I love this truck but GD!

[21st Century Truck]

I know it showed 1.2 but with 21% charge and 22 miles of range there’s no way it was actually 1.2. (131x.21x1.2=33 still pretty terrible) I wish the kilowatt per mile was a live number, but it’s some average that doesn’t read real time. And I’ve said it multiple times in this thread. I could not be on shore power I was in a parking lot. Thankfully, taxman had an actual tip to get your battery to precondition off plug. But if you look at the picture from my first post, the battery temperature is not bad. Battery temp was almost right at temp and I still got this horrible horrible range.

By way of comparison, I also have seen comparable EV traction battery range losses... I drove my Mach E last January when we had the North American super-cold snap from Western Colorado across the Rockies thru Southern Minnesota to Virginia. I was towing a 1,500 pound teardrop camper trailer and had Winter tires on my wheels, both significant range eating factors. My range on that car's extended traction battery on some days was no more than 130 / 140 miles, vice its nominal 270+ miles.

Rocky Mountain road climbs up to and above 8,000 feet (Montrose Pass and camping at the Grand Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument), the two blizzards I drove thru and the howling prairie winds across Iowa and thereabouts certainly took their toll as well.

I bring this up here to contribute that the only ways I found during that by-design Winter stress test trip other than battery pre-conditioning (where possible), was to A). seriously bundle up and just not use cabin air heat, and B). slow wayyyyy down, sometimes to a consistent 40 mph, to be able to reach a known charging station. Additionally, I began to curse the visually cute yet functionally heat-venting and overall useless panoramic glass roof on that Mach E.

Of course, I had plenty of time and no children / family in the car other than the dog. Would I accept a daily long commute under such conditions? ...absolutely not, of course. And my current Lightning has a solid metal roof

Best of Luck on the OP's Lightning-related decisions.

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[TMND]

This thread should have a “precondition” counter on it I swear seriously, though the battery temp itself wasn’t that bad (just below line). Look at the gauge again.

 

[Henry Ford]

This thread should have a “precondition” counter on it I swear seriously, though the battery temp itself wasn’t that bad (just below line). Look at the gauge again.

If the battery is using energy to warm itself it can't use that energy to drive. The temperature below the tic mark is a pretty good indication that the battery is using energy to warm itself. That's why people keep mentioning it!

You: my range isn't good.

People: you could increase your range by preconditioning.

You: that doesn't matter, my range isn't good.

 

[Firn]

This thread should have a “precondition” counter on it I swear seriously, though the battery temp itself wasn’t that bad (just below line). Look at the gauge again.

I'm pretty sure that line is a random marking intended to keep owners feeling happy, not to actually tell you anything. And OBD reader and an app would be MUCH better.

In all seriousness though, your battery was probably "warm enough" in the garage to register as normal, but probably cool enough to trigger the battery heater. Then once you pulled outside the outside weather started sucking every btu out of that battery. It's highly likely that preconditioning would have warmed the battery up more than the garage temp and the onboard heater would not have to had work AS hard. Nowhere near as much energy as warming a stone cold battery, but still energy.

What is your speed and how are the winds?

 

[TMND]

I'm pretty sure that line is a random marking intended to keep owners feeling happy, not to actually tell you anything. And OBD reader and an app would be MUCH better.

In all seriousness though, your battery was probably "warm enough" in the garage to register as normal, but probably cool enough to trigger the battery heater. Then once you pulled outside the outside weather started sucking every btu out of that battery. It's highly likely that preconditioning would have warmed the battery up more than the garage temp and the onboard heater would not have to had work AS hard. Nowhere near as much energy as warming a stone cold battery, but still energy.

What is your speed and how are the winds?

Between 60 and 67 never over. Thankfully that night there was no wind. head wind would’ve had me driving 35-40 mph or less. But generally, the winds around here are straight line and over 20 so you’ve got bad wind One Direction good wind hopefully coming home as long as it hasn’t changed. But I’ve fought wind both directions before. I’m just that lucky.

 

[21st Century Truck]

I'm pretty sure that line is a random marking intended to keep owners feeling happy, not to actually tell you anything. And OBD reader and an app would be MUCH better.

In all seriousness though, your battery was probably "warm enough" in the garage to register as normal, but probably cool enough to trigger the battery heater. Then once you pulled outside the outside weather started sucking every btu out of that battery. It's highly likely that preconditioning would have warmed the battery up more than the garage temp and the onboard heater would not have to had work AS hard. Nowhere near as much energy as warming a stone cold battery, but still energy.

