Initial driving review impressions (Lightning Lariat OWNER)

[Nickbommer]

To quote an old favorite movie of mine, “I’m right on top of that, Rose!”
Besides our Lightning, we’re one of the first in line for a Rivian R1S (we’re waiting to get word any day now). We know how important charging at the cottage is and how it will impact our trips in the future!!

I have a similar situation with a cottage. Luckily my Father upgraded the panel a few years ago and it’s right in the garage. I just need to add the Nema 14-50 outlet.

Sponsored

 

[Silent_Thunder]

Thanks for this! I’m thinking that between this and Oneguynick’s write up, I’m going to be preemptively charging on road trips when I *can* charge, not when I have to. If you look at the charging curve that Ford gave Tom Moloughney, charging is fastest between 5 and 35%, ramps down to another level between 40-75%, and then goes way down of course after that. I expect I’ll be charging a lot in the 40-75% SoC range on road trips when I charge. Then I’ll hopefully have a buffer in my trip if chargers are down near the end of my trip.

I intended to run it way down as Kyle from OutofSpec typically does to make the most of that charging curve. Unfortunately, we weren’t going to make it!

 

[Silent_Thunder]

I have a similar situation with a cottage. Luckily my Father upgraded the panel a few years ago and it’s right in the garage. I just need to add the Nema 14-50 outlet.

Yeah, we would’ve done it years ago, but Tesla had superchargers right at the exit off I-94. It was an extra 20 or so minutes we’d tack onto our trip home. The RAN (Rivian Adventure Network) has plans to put fast chargers in, but not sure when that’ll happen.

 

[Silent_Thunder]

If you had to sign in and scan an app every time, I agree, the hassle probably isn't worth it for a quick stop. But, if you go somewhere with plug-and-play (or completely free, even better!) the two seconds it would take to plug in might add a KW or two on an L2.

On Sunday, we stopped at a local Ford dealer and plugged into their L2 while we ate breakfast in the Lightning. We added 3 miles in the 17 minutes there. It happened to be across the street from the restaurant, but wouldn’t have been worth a detour.

 

[swesson]

Great write-up! As you said, I expect that as the network matures, many of these issues will dissipate. Tesla's great supercharger network wasn't great in early 2016 when I got my Model X. As others have said, I planned my long trips carefully and didn't always 'trust the system' when it came to how long to charge at certain spots. The biggest thing that Tesla has going for it is that it owns the network, so it will take awhile before we have the kind of useful info and transparency that we've come accustomed to with them. Back in April of 2016, I used to carry a lot of adapters, extension cables, etc, so that I could span the gaps across the country that Tesla didn't reach at RV and camp sites, even charging at relatives homes from their dryer connections. It can work doing these things, but it takes some prep, something today's Tesla drivers aren't used to, so it is less convenient.

 

[Silent_Thunder]

Great write-up! As you said, I expect that as the network matures, many of these issues will dissipate. Tesla's great supercharger network wasn't great in early 2016 when I got my Model X. As others have said, I planned my long trips carefully and didn't always 'trust the system' when it came to how long to charge at certain spots. The biggest thing that Tesla has going for it is that it owns the network, so it will take awhile before we have the kind of useful info and transparency that we've come accustomed to with them. Back in April of 2016, I used to carry a lot of adapters, extension cables, etc, so that I could span the gaps across the country that Tesla didn't reach at RV and camp sites, even charging at relatives homes from their dryer connections. It can work doing these things, but it takes some prep, something today's Tesla drivers aren't used to, so it is less convenient.

Well said! I forget some of early struggles when we got our Model 3.

 

[RickLightning]

We left our cottage in SW MI with enough projected range to get to a DC Fast charger along our route (roughly 50% battery or 139 miles of projected range). When entering I-94, the navigation had us stopping at an EA Charger in Evergreen Park IL with a delta of 20 or so miles. Sunday was a very windy day and we were driving SW into SW winds—massive headwind. While we got 2.2 mi/kWh going up to the cottage on Saturday, our efficiency was shrinking to 1.6/1.8 during this leg of the journey. As we started driving home, the projected range and destination delta began shrinking significantly.

