Lightning Experience Improvement Suggestions

[electricpig]

I know old thread, but update show Tesla's chargers would b nice ony 23 XLT.

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[LightningCanuckNB]

Wow!! What a list of complaints!

Years ago, I worked as a consultant for Ford, and met lots of great people. I am no doubt biased, but I think the Lightning is great just as it is.

These aren't complaints. They are feature requests.

The frustration you are sensing is that many of these feature requests are things that people have been asking for for 3+ years now. When the Lightning came out, Jim Farley made a huge stink about how it would be continuously updated like Teslas. None of that has ever materialized. Yes, there have been minor improvements over the past 3 years to the truck but for the most part, none of these requests have ever been addressed. Now, Ford seems to be winding down investment in the vehicle so these things are likely NEVER going to happen.

What makes me even more frustrated is that I am a software engineer, and I can tell you that a lot of these things WOULD NOT BE HARD. Hell, some of them could be implemented by external apps, if Ford would just open up the SDK for the truck.

I am very convinced that Ford has only a skeleton team of software developers on this truck, and whomever the product manager is in charge of that team does not properly monitor with or engage the community to decide what to work on. If they did, then Ford would not have burned an entire year of software dev time to refresh a mobile app and not roll out a single useful new feature in that timeframe... like, who cares. Give me sentry mode, give me dashcam, give me single-shot departure times, give me the other dozen FRs in this thread that are also not hard to do instead of having your whole team change the mobile app to be white instead of black.

 

[chriserx]

Hell, some of them could be implemented by external apps, if Ford would just open up the SDK for the truck.

This, I want this!!! It'll never happen, but I want this!!!!

 

[Robocop]

What kind of merch do you want? The Model e comms team that supports owner experience / the clubs often creates special merch, I can pass along your thoughts.

EEEEE The mothership replied!!!

I'd love to see some dad hats, crew-neck long-sleeved shirts or fleece versions without hoods because every garment these days seems to have a hood, but there is a time and a place for hoodies and some of us out there are over hoodies. Even a light weight, small packable but warm bomber-type coat to store in the truck to keep with my 'truck gear,' or a K-Way type packable rain coat. I'd love a special key chain incorporating that cool blue lightning bolt logo. All of the same merch could be done with that awesome throwback lightning script and bolt. The glow-in-the-dark tee shirts available now are cool but my size has been unavailable for months!

Find a clever way to incorporate branded accessories to solve pain points. Stuff that is stowable and is designed not to fly around, or will cleverly integrate into the ecosystem - clip in here, mount there. The stuff on amazon works but it is junky crap. I don't mind spending good money on something that is worth it.

For example I have a Jaguar branded coat hanger accessory thingy that I overpaid for, kept and now use in my Lightning. It mounts to the headrest posts and it prevents my suit jackets and sport coats from getting crushed or having to wear excess bulk while driving in the winter. As a gadget it even works better in the truck and I'm so happy I kept it because it is awesome. The truck is huge and kindof awkward, so a special/cool/clever snow brush/scraper seems like an easy one. Even random stuff like umbrellas, or well made/cleverly designed cargo nets (frunk floor) and whatnot.

I'd kill a man to see a Lightning speed champions release because I also love Lego and I've seen sets for other models like the Mustang Dark Horse, Bronco (many), Ford GT x2, Raptor, Classic Mustang etc.; I am always looking to be pleasantly surprised to find a Hot Wheels die cast of the truck considering I've got at least six different Hot Wheels copies of my Lincoln.

Also speaking for Canadians it is impossible to find anything by walking casually into a dealer full stop, so I can't even make a random impulse purchase either! Worse, I couldn't even buy anything at the auto show even if I wanted to.

thanks for reading!

 

[ZeusDriver]

What makes me even more frustrated is that I am a software engineer, and I can tell you that a lot of these things WOULD NOT BE HARD. Hell, some of them could be implemented by external apps, if Ford would just open up the SDK for the truck.

I think that makes a lot of sense.

When I bought my Model Y, I foolishly assumed that I could rearrange screen layouts, and that driving "features" could be changed easily. The simple ability to change from normal throttle mode (let off and coast with minimal regen) to "one pedal" driving (with its twitchiness and the need to throttle out of a parking spot, instead of just creeping out with foot poised on the brake) disappeared after I bought the car!! My old Volt made the choice very simple and instant, but in the Tesla I had to live with one pedal driving. Loads of other things would have benefited from an open SDK, and the same can be said for the Ford.

One person's "intuitive" is another's "frustratingly idiotic" so having personal control over the interface (for those who want to improve it to their own tastes) just makes sense. Did anyone ever really like the Microsoft Paperclip???

Given how awful FSD was when I bought my Model Y (and remained for the year I had it) having people outside the torture chamber at Tesla could help even with mission critical safety related code, I think. Granted, there are legal hurdles, patent issues, etc etc but I could certainly have fixed the Y's numerous software issues, at least to my own tastes. The mechanical issues, such as the suspension members crushing if the attachment bolts were torqued to spec, would be trickier, (not everyone has access to a large CNC machine) and was the signal to me that the underlying quality was just not there... time to move on.

But with the Ford, I have no complaints at all about structure, NVH issues (which are exceptionally well-handled), handling dynamics, performance, range, etc. It is just a really nice vehicle from a mechanical point of view. Being able to tweak the software (improving the Android auto integration and reliability, for example) would be huge... and fun for many people.

Back when I was a kid, every high school had a visible group of kids who radically modified their vehicles, mechanically. Now, kids could have fun modifying their vehicles via software, without having to spend money on parts.

Watching this should be required for every US automotive engineer:

Starting to ramble incoherently:
When I was much younger, I did a mechanical restoration on a Ferrari 250 GT Cabriolet, which was darn near an antique even then. But to me, it does not seem all that long ago (and I am not completely demented yet). I did not dream, then (1975 or so) that a pickup truck could so easily best that car in every single aspect of performance (save absolute top speed): far better acceleration, better cornering, incredibly more luxurious, better, more controlled ride, etc, etc. What fun it would be to time travel back, and just blow the doors off that car with a pickup truck.

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