Important Update: Ford EV Roadmap & Future of F-150 Lightning (EREV Next Gen Model) - ⛔️ ADMIN WARNING: NO POLITICS

[dmod]

I guess my next truck will be a Rivian.

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[gregoryhcain]

I absolutely love my '22 Lariat ER. I will drive it until I can no longer. That said, I have absolutely no interest whatsoever in a EREV. The last thing I want is a gasoline engine to maintain, and I could care less about 700 mile range. I only need to tow 250 miles at a time and for me that is one charge mid way. I wish Ford well, and I hope your smaller BEV truck is a success. However, I will not be a customer of this new Lightning EREV; I am done with gasoline for good...

 

[Jarratt]

The BMW i3 was a generator as well, it was the only part of the car that had issues. Gasoline engines don’t like to sit idle for long periods of no use. BMW pressurized the gas tank to try and maintain the freshness of the gasoline(keep water out), but it still had issues with that system as well as other issues. It requires annual oil changes regardless of hours of use. I’ve seen this movie before and didn’t like it.

Thanks for the comment. Hopefully Ford will benefit from lessons learned. I like it and am willing to accept modest annual maintenance for the generator even if it not used. To each their own. I understand why some push back.

The eventual solution will come from next gen battery techs that reduce charge times, increase range while lessening weight and cost. Like Ford, I'm sorry that the development of these techs has lagged.

Like almost everyone here I adore my Lightening. When I'm hauling 2-3 horses, not so much. I see an on board generator as step-change on the path toward an ultimate solution.

 

[DarkL1ghtn1ng]

I appreciate the candor and the information. Thanks for coming here as the news breaks to share the details.

I am not sure how I feel about this yet. I really love not having to do oil changes or gas station stops. I love the frunk. I think the truck looks great. However, the range is not great for road trips, and spending extended time at charging stations is definitely the least favorite part of those trips. And as far as reliability, I have had more than my share of dumb problems with the truck. I have never been stranded, but taking it in for even something minor makes me wonder how many days it will be in service for.

This of course is before considering how much it has depreciated.

I really hope that Ford will offer strong incentives for current Lightning owners that are looking to trade to another Ford in the future.

 

[beast]

Sorry to say I’m out after this one fellows. I’ll be leaving ford after my 2023 warranty runs out. cause I’m not going back to having to do oil changes worry about fuel worry about spark plugs etc. I enjoy the convenience of hardly no maintenance. It’s either all electric or nothing for me. Next one will be either a Rivian R2 or a cyber truck.

 

[flabrent]

Well, I'll enjoy the next three years in my '25 Flash. After todays news, when it's time for a new ride I'll be surprised if Ford has something I'm interested in. Hopefully the Rivian R1T will not be the only option by that time.

 

[Jarratt]

I guess my next truck will be a Rivian.

I see that vehicle as a SUV with a truck body with little in common with a F-150. Also suspect Rivian may go the way of the delorean. It's not close to having a nationwide dealer network.

But it's a great product for some.

 

[KrazyCelticKid]

Guess I’m done with Ford. It’s too bad; except for removing the garage door opener (stupid move), removing the parking assistant (poorly implemented which is why it wasn’t used by most), and the charging speed (was hoping this would improve on the next model) I love my Lariat as it is. Already looking at Rivians …

 

[meow]

@Ford Motor Company

 

[tubby]

I'm betting Ford will figure out they just need 3 tiered powertrain options on a shared platform. They have a great thing going for the majority of current Lightning owners and this way Ford avoids alienating early adopters like us who value the silent, instant-torque drive without the generator's added weight/complexity.
So...why not they just launch the next-gen Lightning (2027+) with three variants: (1) Pure EV (100-300 mile range, no generator), (2) Optional EREV add-on (generator kit factory-installed for +400 miles), and (3) Full EREV standard (700+ miles). They could even figure out how to use a modular battery/generator bay for easy swaps at dealerships.

And/or even offer this for the dealer to get their money...a dealer-installed "Range Extender Kit" which could be a compact gas generator for 2022-2025 models.

I think there are lots of better options than going all EREV, but who knows, they likely did their research and it's just a money thing.

The only probllem is if they figure out a perfect design and operational plan for this, the ICE would probably go away...or maybe that would not be a problem?

 

[Temix]

The biggest disappointments in my Ford Lightning journey were the dealerships - and this letter

The truck itself is amazing - I genuinely love it.

 

[CD4TNF]

I think you're seriously over estimating the size of the battery pack on the EREV... probably by 2x or so.

It depends on the engineering strategy.

1. Keep the existing battery pack size and structure. Replace with LFP packs and put the gas tank and engine below the trunk bed.
2. Reduce the battery size means re-engineering the pack size and manufacturing tools. Gas engine can go somewhere in the frunk and gas tank in the traditional spot. This would give a larger gas tank.

A gas F150 is either 23 gal or 26 gal. Makes sense to re-use the existing gas tanks.

• At 19MPG, new Lightning would get 437 gas miles, the additional 263 electric miles gets to 700 miles. That's about the same 131 kWh battery.

• If the range extender gets 28MPG, then we're talking 644 miles on the 23 gal tank and a tiny 25kWh pack with 60 electric miles (2.4mi/kWh). At that point might as well call it a PHEV.

Those are some upper and lower bounds I'm having fun calculating.


All fun theory crafting. Kinda pointless until Ford announces specs.

 

[dmod]

I see that vehicle as a SUV with a truck body with little in common with a F-150. Also suspect Rivian may go the way of the delorean. It's not close to having a nationwide dealer network.

But it's a great product for some.

Some of the drawbacks are the reason why I chose the lightning over it the first time, but I won’t go back to a gas vehicle. I’ve been fully electric for almost a decade.

 

[PJnc284]

It depends on the engineering strategy.

1. Keep the existing battery pack size and structure. Replace with LFP packs and put the gas tank and engine below the trunk bed.
2. Reduce the battery size means re-engineering the pack size and manufacturing tools. Gas engine can go somewhere in the frunk and gas tank in the traditional spot. This would give a larger gas tank.

A gas F150 is either 23 gal or 26 gal. Makes sense to re-use the existing gas tanks.

• At 19MPG, new Lightning would get 437 gas miles, the additional 263 electric miles gets to 700 miles. That's about the same 131 kWh battery.

• If the range extender gets 28MPG, then we're talking 644 miles on the 23 gal tank and a tiny 25kWh pack with 60 electric miles (2.4mi/kWh). At that point might as well call it a PHEV.

Those are some upper and lower bounds I'm having fun calculating.


All fun theory crafting. Kinda pointless until Ford announces specs.

You do realize that lfp is less energy dense than nmc? There's 0 chance it has anything close to the current lightning range on purely electric.

 

[WXman]

Having gone from a V8 F-150, to a Lightning, then to a PowerBoost; this is exciting!

I know! So I will still be able to have my electric truck, but without the massive inconvenience of finding chargers every 80 miles while towing my camper? WHERE DO I SIGN PAPERS?

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