Would a Lightning address my issues with the MachE? and other newbie questions

[Riverant]

I currently have a 2023 Premium Mach E Extended Range that I bought in May (Ford Financing). It's fun to drive for the most part, but the suspension in the Northeast is a nightmare to the point that my kids won't ride in the backseat (I don't blame them) and my wife gets motion sick in the front. As a result, I'm considering trading in and taking the opportunity to upgrade in size and replace with a Lightning. I was hoping this group could offer their perspective on a few questions.

1) I've never traded in a vehicle this soon before and assume I'll take a bath (KBB is estimating $32K for the trade-in, purchased for 45K). Any suggestions to minimize this? I'm leaning towards getting a used 2023 to somewhat "wash out" the depreciation hit.

2) The only advantage I see with the 2024s is the heat pump - I assume that hasn't been consumer tested in a cold climate, but is that an argument to somehow convince myself to stretch for a 2024 (lease this time)? Is it expected to materially improve cold weather range?

3) After sitting in the Mach E sauna seats, I'm viewing ventilated seats as a must-have. Am I stuck with a Lariat or would a lower trim offer this?

4) Most importantly, my local roads are complete trash and my MachE can't handle it comfortably. Should I expect the Lightning to be noticeably better? Will the back seat be reasonably comfortable or merely tolerable? How does the suspension compare to an ICE F150?

Thanks - I plan on renting a Lightning on Turo to give it a real-world test drive.

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[sotek2345]

Ok, My wife has a Mach-e and I have a Lightning, so I feel comfortable answering this.

1) That isn't a bad plan, but note that the threshold for the taxt credit is much lower for used. That could offset a lot of the gains.

2) can't talk to this, neither of our have a heat pump. That said, my Lightning seems to tolerate the cold better than our Mach-e.

3) Love the ventilated seats in my Lightning, but as far as I know you need to go Lariat or Platinum to get them. There are also some aftermarket options.

4) Lightning suspension is WAY better than the Mach-e in terms of comfort. My wife avoids many bumps in our roads that I drive over without even noticing. The Lightning is the best road trip vehicle I have ever had. Very comfortable and quiet. The Mach-e is better for performance driving and cornering, but that doesn't sound like what you are looking for.

 

[21st Century Truck]

I currently have a 2023 Premium Mach E Extended Range that I bought in May (Ford Financing). It's fun to drive for the most part, but the suspension in the Northeast is a nightmare to the point that my kids won't ride in the backseat (I don't blame them) and my wife gets motion sick in the front. As a result, I'm considering trading in and taking the opportunity to upgrade in size and replace with a Lightning. I was hoping this group could offer their perspective on a few questions.

1) I've never traded in a vehicle this soon before and assume I'll take a bath (KBB is estimating $32K for the trade-in, purchased for 45K). Any suggestions to minimize this? I'm leaning towards getting a used 2023 to somewhat "wash out" the depreciation hit.

2) The only advantage I see with the 2024s is the heat pump - I assume that hasn't been consumer tested in a cold climate, but is that an argument to somehow convince myself to stretch for a 2024 (lease this time)? Is it expected to materially improve cold weather range?

3) After sitting in the Mach E sauna seats, I'm viewing ventilated seats as a must-have. Am I stuck with a Lariat or would a lower trim offer this?

4) Most importantly, my local roads are complete trash and my MachE can't handle it comfortably. Should I expect the Lightning to be noticeably better? Will the back seat be reasonably comfortable or merely tolerable? How does the suspension compare to an ICE F150?

Thanks - I plan on renting a Lightning on Turo to give it a real-world test drive.

I switched in July from 75,000 miles on an AWD Mach E Premium to a 2023 leftover Lightning XLT.

BLUF: the Mach Es from 2021 thru at least 2023 had a known front - to - rear pogoing effect... I cured mine in late 2022 with a German KW coilover set that set me back about 3 grand. The KW v3 set also made an already very good car, fantastic to drive (see my mileage above)... and so I drove that Mach E right into the ground he hee. Including several runs at the Bonneville Salt Flats.

My Lightning XLT Option 312A has the SuperCab. Between the SuperCab and the enormous frunk, the kids just LOVE this truck, for camping and for whatever else we're doing.

BUT (there's always a but, right?) pls be aware that going from a Mach E to a Lightning is like going from flying an F-16 jet fighter to flying a B-52 bomber. Especially (!!) in underground parking lots. Some of those, I just flat can't park in because I can't execute the sharp 90 degree turn into the available slot, what with the support columns and all that. Just be aware...

One more factor that made my trade-in deal a decent one: in July, Ford Motor Company offered a zero % rate for qualified buyers, and my credit was good enough that Ford Motor Company rolled my Mach E residual loan into that 0%. Not sure whether that generous FoMoCo free loan money offer is still out there... check it out.

