Farley believes he knows how to beat the Chinese on EVs

[Newton]

All of this discussion about what an EV truck can do or not do overlooks the fact that the Lightning is a very mediocre attempt at an EV. They really did nothing to make it more efficient (such as a mechanism to disconnect the AWD when not needed or using a different type of motor) or to charge faster. Mine does not even have a heat pump, which even my e-Golf has! It was a great attempt at hitting the market first and I think it worked well, but you can’t really draw conclusions about what a modern EV truck can do from their experience. My E-Golf has a 120 mile range and can only be fast charged once a day at a low speed. Oh no, EV sedans can’t possibly work!

In contrast my EV6 charges in about 10 minutes in real life and does about 3.5-4.0 mi/kWh. I know it is not a truck but then you look at the Silverado and wonder why Ford can’t do that. Batteries are getting much less expensive as more lithium producers come online.

It annoys me a bit that the stuff that the Lightning “can’t do” has a lot of overlap with stuff that an F-150 shouldn’t do. The F-150 is marketed as a “tow your 30 foot airstream” truck but see what reaction you get if you pull into an RV lot with one. If you do serious towing, the F-150 is exactly the wrong truck. Putting a range extender on a Lightning isn’t going to turn it into an F-350 with a gooseneck.

Sponsored

 

[NW Ontario Ford Lightning]

It annoys me a bit that the stuff that the Lightning “can’t do” has a lot of overlap with stuff that an F-150 shouldn’t do. The F-150 is marketed as a “tow your 30 foot airstream” truck but see what reaction you get if you pull into an RV lot with one. If you do serious towing, the F-150 is exactly the wrong truck. Putting a range extender on a Lightning isn’t going to turn it into an F-350 with a gooseneck.

I did a search: this is what it says about pick up truck owners:
In the United States, pickup trucks are a major source of revenue for car manufacturers, and they account for a significant portion of total vehicle sales. However, most pickup truck owners don't use their trucks for work or hauling.

I agree, for towing, a 3/4ton or 1-ton is the truck of choice. I love my Lightning but I bought it for use near the home-base for home charging overnight (at 2.9Cents per kWh) not for long distance towing and Fast charging (at 42 cents per kWh). But like a lot of folks, I am sure I am not alone in having both EV and ICE vechicles at home, and picking the right one for the task at hand.

 

[Newton]

We got rid of most of our gas vehicles, we have one garage princess (that *I* wouldn’t mind selling) and a single cab long bed beater pickup for hauling rocks and garbage. It would be electric if something like that existed and cost less than $15,000. Driving gas is almost painful, certainly when I start up the garage princess I hear about fumes in the house.

For longer range I use the EV6, although it turns out that the really long trips are in the Lightning because it works fine for a relaxed trip. There is almost no difference on a long trip between driving the EV6 and the Audi Q5 that we used to have. Yes, you could refill the Audi much faster but the total time at the ‘station’ tends to be the same when all is done. We charge instead of a rest stop. If EV chargers were more crowded that might not hold, but Kia is releasing their Tesla adapter soon.

That I why I say that the Lightning is a mediocre EV (although a great truck). On long trips I feel just a little that I am playing the EV game that I used to play with the E-Golf, in the EV6 the EVness is just not a factor.

 

[Pro23-dead-at-960-miles]

The way forward is with better batteries like BYD, bringing ICE back is so dumb going backwards.

 

[NCevGuyF150]

This is a pretty good article about what direction Ford is taking in it's future EV development.



https://www.freep.com/story/money/cars/ford/2025/02/21/ford-jim-farely-evs-china/78980633007/

I truly believe that the lightning didn’t sell well, because, they originally said it would be $39,000 starting price. I don’t think any new truck has ever sold for that amount. Instead, it was released during Covid when dealers were tacking on 10 grand. People were paying over $100,000 for a truck. Historically pick up trucks were an economical way for a family to have a second vehicle which was utilitarian. A husband could drive to work and leave the sedan for his wife and kids.
It was the price that led to poor sales. People can’t afford 15 and $1600 a month on a vehicle.

 

[VTbuckeye]

so, to achieve that it needs to be electronically fuel injected.
here comes all the digital controls and support. Sounds expensive.
And there‘s still the muffler and exhaust pipe thing and the gas tank thing and the EPA thing. How about a radiator and coolant for cooling.
Magically gonna stuff all that where?

Put it in the frunk? Then what do we have ? lol

An F150 power boost with a bigger battery and a smaller engine.
Oops, PHEV again nobody wants.

And the frunk was everyone’s favorite part of the Lightning !!!

As a former Volt owner I agree. Also should add...Why have electric heat when we have this gas fired heater. And then half of the country spends months with an EV that insists on running its ICE in short cycles while never getting really warm. And the smaller battery works harder and cycles more than a larger battery. I just got out of our last phev and we now have a 3 EV house.

ICE makes sense for some uses. We don't frequently do those things and can deal with the compromises of EVs. When we had phev we wanted the engine to run as little possible (which really isn't good for the engine), unless we really needed it. Give us enough battery and enough charging and we never need the ice.

 

[RickKeen]

The Lighting is a GREAT at these usages which are the most common usages of F150s:

Kid-hauling & Soccer-mom/dad duties.
Grocery-getting
HomeDepot Runs & Suburban House Maint.
Daily Commute / 2nd Vehicle.
AWD for on-road winter driving, dirt roads & parking in the grass at soccer parks.

Plus the following which it is good for as long as constrained to local range:
Light Towing within local towing range.
Recreational / Lifestyle to local locations
Trade / Fleet with local territory.

OK for occasional usage:
EV-style road trips.
Back-country trips to destinations with available charging (RV parks, cabins, etc).

What people wish it was that it is NOT:
3/4- ton, or 1-ton "Truck" payload, towing, and road-trip range and refueling convenience:
Cross-country RV tow vehicle.
Back-country trips plus toy hauler / tower.
Snow plow truck.
Full-sized bed work truck.
Off-road / Jeep trails / rock crawler.
Trade / Fleet with large territory (across state or multi-state).

Sponsored