What will be your first F-150 Lightning upgrades?

[GarageMahal]

I'm also not an expert on solar panels, but I live in South Texas...and my lab where I park daily is in the middle of a solar field...and we also test solar panels/storage batteries for solar fields at the Energy Storage Technology Center (after viewing the data from the portion we control, I kind of have an idea on what is possible at this particle location)...and I guess you glossed over the part where I say I drive 8-10 miles per day...but go ahead and crap on anyone who might think this might be viable telling them why it won't

Assuming 2mi/kwh at 500W for 6 full hours of good sun we are looking at about 6 miles of charge. I would not complain about that myself but not sure what the cost will be to determine a real ROI. These are very conservative numbers in my opinion and getting above 10 miles of charge seems possible.

I have never seen an option for an ICE truck to generate its own fuel and I look forward to having that option. Sure hope the pricing is good

Sponsored

 

[sotek2345]

Assuming 2mi/kwh at 500W for 6 full hours of good sun we are looking at about 6 miles of charge. I would not complain about that myself but not sure what the cost will be to determine a real ROI. These are very conservative numbers in my opinion and getting above 10 miles of charge seems possible.

I have never seen an option for an ICE truck to generate its own fuel and I look forward to having that option. Sure hope the pricing is good

Given what is involved, I would expect the price to be in the $1,500 to $2,000 range. Higher if extra hardware needs to be added to the truck to allow charging of the high voltage battery from the array.

Break even for cost in 10 to 15 years. (Edit: ignoring cost of money -with cost of money you never break even)

 

[Kiggulak]

I was planning on adding a hard folding tonneau cover, all weather floor mats. Now we'll have to see which comes first my Lightning or the Workforce Solar cover, and what the price comes out to be on the workforce cover and their replaceable battery rail. Vs the 80amp EVSE charger and Sunrun's inverter costs for the home backup hookup. Might just grab the portable unit off the rail and use it to power the fridge/freezer as needed. Also ability to self charge after a hurricane out in the sun is very appealing.

 

[GarageMahal]

Given what is involved, I would expect the price to be in the $1,500 to $2,000 range. Higher if extra hardware needs to be added to the truck to allow charging of the high voltage battery from the array.

Break even for cost in 10 to 15 years. (Edit: ignoring cost of money -with cost of money you never break even)

I would be all over this at $2000 considering good tonneau covers start around $1000.

ROI on $1000 is very subjective here and depends how you want to look at.

If you go by how much "gas money" you saved it pays back quite quickly. For fun, lets assume 10 miles per day for 15 days per months replacing a 15MPG truck paying $3 per gallon for gas:
10 * 15 / 15 * 3 = $30 per month "savings". That works out to under 3 years to break even. Of course this isn't the only way to measure this (and is a rosy argument I would use to convince the boss).

Using the same 10 miles per day (5Kwh) assumption but with electricity cost of $0.15 per Kwh instead:
5 * 15 * .15 = $11.25 per month which is still under 8 years.

So many assumptions... not the least of which is the price of electricity which is constantly climbing where I live.

As a current owner of a solar system I have learned one thing for certain: slow and steady makes money. What doesn't look like much on a daily basis adds up to real money over time.

P.S. When I first heard of solar bed covers I thought no way that would ever make sense but looking at the math now it might work with an electric truck. Can't wait until we get real world data on these.

 

[sotek2345]

I would be all over this at $2000 considering good tonneau covers start around $1000.

ROI on $1000 is very subjective here and depends how you want to look at.

If you go by how much "gas money" you saved it pays back quite quickly. For fun, lets assume 10 miles per day for 15 days per months replacing a 15MPG truck paying $3 per gallon for gas:
10 * 15 / 15 * 3 = $30 per month "savings". That works out to under 3 years to break even. Of course this isn't the only way to measure this (and is a rosy argument I would use to convince the boss).

Using the same 10 miles per day (5Kwh) assumption but with electricity cost of $0.15 per Kwh instead:
5 * 15 * .15 = $11.25 per month which is still under 8 years.

So many assumptions... not the least of which is the price of electricity which is constantly climbing where I live.

As a current owner of a solar system I have learned one thing for certain: slow and steady makes money. What doesn't look like much on a daily basis adds up to real money over time.

P.S. When I first heard of solar bed covers I thought no way that would ever make sense but looking at the math now it might work with an electric truck. Can't wait until we get real world data on these.

