SR to ER battery swap DIY project

[Mike G]

I wonder if there is any programming needed…..

Since FDRS is used anytime work is done to the pack I'd say yes. There is a fill and bleed procedure, and he'll likely need to run the battery health test and other stuff.

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[Theredshift]

Rolled the dice on this ER battery on eBay. Anyone else out there do this yet? Wish me luck boys and girls.

Will definitely be following this because i had reached out to ford and they told me due to software issues, etc that they didnt recommend going from a standard battery to extended. Told.me that the truck would have issues but i consistently stay impressed with the know.how with all of you guys on this forum so interesting to see how this unfolds. Pretty cool!

 

[kf59]

This makes me wonder, can you use part of your SR battery to make a portable range extender?

Better yet, can the SR be hooked to a solar system for some serious back up storage? Tired of watching my excess leak back to the power company at near zero value.

 

[jwrezz]

This makes me wonder, can you use part of your SR battery to make a portable range extender?

Or a home backup!

 

[jwrezz]

Better yet, can the SR be hooked to a solar system for some serious back up storage? Tired of watching my excess leak back to the power company at near zero value.

Sorry, I replied before seeing your reply!
But yeah, those DIY battery storage systems you're lucky to get above 5kwh out of any wall mount battery. Imagine having 10-20 times that?!?

 

[kdkool]

Better yet, can the SR be hooked to a solar system for some serious back up storage? Tired of watching my excess leak back to the power company at near zero value.

You could but it'd be alot of reconfiguring of the cells in the SR pack to get it to your existing solar battery bank voltages along with a custom BMS. At that point, you're just harvesting cells. It would however be nice if I could figure out how to repurpose the onboard level 2 charger and 2 phase inverter... the options would open up quite a bit...

 

[F150ROD]

Huh? There’s a difference between the SR & ER shocks/springs? This is the first time I’ve heard that.

I believe it’s due to weight difference, the valving is different. If I recall this was explained during development but I am not 100% sure

From Grok:

Even between the Standard Range (SR) and Extended Range (ER) models, while some front components may look the same, the rear suspension parts have different part numbers to accommodate the weight difference between the battery sizes.

 

[MAPO CZ]

Has Ford considered the possibility of manufacturing and selling an additional battery that could be placed in the truck bed? I think it would be an interesting advertising move, with the F150 Lightning having a range of up to 900 km...

 

[kdkool]

Has Ford considered the possibility of manufacturing and selling an additional battery that could be placed in the truck bed? I think it would be an interesting advertising move, with the F150 Lightning having a range of up to 900 km...

It'd have no payload left with the current battery technology. The ER battery pack is 1800lbs which would leave you with maybe 200lbs for the driver at max payload.

 

[F150guy]

following (even though I have ER now).

 

[jobofly79]

It'd have no payload left with the current battery technology. The ER battery pack is 1800lbs which would leave you with maybe 200lbs for the driver at max payload.

Right but you wouldnt need the entire pack. But maybe a 32 kwh pack to put in the bed.

 

[jwrezz]

Has Ford considered the possibility of manufacturing and selling an additional battery that could be placed in the truck bed? I think it would be an interesting advertising move, with the F150 Lightning having a range of up to 900 km...

At this point we are talking about an F150 that weighs as much as an F350. The Lightning is already a ton over an ICE F150. Tom's video about local street weight limits brings EVs into a new light. Those Chevy, GMC and Hummer vehicles are over 4 tons. I think the F150 nailed it by keeping it close to 3 tons with a bit less range. All that extra weight for an extra few miles? Did you see the Hummer? It's like the old GM Hummers as far as inefficiency.

 

[NW Ontario Ford Lightning]

Better yet, can the SR be hooked to a solar system for some serious back up storage? Tired of watching my excess leak back to the power company at near zero value.

Yes.
Several ways, but the simplest is to treat the HV DC battery like it is a solar array - feed this to a suitable AIO inverter that can accept the 300-400 VDC input connect to PV input on the inverter.
To recharge the EV battery pack is easiest done with the original charging system from the truck.

Sorry for the side-track, back to the thread topic.

 

[MAPO CZ]

You're right about the weight. This is a major problem, especially for the EU market, even though legislative changes for electric cars are already being considered. Getting my Lightning (131 kW battery) approved in the EU took some work, even in its original factory condition.
Of course, the total weight is also a matter of practicality and economy...

 

[Maxx]

At this point we are talking about an F150 that weighs as much as an F350. The Lightning is already a ton over an ICE F150. Tom's video about local street weight limits brings EVs into a new light. Those Chevy, GMC and Hummer vehicles are over 4 tons. I think the F150 nailed it by keeping it close to 3 tons with a bit less range. All that extra weight for an extra few miles? Did you see the Hummer? It's like the old GM Hummers as far as inefficiency.

I have gone outside my SR range only 5 days out of the past three years. And during all those 5 days superchargers were available to Ford. I am already carrying cells I don’t use that often. ER makes no sense for my use case. I love my Lightning but my next EV will be much more efficient.

That said, I love to see how this swap goes.

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