NG lines froze here thanks to the grid shutting off power to the pumping stations. No gas

None to be found once it set in. No generators, no space heaters, no salamanders, no nothing.

If they planned ahead and bought one.

The whole state seemed very unprepared. It looked like an icy Y2K on the news.

Well I find myself defending the electrical vehicle guy.

ASSUMING it is not electric heat, a modest generator can run a oil or gas furnace without breaking a sweat.

That assumes you have gas to burn of course.

I prudent home owner would have one, almost standard issue here in New England.

A far more practical purchase than a 100k truck.

That sucks.

I should probably buy a few yards of pellets for backup.

I hear ya.

A lot of homeowner associations forbid their use. Would be a fun battle in court

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You can buy a Honda that literally you cannot tell is even running.

We get it, you like EV.

The argument your making about hooking a house to a truck is beyond weak falling into the absurd. The average homeowner is confounded by a breaker panel let alone hooking an electric vehicle to the mains.

Edit: since you brought the Texas situation up I'd like to point out that it was a once in a century event which vastly bemused a number of people in New England who viewed it as "a typical nor'Easter " or business as usual around here.

EV have DRASTICALLY reduced battery life in cold weather, I doubt you would get the days of battery life claimed just as the miles per charge are also inflated to best case scenario.

I think the hookup to the house is a really great selling point. Surprised me. I’d be fearful what the surprise dollar figure is to have it properly installed

I’m thrilled about EV vehicles for pure adrenaline acceleration rush. 30 minutes to 1.0 for FAST charge? Would have to charge all the time for my commute? C’mon. I’m not the demographic.

I live in NH and not one charging station for anything for 60 miles. So some of you folks tell me again how I’m ‘old’ and don’t like change. Just stop that crap please. I’m tired of hearing it. I’m getting grey but can run EV circles around almost all guys 1/2 my age.

When the gas stations start installing EV hookups, then I’ll take this industry 100% seriously.

As always Vid, you are ready for an alternative POV. Missed you while you were on hiatus amigo.

You seem oddly hung up on this feature.

If someone is not handy, and is already having a fast charger port installed in their garage by an electrician, it would make sense that they would have a power transfer switch installed at the same time.

Once it becomes "a thing", Taskrabbit will probably have a button you press in the app and you instantly get a tech who does those installs all day long.

When I put a Gas Nozzle on my Home Heating Oil tank, I did it myself. If I did not feel comfortable, I'd have called a plumber.

When I upgraded my electrical service to 200A, I did it myself. If I was afraid of electricity, I'd have called an electrician.

When I replaced all the brake lines and master cylinder in my truck, I did it myself. If I was afraid of getting greasy, I'd have called a mechanic.

Those late night infomercial generator companies change $450 to install a transfer switch, so I imagine that's the high side.

You can also just run a single 20A from the truck like an extension cord, so someone could keep the fridge and aquariums running, if you did not need heat/AC

Some people can only look for tiny things to trip up on.

My grandfather always said "Don't tell my why you can't, tell me how you figured it out" (rough translation)

How did the rest of the world figure it out?

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ahem, you are the one flogging that feature.

I do know a lot about building loads, generator sizing and generator maintenance.

One is totally not in the same ballpark as the other (transfer switch vs charging outlet), not to mention having a licensed electrician do the work, having the town issue a permit and then having the town building inspector approve it before use.

Yes permit and approval process is normal around here and God help you if you do it yourself and something goes sideways the insurance company will hang you out to dry.

The town will issue a cease and desist order so fast your head would spin. I'll take a picture of the neighbor across the street who was having someone rebuild their porch, half way through the project the town showed up, stapled the order to the porch and it is still sitting there half finished a year later.

I changed my panel too when the insurance wouldn't accept challenger brand. I've also fixed my own vehicles. So congratulations to both of us? It doesn't change the fact that your initial dumbass comment of a lightning helping people from freezing in Texas is still a dumbass comment there is a reason nobody was talking about it because it wasn't a thing to be talked about.

I am well aware of that, as I deal with them daily. I still think its dumb to call it a Lightning when they already have an iconic branded truck named that.

It sounds like you should pay the $450 and have an electrician do your install.

Normally I would say "Why the hell would I want to see a picture of a Stop Work Order?"

