Impressions from Ford F-150 Lightning EV Tour -- Boston

Last Monday I took a drive over to Boston for the Ford EV Tour event. I snagged a reservation to the business oriented event so Ford showed the eTransit as well as the Lightning. But I did get a short ride in the Lightning and up close and personal look.

Below are my impressions, opinions, random thoughts. As always, take it for what its worth.

-- The focus of the event I went to was small business/fleet sales. It is obvious Ford is making a serious play for the fleet market in a way that Tesla, Rivian, Hummer are not. Ford really hyped the low operational cost, the low service cost, the telematics features, the cool work stuff on the truck. They made a huge point that both the eTransit and f150 are based on their ICE counterparts--so toolboxes, covers, accessories will be able to be used on the EVs without difficulty.

-- The eTransit uses the same battery as the MME. (I did not know that). For businesses their is a huge telematics suite for fleet managers. They can monitor driver behavior, charging times, the vehicles have a drive coach and warnings if the drivers are driving badly(aggressive), etc.

-- The power output was great. Demo had several tools running at same time-- a saw, electric cement mixer, work lights, etc.

-- Their was a Lariat an Atlas Blue Lariat on display, a dark red XLT for towing demo, and a grey PRO for the drive course.

-- I was surprised at the quality of the PRO. It felt really nice..much better than a comparable XL model. The vinyl felt like leather, or pleather. It was surprising to me-- did not feel like a stripped or cheap version at all. Also wheels look really nice, I think. I think Ford is underestimating the demand for the PRO.

-- The XLT was very nice also, aside from cloth vs Leather..there did not appear to be that much difference between the XLT and Lariat. I was surprised by the huge screen in all versions..the 12in landscape unit in the PRO and XLT vs the 15in tablet in the Lariat, I actually liked the landscape orientation better. I thought the 15in was a must have for me...but after seeing each in person the difference seemed miniscule.

--Towing demo: the red XLT was hooked up to a 5500lb box trailer. Performance was impressive. When the driver stepped on the throttle it was instant torque. It did not feel like there was anything there. No drama..no revving motor...it just goes. Besides the range issue...this will be a towing monster.

-- The test ride:-- We rode in the PRO version..ER battery so 560hp. All I can say is WOW! I've came back with a big grin on my face. I was(am) hooked. No truck should move that fast. Honestly I've never been thrown back in my seat like that...felt like nothing else. It howled thru the corners like a sports car--surprisingly little body roll. The ride was too short. As I said...I'm hooked.

All in all very good presentation. I would highly encourage one if you can attend.


Admin added - some video footage from the Boston event:

Thanks admin-- I couldn't get my video to load for some reason...

Thanks for the encouraging news, Nathan. To the extent vehicle electrification can help us offset some of the increasing climate threat, a well executed intro of electric vehicles into the commercial fleets should have a positive impact over time on the growth in retail demand, as well.

As a sidebar, I watched a video report of the Denver car show this morning and AAA was there, demo'ing their new road service truck which supports both mechanical repairs as well as electrical recharging services. The rep mentioned the same thing was true for AAA businesses in the Carolinas and Florida, among others. Baby steps....

Excellent post! Thanks

I don't know if the vinyl in the Pro is the same as our 2021 Powerboost 7.2KW Powerboost work truck, but that thing is VERY different than the XL interiors of the past. Ford is obviously upgrading the "fleet vehicle" in lots of unexpected ways.

Your post gives me confidence that although my personal trucks are usually high-trim (King Ranch/Platinum) in recent years, I would be very happy with a daily driver Pro Lightening. It's simply NOT yesteryear's XL.

Thank you for the feedback, I'm sold on the SR Pro now (though if they change their minds and let us buy the ER they can take my dang money).

With kids and dogs the high quality vinyl seats and rubberized floor is something I'd actually pay extra for (don't get any ideas Ford!).

I must confess I went in with the view of a retail customer, but I learned a whole bunch about Ford's business "pitch". It makes a lot of sense for small businesses where range(i.e. road trips) are not an issue. Also, the operating cost makes EVs a winning proposition. Ford is eyeing the fleet/commercial market..I don't think anyone else is even looking. (I'm thinking they're gonna be swimming in money here soon).

BennyTheBeaver said:

Thank you for the feedback, I'm sold on the SR Pro now (though if they change their minds and let us buy the ER they can take my dang money).

With kids and dogs the high quality vinyl seats and rubberized floor is something I'd actually pay extra for (don't get any ideas Ford!).

