I'm Curious, How Many People Are Considering Not Taking Delivery?

[lightspeed]

Speculation at this point. This thread about refusing delivery hardly seems like the right place for this conversation either way.

It's not speculation. Tesla makes structural packs for Model Ys and they have been torn down. They are 4680 cells in 4 big modules all foam-glued together. Not serviceable. You can see it here:





I've driven most EVs that can be bought today and the Lightning is darn good against them of course they aren't all apple to apple comparisons. They all have quirks. Good luck with whatever you get in the future.

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[HarryBakshi]

I finally got an opportunity to order, but have chosen to pass. As a Minnesotan I can’t justify $90k for a ER Lariat that doesn’t even have a heated steering wheel.

My 2022 Lightning ER Lariat has heated steering wheel and heated seats (front and back)

 

[HarryBakshi]

After two months of ownership, I don't have any complaints and I am enjoying every bit of it

1. I have been stopped multiple times at Costco, Wegmans asking about the truck. The looks get complement all the time. People looking at the truck at all redlight stops.
2. This is my first EV and first truck. I am using it as a lifestyle vehicle and not as a pickup truck
3. Yes - I believe some areas/features could have been better specially the charging network is not as extensive as Tesla. The range calculator is lot of guesswork and changes every time
4. Blue Cruise is a great technlogy- I was initially hesitant of using it as hands free on highways but my confidence has increased and I am using it extensively on NJ turnpike and I295
5. Yes - It is little expensive at $80K for Lariat Trim(however I will get $7500 tax credit). I believe with increased costs and lack of tax credit for 2023, Lariat and Platinum are not worth the money spent. But do we have many choices for EV trucks - I would say No.
6. Tesla Car and F150 Lightning is not an apples-to-apples comparison. They are two very different vehicles. Parking is an issue for Lightning when I drive to Philly or NYC but the interior space is way more as compared to Tesla. And I agree Tesla interiors are boring.
7. As an adopter of a new EV - you should be mentally prepared for few issues but Ford is taking ownership and willing to fix things and provide updates

At the end I would say it's your choice and your money - If there are better EV's available you should buy it.
Most of my friends who drove it are continuing with their reservations and waiting for it in 2023 and one of my friends was so impressed that he paid premiun for Mach-E GT to get the taste of the technology

 

[kkgg]

I finally got an opportunity to order, but have chosen to pass. As a Minnesotan I can’t justify $90k for a ER Lariat that doesn’t even have a heated steering wheel.

I am a fellow Minnesotan and I am with you on this

 

[FordLightningMan]

The Lightning has both exceeded my expectations and led to some disappointment. I'll lead with the disappointment, for the XLT SR I feel like a few more basic features should've been included. If there was adaptive cruise control, keyless entry, and heated seats, I would feel like I had the necessities that a $57k truck should offer. As-is, it feels like some basic features were intentionally skipped as a way to coax people into a higher trim.

The in-between, it would be nearly impossible to have a SR Lightning as an only vehicle. My house has a M3 Performance, we are taking this on a road trip north this winter and there is no fear of charging issues. The Lighhtning SR is my around town vehicle, you couldn't convince me to take a long range trip in this thing. Winter range is very low and charging is suspect at best. I am not mad at this, I bought the truck as an around town vehicle, but it's very noticeable it's a limitation.

For the good... regarding software issues, what software issues? Maybe it's because I'm on the smaller screen, but everything has worked perfectly. The ride of the truck is also very comfortable and has enough zip I don't miss driving my faster Tesla. It handled 4 feet of snow well, also important for where I live. The utility of the truck is fantastic, I've done more truck stuff in the last month that simply can't be done in any other EV today, including the too small Rivian. Charging at home, I never have issues with daily driving, it's very convenient for getting around town.

The pros outweigh the cons to me and I don't regret buying the Lightning. I'm excited to upgrade to a gen 2 or 3 EV truck, but the next EV truck prices aren't getting any cheaper and supply isn't getting any better for a few years. Maybe I could have waited until 2025 to get something that checks more boxes, but I'd sure hate to have missed out on driving a Lightning for 2-3 years in the meantime.

