I love this truck but GD!

[Henry Ford]

I’ve known before I bought it not to expect to get the EPA. Again I just didn’t expect to see losses this great and nowhere was it posted. Everyone said 35 to 45% (I really wish that was so). Only reason for that post was you said I didn’t document it so I did the math and I have since found an error in it and corrected it still 66% loss off of EPA.

You are doing the math wrong. Based on the photo you posted you got about 50% of EPA range. That's a bit worse than what you expected, no doubt. If you would have asked me how much range I lose in the winter I'd have said 30%-40% but I live in southern Michigan, not North Dakota.

Range loss is real but I don't think it's as bad as you think. If you love the truck and use it like you've described I think you could be happy with it with a few modifications to the way you use it. Your biggest concern seems to be range so charge it to 100% and use Departure Times when you can. If your biggest concern was battery longevity and you had another vehicle you could use if say keep charging to less than 100% and don't use the Lightning as much.

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[Firn]

I’ve known before I bought it not to expect to get the EPA. Again I just didn’t expect to see losses this great and nowhere was it posted. Everyone said 35 to 45% (I really wish that was so). Only reason for that post was you said I didn’t document it so I did the math and I have since found an error in it and corrected it still 66% loss off of EPA.

Wooo, hold on now.

"Off of epa" means compared to the EXACT epa testing cycle. Aka "highway" has an average speed of 48 mph.

Literally all of us are some big loss off of epa, because none of us drive that way.

At the end of the day I have not seen how fast you drive but if it's like the rest of us and it's 75mph, then our average efficiency is around 1.9m/kwh and your efficiency is not 60% off that

 

[TMND]

60-67 mph. Some stretches are 55. And in the summertime I do see about 1.9 doing that sometimes 2

And if it’s true, and the EPA says Highway speed is 48. I guess I don’t know what to say besides that dumb.

 

[Zprime29]

@Henry Ford

Um…. 21 percent x 131 = 27.5 kW
27.5 x 1.2=33 not the remaining shown
Remainder shown is 22 miles

Do...not...trust...the range estimate....ever. Like @Henry Ford mentioned, it is a guess and it's often wrong. Sometimes it over estimates and sometimes it underestimates. I have 35k miles on mine, believe me and others in that you can trust the mpk number to get your own estimate. 33 miles was more likely to be correct than the truck's guess. If you want a more up to date mpk then reset one of the trip counters.

I’ve known before I bought it not to expect to get the EPA. Again I just didn’t expect to see losses this great and nowhere was it posted. Everyone said 35 to 45% (I really wish that was so). Only reason for that post was you said I didn’t document it so I did the math and I have since found an error in it and corrected it still 66% loss off of EPA.

The 35-45% loss is as compared to summer driving, not off EPA. Pretend the EPA number doesn't exist. It doesn't matter, it's not applicable to your situation. Your winter driving should be 35-45% lower than your summer driving.

I have the opposite, I use no climate control and have mild winter temps (it was 84F yesterday). So I actually have worse summer efficiency when I'm cranking the A/C. I lose about 10-15% in the summer compared to my ideal temperature driving efficiency . Althought the A/C takes far less power than the heater. If you want to keep it, then you have to adapt. TRUST the efficiency number and use that combined with your driving history/conditions to make the best possible decisions.

 

[Firn]

60-67 mph. Some stretches are 55. And in the summertime I do see about 1.9 doing that sometimes 2

And if it’s true, and the EPA says Highway speed is 48. I guess I don’t know what to say besides that dumb.

I did some testing and for me 65 mph steady speed is solidly 2.25m/kwh, sounds like you are a fair bit below that. I have a completely stock ER Pro

There could be a few factors to consider.
-factory tires? Yes or no still consider increasing tire pressure.
-Alignment? Not a ton of discussion about it on here but it can impact fuel efficiency.

I would say that your summertime rate is a bit low, which is just getting worse in the winter.

