Is Anybody Happy With Their Lightning?

[loveurdj]

I have a Maverick on order, but started having reservations about the size and utilitarian interior a couple weeks ago, so I started looking at the Ford Lightnings. I read about the tech and features and was pretty excited. But there are so many negative reviews online. There's maybe 1 positive review for every 9 that say "I hated my Lightning and sold it and a huge loss" reviews. Even here it seems like the majority are unhappy with their purchase. Am I making a huge mistake even looking at the Lightning?

Many people complain when there are problems those who don't have problems rarely rave about their vehicle, I love mine, the best vehicle ever. It's going to the shop for the 24B56 update today we will see how I feel about it after today, fingers crossed. You have to think about how many have been produced and what percentage the complaints are from, Were they purchased after a buyback and continued the discontent with owners? I have always told my wife, that new cars break they all do. I say go for it the best time to buy is now. 11500 miles zero major issues.

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[MADequipment]

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I'm still trying to figure out if I really need the Max Tow package which includes the Pro Power. I can't find a Lariat anywhere close to me with that package. There is 1 dealer 200 miles from me, but they are playing hardball with the price and they can't figure out how to apply the tax credit at the point of sale so I would have to apply for that myself. The truck is under $80K before destination charges, but they are telling me the IRS won't accept the VIN for point of sake credit.

Max Tow and Pro Power can’t be added on afterwards so get it now if you think you have any use for it. I personally do not. For me, 7700 pounds is adequate.

Just to put some nuance into the other great responses, here are 3 reasons to not buy a lightning:

1) you drive more than 240 miles at freeway speed at least weekly (ie weekly for kids’ sports or work) as this will demand DCFC (fast charging). And the quality of that experience is variable and depends on your geographic location
2) you are unable to install an EVSE (charging station) where you live. Quite frankly you should not consider any EV as this negates much of the positives of owning a Lightning or any EV.
3) you tow long distances (more than 120 miles) and won’t have access to charging at your destination (ie a cabin).

Overall I love mine and have had a great experience with it so far.

 

[RickKeen]

3) you tow long distances (more than 120 miles) and won’t have access to charging at your destination (ie a cabin).

Unless you are talking an off-grid cabin with zero electricity, you can recharge half the battery capacity over the weekend on 12 amps 120v (arrive Friday evening and depart Sunday evening). If you need to charge all the way from 0% to 100% that would be 4 full days of charging, but likely you only need 60 to 80% charge.

Or maybe its a good thing it takes so long to charge.
"Darn, guess I have to stay and fish another couple of days while my truck charges!"

That being said, if its your cabin, you can likely install a 240v charging circuit and use a charger that can support higher charging rates.

 

[MADequipment]

Unless you are talking an off-grid cabin with zero electricity, you can likely recharge at least half the battery capacity over the weekend on 12 amps 110v.
"Darn, guess I have to stay and fish another couple of days while my truck charges!"

My in laws live 260 miles away with the nearest charging about 50 miles away. No 240 in their garage. We only go once every 3-4 months, so we just use our ICE. Again, depends on use cases and how quickly you’re needing the driving range.

 

[Ford Motor Company]

Love mine you said it best. I only come on here to stay in the know and be ahead of any potential issues to be aware of but Im loving my truck.

We love to hear that, Martin! We'd love to see a pic!

 

[Ford Motor Company]

I can't say enough good things about my Lightning. I've owned three F-150 ICE trucks before this one, and not only is this my favorite F-150, but it's my favorite vehicle I've ever owned. Full disclosure, I don't trade in my trucks until they are either very high mileage or closing in on 10 years old. I grew up on a farm, we run a small business, and we take our dogs on adventures often. On both long and short trips, the Lightning has been great! I can use Tesla destination charges and most superchargers now with my A2Z EV adapters. I've been using EA and other brands of chargers before that on long trips. We have a great group on this forum that shares lots of information and Ford monitors this forum and responds to concerns. And my dealer, Apple Ford, in Columbia, MD has awesome EV support. If I had the money to trade in my Subaru Outback for another Ford EV, I'd do it in a heartbeat. Don't believe all of the negative reviews. Is the truck flawless? Of course not, but is it pretty darn great. You betcha. And I spread that word loud and clear. Ford knows how to build cars and trucks. And the lightning is no exception.

We're so glad you're enjoying your F-150 Lightning, Chris! Thank you for being part of the Ford Family.

 

[RickKeen]

My in laws live 260 miles away with the nearest charging about 50 miles away. No 240 in their garage. We only go once every 3-4 months, so we just use our ICE. Again, depends on use cases and how quickly you’re needing the driving range.

Agree that being stuck with the in-laws for 4 full days waiting for your truck to charge on 120v would be a bit much to endure.

