Posted on 03/24/2022 5:51:19 AM PDT by Red Badger
Ford shared new videos about the towing capabilities of the upcoming, all-electric Ford F-150 Lightning pickup.
The vehicle can tow up to 10,000 lbs (4,536 kg) in the case of XLT and Lariat trims with Extended Range Battery and Max Trailer Tow Package. The Platinum can tow up to 8,400 lbs (3,810 kg), while the versions with the Standard Range Battery (Pro, XLT, Lariat) are rated at up to 7,700 lbs (3,493 kg).
See more about towing and hauling here.
VIDEO AT LINK...........
The manufacturer has tested pre-production vehicles in very challenging conditions to make sure that customers will be able to use the electric F-150 just like the conventional one.
Two particular tests were highlighted in specific:
TFLTruck’s Ike Gauntlet™ in the winter Davis Dam in the summer
In the case of the winter test, the Ford F-150 Lightning was tested towing 10,000 pounds up Colorado’s I-70 on the coldest February day in Boulder in 123 Years, at temperatures below 0°F (-18°C).
Last month, Ford engineers took preproduction F-150 Lightnings to what some call the world’s toughest towing test — TFLtruck’s Ike Gauntlet™ towing test — with windchills registering below zero degrees Fahrenheit. The Ike Gauntlet is an 8-mile stretch of I-70 in Colorado that ascends at a 7% incline to a maximum elevation of 11,158-ft. above sea level around the Eisenhower Memorial Tunnel.
VIDEO AT LINK...........
The Summer test included towing 10,000 lbs (4,536 kg) in the extreme heat of 118 °F (48°C) and at the extreme grades of Davis Dam.
"With ground temperatures reaching a high of 118-degrees Fahrenheit during testing, F-150 Lightning preproduction units towed the same 10,000-pound trailers for multiple loops across the dam. Davis Dam, located on State Route 68 between Las Vegas and the Hoover Dam, ascends from 550 feet elevation to 3,500 feet in 11.4-grueling miles.
Between the two locations, their steep continuous inclines, expressway speeds, and trailers in tow – in this case the truck’s targeted maximum 10,000-pound trailers – make them extremely grueling for EV and gas trucks alike."
VIDEO AT LINK...........
According to Ford, those are two examples of the hundreds of hours of rigorous towing testing that the F-150 Lightning has endured during development.
It sounds very encouraging that Ford carefully checked towing capabilities, which should be pretty good on short trips. On longer trips, range might be a limiting factor (see the Rivian R1T towingtest here) as it might be cut in half or more (compared to the nominal EPA values).
To minimize issues of towing and hauling, Ford developed special software that estimates the impact of various factors on the range in real-time. We are eager to see independent reviews of this system.
Ping!....................
“11.4-grueling miles.”
I know that area. It is not “grueling”, and 11.4 miles is the distance between my old house there and the nearest gas station. Big whoop.
It’s rare I pull a trailer more than 30 miles. But I would be interested in any calculations done on how trailer weight and/or cargo weight reduces range.
Costs more than my house. Not a future purchase for me.
Electric motors have the advantage of full torque at any RPM.
All it takes is kilowatts/ volt amps.
Personally I would never pull a load that outweighs my tow vehicle.
Interesting capability, butt not surprising.
Fancy golf carts for in town commutes, doable, until there is a reliable 300 mile towing range, not doable, on overpriced per real world use trucks.
18 wheeler do it every day...............
EV’s are not ready for prime time. An interim plan until the technology catches up would have been smart. The left hates us and wants us to suffer.
Wait ‘till you get the bill for the inevitable battery replacement.
It is made by the UAW, I will pass.
Not reading this, but last time I checked the range at full load was 100 miles
True. But I drive a 4 wheel F-150, not a 10 wheel tractor designed to do it.
IIRC, Davis Dam is located on the Colorado River between Bullhead City, AZ and Laughlin, NV (not sure why the article described it as quoted). Leaving the area via highway to the east or west involves an uphill climb, but most vehicles with gasoline or diesel engines can do it without dropping below the speed limit (65-75 mph?)...
Tow it to the end of my road. Then walk back and get my 350 chevy.
.. “... So many negative waves from you this morning Moriarty... ...so many negative waves!...”
:P
Battery replacement price is a secret.
An unnecessarily expensive and ultimately less effectual way to interpret the duties expected of a pickup truck. Until there is an on-board source of power generation, reliance on increasingly expensive batteries of uncertain life expectancy is and shall remain a dead-end, because there is no co-commitment to expand and improve the electrical generation and power distributions grid in this or any other nation.
Electrical traction power has been proven over and over again in the instance of Diesel-electric locomotives, and it is in fact much more flexible than transmitting power from an internal combustion engine though gearing and shafts, with the necessity of using a transmission of varying ratios to coax the IC engine to get started, as the electrical motor has maximum torque at stall speeds, while the IC engine only develops torque at well up into the operating range.
A small steam-powered generation unit on board, with a fully recycling steam transfer system, driving a generator unit to supply power to drive the individual wheel motors, and fueled with propane or compressed natural gas, or even a hydrogen fuel-cell system, using hydrogen formed by electrolysis of ocean water, or sewage effluent from electricity generated by thorium-fueled molten salt reactors, are definite possibilities for the future. But the future only arrives one day at a time, and there a few problems to be solved first, while we shall still be relying on hydrocarbon fuels to be the bridge source of energy.
Wind and solar power are just - inadequate. Only for use in niche applications where it is impossible to run the grid.
IIRC range is reduced to less than 100 miles while towing 5K pounds.
Also, last I checked it was not qualified for the tax credit, but maybe that was for the pre-production units.
“Personally I would never pull a load that outweighs my tow vehicle.”
Why not? Trucks don’t weight that much and few things worth towing weigh less.
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