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Same. For long term durability and reduced stress just not having to worry about spills/stains/damage, I prefer vinyl to any of the other options.

If it was super stiff, low-quality vinyl maybe not, but it sounds like the Pro will have decent vinyl.

greenne said:

I must confess I went in with the view of a retail customer, but I learned a whole bunch about Ford's business "pitch". It makes a lot of sense for small businesses where range(i.e. road trips) are not an issue. Also, the operating cost makes EVs a winning proposition. Ford is eyeing the fleet/commercial market..I don't think anyone else is even looking. (I'm thinking they're gonna be swimming in money here soon).

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Swimming in money...

Production numbers and speed to get these into peoples hands is really Ford's largest limiting factor for profit at this point.

The smartest thing Ford did was use the ICE infrastructure. I'm curious if Chevy and Dodge are going to take notes. If they deviate from their standard ICE infrastructure then the rollouts will be much slower.

BennyTheBeaver said:

Swimming in money...

Production numbers and speed to get these into peoples hands is really Ford's largest limiting factor for profit at this point.

The smartest thing Ford did was use the ICE infrastructure. I'm curious if Chevy and Dodge are going to take notes. If they deviate from their standard ICE infrastructure then the rollouts will be much slower.

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I should say--swimming in money IF they can build them fast enough.

I'm not seeing any real competition anywhere close to production. Rumors are the Silverado is going with a Rivian like approach-- more edgy styling, less business oriented. Chevy confirmed the Silverado platform is EV specific--not based on the current ICE truck.

I had my own impressions of the F150 EV when I first heard about it. I couldn't have been more wrong. In my defense, I brought EV assumptions that were influenced by ALL the EV that I had witnessed previously.

Now of course we know much more and as the previous few posts have touched on, this is an F150 first! More F150 than my early assumptions, that's for sure.

But there's even more verification for me personally because of my acquisition of a Powerboost. As the EV information continued to be released to the public, I suddenly realized just how much of the CrAzY technology in my Powerboost is actually an offshoot of the Ford development of the Lightening. In a way, the 2021 Powerboost is a sideways preview of what Ford's vision is to electrify an F150.

Which brings up another point.....
You definitely can add me to the list of customers with a serious intention of acquiring a Lightening. I'm fetching one. But the Powerboost Platinum has me waiting without angst! It's just that amazing.

So worst case scenario while others are camping out at the dealership (an analogy of Best Buy IPhone customers) I'll just patiently wait until my dealership tells me they can get me one. Even if that is 3 YEARS, I will have a big fat equity in my estimated 36,000 mile Powerboost Platinum and I will swap it for an MSRP F150 EV

How can I whine? ??

Snakebitten said:

So worst case scenario while others are camping out at the dealership (an analogy of Best Buy IPhone customers) I'll just patiently wait until my dealership tells me they can get me one.

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I'm not sure a Dealership will be able to land stock of any significant quantity for awhile. You may want to put down a reservation now if you want one in the next 3 years. I think the nice thing about this process is you place the order and then it comes to you, no "camping out" or unknown waiting. Your order is based off when you made the reservation and you receive a delivery date once your order is verified.

None of us are hurting for a Lightning, we all currently have vehicles we're driving.

I would encourage anyone with any interest at all to take a ride in a Lightning. One ride and I was hooked for good. No vehicle that big should be able to move like that.

I honestly think a test ride/drive would make a believer of anyone who is skeptical....

I did take the liberty to exaggerate some of the angst being posted about how miffed some folks are with Ford ALREADY. And 99% of it is still just rumor and conjecture. So, I had a little fun with it. Obviously I didn't mean anyone was "hurting for Lightening" literally.

As for not being able to fetch a Lightening 3 years from now unless I am on a reservation list today..... You could be right. But that would mean that 3 years from now there wouldn't be a single F150 Lightening on the road being driven by someone who isn't on the list today.

I don't know. I can't quite buy that. (pun absolutely intended. I can't resist ??)

Admittedly it will likely be a small percentage that will fall outside of the official reservation setup, but it's inevitable.

BennyTheBeaver said:

None of us are hurting for a Lightning, we all currently have vehicles we're driving.

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Speak for yourself, lol. I'm not necessarily hurting for a vehicle, however not having one (and borrowing the SO's car) will be very inconvenient in suburban America for 2-3 years so some of us are looking at temporary alternatives.

Of course, this was all my own doing, but it was hard to pass up taking advantage of this used car market.

Technically to get your name on the list you could make a reservation with a $100 deposit, switch dealers, and then you'll get your $100 back and still be on the list.