F150 Lightning

AbnMike

Well-known member
Apr 6, 2016
1,218
117
Western Slope, CO
If the diesel you are putting in your vehicle that you drive on the roadways is red you aren't paying certain taxes you should be.
Well damn. I'm going to buy a diesel and only run red to stick it to the man.

I wonder if Ford will ensure dealer support for their EVs? Cadillac is consolidating dealerships and getting rid of more rural ones. Tesla doesn't have a large "fix it" network and will trailer your car if it needs fixing. You may not get it back for weeks.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Howski and Blueboy

Blue

Well-known member
Mar 26, 2004
10,043
856
AZ
The logistical problem with "charging" vs. "refueling" is that you simply pull up to the pump and fill your tank with gas or diesel (usually a 3-5 minute process) but you have to plug in and wait at least a half hour or so for a decent charge. If the charging technology gets to a point where you charge up just like you fill up in a 5-minute process, then the solution is simple: replace gas stations with electric stations. Until then, the problem is what do you do while your car is sucking electricity? This brings me to my next great business plan....I'm rolling out a network of "Blue's Massage and Charge" locations throughout the country. Look for us in the every major city where the streets are named after dead presidents.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Howski and Blueboy

discostew

Well-known member
Sep 14, 2010
7,706
1,015
Northern Illinois
From what I've seen those charging stations that are all over don't charge as fast as one I have in the shop. That kick ass mother of all chargers will fully charge an Ipace in 3.5 hours. Those little ones we have outside the dealership might take 6 or 7 hours to fully charge the same vehicle.
 

eburrows

Well-known member
The biggest problem with comparing gas stations to charging stations is that almost everyone can charge up at their house. Because of that, most driving will not require a charging station at all. So that's commuters taken care of.

For some long-drives, but still within the range of the vehicle, you still might not need a charging station, since you'll leave your house fully charged, and where you end up might have a charging station, whether that's a hotel, camp site (with services), etc.

For road-trips, sure that's the worst case for EVs, but that's what the fast chargers are for. They're often rated in "X miles in Y minutes" because they think if they put fast-chargers next to a bathroom, coffee shop, restaurant, etc, then you'll be comfortable waiting 30 mins while your car charges up. For both the F150 Lightning and Teslas, it seems like 100 miles of charge in 20 minutes is what you get.

The choice of which is "better" is personal I think. I love the idea of charging up at home and almost never using a charging station. Fast chargers at bathroom breaks probably solves 90% of the rest of the cases. Maybe sometimes I have to sit for an hour or so and stare at my phone while charging up for a long leg on a road-trip. I think that pain is probably offset by the charge-at-home thing, plus fast chargers are just going to be more prevalent over time.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Maximumwarp

mgreenspan

Well-known member
Feb 28, 2005
4,723
130
Briggs's Back Yard
The words you said above
I have never driven a vehicle from my house to work/town/shops for more than 5 days in a row before driving a distance that would be considered an extremely long road trip by your standards.

An electric vehicle’s benefit does not exist for me until charging stations can recharge my vehicle in 5 minutes to full. So a standard for 100 miles in 2 minutes is really what I would need. I could possibly stomach 100 miles in 10 minutes if speed limits were eliminated allowing me to maintain an average of 65-70mph for a trip including the charging time of 30 minutes for 300 miles.

We can discuss this all day, but the reality is that electric vehicles serve a purpose in urban/city driving and it is many years off before the technology gets there. I see biofuels making headway before electric becomes the standard as soon as people realize the real damage caused by the feel good zero emissions coal/nuclear/oil/gas/solar/wind powered rechargeable auto.

Their limitations as a useful automobile sit at a 60-70 mile one way commute. A friend and coworker has driven his model S on road trips across multiple states and according to him it’s a pain, but he also has the free super charging for life so it’s financially beneficial. Another friend had to charge his daily at home as he couldn’t get get two full rides to work out of a single charge on a model 3 with the 300 mile range (which never got the advertised 300).
 
  • Like
Reactions: jastutte

eburrows

Well-known member
mgreenspan, I think it's personal. I had an Electric Fiat 500e for a couple of years, and it was great for commuting, as long as you could go there-and-back without charging. That was before fast chargers, and it's battery was tiny.

Your use case (and patience) might be worst-case for EVs. (My patience isn't great either, but I get to appointments 15 minutes early, and read on my phone without thinking about it.)

For me personally, 300 miles is my threshold. My vacation place is 300 miles away, and with a charge/bathroom break, it's within easy reach of a 300 mile vehicle. Everywhere else is within round-trip charge range, except for heavy off-roading trips.
 

pinkytoe69

Well-known member
Jan 14, 2012
1,689
182
minnesota
a model 3 with the 300 mile range (which never got the advertised 300).

I read that the range is not accurate for long highway driving, as it assumes for regenerative braking.

There is little braking on highway commutes, so you don't get the braking charge.
 

eburrows

Well-known member
I read that the range is not accurate for long highway driving, as it assumes for regenerative braking.

There is little braking on highway commutes, so you don't get the braking charge.

It's true the number quoted from EVs/hybrids is from a mixed city/highway driving schedule. For some vehicles, driving slowly in stop/go traffic with regen is better than highway speed driving. It's a trade-off between drag, which goes up when speed increases, and the inefficiencies of regen (which is far from 100%). I'd think lightweight vehicles would benefit more from the city driving style, but we'll have to wait for real-world numbers.
 

Ballah06

Well-known member
Jan 21, 2007
5,633
15
Savannah, GA
30 minutes will get you to the next rub and tug. That's a win. Like McDonald's one on every corner right?
Ha, by the time you get to your destination (200 miles and 17 hours later), you be broke, squeezed dry and probably with a few pending court appearances... That electric does sound like a dream...
 

Ballah06

Well-known member
Jan 21, 2007
5,633
15
Savannah, GA
I read that the range is not accurate for long highway driving, as it assumes for regenerative braking.

There is little braking on highway commutes, so you don't get the braking charge.
Depends on which highway. Commute in NoVA anywhere and just seemingly at any time on 95 or 495 is nothing but braking with an occasional mild acceleration..