 

[j1francisco]

I’m definitely getting cold feet. It’s exciting to learn my order shipped today but at the same time it’s more exciting to find there’s an avalanche raptor on the same transport headed to my dealer. I was disappointed when I bought my 2018 Raptor and found avalanche was discontinued. I did not know the color is now available for the gen 3. I guess I have a few weeks to decide which route I will take.

 

[mr.Magoo]

My 2022 Lightning ER Lariat has heated steering wheel and heated seats (front and back)

Heated steering wheel have been removed on 2023s due to "chip shortage"

 

[Jhalkias]

I was originally first in line at my dealer by order of reservation for the Lightning. I decided to delay delivery and let someone else jump ahead since I already had my Mach E and was pretty happy. Big mistake. I didn't know if I would like driving the truck, and honestly did not know if it would fit in my garage (it does).

Last month, when I had the Mach E in for the glass roof replacement, my dealer gave me a Lightning as a loaner (their FCTP truck) and I fell in love with the truck. Since I would not be able to get my original reservation until next year now, I began searching for one to buy. Finally found a couple for sale close by - one an FCTP with 4,000 miles and one brand new (both 2022 MY). I am buying the FCTP at MSRP, as they wanted $10K over MSRP for the new one (which I got down to $4K, but still told them I would not pay over MSRP). I am pretty happy with this - and my wife loves riding in the truck better than my Mach E, and I have always wanted a pickup for the utility of it.

All that being said, not because of the tech or other factors, but if my order would not come through until 2023, I would not have converted. I would have waited until a Ranger or Maverick came out. Primarily because of the tax rebate being coupled with the increase would mean paying essentially almost $15,000 more for the same truck.

That would have given me a hard pass until later.

Disappointing that Ford cannot yet figure out how buyers next year can still get the truck they want and qualify for the tax credit. I am buying what I want, which is an ER Lariat with a spray in bed. It will be interesting to see if Ford makes any moves to help buyers in any way to qualify for that credit, as I am betting demand is going to fall sharply without it.

 

[EVTruckGuy]

I don't blame anybody for not taking delivery.

Ford is a mess right now. They have really bitched the reservation, ordering, and delivery processes of new vehicles over the last few years.

I decided at the last minute to not convert my reservation to an order.

I'll probably just keep my ICE truck until it disintegrates for those times I need the truck.

I bought a PHEV SUV to be my daily driver.

As a side note, BMW can process a custom order, build a luxury vehicle, and have it delivered to a dealership all within 6-8 weeks.

It was a refreshing experience after dealing with Ford for a Mach E purchase and attempted Lightning purchase.

BMW does have longer waits for their fully electric vehicles, but they don't seem to have as many issues as Ford.

I have bought several Ford's in the last, but I'll probably not consider any new Ford purchases for quite some time.

 

[greenne]

Yeah, I was on the fence because it is quite expensive, but now that I have it, I'm a fan. It's very good.

I'm not worried about the battery. I think less than 10% loss over 250K miles is most likely if you take reasonable care of it (based on Tesla data). The 70% warranty has to account for extreme abuse of the battery. Plus, even if it did lose 30%, a 100kWh battery is still HUGE and will have value. Plus, the Lightning battery is modular, so if a specific module is bringing down the pack, it can be replaced individually.

I'm not worried about resale, but I also expect it to depreciate like any other vehicle. I don't think there is anything on the horizon that will change the value proposition radically. The upcoming competitors might have better specs but they will cost more for them.

I remember people saying the same stuff in early 2000s when the Prius came out. What happens when the battery goes dead? What about battery life? etc.

Things turned out fine. There is always risk. There's also the risk your ICE will seize just past your powertrain warranty at 70k mi. I don't want to even know what a modern new ICE costs now.

I think the drama is overblown on resale. I mean people still buy ICE for decent money(esp in todays market) with 200k for $5k, 10k or even 15k. Want to talk about ticking time bomb. Even the best Toyota is a moderate risk above 200k.

More pressing is how resale values will be in a few years due to emerging technology. As the charging speeds get faster, the range gets further(400mi) will the f150 look outdated?

