Why Sport Mode gets you the best range? & What is Regenerative braking?

Рет қаралды 13,314

Күн бұрын

Click here for the latest Sport mode vs.1-Pedal Drive test: • Ford Lightning - 1 Ped...
This is the third video showing my results in sport mode and answering the following questions.
What is regenerative breaking?
***Please note: I did not fully show that the wheel is not where the regen happens. So I wanted to clarify that the wheel is not where the regen motors are.
How does braking increase efficiency?
How far can a 2023 Ford Lightning drive on a single charge?
Have you ever wondered how to improve the range or even if you can improve the range of your EV?
Can you take a road trip in a F150 Ford Lightning?
Is one drive mode better than the other?
What is the difference between drive modes on a electric vehicle?
What is Sport Mode?
How to get better miles per kilowatt?
In this video we are discussing how you can use sport mode to increase the range that you can go on one charge, and that sport mode not one pedal driving is actually the best way to drive far on a single charge.
The 2023 Ford F150 Lightning Lariat trim is such an awesome truck. You can even take a road trip with confidence. If you leave it in sport mode, the regenerative braking will help extend the range whether you are driving in town or on a highway.

Пікірлер: 106

@mrdion8439 7 ай бұрын

I needed this info. Thank you for the very detailed video! 👏

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

Glad it was helpful.

@spod2011 8 ай бұрын

great video

@F150LightningMike 8 ай бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it

@LarryRichelli 5 ай бұрын

I am on my 3rd EV with having just got my Lightning. I am so used to one pedal driving but I can see how sport mode with no one pedal for road trips would get better range. On road trips I also fold my mirrors for better range.

@F150LightningMike 5 ай бұрын

That’s an interesting concept about folding mirrors. I’ve never even tried that while driving. Only pulling into my garage or after parking.

@roger6246 7 ай бұрын

One Pedal Drive works best for me- but with a soft pedal- I never let off all the way until I want to stop. Lifetime is 2.5 miles/kWh. I can get 3.5 miles/kWh driving around town- always one pedal. It would be interesting to do a real test under controlled conditions. For some people who don't have the soft touch on the one pedal the other modes might work better. The Ioniq 5 has paddles so the driver can set the amount of regen- some youTubers have done some testing with different amounts of regen up to and including one pedal.

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

This is really good info. Yeah I need to do some more apples to apples comparison on it, but my thought would be doing it where you’re not really thinking about it you’re not trying to get better miles per kilowatt. You’re just driving and doing the same test both ways on the same roads. I have a pretty good route that I can use for the test that I’ve used before. It’s a good combination of city, two-lane highway, and interstate.

@fortean 7 ай бұрын

One pedal is awesome once you get used to it. I judge my stops way ahead and get lots of charge. In the city my range actually goes up on occasion. I will try the sports mode on the highway though. It would be nice to coast at high speeds.

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

Let me know how it works for you.

@gerhardk98 Ай бұрын

If your range is going up either you are driving downhill or the computer is not calculating all that accurately. Regenerative braking is good but you are lucky if you can capture 60% of the potential energy in the battery. If your battery is at 20% state of charge the battery will accept more energy than at 80% state of charge.

@Leroyjac 4 ай бұрын

I have driven EVs since 2012 starting with a Ford Focus Electric, on to BMW i3’s and now with my Lightning. In over 200,000 miles of driving, I have had the best range using one pedal. In 31,000 in my ‘23 Platinum and a 3500 mile trip from LA to Seattle, back to Tuscon and back home to LA I have settled on Sport Mode One Pedal. My daily commute is 90 miles to work and home. Without one pedal the average is 2.3 going and 1.9 coming. With Sport Mode one pedal it’s 2.6 and 2.2. If I use 65% streets it’s 2.9 2.5. My lifetime average sits at 2.1 because of the freeway mileage. Long freeway trips reduce greatly regen and pushing this brick through air at 70+ mph kills range. I try to use 69 as my goal but people end up making you drive and kill your Zen. Regardless the Lightning is real good at regen so to not maximize it is to give away kW’s.

@F150LightningMike 4 ай бұрын

This is good info Leroy. Thank you.

@ryanwalters6184 7 ай бұрын

Great video and love the mountains in the background. I also drive without one pedal. That was one huge difference between lightning and a rivian as the rivian has one pedal only. Ford lightning braking system is very smooth and I cannot tell when the friction brakes are blended in.

