1.4 kwh/mi on interstate…disappointed.

[Ricks Lightning]

Well if it makes you feel any better, I have 2 lightnings, a diesel sprinter and a gas Nissan NV.

Lightning is averaging 2.4 primarily 75% city stop and go and 25% highway.

Sprinter diesel 12mpg.

Nissan gas 6 mpg.

Since getting my first Lightning in May, I have only put 1 tank of fuel into my Nissan..

The Lightning is so much more enjoyable to drive and much more economical.

Ps. Driving in Los Angeles, average speed for my vans are 11 mph. Traffic and stop and go.

Rick

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[Bigisland Guy]

Running the numbers our fuel savings last year was over $3542 and our maintenance cost were under $200 on the Lightning. With bottom line numbers like this I can sacrifice a little speed and keep me from raising the prices on our customers.

 

[JRT]

Get a Tesla adapter from A2Z, don't bank on an adapter from Ford any time soon, and switch to Super Chargers that show on Teslas app as available to those EV not Tesla and life will greatly improve. On your coast side you will find many Tesla locations open to you that your wife will be happy to kill time in at shopping centers and food areas. Avoid the hell hole of Electricity America and endless stops at Chevy Bolt clogged Walmart parking lots if you value a happy wife and happy life.

Note you have to goto v3 and v4 Tesla charging stations, there are a lot of older V2 that don't work, so use the app, Ford nav is useless in the respect too.

 

[LightningShow]

I’ve never seen 1.4 mi/kwh for a trip over a few miles long in warm weather and i regularly drive *over* 80 on the interstate. I’m guessing there was a pretty good headwind. For a 50 mile trip with only 35 mi on the interstate I would expect to see 2.0mi/kwh for the trip.

 

[thunderbayterry]

Still have KR, about to list it for sale.
2023 Lariat ER

I have a 2023 Lariat ER also - and I experience the same thing. It is pretty amazing how much LESS fuel the Lightning uses dropping from 80 to 70 mph, or even 68. Thats what I do now. I relax and don't speed as much on trips! LOL

 

[ChrisCon]

Everyone I seen on the road with an EV takes of slow from lights drives the speed limits so they can get the maximum kwh/mi. You learn how to drive to get the best performance best mileage. It is the same with an ICE. You push it all the time what I call lead footing it and you will use your fuel much faster. You know you have the power when ever you need it, but only use it when you really need it or want to show off. It has become a game with me to get the highest kwh/mi I can.

You've never seen me on the road ... I pretend any stop light with two lanes is a drag strip. I'm here for that linear power. It just feels so good.

Edit: 79 max speed on blue cruise is the only thing that keeps me from getting more speeding tickets.

 

[TheBigBezo]

I also treat every stop sign as a drag race (up to the speed limit) and I like to do 70 - 75 on the highway but 1.4 is pretty dang low. I wouldn't bank on that being typical, at least is hasn't been for me unless I was driving up hill with wind. I would say 1.7 or so would make more sense and usually dropping it down to 70 gets you a lot closer to 2.0 which I think mirrors what others have said already.

 

[jamelski]

Adding a tonneau cover or opening the tailgate will help a lot, but probably won't actually pay for itself in electrons unless you do almost all highway driving. I also saw on line that even retracting the side mirrors helps when you really need to stretch range, but I wouldn't recommend it, especially on an interstate.

It’s been proven many times tonneau covers and tail gate down does nothing that would extra mileage to a degree worth the price to offset the minuscule increase.
Better off slowing down.

 

[RickLightning]

To be a bit mathematical about it, wind drag is a function of airspeed squared. The difference between 79 and 70 is about 12%, but the additional drag is 27% higher (mileage reduced by 20%) If you add a headwind to that, say 15mph, your airspeed is now 94mph (34% higher) and the drag is now 80% higher (mileage reduced by 45%).

So, if you're worried about range, go a bit slower into a headwind and take advantage of a tailwind.

As others have said, the same thing happens to an ICE. The difference is that ICE's are so inefficient, that the extra burn due to drag isn't as big a portion of the overall burn. When only 30% of the burn is actually going to moving the vehicle (the rest going to noise, heat and friction in the engine, transmission losses, ignition losses, etc) adding even 80% to that only increases the burn by 24% (reducing mileage by only 20%... plus maybe a bit more for some engine losses).

