the phone app. Pull up to Electrify America chargers and plug in.

 

[RocketGhost]

For your first charging-on-the-road trip, I highly recommend the following: Plan on charging far sooner than you assume you need to. People are often surprised to find out that highway range on these trucks can be far less than the range estimate. I plan to only get about 250 miles, and that's from 100% to 0%. Of course I give myself lots of buffer, never intending to go below 20%. For your trip I'd plan on stopping twice. Always have a nearby backup station planned out in case your first choice is full or out of order. Most stations' prices don't stray too far from average, but some can be on the order of several times more expensive. Look up the price ahead of time. Before you leave download the apps for the charging networks you plan to use, set up your account and payment information, and learn how to use the chargers.

Your first road trip is a learning experience. You'll get it all figured out through some trial and error. You just don't want the error to involve running out of juice and a tow truck.

 

[Mach Turtle]

Another idea: Try out ways to enjoy charging stops. I've found that a meal or two in a cooler plus a microwave in the frunk can add to the fun factor. If you prefer restaurants, many but not all chargers are within a short walk of some (check your favorite map app). Depending on your data plan, the huge cinematic Imax-like display in the Flash can probably provide entertainment. And hopefully your truck will already have had the Karaoke update installed!

 

[Cutlass70]

Yes, every location is a different price (or can be). Every network can have different prices. Some networks, like Tesla and EVGo, have TIME OF DAY pricing at SOME locations.

To see accurate pricing, you need to use each network's app and lookup that location.

Since you won't have a Tesla Supercharger adapter (see below), you don't have to worry about their pricing unless you find a Magic Dock location.

Use ABRP (A Better Router Planner) to plan your trip (I use PC version, then save to my account, and retrieve on my phone). Use PlugShare to check each location. Make sure on both you enter your vehicle info first.

A 350 mile trip is at most 2 stops, assuming the dealership charges to 100% for you. Make your life easy. Setup your Ford account ahead of time, and put in a credit card for BlueOval network. Turn on Plug and Charge in the phone app. Pull up to Electrify America chargers and plug in.

Thank you for your response. I did download the Plugshare app but will look at ABRP. As to the BlueOval network, is this integrated into the Lightning or do I need to download it to my phone? I'm guessing I can use the Lightning to access the BlueOval network (or even the Plugshare app)?

 

[Altivec]

You need to get the ford pass app and need to link it up to your lightning. You need the VIN and ownership rights to set it up though so I am not sure if you can do it up before you actually own the truck. You need to this in order for the charging stations to speak to truck which then also passes your payment info.

 

[Cutlass70]

For your first charging-on-the-road trip, I highly recommend the following: Plan on charging far sooner than you assume you need to. People are often surprised to find out that highway range on these trucks can be far less than the range estimate. I plan to only get about 250 miles, and that's from 100% to 0%. Of course I give myself lots of buffer, never intending to go below 20%. For your trip I'd plan on stopping twice. Always have a nearby backup station planned out in case your first choice is full or out of order. Most stations' prices don't stray too far from average, but some can be on the order of several times more expensive. Look up the price ahead of time. Before you leave download the apps for the charging networks you plan to use, set up your account and payment information, and learn how to use the chargers.

Your first road trip is a learning experience. You'll get it all figured out through some trial and error. You just don't want the error to involve running out of juice and a tow truck.

You need to get the ford pass app and need to link it up to your lightning. You need the VIN and ownership rights to set it up though so I am not sure if you can do it up before you actually own the truck. You need to this in order for the charging stations to speak to truck which then also passes your payment info.

Ah, good information to know. Kind of figured there would be some sort of vehicle recognition needed in order for this whole thing to work. Fortunately, I do have the VIN but, of course, not ownership rights as of yet.