And yes, the EPA test is stupid.

 

[RickLightning]

The photo you posted showed 1.2 m/kWh. With an extended range battery (131 kWh) that's a full charge range of 157 miles. That's about a 50% range loss from best case scenario.

I don't know what your "best case scenario" is, but it's useless.

The valid comparison to calculate winter drop is to compare to driving at 77 degrees on the same route.

I get 1.7 to 1.8 in warm weather. I get 1.3 in cold weather. While that's rounded numbers, the drop is pretty clearly 24 to 28%. No where near 50%.

 

[StevenC56]

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

Just the opposite for me. I'm in California. I had a 2025 Maverick Lariat Hybrid 4WD on order that was going to be about $42.5K out the door. I had full sized trucks all my life and thought I wanted to downsize. But every time I went to a lot and sat in the Maverick I just wasn't feeling it. So I changed my mind and went for the Lightning instead. Yes, it's was quite a bit more money, but way more truck at the same time.

 

[Henry Ford]

I don't know what your "best case scenario" is, but it's useless.

The valid comparison to calculate winter drop is to compare to driving at 77 degrees on the same route.

I get 1.7 to 1.8 in warm weather. I get 1.3 in cold weather. While that's rounded numbers, the drop is pretty clearly 24 to 28%. No where near 50%.

I try to be precise in my writing but I failed in this case. When I said "best case scenario," I meant "EPA estimated range." I was using it as a baseline since everyone's personal range will vary.

 

[Dfair]

I'm a new Lightning owner so have limited knowledge, but have to ask the OP what charger he uses at home? The reason I ask is that I have a 3rd party level 2 charger which will not power the battery pre-conditioning. When I contacted Ford support, they said that most 3rd party chargers won't supply 240V power when not actually charging the battery. Is that consistent with your experience?

 

[TaxmanHog]

I'm a new Lightning owner so have limited knowledge, but have to ask the OP what charger he uses at home? The reason I ask is that I have a 3rd party level 2 charger which will not power the battery pre-conditioning. When I contacted Ford support, they said that most 3rd party chargers won't supply 240V power when not actually charging the battery. Is that consistent with your experience?

What brand / model EVSE are you using?
Does it allow you to program charging time frames?

 

[Dfair]

What brand / model EVSE are you using?
Does it allow you to program charging time frames?

My charger is an EVIQ. It does allow schedued charges.

 

[TaxmanHog]

My charger is an EVIQ. It does allow schedued charges.

If you have a time frame limitation on the EVIQ device, adjust it such that charging energy is available during the time frame(s) that you would anticipate needing to do a shore powered pre-conditioning with departure times or remote start. Hopefully that doesn't affect any TOU limitations if applicable by your utility.

 

[Dfair]

Yeah, that's the way I'd have to do it. Kind of a pain if you're wanting to hit 100% and then leave on the exact departure time with 100%.

Another option is to charge on a schedule that stops well short of the departure time, but then plug the 120v charger in about an hour before departure. This is the way I plan to do it.

 

[TaxmanHog]

Yeah, that's the way I'd have to do it. Kind of a pain if you're wanting to hit 100% and then leave on the exact departure time with 100%.

Another option is to charge on a schedule that stops well short of the departure time, but then plug the 120v charger in about an hour before departure. This is the way I plan to do it.

I'd recommend charging to 95%, if you happen to hit your 100% early enough, I've experienced issues where departure time won't draw shore power even without TOU limitations in play.

If you're in cold climates powertrain (battery warming) kicks in about 30 to 60 minutes prior to departure time.

Hopefully you don't need the last 5% to make your daily rounds, if needed, manually change to SOC 100% 30 minutes before roll out, all activities will coincide.

 

[Dfair]

The good news is that I really don't need pre-conditioning at all. My daily use is under 40 miles. I just wanted to figure this all out just in case one day I need a long road trip.

I was thinking the 120v charger takes less guess work, but I'll have to try it both ways.

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