I do think there will still be a great market given the demand will be high. I don't see the demand being satisfied by new EVs alone.

Lets face it..the best thing Ford could have done to prop up used Lightning values is exactly what they did..raise MSRP. (I know it was for other reasons and sucks for 2023 builds, but for 2022s it was an unexpected plus).

 

[brewski]

I once had an Expedition with the famously miserable 5.4 liter 3 valve V-8. Great truck, then the engine became an issue. Ford dealer said I had sludge in the oil. Sure. A chain oil change company refused to service the truck because of the engine and the issues...they didn't want to be blamed for Ford's engineering failure.
The point being, ICE vehicles have issues, too.

I'm not 100% in on this truck anymore, and the removal of things doesn't help.
PAAK removal (if true) is not exactly a deal breaker, I almost exclusively used the keypad on my Expedition.
Still, the slow trickle of removing things bugs me.
I get it, the supply chain is out of their control...still....

I will not be spending the $$ on the whole house backup ordeal.

I guess we'll see how build week (12/5) goes, I still have not received an email about production, nor does the website show the truck is in production.

I presume if I had been given some sort of price guarantee, I would have an email about that? I don't see any emails.

 

[RVTim]

At the end, I have a question about cancellation... (skip a couple paragraphs for that)

Just today I dropped in at the dealer to cancel my F-150 lightning order. During thanksgiving I had gotten a build date of 1/9/2023, so it was getting close, but the nails finally went into the coffin.

The deal breakers for me were, 1) the heated steering wheel, and any other things that it wouldn't have shown up with. 2) The price increase, which now that we know the 2023 EV tax credit rules, meant that my Lariat was going to be over $80,000. 3) The EV Tax rule itself, not giving credit for vehicles over $80k.

The thing is, I didn't really NEED the truck. I just need a daily driver for routine errands. But the truck would have been able to be used for many things and it would have done a great job.

My question though is, the dealer told me I should be able to cancel the order on my phone using the email link Ford sent. When I use that link, the Q&A says that you have to see the dealer to cancel. So they're asking their G.M. to help answer the question. That caught me off guard. Anyone here know the real cancel method?

As it is, I'm going to hold off buying anything until after 1/1/23 so that I'm fully under the new rule, and then I'll probably get something early in the year.

Candidates are:

Bolt EV or EUV (owned an EV before and it is a nice little car)
Tesla Model Y (non-performance ... need to verify it qualifies as an SUV)
Mach E (need to verify it qualifies as an SUV)
Would likely trade any of the above for the Blazer EV when it comes out, unless I am 100% satisfied with the car I buy.

Once my order is fully cancelled I'll get it removed from the order tracking list on this site.

 

[Fordskeptic]

Are you concerned about the loss of any downpayment? If so, that's best sorted out with the dealer (at management level). Never got to the order stage, so don't know if you can cancel online or if dealer has to do it.

 

[carrillj]

At the end, I have a question about cancellation... (skip a couple paragraphs for that)

My question though is, the dealer told me I should be able to cancel the order on my phone using the email link Ford sent. When I use that link, the Q&A says that you have to see the dealer to cancel. So they're asking their G.M. to help answer the question. That caught me off guard. Anyone here know the real cancel method?

As it is, I'm going to hold off buying anything until after 1/1/23 so that I'm fully under the new rule, and then I'll probably get something early in the year.

I just went through this a few days ago when I canceled my order because I did not think the truck was worth waiting for any longer. To answer the question, it’s the dealer that holds your reservation and deposit money. I didn’t cancel the truck until they could prove that my refund was processed. It’s actually two simple clicks on the screen for each transaction and it was done, to include an email confirmation that I received. Your dealer knows this and could possibly be playing dumb to keep your money, which to be honest they are able to do under the agreement terms once you converted it to a purchase order. Good luck getting your money back.

 

[RVTim]

Are you concerned about the loss of any downpayment?

So far I'm not concerned. I guess that will change if they give me a hassle. The dealer assured me that my deposit was 100% refundable, even up until the delivery and purchase of the truck, so they shouldn't have any reason to refuse it.

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