What is your speed and how are the winds?

This pretty interesting thread reminds me just how enormous our ER traction batteries are on the Lightning, in a relative sense.

Change to internal conditions of traction battery X takes time... change to internal conditions of a yuuuuuge Lightning ER battery takes that much more time and energy. Especially in weather which is sub-optimally hot or sub-optimally cold.

Tooling around daily in my own Lightning, I tend to easily forget that.

 

[Dlindvig]

It’s like loving a cheater sometimes. ? (This is supposed to be an extended ranged btw)

 

[TMND]

Yeah, she always lies to me when I’m above 80% too. once I start driving I’ll lose 80 miles or so after going 10 miles

 

[Pioneer74]

Yeah, she always lies to me when I’m above 80% too. once I start driving I’ll lose 80 miles or so after going 10 miles

Ford did that to satisfy the people complaining about their "range".

Any state of charge above 80% automatically defaults to EPA numbers, no matter the current or predicted conditions.

The numbers used to be spot on in the beginning.

 

[Bob zimmerman]

Sorry I have nothing to offer.
I was all in on a Lightning. 100%
After joining this forum and reading all about the truck, I ended up ordering a 2025 Ford Maverick AWD hybrid for 34k loaded.
I just couldn‘t buy the lightning.

And I really gotta laugh when people suggest a fuel operated heater or carrying a generator to charge the truck. It’s at that point that you need to get rid of your truck. Sorry.
Like I said, I have nothing to offer.

I’m ready to jump in on an EV when they are ready for me. I live in MN so there’s that.
Tom

 

[BigAle244]

It’s like loving a cheater sometimes. ? (This is supposed to be an extended ranged btw)

Check to see if you have a recall on any of the components. Mine recently notified me of a charge fault, reduced power, and a powertrian maintenence light came on. Took it to the dealer and there was 2 modules that needed to be replaced and one of them was a recalled item. 2024 lariat under 5k miles on it...smh

 

[Firn]

Sorry I have nothing to offer.
I was all in on a Lightning. 100%
After joining this forum and reading all about the truck, I ended up ordering a 2025 Ford Maverick AWD hybrid for 34k loaded.
I just couldn‘t buy the lightning.

And I really gotta laugh when people suggest a fuel operated heater or carrying a generator to charge the truck. It’s at that point that you need to get rid of your truck. Sorry.
Like I said, I have nothing to offer.

I’m ready to jump in on an EV when they are ready for me. I live in MN so there’s that.
Tom

Eih, no different than telling diesel drivers they have to carry anti-gel because their fuel will freeze up. Or service shops with portable torpedo heaters getting semi trucks running for the exact same reasons.

Frankly I have had many a vehicle simply not work at all because of the cold, which is WAY worse than limited range.

 

[Webbo85]

Ford did that to satisfy the people complaining about their "range".

Any state of charge above 80% automatically defaults to EPA numbers, no matter the current or predicted conditions.

The numbers used to be spot on in the beginning.

So I feel like this may have changed recently. When I charge to 90% and it's been in the 20's to 30's at night, my truck will say my range is between 265 to 270. I have a Lariat ER so that equates to less than 300 miles. I remember when they did the 'feel good' mileage change to make people feel better. Almost feel like they did a compromise now, better than it actually is in the cold, but not full EPA. I'll have to see what I get next time I charge to 100%, see if it resets to 320.

 

[Lolat]

This your first winter in the truck? 18,000+ miles, would have thought had that experience before. We’re 30 miles from town, but our winter temps usually above zero. With SR truck, have not had your kind of issues, although we brought in winter 2022 in Alabama, it was an adventure getting back to Oregon through Iowa/Nebraska at -4°. Lowest mileage was 0.8 m/kwh and charge stations pretty sparse at best. Do use 240v charger at home so easy to keep it charged up and preconditioned.

 

[hturnerfamily]

- no matter the weather, or the temps, your SPEED is going to either hurt you, or HELP you... getting home an hour later, driving slower, versus all the other stresses, makes more sense... but, some just can't bring themselves to EVER be slower than 'others' while on the road...

EVs and travel, and temps, bring a whole different 'thought process' to planning, even when you think you've seen it all...

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