The lightning is awesome, except the embarrassingly bad infotainment system.

[Smokewagun]

In case anyone on this thread does not know: Ford is aware of many of the issues being mentioned here. There is an update coming in Q4 of this year to address the issues.

Don’t hold your breath. I sold my Lightning and got an STX. The 10-speed is a buggy piece of crap they’ve had for YEARS, and STILL can’t fix the poor shifting. My Lightning had a few flaws, but it was an early build. Updates came like kids to an ice cream truck. They did something. I get an update this week on my ICE, it says it going to make my LIGHTNING better over time. Great! JUST GREAT! Someone else is driving the damn thing. What about THIS truck! BTW, dealer confirmed Ford is STILL working on transmission bugs, screens going black, loss of gauges while driving, etc. I’ve only had this ICE STX for 6 months. Why rush to fix it Ford? I can’t expect the Lightning crapotainment fix is REALLY coming soon.

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[Effonefiddy Lightning]

Obviously I know this truck is less “tech-y” than a tesla, but dang you’d think a vehicle that relies so heavily on the infotainment system would have a little better quality and better refresh rate than what feels like 10-15hz.

I'm with you brother.

 

[Effonefiddy Lightning]

Yeah, the Lightning software is awful. Anyone who also owns a Tesla will agree.

The navigation shows you where all the gas stations are. Telling, and how embarrassing.

Why can't I send a destination from my phone? Why can't I get a real time location? My kids laugh when I try to add a destination with vioce commands. Options show up in a list but not on the map. Useless.

Why does it take so long to boot up every time? (10 seconds). Why do we have to turn it on and off? Why don't the windows work when it is "off" and someone opens the door? Why does phone as a key work only most of the time? My wife now only carries the monster key fob in fear of getting locked out again. Old ICE mentality.

Navigating to a DC fast charger? Total gamble unless you've been there before. How do you pre-heat the battery for fast charging? It doesn't matter because the fast charging isn't fast.

OTA updates? Kareokee is the biggest one? What a joke.

Tesla is iPhone 16, Ford is like a flip phone.

Oh well, it is a good truck, not a great electric vehicle. I got a good deal on it. I wish the dealer could figure out why the service engine soon light keeps coming on.

 

[Effonefiddy Lightning]

There are way better infotainment systems out there.

 

[Joneii]

I guess I’m one of the lucky ones. My infotainment system works. Occasionally I do have Apple CarPlay connect without audio, but it resolves with a power cycle.

I own a Tesla MY and to be honest I much prefer the Lightning. With CarPlay I can dictate a book if I want and send it as a text. The Tesla seems to be stuck in X mode or something and only allows short text dictation. Although, my kids probably appreciate my Tesla texts more because they are five words or less!

I love having access to multiple apps like my calendar, my Active 911 (a first responder alert app), maps (Apple, Google and the Ford Nav—I’ve used them all at various times for different reasons). I guess what I really like is that I can decide what I want to use. In my Tesla there is no choice unless I want to handle my phone (something I try not to do while driving).

 

[Richie740]

Watching Netflix right now so I'd say the infotainment center is pretty good.

 

[JohnnyEV]

Coming from a Tesla M3P the only thing better in my Tesla was the sound system in my opinion. I prefer all the physical buttons in my Lightning and the ability to use Android Auto.

 

[shutterbug]

I'd rate the system as OK but unimpressive. My wife seems to consider it somewhat bad, but she's been spoiled by the better system in....our Mach-E. We do use 'Droid Auto, ABRP, Plugshare, etc. rather than the built-in navigation system*, and we gave up on Phone as a Key years ago. Lower expectations FTW. Also, we like down-to-Earth features such as the air vents and gloveboxes which you can operate with hands rather than using Tesla's system of voice or touchscreen commands.

Not exactly sure what makes MME infotainment system better than Lightning. I do think that the IPC on Lightning is much better and more useful than MME.

 

[Mach Turtle]

Not exactly sure what makes MME infotainment system better than Lightning. I do think that the IPC on Lightning is much better and more useful than MME.

Just our opinions based on personal experience. We are comparing our MME to a Lightning XLT with the smaller screen. I like the IPC on the MME more, even though it has a little less information, because I think it presents that information in a clearer way...but I can see why you might prefer the truck's more detailed view.

Hope you get that MME Rally soon and it's as fantastic as the reviews suggest it should be.

 

[shutterbug]

Hope you get that MME Rally soon and it's as fantastic as the reviews suggest it should be.