But I've got to admit that I have a morbid curiosity to see the house where the guy's 14 year old daughter probably got knocked up, and had to keep the baby.

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Wait until you see the new 2025 Edsel

Congratulations to neither of us.

Those are just common tasks that men do everyday.

Yawn

“Whether sheltering during a storm or trying to stay safe in a heat wave, customers can now use their truck to give themselves power when they need it most,” said Ryan O’Gorman, electric vehicle manager, Strategic Partnerships. “F-150 Lightning is built for seamless transitions between charging your vehicle and powering your house when needed – and Ford is the first in the U.S. to offer this capability on an electric truck.

With Ford Intelligent Backup Power, enabled by the available 80-amp Ford Charge Station Pro and home management system Ford can help install, F-150 Lightning automatically kicks in to power your house. Once power is restored, the truck automatically reverts to charging its battery. Based on an average 30kWh of use per day, F-150 Lightning with extended-range battery provides full-home power for up to three days, or as long as 10 days if power is rationed, with results varying based on energy usage."

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Under ideal situations in a controlled environment, you too can have the luxury of avoiding a complete power outage for up to 10 days provided everything you use runs off electricity.

Well for most of the outages we’ve had it was just the power was out for up to a few days. We still had water, gas, and the internet was even available. The missing piece was the electricity. So this is a case where it could help. In the past I’ve used a small generator but would prefer to use the truck battery and only go to the generator if I had too.

Big things are the blower for the furnace in the winter, some lights (most LEDs now), and the refrigerator. Seems like a good option if you happen to have it sitting in the driveway anyway.

Yes, complete marketing BS to try and pedal a product the majority of people have little interest in.

No one seems to have brought up the fact what happens when the truck battery is exhausted after running your home and the power is not back on?

Now you have a dead home and truck and you are stuck.

Try at least twice that minimum plus the cost of the permit.

I absolutely love the concept, but I just dont see Ford turning this into a viable option in terms of practicality. Tesla has it figured out with their network of quick chargers everywhere and having your GPS able to point you to charging stations along the route. Someone mentioned other companies will be able to use Tesla technology, but unless that means access to their entire network, this thing is a bust.

Dont get me wrong, I would love nothing more than to have an electric F-150 that I could reasonably take on a long road trip. Its a step in the right direction, but it feels like they are so damn far behind.

Most importantly, who decided "Lightning" was the best name? The original Lightning was the ass opposite of this vehicle, was it intended to be ironic? The original was a RWD only supertruck that had horrific gas mileage and horrible dependability. Would it have killed them to just call it the F-150 Electric ?

It all depends on the how you use it and if it is your only vehicle. The current constraints are fine for some. We have other vehicles in our household so that isn’t a concern. You don’t have to use the truck to power anything if you don’t want to but it is a nice option to have if it is already wired for it. For the most part outages have been hours to a couple days around here due to trees down. This could cover those.

Hurricane and n'oreaster zones power outages are common for a few days to as long as 2-3 weeks.

Sandy wiped out service to my area for two weeks.

I find the way you causally malign people whose only crime is not knowing to pull a permit despicable.

It tells me a great deal about you.

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I like how the counterarguments here are "Well, if it can't drive 1000 miles on a single charge and power my house through a maybe once in a lifetime power outage, it's a piece of shit!"

Look, 99% of the people that drive trucks use it to haul some plywood or trash or furniture around town. Most of us have an occasional brownout or a couple hours of power outage here and there. A whole house UPS would be great. I wish my Tesla did it, they've been pussyfooting around for years with car to home.

You want to haul a boat, get a Diesel F-350, they're still there, but don't shit on an electric truck cause it can't.

Cripes, it's a wonder that the small Rangers and S-10's even existed with the way some of you talk.

Lol

You can't let it go.

You sir are the one flogging the dead horse

I used to be a Ford Guy. But the quality went down too far. They were also doing things to make the trucks less consumer friendly like combining assemblies. On my 2007 (my last F-150 ever), the front rotors and bearings were all one part. Cheaper to build, but much more expensive for the truck owner. And that thing chewed through rotors and bearings. In the 2000 before that, rotors were cheap and normal to replace. Bearings were cheap and normal. A couple hours in my garage, poof, ready for action. The newer ones I didn’t even try.

