10000 Miles in the middle of Montana

[MTcowpoke]

Today I crossed the 10k mile mark in just over 5 months of ownership. So far it's been everything I was hoping it would be. The Lightning operates in almost the dead center of Montana, 100 to 130 miles from 4 of the major cities, Billings, Bozeman, Helena and Great Falls. I'm a rancher, a cow/calf operation and this pickup is used daily in every kind of condition you can imagine. It will never see a garage, rarely see a car wash and be used as pickups used to be. I ordered it with Pro Power and have carried a pancake air compressor and portable mig welder during hay season this past summer and even took it to a music festival to power A/C's. All in all it's been great. My previous daily driver is a 6.7 Ram diesel that averages a whopping 13.5 mpg. I'm not keeping dead accurate records on energy used but my power bill is averaging $100 to $120 a month over previous years. The difference with this years diesel prices is in the neighborhood of $600 a month in savings, plus no 3 gallons of black oil running down my arm several times a year. I left trip 1 set from when I picked it up and it averaged 2.3 miles per kwh till about a month ago when the temps started to fall. It's now down to 2.1 miles per kwh but we also had a blast of winter with a little over a foot of snow and our first subzero overnights. I've DC fast charged it twice in Billings, currently the only place in range of my standard battery to try it. Bozeman EA is completed but not on line yet and nothing in Helena or Great Falls. I charge at home on a Grizzl-e which seemed like a good choice for my outdoor installation. I've been driving Dodge diesels since 1994, they've worked very well but the Ford Lightning engineers did a really great job on this truck. The best part is being an early adopter and seeing what these can do.

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[ReputableRaccoon]

Thanks for the post! I'm in Washington and love visiting Montana, will be in Missoula for Thanksgiving. Would be great to hear from you again in the middle of winter. Western Montana is a real tough use case for EVs (80mph speed limits, mountains, and cold in winter). Do you make use of vehicle preconditioning for departures?

 

[MTcowpoke]

Yes, I have the precondition set for my departures and during the cold snap I plugged in any time I was home, so if it wasn't moving it was plugged in. Yes elevation is a big one. It's 14 miles between my 2 places and 400 feet difference in elevation. I get about 1.8 going up hill and 2.5 or more going back down. The other big issue on the east side of the continental divide is wind. Our county is home to 3 wind farms with a 4th just across the county line. The wind does blow here. If Bozeman EA goes online by the first week in December I'll take the Lightning to Missoula, There is a DCFC at the junction west of Butte so I should be able to have an enjoyable trip.

 

[MontanaLightning]

Thanks for sharing!

 

[ReputableRaccoon]

If Bozeman EA goes online by the first week in December I'll take the Lightning to Missoula, There is a DCFC at the junction west of Butte so I should be able to have an enjoyable trip.

I noticed a relatively new Town Pump ChargePoint DCFC install in Whitefish if you're up in Flathead, I believe they are CPE250s that are in a shared configuration. It seems like there'a bunch of Town Pump and Pilot stations under construction or in planning that should hopefully go live in next year or two. That coupled with opening of Tesla SC network means a whole lot better experience for everyone! Tesla already opened up two Magic Dock locations on I-90 east of Vantage in Washington.

 

[ReputableRaccoon]

If Bozeman EA goes online by the first week in December I'll take the Lightning to Missoula

Oh yeah one more thing, there's new "fast level 2" 12kW chargers in downtown Missoula at Adventure Cycling Association, 150 E Pine St. They look priced high at $0.36/kWh though so maybe just stick to DCFC unless you happen to be downtown.

https://www.plugshare.com/location/549225

 

[designthis]

Thank you for this post!
I’m finally picking up my Black Lariat SR today—I ordered it back in January. I’ve read quite a few horror stories on this forum lately and it’s easy to get spooked. Your experience is exactly what I’m hoping for. Ford should use you in an ad campaign! Especially now to counter all the doomsayers out there.

 

[RickLightning]

Two things.

First, your post is obviously false. Everyone knows you can't drive an EV where there are few fast chargers...

Second, remember that your trip odometer is showing you the average efficiency over those 10,000 miles. 2.3 became 2.1 despite say 90 or 95% of the usage being at 2.3. Assuming 90%, that means the most recent usage was very low. This Trip will show you that. Short trips in winter, and heat usage, kill efficiency. Plugged in departure times minimize that for a time, but eventually cold drops the battery temp and kills efficiency.

 

[Gato Meoow]

... and portable mig welder

I thought I read this was not possible? Care to share what welder it is? For the record I know nothing but have wanted to get into it.

