February 1st Order Date. What Do You Recommend?

[JB-Lightning]

My dealer was saying I would be able to order on February 1st.
I was one of the people wanting to get the base XLT + ER, but I can no longer afford it based on the additional package requirement.

I'm not getting the XLT without the ER, so Is it worth ordering a Pro at this point?
I'm really hesitant to order something with only a range of ~230 miles, and am wondering if I am better off waiting.
I'm also curious what Toyota is going to offer in the next few years. While I would have preferred Ford, a Tundra CrewMax may be another solid option if they end up coming out with an EV.

What would you all recommend?

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[Viper GTS]

Do you have actual data on your range needs?

Prior to buying my first BEV I had about two years of trip data recorded via the new defunct Automatic service. I was able to figure out exactly how many days during that two years I would have needed charging away from home (about 1 day per year for me) which was helpful in making that leap away from ICE.

The 3rd party charging networks have a come a long ways in the two years since I took delivery of that car, and will be even further developed by the time any Lightning gets delivered. Unless you routinely make 80+ mile (each way) trips or do significant towing I would not be super worried today going with a 230 mile EPA rated BEV assuming you have the ability to fully recharge every night at home.

 

[adoublee]

My dealer was saying I would be able to order on February 1st.
I was one of the people wanting to get the base XLT + ER, but I can no longer afford it based on the additional package requirement.

I'm not getting the XLT without the ER, so Is it worth ordering a Pro at this point?
I'm really hesitant to order something with only a range of ~230 miles, and am wondering if I am better off waiting.
I'm also curious what Toyota is going to offer in the next few years. While I would have preferred Ford, a Tundra CrewMax may be another solid option if they end up coming out with an EV.

What would you all recommend?

Lightning is your best option if you really want a BEV truck in the next maybe 3 years practically. Defer your reservation - it is $100 being held. Then see the reviews on actual range with and without towing in different climate as the vehicles start trickling out. Maybe you will have a new package option open up (XLT ER without options package) but even if not you will be at the front of the "fully informed line". $100 is not much to have tied up if you really have an early timestamp reservation in the system.

 

[JB-Lightning]

Lightning is your best option if you really want a BEV truck in the next maybe 3 years practically. Defer your reservation - it is $100 being held. Then see the reviews on actual range with and without towing in different climate as the vehicles start trickling out. Maybe you will have a new package option open up (XLT ER without options package) but even if not you will be at the front of the "fully informed line". $100 is not much to have tied up if you really have an early timestamp reservation in the system.

That’s a great point. I didn’t think of deferring. Although Ford refunded my initial $100 deposit when I changed dealers a few weeks ago, but they assured me I would keep my place in line. ?

 

[KevinC]

I wouldn't wait on Toyota. Despite them making some recent news about EV's, everything I've seen says they are years from really going to production and a truck doesn't appear to be a priority. The Japanese automakers have been putting all their money into hydrogen fuel cells leaving them in a bad position to really deliver on BEV. I believe Honda may actually be outsourcing it's first BEV to GM because they are so far behind . It seems so counterintuitive after Honda pioneered so much earlier with the insight and fit, but that's the way it is. Hydrogen is interesting and might come into fashion in 10 years, but right now it's all about BEV and Japanese automakers have fallen behind.

 

[adoublee]

That’s a great point. I didn’t think of deferring. Although Ford refunded my initial $100 deposit when I changed dealers a few weeks ago, but they assured me I would keep my place in line. ?

I think as people start driving the vehicles and experience the PERFORMANCE, the envy factor is going to ratchet back up. You probably can't go wrong getting any of the trims right now due to high resale potential for some time, but could go wrong on personal selection if you want to hold long term and "get it right at lowest cost". I work in power tech, so I'm not waiting but otherwise would have strongly considered deferring for a Lariat ER without options package, or possible XLT ER with options package if the pricing had been in line with what the survey suggested.

 

[PA Lightning]

My dealer was saying I would be able to order on February 1st.
I was one of the people wanting to get the base XLT + ER, but I can no longer afford it based on the additional package requirement.

I'm not getting the XLT without the ER, so Is it worth ordering a Pro at this point?
I'm really hesitant to order something with only a range of ~230 miles, and am wondering if I am better off waiting.
I'm also curious what Toyota is going to offer in the next few years. While I would have preferred Ford, a Tundra CrewMax may be another solid option if they end up coming out with an EV.

What would you all recommend?

If would assume the 2022 Pro model will be sold out by Feb 1. I ordered the Pro since I do not view an additional 70 mile range as a big deal given my driving habits. If I go on a long trip, the Pro will stay home.

How important to you is the extra range?

 

[Sun Devil]

In 2025 Ford is supposed to have a second generation F150 Lightning or new EV pickup. I think that will beat Toyota coming out with a pickup EV. The Silverado EV SRT will come be available in 2024. I have an early reservation on the Silverado EV believing that there is a strong chance I will get that before I get to order a Lightning.

