Electric F-150 Lightning -- Our Weekend Test Drive

[Cpb9294]

Horses were cheaper than cars back then too. ����

[hobienick]

I am very excited for electric vehicles to become practical on a large scale. Their relative simplicity and efficiency is fantastic compared to ICE vehicles. Unlike the transition from horses to cars, the "fuel" for electric vehicles is not currently a waste product. If you recall your history, gasoline was a byproduct of refining lamp oil. It was stored in drums or dumped as there was no significant use for it until the ICE came around. The point here is back then there was an abundance of excess fuel as opposed to now where we are already pushing the limits of our power grid in many areas of the country. A direct comparison to the horse to car transition is a bit off the mark.

Electric cars also have to meet the current expectation of driving 400-500 miles on a charge and recharge in 5-10 minutes like we get with our ICE cars. Battery tech isn't there yet. It will come, but we are not there yet.

While the aim of divorcing ourselves from fossil fuels is often a driving factor to make the switch, keep in mind that as of 2019 80% of our energy generation in the US is from fossil fuels. On top of that plastics are a significant part of a vehicles make up. Those come from oil. This is a long winded way of saying fossil fuels are not going away any time soon even if we ban all ICE vehicles.

All of these points are leading to the conclusion that we don't want to cause other potentially more serious issues by forcing the move to EV's without considering the whole picture. Remember, ICE vehicles have had about 100 years of development that EV's have not. EV's are making huge strides in a relatively short amount of time. They will become the dominant vehicle eventually but we need time to make a smart transition.

[NB Canada]

I am very excited for electric vehicles to become practical on a large scale. Their relative simplicity and efficiency is fantastic compared to ICE vehicles. Unlike the transition from horses to cars, the "fuel" for electric vehicles is not currently a waste product. If you recall your history, gasoline was a byproduct of refining lamp oil. It was stored in drums or dumped as there was no significant use for it until the ICE came around. The point here is back then there was an abundance of excess fuel as opposed to now where we are already pushing the limits of our power grid in many areas of the country. A direct comparison to the horse to car transition is a bit off the mark.

Electric cars also have to meet the current expectation of driving 400-500 miles on a charge and recharge in 5-10 minutes like we get with our ICE cars. Battery tech isn't there yet. It will come, but we are not there yet.

While the aim of divorcing ourselves from fossil fuels is often a driving factor to make the switch, keep in mind that as of 2019 80% of our energy generation in the US is from fossil fuels. On top of that plastics are a significant part of a vehicles make up. Those come from oil. This is a long winded way of saying fossil fuels are not going away any time soon even if we ban all ICE vehicles.

All of these points are leading to the conclusion that we don't want to cause other potentially more serious issues by forcing the move to EV's without considering the whole picture. Remember, ICE vehicles have had about 100 years of development that EV's have not. EV's are making huge strides in a relatively short amount of time. They will become the dominant vehicle eventually but we need time to make a smart transition.

The biggest issue is the oil business will cease once a switch to EV happens

[thegreenblade]

I just received mine (48 Amp) today for the Mach E and paid $1,100 CAD. The one for the Lightning is a 80amp and its listed at $1,700 CAD.

80 amp that’s almost half of your service supply. They are gonna have to build homes with 400 amp breaker panels. 50 amp for an electric oven 40 amp for each AC which I have two. Doesn’t make sense to me.

[attaboy]

Yeah, we're mandated to buy electric cars here staring in 2035. Then the next days they're asking us to cut back on charging our vehicles. Hard pass for me.

The United States power grid is my big concern. Cost will come down and battery life will increase.
If California can't handle EV's at current levels it tells me the National grid won't be able to handle
heavy EV usage. Seems to me EV is being rushed ahead of the ability to handle them.
I look forward to electric cars, 75 to 85 % of my auto usage is within 50 miles of my home.
I will keep my current truck for trips and the RV.
JMO:
Bob A.

[Bamaman]

I hate to say it but the Greenies are wanting too much too fast.

The current U.S. generating capacity of the U.S. will not support switching to EV's on the short time they're wanting them to run. For example, California is already having brown outs this summer. Texas is also short of generating capacity, and so many out of staters are moving in--putting more demands on their electrical system.