Yeah - it all depends on how you spin the numbers. You an get Tonneau covers for under $200, so it really is a ~$1,800 (guesstimate) premium for the panels (no word on how good of a cover it will be in general.

You can also look at cost of money. $1,800 invested in the stock market (assume conservative 7% rate of return), would give you $126/yr. These panels, assuming 5kwhr/day (very very best case) and your number of $0.13 per kwhr would make ~$237 per year, assuming you have 365 days of full sun every year (no rain, no seasonal changes, never park in the shade, it never gets dirty, etc. That is a net benefit of ~$110 per year. So you are looking at 16 years to pay back the original investment at which point you start making a little money - assuming the panels are still fully functional and operating at 100% after that time.

More real world number mean you never get your money back. I can see some outside use cases for overlanding or other off the grid applications, but for daily use there are much better ways to spend your money.

 

[Guava]

Same as I do with all other cars, intake and exhaust.

 

[corradoborg]

Same as I do with all other cars, intake and exhaust.

Oh, yeah! Gotta make it free-flowing to expel all those burnt electrons! ?

 

[Silenze]

My first upgrade will be the gasoline engine powered range extender mounted in the bed.

 

[Maljr1980]

I’m just waiting for Henessey to build the world’s first LS swapped lightning making over 1000 HP.

 

[Trieubao]

Hoping the hard cover I have on my 2016 will fit. Not sure how much the bed changed for the 21 model year though.
Exact dimensions
I have Peragon 2013 fits perfectly to 24 lighting.

 

[Mal106]

Realizing this is an old thread. Tonneau from my '23 Powerboost ($149). Soft lowering tailgate shock. Bed step usable tailgate up or down. Mud flaps, the '23 ones didn't work. Hanging files for the console. Covers for the forward console. Dash cams fore and aft. Good phone holder.

 

[hturnerfamily]

after all my 62,000+ miles of driving this amazing machine over the last 3+ years, and towing our camper thru much of those miles... I will tell you my absolutely BEST upgrade/modification:


well... no, I can't pick my 'favorite' child, that would be rude...

so


- I'll say that one that certainly immediately comes to the TOP of the list: adding AdaptiveCruise/LaneCentering to my base PRO SR model truck....adding the required RADAR device in the front bumper, along with the modified HARNESS with the Radar connections, and the required tweaks to the truck's software/hardware, via ForScan. Now, my truck basically 'drives itself', with a little help from a 1lb wrist weight my wife already had on hand, to minimize the 'alerts' to 'keep your hands on the wheel'... wonderfuL! Any road, any time, any speed, any where!

- maybe another is the Tri-Fold HARD Tnoneua cover, which can be accessed via the front portion, or the rear portion, or easily removed, all-together. Just from an aesthetic, it looks good, makes for a 'safer' storage area, but, realistically, especially if you park outside, keeps the riff-raff out of the bed, leaves and all : )

- I don't mind my new replacement ROTARY GEAR SHIFT, either, the newest addition. Absolutely nothing wrong with the original, but, when you realize you can now so much more easily 'reach' into your center storage, and also hold another 'cup holder' or 'storage bin', or, for me, my iPhone RESTING Place, which is my wireless Charger, you get the idea... it's just simpler.

- my seat covers for my original Vinyl Seating are not to be forgotten - they just continue to do their job and protect and preserve, and, well, actually adds some extra cushion and comfort, although the original Vinyl 'feels' like leather : )

- some options from the factory, like MAX TOW and ProPOWER 9.6kw, are essential, at times - but the ability to have them is comforting. I will say that TOW TECH is not as essential, although, I now realize, is what brings in the factory wiring that gives me the option to add the aftermarket #1 AdaptiveCruise/LaneCentering option, so, all is well. I still don't get how to really use that little 'steering wheel' rotary dial for backing a trailer...but, then again, with so many years experience, I already knew how : )

- a close 'last' option is the SecuriCode wireless Keypad door lock/unlock option I added, and mounted within the ChargePort door. It works flawlessly, and while you might think you'd never need it, it comes in handy more times than you'd think. And, it's a relief it you ever forget your fob, or your app is not working properly, etc.

 

[K6CCC]

This sure is digging up an old thread! My first mod was adding a Leer cab high shell. There's a long story on trouble getting that (Thanks to Mr. Trump). Next up is all terrain tires, and getting a few ham radios in service.

Sponsored