Limited Lightning Tow Range

[Griddlez]

This new hands on video by Marques Brownlee is interesting in terms of new (tow) range information

This is probably the biggest news yet since launch night - wow. Ford is under promising and over delivering, by far, again! (Like they did w/ Mach-E numbers, expect much more)

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[EVSport7]

This is probably the biggest news yet since launch night - wow. Ford is under promising and over delivering, by far, again! (Like they did w/ Mach-E numbers, expect much more)

He posted on his Twitter that the 460mi number was due to running very low distances at very low speed, but I am still hopeful that Ford will sandbag their numbers and we will get 325-350+ with normal driving conditions

 

[Griddlez]

He posted on his Twitter that the 460mi number was due to running very low distances at very low speed, but I am still hopeful that Ford will sandbag their numbers and we will get 325-350+ with normal driving conditions

Yea, it will all come down to what real world range looks like in various situations. I think though, this new info can be taken as good news.

 

[Brian Head Yankee]

So it was a case of a youtuber creating a stunt to get clicks. Shocking

 

[Roy2001]

Not sure what your study is based on. Ford did a really good job of announcing a conservative range on the Mustang Mach E. Most owners who are hitting or exceeding the EPA ranges for the various models. Having driven my Mach E from MD to Florida and back, charging did not add much to the travel time relative to an ICE car.

Whether F150 range would be more than EPA rated is a different story.

You want to reserver at least 15% of the capacity, and you don't want to charge over 90% in general. You might drive a lot on freeway with 75mph, you need to turn on AC or heater, and winter would reduce the range by 15-20%. And all after all, battery capacity could/would drop 5-10%.

All above together, you should plan about 50-60% of rated range. But if manufacturer is conservative on range, that's a big plus. But just keep that in mind when you plan the trip. This applies to all the EV's, did not mean to diss Ford.

 

[beatle]

50-60% is a bit pessimistic, though it is good to be realistic with range estimates. For reference I get about 80% efficiency in my Model S if the temperature is in the 30s and I'm taking a trip. I have a little less than 5% degradation after 6 years (down to 244 when full). Time will tell how Ford's batteries hold up long term.

It's true that you shouldn't charge to 100% regularly, but if you're not taking a trip, the range is meaningless as you wouldn't be close to running out anyway. I always charge to 100% right before I take a trip where I will DC fast charge, or if I need the capacity to make it back without charging. It's okay to charge to 100%. In fact, the higher states of charge are where the pack will balance itself. It's just not good to hold the battery at that level for an extended period such as overnight.

Road tripping with an EV requires you to do more planning than with a gas car, but I haven't found that to be a problem, especially when you become familiar with how efficient (or inefficient) the vehicle is in certain places/conditions. Towing is another layer of challenge, especially if you're towing something different each time.

 

[EaglesPDX]

Average recreational boat tow is 100 miles and under so the F150 EV is going fit a LOT of towing scenarios. Work tows are even shorter. Fuel savings will be a big cost savings for people who put 50k a year on a truck and use it for hauling. Some fishing guides could get $20k a year back on fuel savings.

My long tow is 100 miles with a 5k boat and that's what I expect to get out of the 300 mile range model. There's an EA charging bank a mile from the marina destination.

 

[ChasingCoral]

Whether F150 range would be more than EPA rated is a different story.

You want to reserver at least 15% of the capacity, and you don't want to charge over 90% in general. You might drive a lot on freeway with 75mph, you need to turn on AC or heater, and winter would reduce the range by 15-20%. And all after all, battery capacity could/would drop 5-10%.

All above together, you should plan about 50-60% of rated range. But if manufacturer is conservative on range, that's a big plus. But just keep that in mind when you plan the trip. This applies to all the EV's, did not mean to diss Ford.

Based on my experience with BEVs you are overdoing the reductions. The Mustang Mach E does much better than what you are listing here. In fact, Ford sandbagged the EPA estimates so drivers don't get nasty surprises. I expect they will do the same with the Lightning. In fact, we already learned the Ford estimated EPA range is for a vehicle with 1,000 pounds of cargo.

 

[Roy2001]

Based on my experience with BEVs you are overdoing the reductions. The Mustang Mach E does much better than what you are listing here. In fact, Ford sandbagged the EPA estimates so drivers don't get nasty surprises. I expect they will do the same with the Lightning. In fact, we already learned the Ford estimated EPA range is for a vehicle with 1,000 pounds of cargo.

Totally agree with you that Ford is really conservative on range rating and that is good news for customers.

But, for BEV in general, what I mentioned is kind of info to keep in mind. People don't want to stuck at nowhere and find that range is not enough to find a charger.

 

[ChasingCoral]

Totally agree with you that Ford is really conservative on range rating and that is good news for customers.

But, for BEV in general, what I mentioned is kind of info to keep in mind. People don't want to stuck at nowhere and find that range is not enough to find a charger.

The nice thing is the Ford Navigation does a great job of mapping out your charging stops for you.

 

[TRP]

I have a question that I haven't seen asked here. Current F150 has a goose neck hitch for our horse trailer. We are under the max tow weight for that vehicle and long trips don't happen very often. Mostly short trips to the trail head and home. Even with range halved we wouldn't have a problem with the round trip.

I'm not concerned about the towing range of the Lightning as much as I am curious if a goose neck hitch will mount on this truck given the rear motor location.

Any info on this?

 

[ChasingCoral]

I have a question that I haven't seen asked here. Current F150 has a goose neck hitch for our horse trailer. We are under the max tow weight for that vehicle and long trips don't happen very often. Mostly short trips to the trail head and home. Even with range halved we wouldn't have a problem with the round trip.

I'm not concerned about the towing range of the Lightning as much as I am curious if a goose neck hitch will mount on this truck given the rear motor location.

Any info on this?

Looking at the cutaway, I don't think it would be a problem.

Ford is doing everything they can to make the Lightning work will all standard F-150 accessories and applications.

This sounds like a good question to put directly to their engineers once they start holding webinars to promote the truck.

 

[TRP]

Looking at the cutaway, I don't think it would be a problem.

Ford is doing everything they can to make the Lightning work will all standard F-150 accessories and applications.

This sounds like a good question to put directly to their engineers once they start holding webinars to promote the truck.

I hope it does. I saw this pic but was looking for confirmation. I know there's a lot of F250 and up towing gooseneck, but you don't see many 150s configured that way. At least not in my experience. We really prefer gooseneck over bumper pull towing