 

[WhipSticks]

Today I crossed the 10k mile mark in just over 5 months of ownership. So far it's been everything I was hoping it would be. The Lightning operates in almost the dead center of Montana, 100 to 130 miles from 4 of the major cities, Billings, Bozeman, Helena and Great Falls. I'm a rancher, a cow/calf operation and this pickup is used daily in every kind of condition you can imagine. It will never see a garage, rarely see a car wash and be used as pickups used to be. I ordered it with Pro Power and have carried a pancake air compressor and portable mig welder during hay season this past summer and even took it to a music festival to power A/C's. All in all it's been great. My previous daily driver is a 6.7 Ram diesel that averages a whopping 13.5 mpg. I'm not keeping dead accurate records on energy used but my power bill is averaging $100 to $120 a month over previous years. The difference with this years diesel prices is in the neighborhood of $600 a month in savings, plus no 3 gallons of black oil running down my arm several times a year. I left trip 1 set from when I picked it up and it averaged 2.3 miles per kwh till about a month ago when the temps started to fall. It's now down to 2.1 miles per kwh but we also had a blast of winter with a little over a foot of snow and our first subzero overnights. I've DC fast charged it twice in Billings, currently the only place in range of my standard battery to try it. Bozeman EA is completed but not on line yet and nothing in Helena or Great Falls. I charge at home on a Grizzl-e which seemed like a good choice for my outdoor installation. I've been driving Dodge diesels since 1994, they've worked very well but the Ford Lightning engineers did a really great job on this truck. The best part is being an early adopter and seeing what these can do.

It is great to see a truck like this doing truck things!

 

[TaxmanHog]

Thanks for a post of positivity !!!!

 

[Ford Motor Company]

Today I crossed the 10k mile mark in just over 5 months of ownership. So far it's been everything I was hoping it would be. The Lightning operates in almost the dead center of Montana, 100 to 130 miles from 4 of the major cities, Billings, Bozeman, Helena and Great Falls. I'm a rancher, a cow/calf operation and this pickup is used daily in every kind of condition you can imagine. It will never see a garage, rarely see a car wash and be used as pickups used to be. I ordered it with Pro Power and have carried a pancake air compressor and portable mig welder during hay season this past summer and even took it to a music festival to power A/C's. All in all it's been great. My previous daily driver is a 6.7 Ram diesel that averages a whopping 13.5 mpg. I'm not keeping dead accurate records on energy used but my power bill is averaging $100 to $120 a month over previous years. The difference with this years diesel prices is in the neighborhood of $600 a month in savings, plus no 3 gallons of black oil running down my arm several times a year. I left trip 1 set from when I picked it up and it averaged 2.3 miles per kwh till about a month ago when the temps started to fall. It's now down to 2.1 miles per kwh but we also had a blast of winter with a little over a foot of snow and our first subzero overnights. I've DC fast charged it twice in Billings, currently the only place in range of my standard battery to try it. Bozeman EA is completed but not on line yet and nothing in Helena or Great Falls. I charge at home on a Grizzl-e which seemed like a good choice for my outdoor installation. I've been driving Dodge diesels since 1994, they've worked very well but the Ford Lightning engineers did a really great job on this truck. The best part is being an early adopter and seeing what these can do.

Very impressive! We love seeing what people are getting done with their Lightnings. Congrats on the 10K miles milestone as well (no pun intended).

 

[WRB]

Yes, I have the precondition set for my departures and during the cold snap I plugged in any time I was home, so if it wasn't moving it was plugged in. Yes elevation is a big one. It's 14 miles between my 2 places and 400 feet difference in elevation. I get about 1.8 going up hill and 2.5 or more going back down. The other big issue on the east side of the continental divide is wind. Our county is home to 3 wind farms with a 4th just across the county line. The wind does blow here. If Bozeman EA goes online by the first week in December I'll take the Lightning to Missoula, There is a DCFC at the junction west of Butte so I should be able to have an enjoyable trip.

I have an extended range 2022 lariat purchased in February. Your post reflects my experience as well while not having to work the truck quite as hard as you I have 22,000 miles on the truck. I service 30 apartments in the Shenandoah valley Virginia so I will call it a semi work truck/play truck. It is charged from solar panels at my home every day and I leave with 240+ miles of range every day.
It is been a pleasure to operate. Any vehicle this new technology wise is going to have issues I would not have bothered if I didn’t expect that, but it is far exceeded my expectations.

 

[Pioneer74]

Is your last name Dutton?

You should have ordered Stone Gray.

 

[jefrank]

You should have ordered Stone Gray.

Too bad "Mud Brown" isn't an option

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