Thoughts from First Lightning Road Trip

[planetmn]

The family just got back from our first road trip in the Lightning (second and longest road trip in an EV) and figured I'd share my thoughts, especially for anybody considering their first EV.

We got the Lightning Extended Range because we wanted something that could handle our road trips which are usually 2-3 hour trips for the four of us to ski, or 6 hour trips with our two dogs. The Lightning was the only EV that could comfortably handle four plus ski gear or four plus two 60lb dogs (to be honest, it could probably handle the four of us, ski gear AND the dogs). We previously took one day trip in a Model Y Long Range, otherwise we are pretty new to EVs. Some of these thoughts are specific to the Lightning, others to EVs/charging in general.

We picked up the lightning about 1.5 weeks ago and took it for a 250-mile (each way) trip to go skiing. We loaded the ski gear in the bed, our luggage in the frunk and had plenty of room inside for the kids and their road trip necessities. The night before I charged to 100% and preconditioned the battery. When driving the temps were in the 30s and the first part was all highway, with cruise set to 70mph. The vehicle reported about 1.8mi/kWh, about 20% lower than the 320-mile range listed. Not surprising given that we were moving a 6k lb truck at 70mph. Our first stop was at the LL Bean factory store in Freeport, Maine. They had free level 2 chargers, so while we walked around Freeport, we were able to add 4% to the battery.

Some initial thoughts on charging: Too many apps! I just want to pull up, swipe a credit card and charge. I don't need your app, I just need your power. Also, who designed the UX on these chargers? My 9-month old golden retriever could have done a better job. Our first planned charging stop was at a rest area on the Maine Turnpike. They had four Chargepoint chargers, two rated for 62kW and two rated for 200kW. It's annoying that you can't determine which is which without getting out of the car and looking at the screen which is hard to read in the sun (see design comment above). Once I found the 200kW charger and hooked up, it was great, charged really quickly (added 45% in 38 minutes while I handled some work emails). Unfortunately, the rest area didn't have any water (maintenance issue), so the restaurants weren't open, which would have been great to kill two birds with one stone.

After this charge, we started going through the Mountains in Maine. Range was expectedly reduced given the terrain. Since there wasn't much charging infrastructure at our final destination, we stopped at a grocery store with a 62kW Chargepoint to top off about an hour away from our destination. During the eighteen minutes we were grocery shopping, we added about 12% to the battery. Design gripe #2: why are there no signs for where to find the chargers in a lot? If only there were some visual indication that could be provided to let a driver know of where to find the chargers (even better, add said visual indication starting from the road - what's with all of these chargers with absolutely no way of finding them without the app?).

Now came the fun part. The town we were in didn't have anything for charging with the exception of a bank of level 2 chargers at the ski mountain. So when we got to our VRBO, I plugged into level 1 overnight and added a little bit. Get to the mountain in the AM and there are twelve chargers. Of course, needed a different app for these chargers (but I knew that ahead of time and was prepared). Smartly, they made sure there was wifi coverage near the chargers for guests to use (my previous trip in the Model Y was not so lucky). Plugged in and while we skied the day away, the vehicle charged up to nearly 100%. That night we left it plugged into level 1, more to precondition the battery than anything. The second day, we got to the mountain with about 90% charge, so didn't bother charging during the day. These level 2 chargers at the destination were key and made the whole trip possible.

For the trip home, we got slightly better range than the trip there and we made it to our dinner destination with an EVGo 100kW charger with still half of our battery left. When the design intern fixes the signage issues above, they should really consult for EVGo. The chargers and parking spots were not well suited for the Lightning, and I ended up having to park between the two spots in the marked off area to get the cable to reach (I was informed of this from the other Lightning driver who had learned the same thing a few days earlier). But I pulled up the Ford Pass app and started charging (first time using that app to charge). We grabbed a quick dinner and had enough charge to finish the drive home.

Now the only Ford gripe I had, what is up with the range estimates? It's basically a random number generator. So as we kept getting closer to home, I kept watching my range decrease faster than the distance remaining (to be fair, I'm going 70mph), but did make it home with about 50 miles of range remaining (I expected to have about 80 or so). I get that the combination of driving and batteries is challenging, but this implementation seems to be a pretty poor solution (and while the Model Y's wasn't perfect, it was light years better).