 

[StevenC56]

We're so glad you're enjoying your F-150 Lightning, Chris! Thank you for being part of the Ford Family.

Hey Ford Motor Company. Why the heck are you only installing the Max Tow package on the remaining Flash builds for the remainder of the 2024 year models, and not a single Lariat model scheduled for the rest of the 2024 build has the Max Tow package?

 

[StevenC56]

[/QUOTE]
Max Tow and Pro Power can’t be added on afterwards so get it now if you think you have any use for it. I personally do not. For me, 7700 pounds is adequate.

Just to put some nuance into the other great responses, here are 3 reasons to not buy a lightning:

1) you drive more than 240 miles at freeway speed at least weekly (ie weekly for kids’ sports or work) as this will demand DCFC (fast charging). And the quality of that experience is variable and depends on your geographic location
2) you are unable to install an EVSE (charging station) where you live. Quite frankly you should not consider any EV as this negates much of the positives of owning a Lightning or any EV.
3) you tow long distances (more than 120 miles) and won’t have access to charging at your destination (ie a cabin).

Overall I love mine and have had a great experience with it so far.
[/QUOTE]

I'm rarely going to be towing, but we live in Central California where the summer heat may play a factor in the battery cooling capabilities and long term health. Also, the Max Tow package is the only way to get the 9.6 Pro Power.

 

[Marc]

I was an early adopter of EV's all the way back with a 1st Generation Leaf. We have owned a MODEL 3, MODEL Y and MODEL X. I just bought a Certified 2023 Lariat ER. trading our MODEL Y. It is everything I hoped for. The biggest issue that prevented me from purchasing sooner was the charging networks available to me. Now that the Tesla network is available i made the jump. Depreciation sucks but that's why I bought a preowned. My original sticker was $89,900 and I got it for $52,900. The Truck is the perfect compromise between Price, Range and Features.

 

[StevenC56]

I found a 2024 Lariat equipped like I want that was used by the dealership's owner and has 2,000 miles on it. Not sure how I feel about that, but I'd expect a sizable discount even though it hasn't been registered so it's technically new. Any of you purchased one like this? How much over the normal discount would you expect?

 

[RickKeen]

I found a 2024 Lariat equipped like I want that was used by the dealership's owner and has 2,000 miles on it. Not sure how I feel about that, but I'd expect a sizable discount even though it hasn't been registered so it's technically new. Any of you purchased one like this? How much over the normal discount would you expect?

I bought a '22 dealer demo "Manequin" Pro from when all the dealerships were required to get at least one Lightning. They had to keep it for 6 months before they could sell it. It had some test drive miles on it - I think under 100. I paid "New" sticker + some market adjust for it because they were in high demand by first adopters back then. No issues, no regrets. Small price to pay vs waiting another year to get one.

2000 miles should have at least some discount, and demand is much lower these days.

One key thing to negotiate is getting the warranty start date reset to when you buy it. The dealer I bought from was able to get the date reset (but not the miles).

 

[MurphysLaww]

Close to two years in, and haven't had issues since the battery module service. We knew going in there would be some early adopter blues, but our off-grid charging system (soon to be mobile with a victron system) will have us in free fuel around the time the Truck's paid off. Might be the last Truck we buy. What's not to like about that?

 

[StevenC56]

I bought a '22 dealer demo "Manequin" Pro from when all the dealerships were required to get at least one Lightning. They had to keep it for 6 months before they could sell it. It had some test drive miles on it - I think under 100. I paid "New" sticker + some market adjust for it because they were in high demand by first adopters back then. No issues, no regrets. Small price to pay vs waiting another year to get one.

2000 miles should have at least some discount, and demand is much lower these days.

One key thing to negotiate is getting the warranty start date reset to when you buy it. The dealer I bought from was able to get the date reset (but not the miles).

I would think the warranty clock shouldn't start ticking until the vehicle is actually sold and registered, or if they made it a proper demo through Ford it should have an extension.

 

[invertedspear]

I'm rarely going to be towing, but we live in Central California where the summer heat may play a factor in the battery cooling capabilities and long term health.

Those of us in AZ and FL aren't worried about summer temps. Unless you're in Death Valley, anywhere in CA is probably going to be fine. These batteries LOVE 75F. From my bit of research the F150L specifically likes the range of 70-90F where you get the best possible efficiency. I see good performance up to 110F. The one concession I make is that I reduce my charge limit in the summer. You don't want it stored at 100% no matter what, but it's worse at the 115-120F range and I limit my charge to 80% unless I'm going on a trip. I also set up departure times to periodically cool the battery during the hottest parts of the day. it'll take years to see what this does for me.

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