The unveiling of the Ford F-150 Lightning is already behind us, but despite tons of content, it leaves us without a very important number – battery capacity!
Ford announced only that there will be two battery/range versions:
- Standard-Range Battery with expected EPA range of 230 miles (370 km)
- Extended-Range Battery with expected EPA range of 300 miles (483 km)
Luckily, the manufacturer has revealed charging times from 15 to 100% state-of-charge for a few power levels, which enables us to make some calculations and estimate the battery capacity.
Let’s start with the entry-level version:
- AC charging (on-board charger):
Standard-Range Battery (input/output): 11.3 kW/10.5 kW (92.9% efficient)
15-100% SOC at 19.2 kW, 80A Ford Charge Station Pro: 10 hours; 1 hour to add 19 miles
15-100% SOC at 11.5 kW, 48A Connected Charge Station: 10 hours; 1 hour to add 19 miles
15-100% SOC at 7.7 kW, 32A Mobile Charger: 14 hours; 1 hour to add 14 miles - DC fast charging: up to 150 kW
15-80% SOC at 150 kW charger: 44 minutes; 10 minutes to ad 41 miles
15-80% SOC at 50 kW charger: 91 minutes
Assuming (15-80%):
- charging at 10.5 kW over 10 hours we get 105 kWh
123.5 kWh (0-100%) - charging at 7.2 kW (92.9% efficiency from 7.7 kW input) over 14 hours we get 100.1 kWh
117.8 kWh (0-100%)
The nature of DC fast charging (highly volatile output) does not tell us much. Assuming stable charging at 50 kW from 15 to 80% SOC over 91 minutes we would get 75.8 kWh. For 0-100% it would be 116.7 kWh.
Let’s then assume that the usable battery capacity is probably around 110-120 kWh and the total might be 5-10% higher.
In the case of the larger battery, the on-board charger is different:
- AC charging (on-board charger):
Standard-Range Battery (input/output): 19.2kW/17.6 kW (91.7% efficient)
15-100% SOC at 19.2 kW, 80A Ford Charge Station Pro: 8 hours; 1 hour to add 30 miles
15-100% SOC at 11.5 kW, 48A Connected Charge Station: 13 hours; 1 hour to add 20 miles
15-100% SOC at 7.7 kW, 32A Mobile Charger: 19 hours; 1 hour to add 13 miles - DC fast charging: up to 150 kW
15-80% SOC at 150 kW charger: 41 minutes; 10 minutes to ad 54 miles
15-80% SOC at 50 kW charger: 122 minutes
Assuming (15-80%):
- charging at 17.6 kW over 8 hours we get 140.8 kWh
165.6 kWh (0-100%) - charging at 10.5 kW (91.7% efficiency from 11.5 kW input) over 13 hours we get 137.1 kWh
161.3 kWh (0-100%) - charging at 7.1 kW (91.7% efficiency from 7.7 kW input) over 19 hours we get 134.2 kWh
157.8 kWh (0-100%)
The nature of DC fast charging once again does not tell us much. Assuming stable charging at 50 kW from 15 to 80% SOC over 122 minutes we would get 101.7 kWh. For 0-100% it would be 156.4 kWh.
Let’s then assume that the usable battery capacity is probably around 150-160 kWh and the total might be 5-10% higher.
2022 Ford F-150 Lightning platform exposed
We can guess that the battery capacity in Ford F-150 Lightning is 115 kWh net/125 kWh total in the Standard-Range Battery version and 155 kWh net/170 kWh in the Extended-Range Battery version.
Ford covers the battery (and all EV unique components) with a warranty for 8 years or 100,000 miles. Battery capacity is to retain a minimum of 70% of its original capacity over that period.
Assuming 230 and 300 miles of range, it would be: 161 miles (259 km) and 210 miles (338 km) respectively.
