Who's an Electric F-150 shopper?

[GABAR]

I am not going to sit on top of a battery that weighs more than 1,800 lbs. No to all battery trucks.

.

But you’ll sit on top of a non EV F150 with upwards of 36 gallons of highly flammable fuel?

It‘s hilarious how so many people are afraid of progress or change.

Before cars became the norm, I’m sure there were many people who said they’d never give up their horse or horses and the wagons they pulled.

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[GABAR]

The Lighting does intrigue me but I’d definitely stay away from the first couple of years of production.

 

[MickeyAO]

But you’ll sit on top of a non EV F150 with upwards of 36 gallons of highly flammable fuel?

There are 100+ ICE fires per day in the US, but nobody cares. If there is 1 battery fire ANYWHERE in the world, it will be front-page news.

If there is a battery fire, I have to quickly gather all available information before my management starts to ask questions about what happened, and what I'm doing to keep it from happening in my lab.

 

[shikataganai]

This thread actually aged really well in terms of Ford hitting what you all were hoping for, IMO.

And, if the cold spell in Texas is any indication of the electric grid issues, just wait for a bunch of electric vehicles also being plugged in.

This is actually a huge argument in favor of BEVs, IMO:

In the near term having Intelligent Backup Power would be good for your household.

In the medium term having Intelligent Power (vehicle to grid buffering peak load) could potentially stave off future "load shedding" incidents where the grid is stressed. Plus it could make you some money via time of use pricing arbitrage.

 

[jeffcrum]

It is a much better argument for the hybrid.

I have the backup power I need and won't be taxing the already fragile grid.

 

[Vulnox]

Plus I get tired of that argument, as if gas pumps don't use electricity to pump your fuel. Even the smartest people will jump so quickly to their pre-formed conclusion that they will completely skip rational thought. If an area doesn't have electricity, the gas pumps are likely out. If you didn't get gas that week yet and have a quarter tank of gas, you are WAY more SOL than someone with an EV that had their vehicle charging and full at the time of the outage. If the outage covers more than 100 mile area, you are stuck at home unless someone brings you gas. With the EV, you could drive to the next closest charger that is working.

I am super looking forward to an EV F-150, but I know the limitations and don't tow often. If I did I would likely hold out a bit longer. But by the time it launches the EV charging grid will have expanded and matured, and I am excited for it.

 

[jeffcrum]

That is an awesome deal you have with your power company that power will only go out when your truck is charged up. ?

Of course, power will never go out right as you get home from a trip when your truck will be depleted.

I live in hurricane country and always have spare gas.

 

[Kamuelaflyer]

That is an awesome deal you have with your power company that power will only go out when your truck is charged up. ?

Of course, power will never go out right as you get home from a trip when your truck will be depleted.

I live in hurricane country and always have spare gas.

I live in hurricane country as well. I always have spare electrons. Even when the grid is down.

 

[RLXXI]

That is an awesome deal you have with your power company that power will only go out when your truck is charged up. ?

Of course, power will never go out right as you get home from a trip when your truck will be depleted.

I live in hurricane country and always have spare gas.

So do I and my spare 5G gas cans have been in the attic since after katrina.

Got one of these instead.

If the power does go out, I create my own.

 

[beatle]

That is an awesome deal you have with your power company that power will only go out when your truck is charged up. ?

Of course, power will never go out right as you get home from a trip when your truck will be depleted.

I live in hurricane country and always have spare gas.

The majority of the time my vehicle is at home, it is fully (90%) charged. My average charge time at home is 1 hour 27 minutes, and that's charging at 240v / 40A. It would be slightly less if I charged at the speed of the Ford home connector (240v / 48A).

As for power going out at home for an extended period of time immediately after a long trip - really, that's the scenario you're planning for? Should gas car owners plan for hacks to pipeline companies' billing systems that prevent them from getting gas? (The answer to both of these questions is the same.)

 

[Vulnox]

The majority of the time my vehicle is at home, it is fully (90%) charged. My average charge time at home is 1 hour 27 minutes, and that's charging at 240v / 40A. It would be slightly less if I charged at the speed of the Ford home connector (240v / 48A).

As for power going out at home for an extended period of time immediately after a long trip - really, that's the scenario you're planning for? Should gas car owners plan for hacks to pipeline companies' billing systems that prevent them from getting gas? (The answer to both of these questions is the same.)

Right, there are edge cases we can come up with for both gas and electric based. Gas stored in gas cans spoils, even with fuel stabilizer. So what if you got lazy changing it out and are wrecking your fuel system. Or what if it's an extended outage and even 25 gallons of spare fuel only lasts you a week or so. What if we have another situation where a gas pipeline is shut down or refinery is damaged due to storms, like has happened in the last six months and hurt supply. Then you had idiots in non-impacted states hoarding gas which created huge lines and actual shortages.