All in all, once you know where the fast chargers are, I don't think it's an issue driving an EV on most roads. On any major highway (at least here in the Northeast), there is considerable infrastructure and even off the highway, if you know where it is (again, needing the app), it's readily available and convenient to charge while shopping or eating.

Ironically, I don't think I would have been as happy in a gas F150 for the trip. The frunk was crucial and having a secure place to keep our luggage, my work laptop, etc. was appreciated. When we were loading up the car to come home and opened the frunk we heard a "woah, that is so cool" from a gas F150 driver who then had a bunch of questions about it.

Most of our trips are actually shorter than this one, so this was a good first test. If we were able to handle this one without any issues, I'm not concerned about our other trips.

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[TheBigBezo]

You've probably read this before, but to truly know if you'll make it somewhere you have to outright ignore the Guess o' Meter and instead run numbers in your head. You already know where to find your current efficiency in miles/kwh, so multiple that by the % of battery times 131kWh (for the ER). That'll give you your actual range remaining. Or even better, I like to find a minimum efficiency to make it to my destination and then I monitor the trip meter to ensure I'm above it, and if not, I stop early to charge for a bit.

I wish Ford did a better job (or Android Auto / Apple Carplay) of actually considering what road you're on, how fast you likely will be going, and historical usage to generate an actual reasonable estimate. I.e. If you usually do around the speed limit and you use maps to get to your destination, it should know the speed limits along the route and what reasonable efficiency the truck gets.

 

[Wattsgas]

I use 1.8 mpkw to calculate range, so there are no surprises. But since the truck likes to give me a percentage I have converted that to 2.4mp%. For Math in my head I use either 2 or 2.5 miles per Percent.

Ford loves us to think we can go forever until we get half way there. My Rivian does a much better job at guessing than the Ford.

 

[invertedspear]

You've probably read this before, but to truly know if you'll make it somewhere you have to outright ignore the Guess o' Meter and instead run numbers in your head. You already know where to find your current efficiency in miles/kwh, so multiple that by the % of battery times 131kWh (for the ER). That'll give you your actual range remaining. Or even better, I like to find a minimum efficiency to make it to my destination and then I monitor the trip meter to ensure I'm above it, and if not, I stop early to charge for a bit.

I wish Ford did a better job (or Android Auto / Apple Carplay) of actually considering what road you're on, how fast you likely will be going, and historical usage to generate an actual reasonable estimate. I.e. If you usually do around the speed limit and you use maps to get to your destination, it should know the speed limits along the route and what reasonable efficiency the truck gets.

Why run the numbers in your head? I've made it easy for you to do them on your phone: https://lightningcalcs.pages.dev

 

[AI_Speed]

A bit painful to read your posting - the functional driving range between a 20% to 80% window is still miniscule - especially in cold/windy/hot weather - 320 - 40% - 30% = 140 miles then have the perfect app & unbroken fast charge unit - vs. taking an ICE SUV like an Escalade - the 2024 Cadillac Escalade has a range of 396.2 miles in the city and 537.7 miles on the highway.

 

[TaxmanHog]

Welcome to the forum, great trip report!!!

I hope you have applied for your rebate!
https://www.f150lightningforum.com/forum/threads/mass-mor-ev-trucks-rebate.8286/

 

[Bandit216]

... The frunk was crucial and having a secure place to keep our luggage, my work laptop, etc. was appreciated. ...

You took your work laptop on a ski vacation? You should be ashamed of yourself.

 

[Danface]

If you're in central MA, hit the Chargepoint charger in West Boylston, .15/KWh ... Cheaper then charging at home

 

[mb0220]

The family just got back from our first road trip in the Lightning (second and longest road trip in an EV) and figured I'd share my thoughts, especially for anybody considering their first EV.

We got the Lightning Extended Range because we wanted something that could handle our road trips which are usually 2-3 hour trips for the four of us to ski, or 6 hour trips with our two dogs. The Lightning was the only EV that could comfortably handle four plus ski gear or four plus two 60lb dogs (to be honest, it could probably handle the four of us, ski gear AND the dogs). We previously took one day trip in a Model Y Long Range, otherwise we are pretty new to EVs. Some of these thoughts are specific to the Lightning, others to EVs/charging in general.