I live next to a 36 hole golf course, and they're pumping lake water with two 440 volt irrigation water pumps. They had to have new electrical service run 10 miles from town--just to push a couple of pumps. Not only will EV's tax the generation system, few neighborhoods are properly wired to where all the neighbors can recharge their cars at the same time. Larger wiring will be required thru the whole local electrical system. These things don't happen overnight, and someone's going to have to pay to have cities rewired.

I first thought how dumb the politicians of California are. But again, I'll be 85 years old in 2085, and most likely will never see California again. (Maybe they'll get their LA-SF train built by then.)

I'm on my second Toyota Hybrid, and I love'em. They run just fine, and they're so quiet and smooth. Toyota's U.S. engine factory is in our small town, and the company is investing $125 million in their factory. Obviously Toyota is not ready to go 100% EV's in the near future if they're expanding gas engine production. But when Toyota is mandated to go 100% EV's, look out because their engineers are the best there is.

Ford's investing $5.5 billion in EV engineering and building the new Blue Oval City 40 miles east of Memphis. They've essentially bet the company on EV's of the future. I wonder if current customers realize they've raised pickup prices $5,000+ already with the money going into Blue Oval City? We're already paying the price for the future capital needs.

[SolarPoweredRV]

If you don't mind, what is the cost of
a home charging port for fast charging?
Bob A.

Usually you don't need to install a "Fast Charging" port in your home (Fast Charging being defined as 50kw or more).

Home charging is accomplished by installing a "Home Charger" (technically called an EVSE charger) which operates off of a 30 to 50 amp 240 volt circuit. These can be purchased for between $300 and $900 with the $900 models being designed more for commercial/workplace charging. Some "Home Chargers" come with a 4 pin 240v plug that only need a 240v outlet installed in the garage. Ford has a 120/240 volt power cord that can be used instead of buying a separate "Home Charger".

Depending on the EV and how many miles you drive each day, it is possible to charge your EV with the 110v charger that comes with the vehicle, however it is best to have at least a 240v outlet available to charge the EV overnight. If your battery was low (~ 10%), it would take a couple days to charge the vehicle up, however, a 240v connection would easily charge the EV overnight. By comparison, out on the road, a DC Fast charger could charge the vehicle 10% to 80% in 25 to 40 minutes (you charge to ~ 80% because the last electrons are very hard to squeeze into the battery and the charging rate drops very low after about 80%).

[SolarPoweredRV]

For a runaround town truck, they are a slam dunk. For a "tow your RV 4500 miles" truck, they have a LONG way to go. What you didn't mention is trying to find a place to charge with the trailer attached. I've yet to see an EV charging station set up for a long rig.

True, currently the charging infrastructure needs improvement and it is getting better and better every day, especially with the incentives offered in the new Inflation Reduction Act.

Pilot/Flying J just announced a joint venture with GM and EV Go to install DC Fast charging stations at 500 of their locations across the country. I hope that these stations are designed to accommodate trucks pulling trailers.

Still, for those campers who ascribe to the 3 hours travel per day rule this truck could be a very good fit. Also for weekenders who tend to stay fairly close to home this could work out very well for them.

[SolarPoweredRV]

If you're planning on towing with it, you may want to watch Fast Lane Truck's you tube video where they towed a 6000lb trailer. They were only able to go 90 miles before needing to recharge (which took about an hour).

Other than that, for a get around town vehicle, it looks fun!

I wonder if TFL Truck had the extended or the standard battery in their test vehicle. Ninety miles sounds about right for the standard range battery. I also wonder if they charged the battery beyond 80%, or if the charger was a 50kw charging station (or malfunctioning charger). Either of those choices would explain the 1 hour charging time. I charged the truck twice and both times it charged very quick (around 15 minutes).

[SolarPoweredRV]

Great write up. I started seeing them around and they sure are nice looking. Our Mach E is arriving early Oct and we cant wait. IMO I don't think there's enough range yet for RVing unless of course you stay close by like you said.

Congrats on the Mach E. We also test drove the Mach E and that is an incredibly fast car, accelerating in it felt like the best amusement park ride ever!