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

Thank you. Yeah Colorado Springs is a beautiful town to live in. So I like to pull over in random spots that look good and record there.

@billybobbob3003 7 ай бұрын

@@F150LightningMike i get more driving range overloading my honda crv towing

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

That’s funny. Yeah the range is not an issue for me because I like that I don’t have to stop at gas stations at all when I drive around town. I just go home and plug it in and it’s ready to go again in the morning.

@billybobbob3003 7 ай бұрын

@@F150LightningMike PLUG IT IN DURING POWER OUTAGE LOL THE ONLY GOOD TRUCK IS THE RAMCHARGER 690 MILLES OF RANGE WITH 3.6 LITER PENTASTAR RANGE EXTENDER DRIVE ALMOST 200 MILES ON BATTERY ALONE BEFORE ENGINE KICKS IN TO RECHARGE BATTERY AND THAT V6 HAS NO CONNECTION TO THE WHEELS ONLY USED AS RANGE EXTENDER FOR BATTERY THIS TRUCK MAKES ALL OTHER EV TRUCKS OBSOLETE INCLUDING TESLA CYBERTRUCK. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/jLWcga9-qqiafZc.html

@Per1Patet1c 7 ай бұрын

@@billybobbob3003stop YELLING

@Green__one 3 ай бұрын

What I want is max regen on lifting off the accelerator, without blending the brakes in unless you press the brake pedal. Unfortunately it seems Ford doesn't offer that option. It seems that a portion of the regen is only available on the brake pedal unless in one pedal mode, and in both those cases you have no control over how much is regen vs how much is friction brakes.

@F150LightningMike 3 ай бұрын

It is correct you don’t have control over it. You do have something called “brake coach” that shows you how much of the braking was regen, which is very helpful. And it basically trains you over time how much to apply the brake in each mode before the brake pads are used.

@StrangeDisposition 6 ай бұрын

Thanks for this information! I test drove a Lightning about a year ago and then I test drove another one some weeks later and the second annoying 🙄 dealership worker had it on one pedal drive without explaining anything so of course I had no idea what was going on and he said “I thought you had already test driven a Lightning”. Needless to say I didn’t buy from that guy. I recently put a deposit on a Lightning and I will drive on sport 2 pedal drive mode 😅. I wouldn’t want to forget how to drive a normal car.

@F150LightningMike 6 ай бұрын

Sorry about your dealer experience. Yeah they are worst. Yes definitely use sport mode for sure. But hey I guess you can get it cheaper now.

@danclary6609 8 ай бұрын

Part of the problem with one pedal drive is that it takes power to initiate movement where the other modes the truck rolls withou any throttle input.

@F150LightningMike 8 ай бұрын

That is a very good point. Some people like it. I’ve just tested it several times and every time I get better mi/kw with just sport mode, so yes I agree with you it takes less effort for the other modes.

@boomerjrtv1268 7 ай бұрын

@@F150LightningMikewhat’s also nice is there’s an auto hold mode so you don’t continue to roll with 1p off

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

I need to check that out. I was not aware of the auto hold.

@amandaadler1860 4 ай бұрын

Yeah I do a lot of small town driving, I really use the creep to my advantage, 1 pedal doesn’t let me creep like that.

@ClassicAutomotiveGarageInc. 7 ай бұрын

I understand your logic sir, however, it’s been our experience that one pedal drive is by far the better way to drive electric vehicles. There is a learning curve that everyone does when switching to EV’s We have a few electric vehicles in our line up both Tesla’s S, X & 3 alone with 3 Ford Lighting’s and we are not scientists or mathematicians.

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

That’s funny. I might have been exaggerating a little bit on the scientist comment :-) Try sport mode for a few charges around town too and see what you think.

@Somemjf Ай бұрын

I rather one pedal, easier.. it feels like the future.

@SterFry528 8 ай бұрын

I will say when I’m towing my camp trailer down the mountain one pedal drive is awesome. I’ll add to that towing in one pedal drive is awesome.

@F150LightningMike 8 ай бұрын

That’s a good point. I haven’t tested it with towing yet.

@Per1Patet1c 7 ай бұрын

Wait? You TOW with this truck? I was told this truck can’t tow???

@SterFry528 7 ай бұрын

@@Per1Patet1c it tows better than any F-150 I’ve ever towed with and I’ve bought 4 F-150s brand new. Sure you don’t have as much range on one charge but it’s not been a problem with the distance I tow.