We picked up the lightning about 1.5 weeks ago and took it for a 250-mile (each way) trip to go skiing. We loaded the ski gear in the bed, our luggage in the frunk and had plenty of room inside for the kids and their road trip necessities. The night before I charged to 100% and preconditioned the battery. When driving the temps were in the 30s and the first part was all highway, with cruise set to 70mph. The vehicle reported about 1.8mi/kWh, about 20% lower than the 320-mile range listed. Not surprising given that we were moving a 6k lb truck at 70mph. Our first stop was at the LL Bean factory store in Freeport, Maine. They had free level 2 chargers, so while we walked around Freeport, we were able to add 4% to the battery.

Some initial thoughts on charging: Too many apps! I just want to pull up, swipe a credit card and charge. I don't need your app, I just need your power. Also, who designed the UX on these chargers? My 9-month old golden retriever could have done a better job. Our first planned charging stop was at a rest area on the Maine Turnpike. They had four Chargepoint chargers, two rated for 62kW and two rated for 200kW. It's annoying that you can't determine which is which without getting out of the car and looking at the screen which is hard to read in the sun (see design comment above). Once I found the 200kW charger and hooked up, it was great, charged really quickly (added 45% in 38 minutes while I handled some work emails). Unfortunately, the rest area didn't have any water (maintenance issue), so the restaurants weren't open, which would have been great to kill two birds with one stone.

After this charge, we started going through the Mountains in Maine. Range was expectedly reduced given the terrain. Since there wasn't much charging infrastructure at our final destination, we stopped at a grocery store with a 62kW Chargepoint to top off about an hour away from our destination. During the eighteen minutes we were grocery shopping, we added about 12% to the battery. Design gripe #2: why are there no signs for where to find the chargers in a lot? If only there were some visual indication that could be provided to let a driver know of where to find the chargers (even better, add said visual indication starting from the road - what's with all of these chargers with absolutely no way of finding them without the app?).

Now came the fun part. The town we were in didn't have anything for charging with the exception of a bank of level 2 chargers at the ski mountain. So when we got to our VRBO, I plugged into level 1 overnight and added a little bit. Get to the mountain in the AM and there are twelve chargers. Of course, needed a different app for these chargers (but I knew that ahead of time and was prepared). Smartly, they made sure there was wifi coverage near the chargers for guests to use (my previous trip in the Model Y was not so lucky). Plugged in and while we skied the day away, the vehicle charged up to nearly 100%. That night we left it plugged into level 1, more to precondition the battery than anything. The second day, we got to the mountain with about 90% charge, so didn't bother charging during the day. These level 2 chargers at the destination were key and made the whole trip possible.

For the trip home, we got slightly better range than the trip there and we made it to our dinner destination with an EVGo 100kW charger with still half of our battery left. When the design intern fixes the signage issues above, they should really consult for EVGo. The chargers and parking spots were not well suited for the Lightning, and I ended up having to park between the two spots in the marked off area to get the cable to reach (I was informed of this from the other Lightning driver who had learned the same thing a few days earlier). But I pulled up the Ford Pass app and started charging (first time using that app to charge). We grabbed a quick dinner and had enough charge to finish the drive home.

Now the only Ford gripe I had, what is up with the range estimates? It's basically a random number generator. So as we kept getting closer to home, I kept watching my range decrease faster than the distance remaining (to be fair, I'm going 70mph), but did make it home with about 50 miles of range remaining (I expected to have about 80 or so). I get that the combination of driving and batteries is challenging, but this implementation seems to be a pretty poor solution (and while the Model Y's wasn't perfect, it was light years better).

All in all, once you know where the fast chargers are, I don't think it's an issue driving an EV on most roads. On any major highway (at least here in the Northeast), there is considerable infrastructure and even off the highway, if you know where it is (again, needing the app), it's readily available and convenient to charge while shopping or eating.