 

[Kev12345]

in 2025, there should be choices from Ford, GM, Tesla, Rivian and maybe even Ram and Toyota. it would probably be beneficial to wait if you don't need a new ride now.

 

[astricklin]

As far as range. Like others have said, you really need to think about your use case. If you currently have a truck, how far do you drive it daily? Do you tow with it? If you ever drive more than 200 miles in a day, where are you going? How often are you doing this? What is the climate like where you live? Winter temperature does impact range.

If you are almost always driving just around town and don't tow, or tow a small trailer or flat trailer around town. The range should more than meet your needs. If you are often towing a large trailer like a camper or horse trailer or a large boat and going more than 50 miles each direction then you will really need to look at the charging options along your route as well as at your destination. And you may want to wait till more information about towing range comes out.
With the standard battery, you may only have about 60-70 miles of range (you're only going to fast charge to 80-85%) if towing a large camper trailer or similar.

I am in the same position as you are and I put a reservation down for a Chevy simply because it is going to charge twice as fast as the Ford.

 

[broncoaz]

I ordered a Pro with the 230 mile range. The office I go to 2 times per week is 66 miles one way, the other 3 days I’m within 30 miles of home. Charging nightly I don’t anticipate any issues, but I’ll probably have L2 charging installed at both offices. One of my frequently visited places is 104 miles one way, but they do have L2 charging on site. If those longer trips become an issue I’ll take my wife’s Tacoma or my Bronco.

No way was I willing to pony up the extra $30K for anything with the extended range battery, I could buy an extra hybrid Camry for that much money.

 

[kWfart]

As far as range. Like others have said, you really need to think about your use case. If you currently have a truck, how far do you drive it daily? Do you tow with it? If you ever drive more than 200 miles in a day, where are you going? How often are you doing this? What is the climate like where you live? Winter temperature does impact range.

If you are almost always driving just around town and don't tow, or tow a small trailer or flat trailer around town. The range should more than meet your needs. If you are often towing a large trailer like a camper or horse trailer or a large boat and going more than 50 miles each direction then you will really need to look at the charging options along your route as well as at your destination. And you may want to wait till more information about towing range comes out.
With the standard battery, you may only have about 60-70 miles of range (you're only going to fast charge to 80-85%) if towing a large camper trailer or similar.

I am in the same position as you are and I put a reservation down for a Chevy simply because it is going to charge twice as fast as the Ford.

keep in mind also about the charging needs. Some may not have the option of charging at home and those that do will possibly need to upgrade their circuitry as I will want to do. I currently use a 50 amp evse to charge my MME but will need to add an additional circuit for the 80 amp evse for the Lightning. I will keep the MME

 

[astricklin]

keep in mind also about the charging needs. Some may not have the option of charging at home and those that do will possibly need to upgrade their circuitry as I will want to do. I currently use a 50 amp evse to charge my MME but will need to add an additional circuit for the 80 amp evse for the Lightning. I will keep the MME

I'd you don't want/need the home backup feature then you can use a 50 amp evse.

 

[LightningShow]

I wouldn't buy a Pro if I wanted a truck I was going to hold on to for 100k+ miles. I'm going to try to order a Pro but with the expectation that I drive it for a 2-3 years and buy an truck with 300 or more mile range in 2024-2025 when there will be more competition on the market. People often drive trucks well over 100k miles and there's a good chance you'll be getting less than 200 miles of range at that point. Trying to re-sell an EV truck with less than 200 miles of range in 6-8 years will be near impossible. It's essentially a brick at that point.

 

[IdeaOfTheDayCom]

I'm really hesitant to order something with only a range of ~230 miles, and am wondering if I am better off waiting.

What would you all recommend?

My current ride is a ‘21 Mach-E with the standard range of about 211 miles. I’ve heard that all the Lightning range estimates are based on a 1000 pound load, so the standard range Lightning will be quite a bit more than 230 miles… perhaps 300 or more.

With that in mind, I must say that the 211 range on my Mach-e has NEVER been a problem. I charge in my driveway, so I start each day will a full charge. I let estimates around 180 in sub-freezing weather, but those estimates are very conservative. Sometimes I start the day with 170, drive at least 10 miles, and return with the estimate actually INCREASING as the computer factors in the type of drive.

The only time I ran into trouble was after I skipped the charger for 4 days straight and in spite of a low estimate of about 60 miles, decided on a road trip from NY to PA. As my charging level got a bit lower, I tapped a button on the display and it showed me DOZENS of FAST Charging stations along my route. I picked one, and it cost me about $10 and 15 minutes of time to get plenty of power and a much needed snack at the same time.

As such, I ordered the Standard Range Lightning XLT and I have no regrets about the battery size. I’d rather spent the extra $10,000 on the 312A upgrades. Super excited about my next F-150.

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