@SterFry528 7 ай бұрын

I made sure my Lightning had the max trailer tow package. Up to 10,000 pounds

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

Yeah I got max tow on mine too. I just need to test it.

@philvero333 4 ай бұрын

I have a question. What is the difference between normal mode and sport mode in an EV ??? I'm getting my f150 ligthning XLT extended range in the beginning of march, but I still don't know what is the use of sport mode. Sorry, I'm new with this technologie 🙂

@F150LightningMike 4 ай бұрын

Sport mode is better because it initiates more regenerative braking without you having to use the brake pedal as much as in normal mode. It’s also less “whiplashy” than the 1-pedal drive mode is. Sport mode does other things too, like making the steering a little more responsive. I hope that answers your question.

@joshsummers7933 7 ай бұрын

Idk fellas, i tend to get better range not using 1 pedal and being in normal mode. The goal is to coast as far as you can before Regen braking.

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

Interesting, have you tried just leaving it in sport mode?

@mikekornega8023 26 күн бұрын

Agree with you. Converting kinetic energy of coasting into battery power with regen braking is obviously not 100% efficient. Converting energy types is never 100%. You're better off coasting as much as you can and finding that sweet spot of braking so you are only using regen braking to stop. Stomping on the brake pedal is just making heat and wasting your range.

@KLUminislate 7 ай бұрын

I have a chevy bolt and get the most range when coasting. You regen less but for a lot longer, the math makes more sense. OPD cuts my mileage drastically

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

Thank you. With the weight of the truck it really does help with regen too.

@LarryRichelli 6 ай бұрын

I always hate to see Chevy Bolts ahead of me or already charging in busy chargers because they have such slow charging.

@F150LightningMike 5 ай бұрын

I haven’t experienced that yet, but I could imagine it would be frustrating.

@steveshallenberg2994 5 ай бұрын

A scientist would say leave the object in motion until it needs to be acted upon by an external slowing force. Regen is 60-70% efficient. If you can drive in normal mode and consistently hit 100% on the braking coach it makes logical sense that would be best, going further distance with less regen. Sport mode is interesting for towing as it is really easy to get into the brake pad with normal mode pulling a trailer. Lots of people out there accelerating even as they approach a red light. One pedal best for them.

@F150LightningMike 5 ай бұрын

Those are great thoughts. Thank you.

@TheRPhelps24 4 ай бұрын

This has been my thoughts when debating this with folks. Need some side by side comparisons to know for sure!

@F150LightningMike 4 ай бұрын

I’m going to do some more testing. It’s surprising how many people argue about this. I tried sport mode one day off of a suggestion and it looked like to me to get better overall mi/kWh so I’ve stuck with it except for these test.

@jayupdike2482 3 ай бұрын

Can I leave in sport mode will stay the mode without setting it each time?

@F150LightningMike 3 ай бұрын

Nope you have to set it each time. Normally you get an alert each time you start asking if you want to return to sport mode and you just need to click ok.

@randyXLT 7 ай бұрын

But you slow down harder and faster, thus won't it take more energy to get back to speed? Also, Ford used regen braking when you step on the break until you need to stop fast, at which time it will use the physical braks..... Just my thoughts....

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

With sport mode you don’t slow down too much harder. Just a little bit and you end up gaining more energy for the batteries than just using normal. The point with the video is to show that it just works better for me.

@HolyBibleOpen 7 ай бұрын

One pedal is the best in spo4t mode on my Mach e performance edition is by far the best.

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

That’s good info. I’m currently doing another test in the city driving, and I don’t see a difference between sport mode with or without 1 - pedal drive on. I’ll post a video about my test results as soon as I’m done.

@StrangeDisposition 6 ай бұрын

I finally got a Lightning and for sure sport mode does more regen braking than normal mode. Sport mode feels heavy and more brakey and torquey which had me wondering if it will wear the tires more? Or maybe if I am easy on the accelerator it will wear the tires as much as normal mode? 🤔

@F150LightningMike 6 ай бұрын

Those are good questions I’m not sure I have a good answer, but I do know that if you have the same hankook dynapro at2 tires as mine that the recommended Psi of 36 is too low. It wore down too quickly on the outside edge of the tires. I had them evaluated at Good year and they are saying that it should be about 40-42 psi. I met a guy that had over 26k on his and they looked new. He said he kept them at about 39-40

@StrangeDisposition 6 ай бұрын

@@F150LightningMike Thanks for the tip! I think mine has Michelins but I’ll check the tire pressure!

