Switching From Lightning - Powerboost Reliability?

[dolsen]

Another PB vote here. I’ve owned:
15 lariat 3.5
18 STX 2.7
22 STX 2.7
22 XLT 3.5
22 Lariat 3.5
22 PB platinum (current)
23 STX 2.7 (current work truck)

the PB is by far the smoothest and best of all of them IMO. And I am speaking strictly of the power train. The PB gets the same gas mileage as the 2.7 on my experience, but has more power than the 3.5

maybe @Jmeo can add to this as well. He went from a lightning to a PB

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[JJSnell]

Hi,
How's everyone's reliability been? What about mpgs? Are you getting the advertised mpg benefits of the hybrid powertrain? What about regen braking? Going from an EV to ICE, I'll miss the regen braking the most.

July, 2022 build F150 PB, Platinum, 157"wb, 15k miles as of today

So far no major issues... had speakers screech at me once and sometimes I lose connection on phones bluetooth but all it all I have been lucky with no issues.

I am averaging 23.7mpg. I had a 2011EB and a 2015EB and neither of those hardly ever saw 18mpgs. So I am very excited about the better gas mileage. Ive used my onbaord 7.2kw gennie twice for short durations and looked at my old decibel screaming gennie sitting in the corner of my shop collecting dust. (Need to sell that thing now).

Regen breaking... if you are looking for a true hybrid, this aint it... you will rarely see electric mode click on. Its the Electric assist that helps this truck and allows for the higher MPGs. I back out of my driveway in Elec mode, then step on gas and its instant gas...

My personal experience with EBs (3.5l) is they are overhyped. When the V8 is neck and neck with the "ECO" boost, its kind of a wash.... the PB really blows away the EB

 

[HammaMan]

The PB's operation can be confusing -- when pushing the pedal down, the electric motor will quickly go to full power and stay there for as long as there's battery capacity. Even at speed if the pedal is pushed calling for more power, the e-motor will instantly bring in full power. Unlike hybrids that stay in electric longer and then switch over to the ICE, the PB's immediate go-to for power is the e-motor. It's already a 6klb truck, but more could be done. Another 20lb worth of motor and 60lbs worth of battery would take it up a notch for-sure (probably coming in the 24 refresh?), but it really needs PHEV levels of motor and battery for regen to really stretch its legs.

Ford should have used the bigger motor w/ 3x the battery capacity at a minimum. It's a good truck, just a little disappointed given they've got the parts in inventory already to have made it better. I'd still pick it over all others if choosing today, and it will be replaced with its proper successor that can take some of my coal derived electrons.

 

[GregBC]

Ford should have used the bigger motor w/ 3x the battery capacity at a minimum. It's a good truck, just a little disappointed given they've got the parts in inventory already to have made it better.

I’d love to see that too but I think the weight penalty would be more than what you’re thinking. Like 100-200lbs. Even if not, my understanding is it’s already a tight fit, so extra battery means finding space for it, plus the electronics and heating/cooling required.
Not impossible, just a compromise for what others call for in a truck (Ie, payload).

 

[FirstTimeFrank]

My 22 PB has 20K miles on it from driving cross country with an in bed camper. No issues to date. I love it. Great milage and smooth ride as noted by many others. Warning: fuel efficiency plummets when towing/hauling. A diesel’s probably better if that is the intended use. Have not had much experience traveling in severe winter weather as I live in the Southwest.

Notice the full recline feature delete in my signature. Forgot to mention the auto parking feature delete. These features are nice-to-have, and not a deal breaker for me. I hear they’ve available again in the 2023s. But, as others noted, many 2023s owners have reported issues.