Ironically, I don't think I would have been as happy in a gas F150 for the trip. The frunk was crucial and having a secure place to keep our luggage, my work laptop, etc. was appreciated. When we were loading up the car to come home and opened the frunk we heard a "woah, that is so cool" from a gas F150 driver who then had a bunch of questions about it.

Most of our trips are actually shorter than this one, so this was a good first test. If we were able to handle this one without any issues, I'm not concerned about our other trips.

Glad you were able to make use of the L2 chargers at the ski area. I had an experience similar, except the L2 chargers at the ski resort were free and mostly filled with PHEVs which I found frustrating. We're in a somewhat remote area wth no other chargers around, so for BEVs charging at the slopes can be kind of a necessity whereas the PHEVs are really only saving a few bucks by charging up the battery (they won't be stranded).
This could be solved with some organization and a decent fee structure. I would gladly pay a premium to reserve parking with an available charger as well as paying for the power (this would weed out the PHEVs who are just trying to save a few bucks on gas), and I would gladly accept a policy for idle fees to incentivize users to vacate charging spot once they're done.

 

[planetmn]

Glad you were able to make use of the L2 chargers at the ski area. I had an experience similar, except the L2 chargers at the ski resort were free and mostly filled with PHEVs which I found frustrating. We're in a somewhat remote area wth no other chargers around, so for BEVs charging at the slopes can be kind of a necessity whereas the PHEVs are really only saving a few bucks by charging up the battery (they won't be stranded).
This could be solved with some organization and a decent fee structure. I would gladly pay a premium to reserve parking with an available charger as well as paying for the power (this would weed out the PHEVs who are just trying to save a few bucks on gas), and I would gladly accept a policy for idle fees to incentivize users to vacate charging spot once they're done.

That would definitely be frustrating. There were a few PHEVs using the chargers at Saddleback, but I think the fee structure took care of that ($2 initiation charge, $2/hr and $0.05 per kWh). So at 7kW rate and 8 hours of charging, you'd get about 56kWh for $20.80 (basically $0.37/kWh if you are charging a lot, but significantly higher if you just top off).

 

[On the Road with Ralph]

Interesting report on a mountain trip.

I have put 25K miles on my SR Pro in 13 months, including six trips of 1500+ miles; I've used DCFC chargers in eight different states. For the most part, I think the challenges of road tripping an EV are hugely over-stated; I've never been unable to go where I've wanted, even into EV/literal deserts. It just takes a bit of planning (as a former pilot, that is not a big deal for me). And it is only going to get better in 2024 and beyond.

That said - and maybe in confirmation of it - yesterday I took a trip into the mountains with four people and stuff, and a 6400+ ft elevation gain. Because of the multiple vertical climbs and the load, I was extra conservative - charged to 98% at departure. I had 54% when we returned after traveling a total distance of about 100 miles. The lesson: When it comes to range, sweat less and enjoy the EV ride more.

 

[Formerly]

Why run the numbers in your head? I've made it easy for you to do them on your phone: https://lightningcalcs.pages.dev

I got a great laugh out of your graphic regarding Miles vs Kilometers. Love it

 

[mags]

There were a few PHEVs using the chargers at Saddleback, but I think the fee structure took care of that ($2 initiation charge, $2/hr and $0.05 per kWh). .

Saddleback rules! Too bad the chargers are a pain in the ass. The app is a joke. Fortunately a guy in a Rivian told me to use the Wifi and charge as a "guest" and that got me going. I did learn not to count on L2 to gain much over a couple hours of skiing, I got enough juice to make it to some L3 chargers.

 

[srvethelord]

Why run the numbers in your head? I've made it easy for you to do them on your phone: https://lightningcalcs.pages.dev

I'm new to the Lightning and EVs as a whole. I clicked on your link...I have no idea what it means. Ha!

 

[invertedspear]

I'm new to the Lightning and EVs as a whole. I clicked on your link...I have no idea what it means. Ha!

The GOM (range value) in the car is, well, we'll just say it's optimistic. Most of us learned early on not to trust it, and instead are either doing the math in our heads, or relying on printout tables, or creating spreadsheets. The calculator is intended to provide you a more realistic number. Plug in your values, and get a better idea of your actual range.

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