Got it last Wednesday. It's awesome.

 

[sicamoose]

My wife has a rav4 and it is like going back to an Apple IIE! Lower end spec (XLE), but I have always been at odds on how Toyota has lagged so far behind with the tech in their vehicles.

Having entertainment would be fun, but equally annoying because my kids would fuck with it! I have been curious about those android boxes you can buy and plug into the usb and get more features - anyone try these?

PAAK for me is pretty buggy but I am sure it is a my-phone issue. 1-2 a week I get in and truck says my phone is not there. More often than not I have to reboot phone and THEN open the ford app. Only then, will the truck start.

Eagerly waiting for walk away lock. This would be my #1 'complaint' I guess. I am in and out of my truck a million times a day and pushing the two buttons is getting old.

#2 complaint is not having the map planning function on the app anymore. This was super convenient.

Other than that, I am pretty impressed overall. Their OTA updates are laughably non-important most of the time....

 

[sicamoose]

Watching Netflix right now so I'd say the infotainment center is pretty good.

wha what wahhhht? share the goods!

 

[BlueLightning]

Yeah, the Lightning software is awful. Anyone who also owns a Tesla will agree.

The navigation shows you where all the gas stations are. Telling, and how embarrassing.

Why can't I send a destination from my phone? Why can't I get a real time location? My kids laugh when I try to add a destination with vioce commands. Options show up in a list but not on the map. Useless.

Why does it take so long to boot up every time? (10 seconds). Why do we have to turn it on and off? Why don't the windows work when it is "off" and someone opens the door? Why does phone as a key work only most of the time? My wife now only carries the monster key fob in fear of getting locked out again. Old ICE mentality.

Navigating to a DC fast charger? Total gamble unless you've been there before. How do you pre-heat the battery for fast charging? It doesn't matter because the fast charging isn't fast.

OTA updates? Kareokee is the biggest one? What a joke.

Tesla is iPhone 16, Ford is like a flip phone.

Oh well, it is a good truck, not a great electric vehicle. I got a good deal on it. I wish the dealer could figure out why the service engine soon light keeps coming on.

All true, saved $55,000 by going with Ford and not with the now way overpriced CT!

But with other costs, being the loss of bells and whistles, LOL!!

 

[scoobybri]

I got the XLT ER for this reason to not get the large screen. I had issues with it in my 21 Mach-e that the dealership never solved. The XLT has been very good. I did just get my wife the 2024 Nissan Z Performance manual a few months ago and it is more dated then the Ford. I think RAM is one of the best I've ever had.

I have a 23 XLT ER as well and the smaller screen with more physical controls seems to work more reliably than the bigger screen infotainment system. I've been driving Teslas for years so going to Ford is definitely a step backwards but too bad. The little things I miss with Tesla are the graphs that show energy usage in real time and the scroll wheels. But when going back and forth between the Lightning and Tesla, I can say that Tesla's Autopilot is garbage compared to Ford's ADAS and holy crap are Tesla's auto wipers bad. I will take Ford's old school infotainment with good ADAS and wipers over the great Tesla infotainment but mediocre ADAS and wipers. One has way more effect on the actual driving experience than the other.

 

[Joneii]

I have a 23 XLT ER as well and the smaller screen with more physical controls seems to work more reliably than the bigger screen infotainment system. I've been driving Teslas for years so going to Ford is definitely a step backwards but too bad. The little things I miss with Tesla are the graphs that show energy usage in real time and the scroll wheels. But when going back and forth between the Lightning and Tesla, I can say that Tesla's Autopilot is garbage compared to Ford's ADAS and holy crap are Tesla's auto wipers bad. I will take Ford's old school infotainment with good ADAS and wipers over the great Tesla infotainment but mediocre ADAS and wipers. One has way more effect on the actual driving experience than the other.

I know this thread is about infotainment, but since you opened the door on other vehicle features, I have to mention a couple of my pet peeves with my Tesla. It is a MY, so classified as an SUV, but despite having a great sized cargo area, it has no cargo tie down points. Also no spare tire, jack, etc. I thought I could live with that since in over 30 years of driving I only had two flats. However, in two years with the Lightning and the Tesla we have had a combined 6 flats! Luckily 4 were with the Lightning and I sure am glad for that spare. Ok, did nobody at Tesla ever drive a car before?!—Their cupholders are arguably the worst I’ve ever used, and no “Oh Shit” handles? Didn’t seem a problem until I tried loading my ailing dad. Sorry, rant over.

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