Out of Spec EV range test - Lightning/Cybertruck/R1T/Silverado

[BeeKind]

Makes me wish Ford had put a bigger battery in this thing.

Ford got as much battery in as they could for two main goals.

1. Bring a BEV truck to market ASAP
2. Make it look exactly like the gas F150, even with a new frame underneath.

I think that approach is paying dividends and frankly I'm worried a redesigned F150 might not be as positively received as our first gens.

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[mags]

I wish I could get 2.1 going 70 on the interstate!

That’s easy, just reverse the numbers!

 

[Newton]

My quibble is that they should stop the test when the speed drops below something that is usable. Range at 15 MPH downhill using max regen doesn't count.

I think that Ford accidentally created the best truck possible for what I want. Now they just need to electrify the Maverick, Explorer, and Ranger and call it a day. Tweak the performance and figure out how to make it cheaply enough for a good profit. You don't need to "reimagine the automobile."

 

[Dinozero]

My quibble is that they should stop the test when the speed drops below something that is usable. Range at 15 MPH downhill using max regen doesn't count.

I think that Ford accidentally created the best truck possible for what I want. Now they just need to electrify the Maverick, Explorer, and Ranger and call it a day. Tweak the performance and figure out how to make it cheaply enough for a good profit. You don't need to "reimagine the automobile."

That's a good point. If one of the vehicles happen to run out of range at the top of a hill, and then coasted down, it added miles sort of unfairly.


I do wish the Lightning had about 350 miles of range or so, but you have to consider pricing and all that. It's not like they're losing range to cheaper trucks. More range for the Lightning would absolutely result in higher pricing and EV pricing is already scaring people away.

I really like how Ford turned a regular truck into an electric one. A damn good one too.

You'd think there would be a lot of sacrifices like way worse efficiencies, or a small frunk.

But it's the opposite. Ford has the best Frunk in the business. Ground up EVs like the cybertruck have a terrible one!

 

[Budshark]

Even in a New England winter I can easily get 2.0 or 2.1 at 70 MPH

I’m thinking it’s wind. I’m in the Midwest where wind is either strong and constantly in your face no matter what direction you drive or it’s 0.

I get either 1.7 - 1.8 at 70 or 2.1-2.2 and that’s driving the same way and same roads at similar temps, only difference is wind. I’ve driven EVs for 6 years so I can definitely manage it and know how I’m driving. Wind is the #1 factor for the Lightning. Doing 70 into an 8-10 mph headwind and you’re toast. I once drove 400 miles into 10+ headwind never above 70 and struggled to get 1.5.

I think this is where the weak drag coefficient of the lightning comes into play. It is more impacted when facing a strong headwind or even crosswind. I put a tonneau on but it as expected has shown negligible benefits to efficiency.

So if you live in an area prone to wind (Midwest) don’t forget to check wind forecast and direction before you set out. That first road trip in the strong headwind was definitely eye opening. Far higher impact than on a Tesla. I’d expect the Silverado to be the same… Rivian and CT less impacted simply because of the better drag.

 

[CRAIGC540]

I wish I could get 2.1 going 70 on the interstate!

I just got 2.5 yesterday on a 180 mile round trip.

 

[Maineiac12]

I just got 2.5 yesterday on a 180 mile round trip.

Showoff

 

[F150ROD]

Farley has already said that a bigger battery defeats the purpose and the goal is to get smaller battery packs to charge faster/more efficient.

That's a good point. If one of the vehicles happen to run out of range at the top of a hill, and then coasted down, it added miles sort of unfairly.


I do wish the Lightning had about 350 miles of range or so, but you have to consider pricing and all that. It's not like they're losing range to cheaper trucks. More range for the Lightning would absolutely result in higher pricing and EV pricing is already scaring people away.

I really like how Ford turned a regular truck into an electric one. A damn good one too.

You'd think there would be a lot of sacrifices like way worse efficiencies, or a small frunk.

But it's the opposite. Ford has the best Frunk in the business. Ground up EVs like the cybertruck have a terrible one!

I think some of us were hoping Ford would increase range by opening up more of the battery capacity for us once there was enough data. But it seems that’s not going to be the case. If I remember correctly they if it with the Mach-E’s.

 

[Danface]

I wish I could get 2.1 going 70 on the interstate!

Drive behind and 18 wheeler!

 

[Bills R Electric]

From 10,000 feet....

The truck with the bigger battery will have the longest range. D'uh.

If you make the shape of your truck more aerodynamic, it will help the range. Ditto things like tires, wheel covers, etc. D'uh, D'uh.

Do people buy a 5 Series BMW over a Volvo XC60 because of range? They have no idea what the range or size of the gas tank is usually.

PS Range will improve over time for all EVs as battery chemistry is tweaked, along with a hundred other things from heat pumps to tires. Enjoy the moment.

 

[Dinozero]

I’m thinking it’s wind. I’m in the Midwest where wind is either strong and constantly in your face no matter what direction you drive or it’s 0.

I get either 1.7 - 1.8 at 70 or 2.1-2.2 and that’s driving the same way and same roads at similar temps, only difference is wind. I’ve driven EVs for 6 years so I can definitely manage it and know how I’m driving. Wind is the #1 factor for the Lightning. Doing 70 into an 8-10 mph headwind and you’re toast. I once drove 400 miles into 10+ headwind never above 70 and struggled to get 1.5.