@F150LightningMike 6 ай бұрын

Sure thing. Let me know if you have any other questions and I might make a video about it. There is one about how easy it is to charge at ChargePoint that is posting here at 9am mountain time. It is at a McDonald’s and the call it a “McFast Charger” :-) Then I’m working on a 1 year summary video as well as several others, but I’m open to ideas if you are curious about something. I even just bought a dashcam that I’m going to talk about soon too.

@StrangeDisposition 6 ай бұрын

@@F150LightningMike Yeah my Michelins are set to 36 or 37 and as they heat up they go to 39. 36 is what the door sticker recommends. I’m pretty sure my Tacoma has a cold psi recommendation of 39. Maybe I should start creeping it up. Scratch that: the Taco sticker recommends 26-29 psi depending on tire size wow.

@F150LightningMike 6 ай бұрын

Yeah how I figured the manufacturer is getting away with it is the “cold pressure” recommendation. Who is defining what cold is? because in my experience the psi drops about 1 psi for every 10 degrees. It’s also weird in Colorado because when you go up and down in elevation a lot like me it changes tire pressure too about 1 psi for every 1,000 feet. Anyways I just have to find a good psi that works for me. So if they say 36 “cold”, then for me it works best if it’s 60degrees outside to set it to 42 psi. That way I’m over filling a little and it will be able flex a little when it’s cold.

@jae2222222 8 ай бұрын

👍🏾

@F150LightningMike 8 ай бұрын

Thank you!

@abs2528 3 ай бұрын

So if you can’t learn 1 pedal driving how did you drive manual? There’s a learning curve but I got it after a few stops to just let go easy and now I’m not even thinking about it

@F150LightningMike 3 ай бұрын

1 pedal drive is easy. I just call it whiplash mode because when people are learning it jerks them around. Sport mode however has gotten better kWh mileage for me.

@SterFry528 7 ай бұрын

Does anyone know what the “ding ding” sound the Ford Lightning makes randomly after I start driving?

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

Where are hearing it from?

@SterFry528 7 ай бұрын

@@F150LightningMike the dashboard I think

@SterFry528 7 ай бұрын

I’ve looked at all the dash cluster and screen but I don’t see anything that stands out as a notification

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

Is it the same ding that happens when your seatbelt is not on?

@SterFry528 7 ай бұрын

@@F150LightningMike no it’s a different sound.

@TomDastrup 4 ай бұрын

Of all the modes, undoubtedly, normal mode without 1 pedal would be the most efficient. The more you coast, the more efficient the drive. Regen is not as efficient as coasting. In reality, the driving mode does not matter at all because the driver has the ability to control the amount of regen at all times by varying pedal pressure. In fact, if you could coast (0% regen) to a stop every time you stopped, that would be the very most efficient, albeit impractical. Think of it in terms of physics. Let's say you use 1kW of energy to get up to speed and then coast to a stop in the span of 1 mile. If you did that same mile using regen, you would use 1.5kW for propulsion and maybe get .4kW back from regen for .1kW lower efficiency. I know those numbers aren't accurate. They are just for demonstration purposes, but the physics concept is solid. Try it out and see. If efficiency is your goal, shoot for as much coasting and as little regen as you can.

@F150LightningMike 4 ай бұрын

My info is based on my experience. Sport mode has been more efficient, but I will record an exact road test to show for sure comparing all of the modes with the same approx 100 mile drive.

@AndrewBenson91 2 ай бұрын

Ok so for best kWh Sport mode and one pedal off?

@F150LightningMike 2 ай бұрын

Yes that has worked best for me so far.

@wdbldr67 3 ай бұрын

There mus be some kind of power distribution in sport mode.

@F150LightningMike 3 ай бұрын

When pressing on the accelerator there seems to be a faster/greater torque response. Not sure if that means it’s all in the computer or what.

@barlux88 7 күн бұрын

Paddles?

@F150LightningMike 7 күн бұрын

? Not sure that I said paddles, but being from Texas my accent might come out every once in a while. :-)

@jz4583 7 ай бұрын

What I disliked about one peddle driving is that once you let off it will slow you down very fast and eventually to a stop which is what you want if only using one peddle. The sport mode just adds almost the same regentative, but as long as you are not using one peddle it is more normal driving and not bringing you down to a complete stop. I would use sport mode all the time unfortunately it will not stay as default when you turn off your truck. I only use one peddle when in stop and go traffic on the freeway, because it is very hard not to be too jerky with it.

