So whats the deal with the Platinum Lightning?

[rodhx]

I don’t have to previously own an electric car to know I will never get the max estimated range. I’ve never gotten the max estimate of mpg of any vehicle I’ve owned. It’s nice to have a larger gas tank and I’m assuming it’s nice to have a longer range too.

Range is King, whether it lives up to expectations or not.

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[PA Lightning]

The massaging seats alone would probably make up at least $3k of that difference...ever looked at how much those things cost?
It is also a two-tone interior with white/black. All other trims are just straight black.

I have the "massaging seats" in my current Platinum. They are nice and mostly a conversation piece. My $50 tens unit does a better job.
IMO it's a nice feature if you have it but I would not pay $3k for it.
The sticker on my ICE Platinum in 2019 was $63k, ended up paying $54K. Prices are insane now.

 

[Snakebitten]

I have the "massaging seats" in my current Platinum. They are nice and mostly a conversation piece. My $50 tens unit does a better job.
IMO it's a nice feature if you have it but I would not pay $3k for it.
The sticker on my ICE Platinum in 2019 was $63k, ended up paying $54K. Prices are insane now.

Great point, emphasis on red ^

The timing of this release happens to be right in the heart of an historical moment where almost EVERYTHING seems to have an inflated value.

I'm an old man with patience I once didn't have. I'm excited about all the modern technology that has exploded on the scene in my later life, but I'm looking for a bargain! At least I prefer a decent value-equation, if you know what I mean.

For me the Pro IS a bargain. An outstanding one, in fact. It's the only bargain that seems to defy the current inflated economy.

If Ford will sell me one, I'll take it!
If not, I won't rant or pout. Life is good even if I can't get my way all the time. ??

 

[cdubculvy]

I had a Nissan Leaf with an EPA range of 76 miles. I consistently got ~100 with my stop/go commute. Hwy is worse for sure. We won't really know til these things hit the streets and people report numbers. I hate all the wheel/tire offerings and plan to see what other people report on after market tire/wheel setups. Tire pressure makes a big difference too. The Leaf Dealers were filling them to 60psi! I ran mine around 45, still high and rode rough, but got good range without chipping teeth.

Oh and no way to trust what we've seen in videos, we don't know how big the battery was in those trucks, how well the software was calibrated. Hopefully, Ford is being conservative, we'll see.

EDIT: I originally said we don't know what size batteries Ford put in these. I just watched this video that said 98kwh standard and 131kwh for extended. Those are big batteries. I know this isn't a ground up EV, so it'll be interesting to see what real world range we get.

 

[sotek2345]

I had a Nissan Leaf with an EPA range of 76 miles. I consistently got ~100 with my stop/go commute. Hwy is worse for sure. We won't really know til these things hit the streets and people report numbers. I hate all the wheel/tire offerings and plan to see what other people report on after market tire/wheel setups. Tire pressure makes a big difference too. The Leaf Dealers were filling them to 60psi! I ran mine around 45, still high and rode rough, but got good range without chipping teeth.

Oh and no way to trust what we've seen in videos, we don't know how big the battery was in those trucks, how well the software was calibrated. Hell, we don't even know what size battery comes in the production models. Hopefully Ford is being conservative, we'll see.

I can understand about the wheels - that is a matter of taste, but do you know something about the tires? I haven't seen anything specific about what the A/S and A/T tires are that are options for the Lightning (unless you are going by the Grabber and Hankook tires that were on the prototypes).

 

[cdubculvy]

I can understand about the wheels - that is a matter of taste, but do you know something about the tires? I haven't seen anything specific about what the A/S and A/T tires are that are options for the Lightning (unless you are going by the Grabber and Hankook tires that were on the prototypes).

I don't know anything specific. I was meaning to say that I'd be interested in see what effect larger/more aggressive looking (like BFG KO2's) tires would have on the range. No way to know til someone tries it, and I'm sure someone will. For myself, this will be a commuter vehicle, so even if my range was knocked down to 200 or high 100's, it'd be fine for me. I know others want max range of course. Always good to pay attention to tire weight, but I'm guessing even the stock tires are going to be fairly heavy. Maybe E or even F rated? These are heavy trucks.

 

[adoublee]

Same jump from Barebones Pro to Barebones XLT. It's a pretty hefty price bump. 12k?
Now I have no problem as long as I get $12K in upgraded components. But honestly, all I see for the $12,000 is:

Cloth seats
Running Boards
Fancier Zone Lighting
360 Camera
Work Surface
And of course the LED bar across the front/back

That's not but maybe $3,000 worth of options?