 

[TaxmanHog]

I'll leave the MachE to Lightning comparisons & analysis of an upgrade to your needs to many of our members driving both...

I will encourage you to buy a NEW Lightning and benefit from the Mass More EV Truck rebate, could be as much as $7500 in addition to the Federal credit of $7500 assuming you meet all the conditions and buy a truck under $80K in value [before the delivery charge].

Mass MOR-EV-TRUCKS Rebate

 

[MrLoganRoss]

Have a 2023.5 Mache GTPE and a 2024 Lightning Lariat.

1) they are both great cars
2) they are very very different cars
3) I did not like the non-GT suspension in Mach-E, hence I bought the magna-ride enabled GTPE (however I recently rented a premium 23/24 in Cali for a trip and it was really awesome - way better than my test drives when I bought last Dec.)
4) as others point out, the Lighting is a very comfortable ride, but not particularly ideal for a number of situations (tight parking, small streets; anywhere not friendly to giant cars)
5) as others point out, the Mach-E is a great car with a very comfortable ride, but not necessarily ideal for some situations (big family; family and lots of stuff, hitch mounted bike racks and towing)

 

[Maquis]

I have both. The ride of the truck is many times better than the Mach. It’s better than my 2017 F150 was. Supposedly, the 24 Mach-Es are much improved.

 

[Riverant]

I'll leave the MachE to Lightning comparisons & analysis of an upgrade to your needs to many of our members driving both...

I will encourage you to buy a NEW Lightning and benefit from the Mass More EV Truck rebate, could be as much as $7500 in addition to the Federal credit of $7500 assuming you meet all the conditions and buy a truck under $80K in value [before the delivery charge].

Mass MOR-EV-TRUCKS Rebate

Thanks. is this in addition to the federal credit? Does it apply for vehicles purchased out of state? I ask because I learned post Mach e purchase that my dealer rolled the state credit into their “discount” price, while dealers out of state would have given the same discount, which I then could’ve stacked the tax credit in addition.

 

[Maximum Effort]

We also have both a 2023 Mach-e premium and a 2024 flash. I agree with all of the above responses. The Mach-e rides like a sporty suv but is super easy to park and the lighting rides beautifully but can be tricky in tight parking or parking garages with low ceilings.
I will say that, in my opinions, the 2024 flash seems to have a little bit stiffer ride than the 2022 lariat we had before. This is not a bad thing. My 2022 had 36,000 miles on it when I traded it in so it could have been from the miles on it but I’m not sure. I am sure someone on here knows if the springs are different. The 2024 Flash definitely does not go as nose up-ass down when I punch it as the 2022 did. My wife would get nauseous when I would floor it. The Mach-e does not cause that.

 

[TaxmanHog]

Thanks. is this in addition to the federal credit? Does it apply for vehicles purchased out of state? I ask because I learned post Mach e purchase that my dealer rolled the state credit into their “discount” price, while dealers out of state would have given the same discount, which I then could’ve stacked the tax credit in addition.

$7500 from Mass in addition you might also qualify for the federal $7500.

Double check the rules on the main site, I think you're now able to buy out of state, but you must be a Mass resident and the vehicle must be registered in Mass.

https://mor-ev.org/trucks-pickups#app-proc

https://mor-ev.org/trucks-pickups#veh-elig

https://www.mass.gov/doc/july-30-2024-mor-ev-program-guideline-for-applicants/download

 

[jamelski]

I currently have a 2023 Premium Mach E Extended Range that I bought in May (Ford Financing). It's fun to drive for the most part, but the suspension in the Northeast is a nightmare to the point that my kids won't ride in the backseat (I don't blame them) and my wife gets motion sick in the front. As a result, I'm considering trading in and taking the opportunity to upgrade in size and replace with a Lightning. I was hoping this group could offer their perspective on a few questions.

1) I've never traded in a vehicle this soon before and assume I'll take a bath (KBB is estimating $32K for the trade-in, purchased for 45K). Any suggestions to minimize this? I'm leaning towards getting a used 2023 to somewhat "wash out" the depreciation hit.

2) The only advantage I see with the 2024s is the heat pump - I assume that hasn't been consumer tested in a cold climate, but is that an argument to somehow convince myself to stretch for a 2024 (lease this time)? Is it expected to materially improve cold weather range?

3) After sitting in the Mach E sauna seats, I'm viewing ventilated seats as a must-have. Am I stuck with a Lariat or would a lower trim offer this?

4) Most importantly, my local roads are complete trash and my MachE can't handle it comfortably. Should I expect the Lightning to be noticeably better? Will the back seat be reasonably comfortable or merely tolerable? How does the suspension compare to an ICE F150?

Thanks - I plan on renting a Lightning on Turo to give it a real-world test drive.