All the while, Tesla and Mach E owners were just going home, plugging in, and not having to stop at a gas station regardless.

When we had our C-Max Energi, my wife mainly just used it to get to and from work, and charged at home. We went to the gas station once every three months or so, or about every 3000 miles. In my last F-150 I had to go every other week at best. So much time lost driving to and standing around at gas stations compared to that C-Max Energi, and we were driving the same amount of miles.

A year ago I bought a nice portable generator that can run on regular gas or propane (or natural gas with a kit). Propane is at least long term stable, so if I had an EV I could charge it from that (YMMV, some portable generators have very dirty power, and not all EV charging systems will put up with it, do your research before buying and find a low THD generator, not just for your EV but for any sensitive electronics you may plug in).

Or if we get my wife a Mach E or something, she can charge off my PowerBoost F-150, haha. I mean short of a serious borderline nationwide crisis, you will almost always have alternatives to both vehicles. But you can limit your exposure FAR better with an EV. Buy a solar system and some PowerWalls or equivalent, and then to a point even in a nationwide crisis you are likely to have some power. If someone manages to shut down refineries, or pipelines, or the electrical grid is down nationwide, like a serious attack, you can't just make your own gas in your backyard, and you can only store so many gas cans.

For now, the best solution is a mix of both. We are getting my wife an EV since 95% of her driving is back and forth to work, and we have the PB F-150 for longer trips or even just medium range trips with the whole family. Trying to find a used Focus Electric because many 2018s are coming off-lease and at least before used car prices blew up, you could get them for dirt cheap.

 

[Kamuelaflyer]

If there's an extended hurricane or earthquake induced grid outage, another item to consider is just what you're keeping your car fueled up for (ev or ice)? Going to the grocery store? Odds are power is out there too. They don't have the ol backup cash registers with manual buttons. Nor is the inventory labeled with price for the most part. And anything that can spoil has. You're also not going to be going to work unless you're in the police, fire, or hospital businesses either.

This isn't to discourage being prepared, but there needs to be a bit of a realistic point of view. While our solar system can last for several days without much sun if we restrict usage enough, and indefinitely once the sun returns, there's not going to be anything for us to head into town to buy for some time.

 

[newF150]

If there's an extended hurricane or earthquake induced grid outage, another item to consider is just what you're keeping your car fueled up for (ev or ice)? Going to the grocery store? Odds are power is out there too. They don't have the ol backup cash registers with manual buttons. Nor is the inventory labeled with price for the most part. And anything that can spoil has. You're also not going to be going to work unless you're in the police, fire, or hospital businesses either.

This isn't to discourage being prepared, but there needs to be a bit of a realistic point of view. While our solar system can last for several days without much sun if we restrict usage enough, and indefinitely once the sun returns, there's not going to be anything for us to head into town to buy for some time.

Totally agree. I'm in NJ and was without power for a week after Sandy. No one was going anywhere, EV or gas. No gas, no electric, nothing.

 

[beatle]

Right, there are edge cases we can come up with for both gas and electric based.

Yep, as with most everything, the truth lies somewhere in the middle.

 

[Vulnox]

Yep, as with most everything, the truth lies somewhere in the middle.

Yep, and everyone should look at their individual needs. While EVs are likely the drive system of the future and many countries and states have started to designate phase out dates for gas vehicles, they are still far enough out that EVs will evolve significantly over that time. I mean just ten years of looking at Tesla and their range and charging speed improvements is pretty incredible, definitely a faster pace of improvement than the first ten years of ICE engines. And that is with just one company really leading the charge. The more Ford/GM/others plus their suppliers start putting money into R&D, the faster it will evolve.

Even when we hit those dates, let's say 2035, that doesn't mean your existing vehicle is tossed on the fire, gas engine vehicles will be around for decades, and as those regulations evolve there will likely be phases introduced. If EVs and the infrastructure isn't there yet for ICE equivalent F-150 towing range, then they will make exceptions and push light duty trucks out to 2040 or whatever. But it's useful to have states/countries have these conversations now so manufacturers know what to expect, and so other lawmakers can start making plans for infrastructure and regulation changes.

But for now, if you are that worried about a hurricane knocking out power and desperately need to go on a road trip and use your cans of gas, then keep buying an ICE vehicle. Just because Ford offers the Lightning doesn't mean it's for everyone. They didn't say the ICE F-150 is going away when the Lightning launches. Everyone coming up with disaster scenarios should just keep buying ICE until they are comfortable. Or if you tow your TT 200-500 miles for big family trips, I agree, I wouldn't get a Lightning yet. Even if you were good with the charging stations and charge times or whatever else, most of them aren't set up as pull-through, which they REALLY need to get on top of, soon. And nobody is going to unhook their TT to go charge their truck every 150 miles.

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