Anyone get lower than this without having it die?

[Jamchampnate]

Made it to the charger with this! Oof. Close call.

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[SpaceEVDriver]

In our Mustang. But have only drawn down to 3% in the Lightning.

 

[TaxmanHog]

IIRC, I got my Lightning down to around 3% on a icy cold winter night with a couple of buddies on a road trip to CT, glad I didn't stall on i95 in CT, stopped in Waterford to charge while we ate dinner.

 

[hturnerfamily]

...it also depends on what you mean by "die".... my Lightning has been to 0% as I pulled into my road, close to my driveway, and successfully into my garage...

but, realize that "0%" is not necessarily "zero" battery power, it is simply "less than" 1%, since the data shows no decimal places: so, even showing 0% could actually mean "0.9%", or still almost 1%, or maybe 3-4 miles of range, since you are probably at that point driving Very Slowly. ( I would wish it would show at least one decimal place, with two being optimal)

and, even if the "turtle mode" were to kick in, when the truck decides to LIMIT power and speed, at "0%" does not necessarily mean the truck would just "die", in the middle of the road, as many might fear... likely it would simply start to slow down and give you plenty of time to pull off, safely, although you might would still have had enough to reach a charger, or at least a home or business that has a 120v outlet.

and, even if the truck were to come to a complete stop, and flat out not let you go one foot further, the battery pack is still not actually 'empty', as it still needs some small reserve to keep the basic "ON" requirements to operate, etc. This is also why the battery pack 'usable' KWH of power is always stated as less than the actual battery pack's "full" capacity. My LIGHTNING PRO SR's battery pack might be ~103kwh of total power, but the 'usable' power is a lower ~98kwh.

The fear of an EV "dying" is hardly a real actuality. There are too many built-in alerts and mechanisms to keep it from happening, even if you try real hard.

 

[21st Century Truck]

Yes, we did. Climbing the long steep incline on the Interstate just outside of Wall, South Dakota. The charging stations were right on the top edge of the locally famous pretty high cliff (hence the town's name of "Wall").

I had hot-shoed the Lightning earlier that day for a good bit through the flat high prairie, while we were towing our little teardrop trailer and talking in the cab. I had failed to account for the in-our-faces headwind. When I realized about 40 miles out that we're risking things, I of course slowed down.... and then slowed wayyy down. And then we climbed, so sloooowly, up that long incline in the breakdown lane.

I knew of the DC Fast Charging stations up on the edge.

We crested the cliff at exactly zero SOC and had to crawl for about 900 feet or so around the gas station & tourist stop to the DC Fast pedestals on the other side of the property. Sweating large bullets, yes we both were (nephew and I).

Ooooof.... we pulled in, plugged in, and... the truck started politely charging. Living life on the edge, and all that... there wouldn't have been that much immediate help for us had we not made it into the stable, out on the high plains in rural South Dakota.

We treated ourselves to a good bison steak in town as a reward for our (well, my) stupidity.

 

[JRDM2]

Given that remaining range is an estimate with a known error band of a few percentage points, I will avoid trying that.

 

[Undergadget]

...it also depends on what you mean by "die".... my Lightning has been to 0% as I pulled into my road, close to my driveway, and successfully into my garage...

but, realize that "0%" is not necessarily "zero" battery power, it is simply "less than" 1%, since the data shows no decimal places: so, even showing 0% could actually mean "0.9%", or still almost 1%, or maybe 3-4 miles of range, since you are probably at that point driving Very Slowly. ( I would wish it would show at least one decimal place, with two being optimal)

and, even if the "turtle mode" were to kick in, when the truck decides to LIMIT power and speed, at "0%" does not necessarily mean the truck would just "die", in the middle of the road, as many might fear... likely it would simply start to slow down and give you plenty of time to pull off, safely, although you might would still have had enough to reach a charger, or at least a home or business that has a 120v outlet.

and, even if the truck were to come to a complete stop, and flat out not let you go one foot further, the battery pack is still not actually 'empty', as it still needs some small reserve to keep the basic "ON" requirements to operate, etc. This is also why the battery pack 'usable' KWH of power is always stated as less than the actual battery pack's "full" capacity. My LIGHTNING PRO SR's battery pack might be ~103kwh of total power, but the 'usable' power is a lower ~98kwh.

The fear of an EV "dying" is hardly a real actuality. There are too many built-in alerts and mechanisms to keep it from happening, even if you try real hard.

I had read a Car and Driver article that ran an EV to brick status. Even past 0% they got 10-15miles(?). Tried that with a BMW i3. It died on the side of the freeway EXACTLY when it said it would!

 

[Peddyr]

IIRC, I got my Lightning down to around 3% on a icy cold winter night with a couple of buddies on a road trip to CT, glad I didn't stall on i95 in CT, stopped in Waterford to charge while we ate dinner.

Foxwoods or Mohegan Sun?

 

[stgrace]

Made it to the charger with this! Oof. Close call.

I got mine to 2% and it dropped to 0 and I had less than a mile to go and it stopped 200 yards from the charging station. Had to get a tow

 

[On the Road with Ralph]

On my second long distance (1500+ miles) trip in my Pro SR I misjudged how much climbing a long, steep grade saps the battery. I limped into the EA station at the Flagstaff (AZ) Walmart (elevation 7000 feet) with no range left on the GOM. As I approached the chargers, the truck “died” about 30 feet away. I got out and tried to push the truck but there was a slight incline upward, so no go. But I got back in and tried restarting it. Apparently, in the couple intervening minutes the battery voltage had stabilized and it moved!! Slowly. I crept to the nearest dispenser and plugged in.

The happy ending: Not only did the EA charger work - back then, it was a crapshoot - but for reasons that still aren’t clear to me, the session was FREE! I charged to 95%.

That seems like forever ago. I am now in the middle of my 20th long distance EV road trip, enjoying breakfast in Santa Fe.

 

[Tom M]

Yes. Feb 2024. I got to EA, but just barely. 85 mph speed limit, cold outside temperatures, strong headwinds. I skipped a not great charger to stretch it here. Don’t do this.

 

[Kansan]

GOM at 0% and 2 miles. The OBD2 scanner shows that the truck estimated that it still had 4.64 kWh stored, so maybe 9-11 miles range left.

The reduction to 32% power was noticeable but it was still capable of more than adequate acceleration.

 

[Jamchampnate]

Yes. Feb 2024. I got to EA, but just barely. 85 mph speed limit, cold outside temperatures, strong headwinds. I skipped a not great charger to stretch it here. Don’t do this.

The winner! Woweee

 

[Tom M]

The winner! Woweee

Not the kind of competition I’m trying to win, but I’ll take it.

I have no repeat performances over the last 44000 miles.

There is no buffer down here in the Lightning. Don’t think you’re going anywhere at 0%. I got within about 6 inches of where I wanted to go. Lucky that particular EA station worked.

 

[MidAtlanticLightningClub]

Made it to the charger with this! Oof. Close call.

No but I can match it -- while pulling a 25' travel trailer!

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