I have a 21 GTPE and a 24 lariat.

1-is keep the Mach e. It’s a great car it’s not a truck even with the magnaride the back is bouncy there’s nothing you can do about it.

2-24 has the heat pump but I’m in Sacramento and it’s still 100 plus so can’t say about cold weather range yet.

3- the heat and cold seats are amazing and worth it. Need larit or above and amazing on the Sacramento heat.

4- the back seats are so comfortable, the ride is different from Mach e but in my opinion way way better than the mach e maybe not turning corners but over bumps potholes just cruising it’s amazing. I wish I bought this truck along time.

5- you would not regret picking up a Ford lightning

 

[Newton]

Our Lightning Lariat is a limousine, it will be night and day from the Mach-E. My wife likes to travel but with age and a sore back does not like to ride much anymore - until we got the truck. Now we are back to taking long driving trips, she says it is like riding the living room down the highway. The handling will probably not be like a Mach-E and I assume the turning circle will be much worse - it is nice to have a Kia EV6 for around town and fun driving. I have driven small pickups (like the size that the F-150 used to be) and it is a bit different but you can get used to it. Get the 360 camera for sure.

I would also suggest that if passengers are getting sick, turn off one pedal driving. We like one pedal driving and it might work better on the Lightning than the Mach-E but other cars with one pedal have made her sick.

You may have answered a question for me, we are about to fly to Montreal t and I was wondering if it was worth it to rent a Mach-E which seems to be the only non-Tesla that I can find for rent. We are going to be on bad roads and I know the Tesla has harsh handling, but it sounds like the Mach-E might not be great either.

Also, although you will lose on the trade in, if you get pretty good deals on used EVs so it might balance out in the end.

Also, I would go for the smaller wheels If you have really bad roads. I have thought about getting the XLT tires but the ride quality we have now is just fine so I haven’t bothered.

 

[Newton]

If you have a need for a truck, the Lightning is a really good choice, but it is not like just getting a larger car. It has an amazing amount of space with the frunk and the bed, and I have used pickups to carry garbage, insulation, building supplies, water heaters, mulch, rocks, etc so you will find uses for the truck that you never Imagined.

However, it is large - very large - insanely large in my opinion but that is what you get these days. Back long ago when we first thought of replacing our mid-sized Nissan long bed Frontier (which is pretty large compared to a car) I drove a F-150 in Bellingham and thought “no way!” Seriously, you won’t fit in many parking spaces. Over time with many test drives I got more used to the big trucks but it is still pretty ridiculous. We go to air BnBs and I cannot fit in some driveways. One driveway in a rural area was too small to turn around in with the owner’s car in place, so I had to back about 1/4 mile down the narrow gravel road to find a spot that I could execute a five point turn. I’m sure if I grew up with huge trucks I’d be much better at it, but it is a downside. If you are going to rural or industrial areas like I do parking is OK, but parking garages and city lots are a challenge. You get used to it, but I sure notice a sense of relief when I’m parking or turning in a smaller car.

If you just want better ride quality consider the “fat” Audi E-TRon. The prestige package has air suspension and it is pretty smooth. They suffer huge depreciation so you can get a used one for a decent price. We spent a couple of years thinking that we were going to get one, but when push came to shove it was not as much fun to drive as the Kia EV6 (which I don’t recommend for bad roads). We got the Kia and then finally replaced the pickup so now we are mostly EV.

You can also look at changing the wheel size on the Mach-E and getting seat cushions from Amazon that are specially made for it. My wife has one on her seat in the Kia and it really helps. She still prefers to ride in the F-150 (and drives the Kia.)

 

[ryun]

Is there anything that could be done afternarket to the MachE's ride quality? Different tires and/or changing out some components of the suspension or something?

Personally, I'd investigate these options before losing out $13K on a trade-in (plus however much extra the lightning will run you).

Only thing I'll add to the lightning's suspension is that it's soft, but can also get a little floaty too. Big bumps you'll barely notice but if the road is consistently wobbly the truck can resonate with that and rock a bit even after the road has settled. Doesn't bother me but I don't get car sick ever.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

We have one of each. We live on a gravel road.

The Lightning is a joy to drive on the highway, for road trips, and as a truck doing truck things. It's also a joy to be a passenger in. It's a pain to drive in a city.

The Mustang is a joy to drive. I've been in the back seat once and won't do it again.

 

[Piquette]

I cannot speak to a MME. I have had a Lightning ER for just over a year, it is my only personal vehicle. I am on my first long road trip and I find the ride very good. The significant other likes the back seat where she can stretch out and go to sleep. The 360 cameras help me get into tight parking lots and spaces. Blue cruise makes driving interstates much more relaxing and long trips easier.

I’m very happy with my truck.

YRMV

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