Adding a tonneau cover or opening the tailgate will help a lot, but probably won't actually pay for itself in electrons unless you do almost all highway driving. I also saw on line that even retracting the side mirrors helps when you really need to stretch range, but I wouldn't recommend it, especially on an interstate.

Nope.

In savanah proper, near isle of Hope.
When I said risk it, I just meant without charging. I go to jacksonville, I just always charge on the way back. There's a decent FPL charging station next to a newly built wawa just north of jacksonville. I charge for 15 20mins and just head home.

We have charged there several times before Wawa was built. They keep damaging those chargers.

Everyone I seen on the road with an EV takes of slow from lights drives the speed limits so they can get the maximum kwh/mi. You learn how to drive to get the best performance best mileage. It is the same with an ICE. You push it all the time what I call lead footing it and you will use your fuel much faster. You know you have the power when ever you need it, but only use it when you really need it or want to show off. It has become a game with me to get the highest kwh/mi I can.

Driving 0 to 60 flat out vs slow uses the same amount of electricity the experts say... Flat out is more fun.

It’s been proven many times tonneau covers and tail gate down does nothing that would extra mileage to a degree worth the price to offset the minuscule increase.
Better off slowing down.

Yup.

 

[Firn]

Hey OP,

In my opinion, your efficiency is slightly lower than average, but still within the normal range.

Here are my numbers for comparison:

Over 2000 miles at 75 mph with light traffic, I averaged 2.0 mi/kWh. On very empty roads, this dropped to about 1.8 mi/kWh at the same speed. At 65 mph, I get around 2.25 mi/kWh.

You won't see drastic improvements, but I did notice a slight increase in efficiency by raising tire pressure.

While driving faster does drain the battery more quickly, it does still get you to your destination faster. I tested this by plotting the same route in ABRP with different speed offsets. There were diminishing returns, but up to about 135% of the speed limit, the overall trip time still improved.

 

[Ventorum94]

You can get the m/kW you want, just watch the meter . . . doing 80 on the Highway as you have seen will show you 1.4 kWm, drop it down and you'll see the kW/m increase, you can get the m/kW you want.

Funny how more-efficient driving is also faster and cheaper, as it avoids interactions with the Highway Patrol, or the local PD’s edge-of-town speed trap. We live in an age where speed limits are just suggestions, mainly applicable to other people (WE always drive as fast as we want, right?), rather than as guardrails that keep us and our fellow travelers safer.

 

[MaintGrl]

To be a bit mathematical about it, wind drag is a function of airspeed squared. The difference between 79 and 70 is about 12%, but the additional drag is 27% higher (mileage reduced by 20%) If you add a headwind to that, say 15mph, your airspeed is now 94mph (34% higher) and the drag is now 80% higher (mileage reduced by 45%).

So, if you're worried about range, go a bit slower into a headwind and take advantage of a tailwind.

As others have said, the same thing happens to an ICE. The difference is that ICE's are so inefficient, that the extra burn due to drag isn't as big a portion of the overall burn. When only 30% of the burn is actually going to moving the vehicle (the rest going to noise, heat and friction in the engine, transmission losses, ignition losses, etc) adding even 80% to that only increases the burn by 24% (reducing mileage by only 20%... plus maybe a bit more for some engine losses).

Adding a tonneau cover or opening the tailgate will help a lot, but probably won't actually pay for itself in electrons unless you do almost all highway driving. I also saw on line that even retracting the side mirrors helps when you really need to stretch range, but I wouldn't recommend it, especially on an interstate.

And we have to remember, in our Lightnings we can see in real time our energy efficiency, In an ICE unless you have a vehicle with the software to see your efficiency it's a big guessO'Meter. And as mentioned in this tread , , , putting the heat on, On a cold morning does nothing to a ICE (Because you are already paying for it/Wasting the energy), but it reduces the energy efficiency of our Lighting's

 

[Jseis]

1.4 mi/kWh is 47 mpge. Way better than the Harley tailgating you.

 

[LightningShow]

Don’t forget, it’s more time efficient to drive faster and charge more often. The lower efficiency doesn’t mean you’re getting anywhere slower. It only means it costs more to get there. People have a mental block around stopping but compared to driving 60mph and charging 20% less, you don’t make up the extra time gained by driving 80mph.

 

[inchman254]

It’s been proven many times tonneau covers and tail gate down does nothing that would extra mileage to a degree worth the price to offset the minuscule increase.
Better off slowing down.

Nope.

I stand corrected on the tailgate and tonneau cover. Old information that I had just assumed had survived the years.

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