The bearing / rotor issue is a single example, but the whole truck was like that. Everything had been carved down to be as cheap as possible while having a minimal service life. As a person that puts a lot of mileage on vehicles, the ongoing costs are important to me. Ford lost me as a customer after that truck.

(In case you’re curious, currently Honda. Just had it’s 100k service and it’s been awesome so far. All costs have been normal.)

That's interesting to me because an integrated bearing/rotor assembly used to be the norm. Of course you probably can't even get one cut on the ones today.

You offer a win or lose argument, which isn't the case.

I think most of the discussion is how Ford is advertising as being a replacement for a gas vehicle and its 10,000 tow capacity which is largely theoretical unless you want to tow under 100 miles and then have to charge again.

The truck fills a niche market which Ford advertising is trying to convince you otherwise.

Stay in the niche and you will be fine with it just like if you purchase a Ranger, S-10 or Dakota.

You know what you are getting into when you purchase one.

Ironically vehicle makers have little interest in making small trucks, the profits are smaller and costs to make them almost is large as a full size. My Dakota and Durango were fine vehicles which did the job well which is why I chose them, just enough truck to get the job done.

And then Chrysler killed them off for hulking monstrosities which were more profitable..

I have a 6.2 Raptor right now and I'm seriously impressed with this new Lightning. I might try to trade in the Raptor and go electric. 10mpg to full electric baby!

On a 2WD truck only. I guess location matters for sure as 99.9% are 4WD here.

Maybe tempting for my first truck. Not concerned on mileage thing. From what I read looks like you can upgrade batteries. $?

I been a full size GMC SUV user for years. In my current '17 Yukon a pin fits in it but is very snug on height clearance with head down of course. Can't even slide pin in 100% for transport. I need to tie down hatch. Forget about fitting a NIB in as it just won't fit. I lost height clearance in rear when they changed design for built in fold down third seat. I had no problems with my '09 at the time.

Any any rate what is it with Ford using their iconic branding for these EVs anyhow? Mustang, Lightning, etc. ?

As a current Tesla owner who's completely fed up with how corrupt and incompetent that company is, I put in a reservation for the F-150 Lighting. I rarely tow, I just need a truck to haul basic things and pins on occasion. Also going to get a Jeep Gladiator later this year to tow behind the motor home.

Jeff

Using their most popular brands to help usher in the electric era seems to make sense. Internal combustion is dying and Ford wants a head start.

Barf, give me a 5.0 L coyote any day

Rubbish.

Until energy density of batteries improve dramatically internal combustion engines are not going anywhere.

Regardless of what EV owners think.

EV fit a niche and are not a fit for all owners.

Hybrid is really the way to go for a variety of reasons but it is not the favored tech of various greenie groups.

Exactly.

China has 5 million EV on the road right now, and in 4 years 25% of all new vehicles will be electric.

In some Euro countries, EVs are 75% of all new cars sold.

Ford can't let the USA fall further behind

It would ultimately be a novelty for me. I am a very happy truck owner but don’t really use it much for truck stuff.

I do like to drive to pinball shows and haul my games.
I would be sad if I couldn’t make the drive on a single charge.

One thing I did not realize until this evening, Ford is pricing this Lightning CHEAPER than the current gas truck equivalent.

The 4-door crewcab AWD with 260hp/265 torque gas V6 is $44,000

The lightning 4 door crewcab with 426hp/775 torque is $39,779 then minus the -$7,500 federal tax rebate for EV

I don't think internal combustion is going away, but there is no reason EV cant be more mainstream. We should be incentivizing car manufacturers to push the envelope on existing technology. Tesla is the only American car manufacturer doing anything that is even remotely impressive right now in terms of technological advancement.

Everyone else is sitting on their hands only working to come up with a slightly new design once a decade. The new F150 may end up being a complete pile of shit, but that doesn't mean its a bad thing they are doing it.

With a population of 1.4 billion, 5 million is a rounding error.

The EV market will no doubt continue to grow but the limitation will always be price imo. The F150 claims starting price of $40000. With standard options, price is probably more realistically $45000-$50000. At that price point you can get a diesel F250.

The convenience is you charge at home overnight while you sleep. Commercial fast charges should get you a few hundred miles of range in <45 minutes.

Just guessing but likely the same marketing guy that decided to name the Ford EV sports car a Mustang? That car was always known for its efficiency....