Driving Lighting on ICE

[jcar01]

We are having an ice storm here in Charlotte, NC. I took the lighting out and this truck is awesome on solid ice! It tracked perfectly and the Anti skid brakes work great!. Also the truck puts down some serious torque on solid ice. Hats off to the Ford engineers. Going to miss this truck when I have to turn it in on the end of the lease.

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[Altivec]

LOL... I too thought that.... I was thinking, What the heck. Did he stick an engine in the frunk or put a lightning body on an ICE F150.

Agreed though. My lightning is by far the best winter vehicle I've ever had minus the horrendous HVAC system that has me constantly working on keeping fog off the windows and not dying of heat in the cabin.

 

[Jseis]

Read up on Ford’s Advance Trac & Electronic Stability Control. The truck constantly monitors wheel rotation and can sense yaw. Then it brakes to take the yaw out (To put you in the direction you were just in). Saved my bacon & truck twice on curves where the truck rotated (yaw) on ice. The responsiveness is so fast (tenths of a second) you may not even notice it actuating. Both times it left me with a feeling of “What just happened?” And “Thank my lucky stars it did that”.

 

[Mal106]

Solid ice on the roads here as well. This is my third 4wd truck and it's an order of magnitude better than the other two. Anti skid is about the same but acceleration is far better.

Heat is great but the defrost needs another setting. With more than 2 in the truck, I have to cycle it on and off and it's a bit annoying. It does, however, do the job

 

[Adventureboy]

With more than 2 in the truck, I have to cycle it on and off and it's a bit annoying. It does, however, do the job

Yes, the cycling is annoying. I found that manually setting the defrost/floor and turning the fan up manually solves it most days.

 

[Pod]

Neighborhood streets are unpassable here UNLESS you have a 6800 pound electric truck. I was cruising by plenty of folks going nowhere. Truck is fantastic in snow and stable on ice. Just make sure to break carefully….its a LOT of mass on slick surfaces

 

[RLXXI]

I don't know if it's been mentioned or not yet but, unless your tires are studded, you are NOT driving on ice, you are in fact sliding. You may be driving on snow covered roads but the second all 4 wheels are on top ice, you ain't doing anything but waiting for the accident lol.

 

[DarkL1ghtn1ng]

Have to agree with OP, been out on the roads a couple times here in DFW and I told the wife its almost cheating, it drives so well. One pedal driving keeps you off the brakes, which is perfect.

 

[Altivec]

Have to agree with OP, been out on the roads a couple times here in DFW and I told the wife its almost cheating, it drives so well. One pedal driving keeps you off the brakes, which is perfect.

1PD is not recommended for winter driving. The 2025 even disables it when you choose slippery mode. Reason being, in a panic situation, the tendency is to let off the accelerator which may not be the best choice for that circumstance. It's also very difficult to find the coast position, which is usually where you want to be when you are in a slide. In 2PD, you have the ability to instantly coast by letting off the pedal. Then you have full control to modulate the amount of braking you may want with the brake pedal.

 

[Pod]

I did switch to off-road mode. Lots of deep, crunchy snow. Did NOT go very fast, just very steady.

 

[Mal106]

I don't know if it's been mentioned or not yet but, unless your tires are studded, you are NOT driving on ice, you are in fact sliding. You may be driving on snow covered roads but the second all 4 wheels are on top ice, you ain't doing anything but waiting for the accident lol.

Driving on "ice" is quite a variable thing. At 33 degrees and with a glass like smooth surface, and summer tires, that is correct. Add winter tires, a cold temperature and a bit of roughness and driving on ice becomes quite reliable. Caution is obviously advised but, for example yesterday at 20 degrees on a road covered with ice smooth enough you could see the road through it the Lightning on stock tires could climb, even accelerate, up a moderate hill. The major problems as I see it are determining what traction is available, excess speed and others on the road.

 

[Adventureboy]

I did switch to off-road mode.

Please DO NOT use off-road mode on ice. It disables part of the traction control by locking the rear wheel differential. This should only be used in true off-road situations or when you need temporary traction to get out of a stuck situation.

 

[Adventureboy]

1PD is not recommended for winter driving.

There is certainly no recommendation from Ford on this topic. This is personal preference. 1PD is perfectly fine on slippery roads provided you drive accordingly. You simply have to remember not to take your foot completely off the pedal in a slide situation. It is similar to driving a truck with a manual transmission so if you aren't used to that, there is an adjustment.

This is my 4th winter in Ontario in 1PD (lots of ice here from November to April) , and it is far more controllable than traditional drivelines. Traction control and ABS both work as intended if you do remove your foot fully from the pedal and regenerative braking kicks in.

 

[DarkL1ghtn1ng]

There is certainly no recommendation from Ford on this topic. This is personal preference. 1PD is perfectly fine on slippery roads provided you drive accordingly. You simply have to remember not to take your foot completely off the pedal in a slide situation. It is similar to driving a truck with a manual transmission so if you aren't used to that, there is an adjustment.

This is my 4th winter in Ontario in 1PD (lots of ice here from November to April) , and it is far more controllable than traditional drivelines. Traction control and ABS both work as intended if you do remove your foot fully from the pedal and regenerative braking kicks in.

This has been my experience. I think the only time I take my foot off the pedal even in normal conditions is completely stopped, or when I am approaching an intersection and want to see if I can "bullseye" the stop by coasting to a stop with no brakes.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

Ford’s official recommendation for drive modes is not “don’t use 1-PD.” It is to consider two pedal so you have a familiar experience. For me, with more experience driving a manual than an automatic, 1-PD is more familiar and I do not like driving on icy roads with 1-PD off; the vehicle behaves very poorly IMO. But then, I have been driving on ice every winter for 17 years and haven’t panicked when driving on ice in almost 40 years.

3. Choose the right drive mode for winter conditions.

Your Ford electric vehicle comes with drive modes designed to match how you want to drive. When winter weather rolls in, switching to the right mode can make all the difference in how your vehicle handles.

• For F-150 Lightning owners: The 2025 model year introduces Slippery Mode, calibrated specifically for challenging conditions. When you activate it, your truck dials back accelerator pedal responsiveness and recalibrates traction and stability controls to help prevent wheel spin. Use this mode on icy roads or any time you're driving on firm surfaces covered with loose or slippery materials like snow, slush, or gravel.
• For Mustang Mach-E owners: Whisper Mode isn't just for relaxed driving. It's actually recommended when weather turns rough. This mode decreases how aggressively your vehicle responds when you press the accelerator partway down, and when you lift off the pedal, your Mustang Mach-E decelerates gradually rather than abruptly. That gentler response helps you maintain better control on slippery surfaces.
• 1-Pedal Drive: When driving on slippery roads, consider using traditional two pedal driving for a more familiar driving experience.

https://www.fromtheroad.ford.com/us/en/articles/2025/winter-electric-vehicle-driving-tips

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