Here’s where I missed our Model 3. We’d normally top up at a supercharger before hitting the road (our cottage doesn’t even have grounded outlets so charging wasn’t happening there). The supercharger network made traveling so simple in a Tesla. We do lots of road-trips each year and have taken our Model 3 to all of them since purchasing in 2018.

As we were nearing the Indiana state line, the nav system began redirecting us 34 miles in another redirection to a DC Fast Charger along I-80 (we were traveling along I-94). We were basically in a DC Fast Charger dead zone. First, we hopped on PlugShare to see what nearby chargers existed. We found a Chargepoint charger at the next exit and headed that way. Upon arrival, we watched a Mach-E plug into the only CCS at that station. He planned on being there for 20 minutes. Impatience got the better of us so we decided to head to the next nearest “fast charger” which brought us to a travel stop on I-80 East (yes, opposite from our destination). After 38 minutes, we only mustered 62 miles and plugged in our route home, which still took us farther East to a DC Fast Charger in South Bend. They’re, we used 62 or 63 kWh of our 250 kWh balance from the Blue Oval network and did a plug and charge. Thrifty minutes later we added 142 miles which was plenty to get us home. What’s typically a 2.5 hour ride, turned into a 4.5+ hour trek home.

This is a great example of why I tell people to NOT use the Ford navigation exclusively.

1) Plan route with GoogleMaps to see what an ICE vehicle direct route would be. You can restrict it to higher speed chargers, and even show a preference to a brand (EA). Indiana is a horrible state to charge in, big hole in the middle. We just did a roundtrip in it. Went around the top and down from south of Chicago on the way there, up towards Indianapolis on the way back.

2) Utilize A Better Route Planner (ABRP) to plan your trip, coupled with PlugShare to check charger reviews both ahead of time and during the trip.

3) Use EA chargers where possible, because they're faster than the other options in almost all cases.

 

[Silent_Thunder]

I wouldn't worry. The area on the frunk that had moisture is the same area that gets wet in a car trunk or SUV hatch after rain or a car wash. There are gaskets around the frunk to protect the interior, just like you'd see in a car trunk.

After heavy rains overnight in Chicago area, the frunk was dry this morning!!

 

[Silent_Thunder]

This is a great example of why I tell people to NOT use the Ford navigation exclusively.

1) Plan route with GoogleMaps to see what an ICE vehicle direct route would be. You can restrict it to higher speed chargers, and even show a preference to a brand (EA). Indiana is a horrible state to charge in, big hole in the middle. We just did a roundtrip in it. Went around the top and down from south of Chicago on the way there, up towards Indianapolis on the way back.

2) Utilize A Better Route Planner (ABRP) to plan your trip, coupled with PlugShare to check charger reviews both ahead of time and during the trip.

3) Use EA chargers where possible, because they're faster than the other options in almost all cases.

This all makes sense! I wanted to share for the people who aren’t prepared to do a little pre-work before a trip. We wanted to test the limits of Ford’s navigation system during our maiden voyage. We wanted to act as if we were first time EV owners as Ford is attempting the majority of “conquest” sales.

For our extended road trip at the end of this month, we’ve already begun routing our trip through ABRP, which we did for our Tesla, too.

We treated the trip this past weekend like we would treat running out to the store. We didn’t plan ahead as we hadn’t had to think about charging stops for the last four years.

 

[Silent_Thunder]

Do you think the frunk will fit two of those 27 gallon black and yellow bins lengthwise? The pictures look like 'no', but it doesn't hurt to ask. Thanks for all the great information and pictures.

Enjoy the ride!

Just checked, and I’ll do a separate post with pics. Confirmed NO. While I got the frunk to close with the 27-gallon tote turned sideways, I wouldn’t recommend it (sounded like the latch struggled to catch). Thankfully no damage was done!

 

[EVben]

Thanks for sharing and good luck with the R1S as well!

 

[Mike G]

I'm glad to see those panels around the frunk secured with turnlock fasteners. I don't know why they never thought of that on the Mach-E. When you need to get to the 12v battery on the Mach-E you have to forcibly remove two panels just to get access (unless you've made the mod that many of us have). But those panels are secured with hidden plastic clips that pop out of their slots and get lost down under the frunk somewhere, a complete PITA. But it looks like they thought that out better on the Lightning.