I think this is where the weak drag coefficient of the lightning comes into play. It is more impacted when facing a strong headwind or even crosswind. I put a tonneau on but it as expected has shown negligible benefits to efficiency.

So if you live in an area prone to wind (Midwest) don’t forget to check wind forecast and direction before you set out. That first road trip in the strong headwind was definitely eye opening. Far higher impact than on a Tesla. I’d expect the Silverado to be the same… Rivian and CT less impacted simply because of the better drag.

This is a really good point is like you said, it's really just a fact that big trucks fly through the air with the finesse of a brick.

It's probably also why the low speed, in town range on this truck is so good. Because you're not fighting large amounts of drag.

I've gotten over 90 MPGe repeatedly with in town city driving. Which is crazy how close it is to the smaller EV vehicles.

It's just on the highway wind speed and drag is a much larger factor.

The Silverado EV was built from the ground up as an EV wasn't it? It's got that silly Avalanche wings on the side of the bed. Is all that to help with its drag?

The cybertruck also uses air suspension to lower its self a lot on the highway. Maybe future EV trucks will do something like that more.. buts it's obviously an added expense. I've had vehicles with adjustable heights before, and it's a potential warranty(hopeful) nightmare sometimes when those things start acting up.

 

[Dinozero]

Farley has already said that a bigger battery defeats the purpose and the goal is to get smaller battery packs to charge faster/more efficient.


I think some of us were hoping Ford would increase range by opening up more of the battery capacity for us once there was enough data. But it seems that’s not going to be the case. If I remember correctly they if it with the Mach-E’s.

How much are they keeping from us?

 

[Budshark]

The Silverado EV was built from the ground up as an EV wasn't it? It's got that silly Avalanche wings on the side of the bed. Is all that to help with its drag?

The cybertruck also uses air suspension to lower its self a lot on the highway. Maybe future EV trucks will do something like that more.. buts it's obviously an added expense. I've had vehicles with adjustable heights before, and it's a potential warranty(hopeful) nightmare sometimes when those things start acting up.

That’s a really good call out. The Silverado is in the low .3 range. Actually rated lower than Cybertruck and about equal to R1T. F150L is .4 so a good chunk higher.

So really at the end of the day it seems the Lightning trade offs are most impacted by higher speeds and wind, but undeniably the best truck with a traditional cabin (the CT interior should be compared to an R1T not F150).

Guess we just all need to drive like Grandpa.

 

[Kit2874]

I just got 2.5 yesterday on a 180 mile round trip.

Yea I got 2.4 going from the house to the gulf coast and back 140 miles round trip..

One of the advantages of living in the south, what winter? Temp out side was 70... And going 68 to 70 mph

 

[chrislightningnc]

I watched the whole video, you really should. It is a blast. Unfortunately they had technical issues getting started so it ended in the dark which is dangerous and missed some great visuals.

Kyle said that of all the trucks the Lightning (which he was driving) was his favorite and went into some detail about why, which I agree with. He owns a Rivian and has driven everything for 1000s of miles. The Lightning might not be the greatest EV but it is a great truck.

The highlight for me was when this rancher looking dude shows up in his Lightning Lariat with a gigantic commercial flatbed trailer to tow the Cybertruck. I wish that was in daylight, the Lightning handled it with aplomb. From the professional way the guy handled the massive trailer I have a feeling that his Lightning does things that would make some official at NHTSA faint. It is a real truck (see above) that does real work, which often does not mean long range.

Some points:

1. The Cybertruck seems to be unfinished. It doesn't charge at all CCS chargers (including the one they were towing with the Rivian!) and there seemed to be a lot of moments where trim had to be pulled off to make things work. When it died completely it was unable to charge and unable to open the frunk, and fixing that was a very involved process involving disassembly.
2. The Cybertruck range was much more than on a previous test. One thing that I noticed is that they ran it for quite a while with the battery past the point where it produced usable power. I think he was doing about 12 mph at the end, the other trucks shut off at around 50(?). The CT might let you access more of the bottom of the battery which increases range but could be really hard on it (plus not really useful in the real world.)
3. Kyle said that he might have eked out a little more range if he had planned his turnaround so he could hit the downhill section. Still a good test, I think. He mentioned that he had had the truck die at 5% before so he was probably cautious. Ford said that the BMS had gotten out of sync, which reinforces #2 - the manufacturers are deciding when the truck shuts down, it isn't that the battery is really empty.
4. The Silverado had some issues when the battery went dead, it didn't really want to recharge. Unplugging and replugging in the 12V battery got it going again but it was an entertaining mess which involved Kyle driving to the station with the hood half up.
5. The Rivian and the Lightning seemed to handle running out of power the best, charge 'er up and go.
6. I really liked the information on the Rivian's screen especially the graph that shows your miles/kWh over time. @Ford Motor Company did you watch?
7. Kyle's Rivian (not the one tested) towed a massive generator with a 40kW DC charger attached. It was quite cool, although not really necessary because they could have gotten the few miles that they actually needed from the Rancher's Pro Power.
8. Probably the best part for me was the two trucks that were doing truck things - towing a massive flatbed trailer and a generator.

To #3, makes since, I have definitely gotten over 300 on my lightning multiple times.

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