Image Credit: YouTube / Hoovies Garage 
A YouTube content creator discovered the driving range of Ford’s Lightning EV truck is significantly reduced in cold weather conditions.
According to YouTuber Tyler Hoover, the estimated driving distance of Ford’s all-electric F-150 Lightning, which is displayed to drivers in the vehicle’s instrument cluster, basically gets cut in half in 30-degree weather.
The cut in driving range was immediately noticeable upon Hoover dropping his daughter off at school, where the YouTuber commented, “That school run was only 2 miles… I think we started with 149. We’re at 143.”
“So 7 miles of range to go 2 miles, unloaded. There’s no trailer back there. It’s just cold outside.”
Driving to another location, Hoover observed he’d used up 50 miles of range to complete just 32 miles.
The range decreased further as Hoover headed back home driving against the wind, where he used up 40 miles of range just to travel 15 miles.
After the vehicle’s “low range” warning popped up, the YouTuber compared the disastrous results of his current demonstration to another recent test where he discovered the Lightning’s driving range was cut when trying to tow a car on a trailer, noting even in that test the warning didn’t pop up until he was home.
“Wow! That’s not quite as bad as towing a light load, but that’s still really, really bad,” Hoover summarized.
Arriving back home, Hoover noted, “We started with 149 and we went 64 miles. So that’s 120 miles of range in 60 or so miles – doing nothing. It’s just cold outside.”
After the demo, Hoover admitted the person he co-owns the Lightning with was considering selling the vehicle due to the driving range.
“He drives around all day for work. He’s a liquor rep, stops in dozens of liquor stores over the course of a week. So he is barely keeping up when it comes to charging at home and the range of this truck in winter, and it is stressing him out. So he’s not sure if he wants to keep this thing anymore.”
Tips provided by Ford for increasing driving range during cold weather include charging it while not running the vehicle’s heater, prompting Hoover to quip, “So when you’re waiting to charge your car be as cold as you possibly can so it charges quicker. Really?”
The video ends with Hoover deciding he’s going to trade the vehicle in for the GMC Hummer EV, which appeared to handle the cold weather much better.
The YouTuber’s latest test comes after he showed the Lightning “can’t do normal truck things” when he attempted to tow a car from one location to another.
In the event someone was trying to tow something, “You would be stopping every hour to recharge, which would take about 45 minutes a pop, and that is absolutely not practical,” he noted in that case.
Imagine living in a harsh climate and buying an EV vehicle only to discover your car’s driving distance is cut in half when you need it most. That’s sadly a reality for many Americans who’ve been duped by the EV craze.
H/t: The Western Journal