I wish they had ditched the radio antenna on the Lightning. I have to remove that everytime I go to the car wash with my Powerboost, and it looks like the Lightning has the same antenna.

I also wish the Lightning had the Mach-E door buttons instead of handles. Pretty sure everybody has seen the videos on how easy it is to break into any late-model F-150 because of the door lock on the driver's door. Mach-E style buttons would have fixed that and made for a smoother appearance as well.

Hopefully these are things that will appear on future models.

I am really looking forward to the ownership experience and thank you for your insights and impressions thus far.

Mike

 

[LightningMcqueen]

This is a great example of why I tell people to NOT use the Ford navigation exclusively.

1) Plan route with GoogleMaps to see what an ICE vehicle direct route would be. You can restrict it to higher speed chargers, and even show a preference to a brand (EA). Indiana is a horrible state to charge in, big hole in the middle. We just did a roundtrip in it. Went around the top and down from south of Chicago on the way there, up towards Indianapolis on the way back.

2) Utilize A Better Route Planner (ABRP) to plan your trip, coupled with PlugShare to check charger reviews both ahead of time and during the trip.

3) Use EA chargers where possible, because they're faster than the other options in almost all cases.

Do you feel it necessary or benefitial to subscribe or purchase the premium service of the app? or is the free versions sufficient?

 

[greenne]

I think that with a little work..the Lightning could be a pretty good roadtrip vehicle.

I drive 3-4x a year from upstate NY to the NC coast to visit aging relatives. Most of the times I have the wife and dogs with me. Driven it so many times I know approx where to stop for the "best" restrooms, stretch break, doggie potty break. Also, since I fill up before I leave I know about where I need to stop for gas. (Usually try to coordinate that with a potty stop). About 3-4hrs in we stop for lunch..then usually dinner later on. (It's a 12hr'ish drive).

Guess what I'm trying to say is that I anticipate being able to come up with a plan around charging..the best places to charge.....working charge stops with our lunch, top up at doggie stretch breaks, etc. After a few times this would become the norm.

EA has really good coverage along my route....I check and there is usually only 1 maybe 2 vehicles charging at them when I have stopped in the past. The good news is the options will drastically improve over the next few years, *IF* the superchargers opening to non Tesla were to happen that would wipe out any worry I have.

The good news is although the Ford is down just slightly on peak charging speed..the curve is pretty much flat from 0-75% (125-150 kWH). That means you could easily top off a few miles at every stop along the way to extend out the big charge stop needed to complete the journey.

Ford if you're listening,,if you could just extend that "cliff" dropof from 80-->90% that would be awesome.

 

[sotek2345]

I'm glad to see those panels around the frunk secured with turnlock fasteners. I don't know why they never thought of that on the Mach-E. When you need to get to the 12v battery on the Mach-E you have to forcibly remove two panels just to get access (unless you've made the mod that many of us have). But those panels are secured with hidden plastic clips that pop out of their slots and get lost down under the frunk somewhere, a complete PITA. But it looks like they thought that out better on the Lightning.

I wish they had ditched the radio antenna on the Lightning. I have to remove that everytime I go to the car wash with my Powerboost, and it looks like the Lightning has the same antenna.

I also wish the Lightning had the Mach-E door buttons instead of handles. Pretty sure everybody has seen the videos on how easy it is to break into any late-model F-150 because of the door lock on the driver's door. Mach-E style buttons would have fixed that and made for a smoother appearance as well.

Hopefully these are things that will appear on future models.

I am really looking forward to the ownership experience and thank you for your insights and impressions thus far.

Mike

The Antenna is for better AM radio reception - big deal in the mid-west or so I have heard. I plan to swap that for a stubby antenna - quick / cheap fix for that issue.

The door handles, I agree. I like the Mach-e solution. But I also see why ford kept it the way it is. Less design work and part reuse from the ICE F-150 kept costs down. I also suspect that the range impact is minimal given the overall aerodynamics of the truck. The current handles also make it "easier" for current truck owners to transition (more familiar)

Both thinks will likely be changed in their upcoming "Bespoke" design.

Sponsored