Or am I missing something?

Well there are some options that only exist with the XLT that don't exist with the Pro (and also I think you get carpeted floor and mats that aren't described?).

However, I can't tell if all those options are only available in the 312A Equipment Group or not. For example, the spec sheet indicates that rain-sensing wipers are optional on XLT and not on Pro. But in the builder I see no option or reference for rain-sensing wipers. It doesn't seem like there are really any stand-alone options available to the XLT that are not available to the Pro?

 

[tbinmd]

With the Platinum I was kind of hoping for the CCD shocks or maybe an air suspension with height adjustability. The air suspension would have been nice on the highway to lower the truck for less resistance.

I did the road show, but the ride was so quick it was hard to tell how it rode. Really would like to do a real test drive before ordering or picking the truck up. Hopefully the trucks being produced now get in the hands of the press so we get some real reviews.

 

[broncoaz]

I don't know anything specific. I was meaning to say that I'd be interested in see what effect larger/more aggressive looking (like BFG KO2's) tires would have on the range. No way to know til someone tries it, and I'm sure someone will. For myself, this will be a commuter vehicle, so even if my range was knocked down to 200 or high 100's, it'd be fine for me. I know others want max range of course. Always good to pay attention to tire weight, but I'm guessing even the stock tires are going to be fairly heavy. Maybe E or even F rated? These are heavy trucks.

I could see having summer and winter tires where I live, standard AT for winter and some super low rolling resistance summer tires to increase range. On my 2005 Nissan Titan the BFG KO2’s cost me 20% in highway mpg.

 

[Rgwinn]

Don't forget the massage seats and max towing as standard!

As someone that normally buys the top trim, I just couldn't justify the jump to the Platinum. Stuck with the Lariat+ with no other options to stay under $80k JUST in case BBB somehow passes and includes total cost. I will order the all-weather mats offline, and go to LineX for the spray-in bedliner.

I came to the same decision. We bought a platinum PowerBoost last year, but just don’t see the value in the Lightning. So, opted for the Lariat Ext, with max tow.

 

[adoublee]

Stuck with the Lariat+ with no other options to stay under $80k JUST in case BBB somehow passes and includes total cost. I will order the all-weather mats offline, and go to LineX for the spray-in bedliner.

How do you feel about leaving the max tow off to keep total Ford price under $80k? I'm super interested to know if there is performance difference when not towing.

 

[Colorado87]

How do you feel about leaving the max tow off to keep total Ford price under $80k? I'm super interested to know if there is performance difference when not towing.

I saw mention elsewhere on the forum that folks thought there is a chance the destination charge doesn't count toward the MSRP in the tax credit, so would still be under with max tow.

 

[MickeyAO]

How do you feel about leaving the max tow off to keep total Ford price under $80k? I'm super interested to know if there is performance difference when not towing.

When looking back at the last 10+ years on my driving, the max I haul is one or two kegs of beer every couple of weeks. I bought my current truck (Sierra Denaile) in May 2019 and have less than 11,000 miles as a daily driver.

While I might have a slight worry about the resale (which is why I will go with Ford Options), I'm not worried about the impact on my driving or performance.

As a battery researcher (cell level and full pack safety testing), I know the max towing would be worthwhile to maintain the battery capacity, but as I'm transferring the risk to Ford, I'm not concerned.

 

[MickeyAO]

I saw mention elsewhere on the forum that folks thought there is a chance the destination charge doesn't count toward the MSRP in the tax credit, so would still be under with max tow.

We just don't know if the destination charges won't count....they didn't on the cash for clunkers, but that does don't mean it won't on the BBB. I will order floor mats offline and have LineX for the spray-in bedliner. Looks like BBB is dead with the news today, but want to keep options open.

 

[shutterbug]

As a battery researcher (cell level and full pack safety testing), I know the max towing would be worthwhile to maintain the battery capacity, but as I'm transferring the risk to Ford, I'm not concerned.

Here in Phoenix we had some superhot days last year, causing MME to pop this message:
https://www.macheforum.com/site/threads/warmest-day-so-far-this-summer.6586/

I am wondering if that message is based on the actual battery temperature, in which case extra cooling will help, or just ambient temperature.

As far as risk goes one guy I work with claims that his Tesla went into turtle mode and shut off AC on one of those days. I would hate for that to happen while on Freeway 30 miles from home.

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