 

[Cutlass70]

For your first charging-on-the-road trip, I highly recommend the following: Plan on charging far sooner than you assume you need to. People are often surprised to find out that highway range on these trucks can be far less than the range estimate. I plan to only get about 250 miles, and that's from 100% to 0%. Of course I give myself lots of buffer, never intending to go below 20%. For your trip I'd plan on stopping twice. Always have a nearby backup station planned out in case your first choice is full or out of order. Most stations' prices don't stray too far from average, but some can be on the order of several times more expensive. Look up the price ahead of time. Before you leave download the apps for the charging networks you plan to use, set up your account and payment information, and learn how to use the chargers.

Your first road trip is a learning experience. You'll get it all figured out through some trial and error. You just don't want the error to involve running out of juice and a tow truck.

Doing this solo so as not to put the family through any anxiety issues....ha. I actually anticipated maybe making it a 3 stop trip just to be super safe. In reality, it would only add 1/2 hour to my adventure so will play it safe until I get accustomed to the KW usage factor. Thanks for your input!!

 

[Altivec]

If you have the VIN, I would give it a try. I am not really sure how the ownership rights work exactly. The first time I set it up, It didn't ask me anything other than the VIN. Which I guess made me the primary owner. When I set up my wife's phone after that, it needed to get permission from me to continue. So I am not sure If Ford has the initial user locked down until you pick it up or if the first one is open. But thinking about it more, it would make more sense if they locked it down otherwise I could just walk in a Ford lot, enter a bunch of VIN's and start owning a lot of lightnings. Once the Ford Pass app is set up you can also remotely lock and unlock the doors, etc... So I guess if you want to save some time setting this stuff up in advance, I would contact your dealer and have them do what they need to do to open it up for you to set up your Ford Pass.

 

[Jseis]

The LT has always exceeded my expectations on range. Principally because I’m a somewhat conservative driver. 65 mph in an interstate freight truck convoy good enough. 55 on 55 mph roads works for me. My long term average is dead-on 2.4 miles/kWh. Stopping every 250-280 miles is pretty normal and NACS adapter makes that easier. Blue highway driving in flat country really ups range. Cold weather is the one caveat though I rarely drive long distance November-February. Many of my routes are repeats and once you know the drill it gets easier as in normalized.

 

[Scorpio3d]

I am not sure about others experiences with their dealers, but when I arrived in Maryland, it took about 30 minutes to an hour to set up the truck and go over all of the ins and outs. I was driving back to Texas, so I asked the dealer to be sure it was charged to 100% when I would be arriving. I called it my crash course in EV ownership!
The Ford navigation worked ok and will route you to chargers along the way. You can also use CarPlay or android auto depending on your phone and use Apple Maps or Google maps or ABRP. Have a safe and wonderful trip. Hope you enjoy your lightning as much as I do.

 

[RocketGhost]

Ah, good information to know. Kind of figured there would be some sort of vehicle recognition needed in order for this whole thing to work. Fortunately, I do have the VIN but, of course, not ownership rights as of yet.

You only need to set up FordPass if you want to pay through it or use plug and charge. You can pay through the individual charging network apps without needing any information about the truck.

 

[RickLightning]

The night before, get your salesperson to go to the truck and start it. Then, add it to FordPass with the VIN, and he will accept it. Then, go into Ford.com account and add your credit card, and the BlueOval network will be in place for your trip. Turn on Plug and Charge in app.

If you message me the start and end points (just close by for each), and whether you have an ER or not, I can tell you where I would stop.

 

[Firn]

Make sure however that if you buy a charger network membership you initiate your charge BEFOFE plugging in. If you do not it will use plug and charge but not your membership

 

[Newton]

Note that you get a decent amount of free charging at Electrify America stations so you have some time to learn.

If you drive a lot then it might be worthwhile to figure out which brand of station that you use and sign up for their discount plan. For a certain amount a month you get a discount on your charging. The only wrinkle is with the Blue Oval’s very convenient plug and charge - if you use it, you don’t get that discount (currently.)

Honestly I don’t find the cost to be that big of a deal, it is just another of those talking points. Most of us charge at home and go on a road trip at most once a month, where the cost of electricity or cost of gas is insignificant compared to food and lodging. If you really want to save, stay at places that let you charge overnight for free either using your own power cord (AirBNB) or their own station (hotels).

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