do i need bigger battery upgrade if only using 1 or twice a year of long road trips?

[sotek2345]

One thing to keep in mind is that the truck with standard battery will be ridiculously heavy, with ER, it would be worse. Many disadvantages including added stress on tires.

Any EV you buy now will look like a bad choice three years from now looking at how much better the new EVs are. The lower the price the lower the regret. Go for Pro.

The weight difference between SR and ER is only 200 lbs. That is nothing for a truck. Yes the Lightning will be heavier than a regular F150, but it isn't far off a RAM or Silverado that is still using a steel body. Truck tires are made much stronger than car tires so this extra load shouldn't impact them at all.

That said, if a Pro works for you - go for it. Ford makes lots of different trims and options because we all want and need different things!

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[SteffanG]

Great info guys! I am 65% going with standard battery but concerned of mileage depreciation during winter in Vancouver. We get average 0°C or 32°F and wonder if there's a fixed %loss at this temperature. Although we get occasional -10°C or 14°F, but I will likely only be driving to local ski resorts that are within 50 miles. Worst case is whistler at 96 miles one way and temperature there can be colder at -20°C or -4°F . Looking like standard battery is still usable as long as cold weather will not cut mileage in half!
Related to ER option, could be a stupid question(will ask nevertheless?) , will the extra weight be reducing tire life significantly compared with lighter standard battery. Or it is negligible.

Hey someone else who lives on Vancouver! (I am in Langley).
The range depreciation in winter all depends on how comfortable you want to be. I am not expecting a huge decrease for when I am by myself as it doesn't get that cold here, and my drive to work is only 11 mins. Given this, the seat heater and heated steering wheel would be sufficient to keep me warm without heating up the entire truck on the way home since I work in a refrigerated building anyways. Going to work isn't an issue as I park inside of a garage that stays warm.

 

[Maxx]

Yes the Lightning will be heavier than a regular F150, but it isn't far off a RAM or Silverado that is still using a steel body. Truck tires are made much stronger than car tires so this extra load shouldn't impact them at all.

R1T is smaller than F150 and it is around 7000 Ib. I don't expect Lightning to be much lower than that. Similar ICE Ram or Silverado is around 5000 Ib. That is a significant weight difference to me.

 

[biers]

" Ford effectively has 800V charging on the ER battery as they run 2 400V chargers on parallel instead of one single minus the fact that the input cable needs to be larger."

This is not correct. Yes the ER has dual onboard chargers but they each take 240V at 40A vs the SR taking 240V at 48A. These are for L2 AC charging.

400-800V charging is done by "L3" chargers. The charger for these are in the charging pedestal or in a nearby cabinet and power is delivered through the DC pins on the CCS connector. It bypasses the onboard chargers.

 

[astricklin]

One thing to keep in mind is that the truck with standard battery will be ridiculously heavy, with ER, it would be worse. Many disadvantages including added stress on tires.

Any EV you buy now will look like a bad choice three years from now looking at how much better the new EVs are. The lower the price the lower the regret. Go for Pro.

On the flip side of this... If the vehicle meets you needs then keep it till it won't operate anymore and save a boatload of money.

 

[astricklin]

Hey someone else who lives on Vancouver! (I am in Langley).
The range depreciation in winter all depends on how comfortable you want to be. I am not expecting a huge decrease for when I am by myself as it doesn't get that cold here, and my drive to work is only 11 mins. Given this, the seat heater and heated steering wheel would be sufficient to keep me warm without heating up the entire truck on the way home since I work in a refrigerated building anyways. Going to work isn't an issue as I park inside of a garage that stays warm.

When the vehicle is plugged in you will also be able to precondition the cabin so that you can have it to temperature without using up battery.

 

[Maxx]

On the flip side of this... If the vehicle meets you needs then keep it till it won't operate anymore and save a boatload of money.

You may even be able to extend that time when battery energy density and price improves by upgrading your battery.

 

[Roy2001]

Plan to get <= half of what it claims.