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

Yeah I call 1-pedal drive “whiplash mode” for that reason. When I start my truck it gives me the option to go back into sport mode so I just click ok on the steering wheel. Also I heard they are going to be including that on a future update.

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

You are not wrong. Yes it’s not an on or off. My point with making this video is to show that regardless of all of that and even though 1-pedal drive is supposed to be more efficient than the others. It is not for me. Sport mode gets better efficiency. Not fully sure of the reason it just does. But I am working on another video where I am just driving in town and testing out all the different modes several different times taking the same route and seeing which one is more efficient in town. I’m even testing sport mode with one pedal drive on.

@TheRPhelps24 4 ай бұрын

My favorite thing to do in stop and go traffic is to let adaptive cruise control do it for me! This complete lack of changing gears and mechanical torque converters etc is wonderfully smooth and infinitely more patient than I am!

@sedawk 7 ай бұрын

I made a similar comment on the short - but watched the full video and the information presented here between normal mode and normal mode with one pedal drive is not accurate. One pedal drive shows more regenerative braking because when you take your foot off the pedal the vehicle actively brakes - its not the same comparison. To make a same comparison without one pedal drive, you need to take your foot off the accelerator and immediately press the brake - then you would have seen the exact same response for the regenerative braking display. One pedal drive only gives you more regenerative braking energy because the vehicle IS braking. Without one pedal drive, the vehicle is coasting. Ford uses blended braking through the brake pedal, so if you choose not to use one pedal drive, you still have full regen capability through the brake pedal. The transition to friction brakes will happen at very low speed (

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

Good info thank you.

@pennywright3 7 ай бұрын

1 pedal drive for me - cost of brake replacement far outweighs any regen savings you may get in normal mode.

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

The other modes also use regen when you apply the brake pedal first before using the the brake pads. You can turn on “brake coach” and it will tell you how much % of the braking was returned to the batteries.

@pennywright3 7 ай бұрын

@@F150LightningMike I understand - I just don’t want to have to replace the brakes ever while I own it. So 1 pedal driving gives me the best chance for that.

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

That makes sense for sure. I hope I don’t either.

@imtheonevanhalen1557 5 ай бұрын

It doesn't.......just drive regular mode. And if you're a range fan....(slow down???...)...duh

@F150LightningMike 5 ай бұрын

It works for me … I’ve done several tests some on video and some not and it gets the best range for me. Here’s another video I did about it: I Got 353 Miles on a single charge - Sport Mode Test 2 in a Ford Lightning kzfaq.info/get/bejne/i69orcqbndG6j40.html

@kimle01 7 ай бұрын

This only work for none 1 pedal driving. 1 pedal driving give you the best range as you can control the amount of regen by slow release and timing. Over time you get good at how to time the distance.

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

Good advice, in my tests sport mode does seem to do the best.

@bazzaro1982 7 ай бұрын

Agreed, It really only took a couple weeks of one pedal driving and it becomes habit. I don't like driving without it anymore.

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

So far for me I’m still a sport mode fan. I agree with you that 1-pedal will take some getting used to. I guess I will have to do another few tests to see what results I will get in 1-pedal drive mode or as I call it “Whiplash mode”

@davekertscher8661 8 ай бұрын

Not mine

@F150LightningMike 8 ай бұрын

Does sport mode not work better for you?

@davekertscher8661 8 ай бұрын

@@F150LightningMike atleast not in the cold

@F150LightningMike 8 ай бұрын

Yeah cold weather usually hits my average about -.2 mi/kw. It’s been cold here in Colorado and my average has gone down to 2.5 with a mix of highway and city driving. Still using sport mode though.

@davekertscher8661 7 ай бұрын

@F150LightningMike was in the 20's for about a week, was down to 1.6 - 1.7mi/kw. More like 1.8 without sport mode

@F150LightningMike 7 ай бұрын

That is so interesting. Something doesn’t sound right. There are a lot of others confirming sport mode is better. Also, before I found out about sport mode I did a 50 mile test on the highway in normal. It only went down to 1.9 when I was going 75. I got 1.7 when I drove 80. Sounds like something might be up with yours not sure?