The reasons? You need to have 15% charge left before recharging, you don't want to charge more than 90% every day, freeway > 65mph reduces range, winter battery capacity loss (temporally though), heating/cooling, defrosting, uphill/downhill. And the last and equally important, battery capacity degradation (expect 3-5% in 1-2 years, then slowly up to 5-10% based on Tesla's data).

All reasons above, worse case situation you might get only 40% of claimed range during winter in mountain area. Think all above factors, and make your decision.

 

[Maxx]

Plan to get <= half of what it claims.

The reasons? You need to have 15% charge left before recharging, you don't want to charge more than 90% every day, freeway > 65mph reduces range, winter battery capacity loss (temporally though), heating/cooling, defrosting, uphill/downhill. And the last and equally important, battery capacity degradation (expect 3-5% in 1-2 years, then slowly up to 5-10% based on Tesla's data).

All reasons above, worse case situation you might get only 40% of claimed range during winter in mountain area. Think all above factors, and make your decision.

Don't forget about the charging network. It adds a bit to the risk.

 

[SteffanG]

" Ford effectively has 800V charging on the ER battery as they run 2 400V chargers on parallel instead of one single minus the fact that the input cable needs to be larger."

This is not correct. Yes the ER has dual onboard chargers but they each take 240V at 40A vs the SR taking 240V at 48A. These are for L2 AC charging.

400-800V charging is done by "L3" chargers. The charger for these are in the charging pedestal or in a nearby cabinet and power is delivered through the DC pins on the CCS connector. It bypasses the onboard chargers.

? I guess I was thinking of something else when I wrote it. The ER does charge a lot faster than the SR battery at a DCFC station though (41mins vs 44mins for a greater amount of miles). Maybe ford is limiting the charge for now and it could possibly increase later on when they gather more data.
Either way though, the DCFC rate and 800V system isn't a very large concern for probably about 80% of users that will solely charge at home and maybe use the DCFC once or twice a year for long trips - most will probably stop for something to eat while it charges anyway.

Ford is likely going with what is known now instead of trying to reinvent as they are just getting into the EV market and a bad product would be very bad news for them.

 

[Pilot2022]

On the flip side of this... If the vehicle meets you needs then keep it till it won't operate anymore and save a boatload of money.

That’s what I am counting on. Without a lot of components found in the ICE, there shouldn’t be much that breaks down unless it is an iPhone where Ford stops supporting it. But I suspect we can keep it running for a long time even with battery degradation.

 

[nightrider]

Don't forget about the charging network. It adds a bit to the risk.

Great point and an awesome video done by MKBHD and his team. While not a perfect test it does show me the real world and where we are with charging networks. Realiability on apps and infrastructure not there yet...

 

[Brian Head Yankee]

Range anxiety is a real thing with all EV owners. You are better off with the largest battery offered. Other than the reasons listed above, the extra cost will come back to you when you sell it in a few years.

 

[shutterbug]

Range anxiety is a real thing with all EV owners. You are better off with the largest battery offered.

Range anxiety is real, but like all anxieties it's an emotion and not necessarily supported by facts. I've owned MME for 6 months. Last week I drove a total of 333 miles. That was the most I've driven in a single week until now. I realize that I drive a lot less than average, but the average is about 250 miles a week. That can be easily accommodated by the smaller battery. Later this year, I plan to go on a longish trip (Phoenix to LA, about 400 miles each way), but the only reason I'm doing that is because Ford gave me 500kWh of EA charging. This will be my first road trip in 8 years.

Other than the reasons listed above, the extra cost will come back to you when you sell it in a few years.

I seriously doubt that you will be able to recoup all the extra cost of a larger battery during resale. If you don't regularly need the extra range, you will be essentially throwing money away.

 

[astricklin]

That’s what I am counting on. Without a lot of components found in the ICE, there shouldn’t be much that breaks down unless it is an iPhone where Ford stops supporting it. But I suspect we can keep it running for a long time even with battery degradation.

And if Ford won't replace the battery 15 years down the road, third parties certainly will. These large battery packs are made of multiple modules and each module contains the individual cells. It is designed to be able to replace the modules without having to replace the entire pack.

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