 

[powerboatr]

if i had found a PB when i traded for the king ranch...it would have been a done deal
to say if one drops in my lap..we will be trading

 

[TheDIG]

I'm in the 'would not buy another' PB camp. My 23 PB has been a hot mess as far as the electronics go. I've been stuck/stranded 3 times with the 'stop safely now' error. I've had phantom error messages about the parking brake controller. The radio/display sometimes doesn't boot correctly and will be blacked out for a minute or two, then reboot and be ok. I'm getting about 21 mpg on average. If I could trade it without getting wrecked on the $, I'd switch back to the ecoboost. Just my experience so far. (4k miles). Good luck!

 

[OneFiddy]

110% powerboost.

 

[HammaMan]

I’d love to see that too but I think the weight penalty would be more than what you’re thinking. Like 100-200lbs. Even if not, my understanding is it’s already a tight fit, so extra battery means finding space for it, plus the electronics and heating/cooling required.
Not impossible, just a compromise for what others call for in a truck (Ie, payload).

The battery packing efficiency isn't that good, just goodnuff to get it out the door. The battery cells themselves are conservatively 4kg per kWh. Tripling it would add another 12kg worth of cells. To increase the case itself would be a minimal hit on top of what's present already, another 12kg is a very conservative buffer. 24kg worth of battery is fair. Batt to inverter conductors run slightly larger ~2kg. Inverter has enough to handle the additional power. 20lbs for the larger motor is fair IMO. 100lbs for me at least would be an easy addition.

Frame is plenty strong, the front knuckles could be swapped to the lightning's which are also on the tremor (just cuz, not really needed). Bump the front axle rating to 4050lbs, Rear hangs in at 4150lbs, bring the GVWR up to 7500lbs which would actually increase payload by ~50lbs. All of these weights are well within current design parameters and would still make the GVWR/CGAWR percentage below other trim (as a percent of gross divided by axles). The cooling loops are also already sufficient enough for this change as the larger battery would decrease it's "C" rating (plus the voltage would jump 35% to 385v vs our 285v now taking the amperage from 130 amps to 180 amps). Going from a 1.5kWh batt to a 4.5kWh pack would see the batt going from a ~24c load to a ~15c load. The regen would bump up to ~107hp from the current 54hp. The truck has more regen power than it does go power for those not aware.

The larger battery would allow a larger safe operating range of 30% to 70% thanks to the lower current draw (at a minimum) with a 25% floor instead of our current 35%. This could allow the light-footed among us in 45mph city driving to see mileage in the upper 30s (if not into the 40s). They'd have to spend a little more time in allowing the trans to wind out electric only operation vs the ICE's shift early / often. There's still quite a bit left on the table with the current version of the truck. The trans logic is barely tweaked vs the standard 3.5. (other logic to take into account, neutral eco idle for efficient charging while stopped, a button that tells the truck you want to putz around in max efficiency, while 40%+ throttle application commands on ICE -- kinda like an e-hold or perhaps that's what eco mode does) (also run as much driving data through neural nets to OTA new logic based on fleet-wide data scraping to maximize user experience and efficiency)

Just a little notepad math to chew on.

 

[Snakebitten]

You're killing me. ?

I'll defend the current version as a completely fresh idea in the design hall at Ford 6 years ago? Maybe 7?

But yeah, with the rapid development of the technology, along with Ford's own product line and tested components, it's almost inevitable that the Powerboost gets a massage. It certainly has proven popular.

I'll keep my 2022 KingRanch Powerboost until Ford releases the HammaMan edition. I don't think I could resist.

 

[Just Me]

I put 70,000 miles on my 21 PB Platinum In 2.5 years with no problems. Totally reliable for me just like the 3 other 5.0 F-150’s I had. I Just traded it in last week on a car for no reason with the truck. My next truck will be PowerBoost. You shouldn’t be concerned if that’s what you want.

 

[Suns_PSD]

Mine has been great but only 21K miles so far. Thing is smooth, powerful & efficient.

That said, I very well might trade it in a '24 F150 as Ford is showing the new full hybrid F150 any day now.

I like to get good economy and I'd like a fully capable truck that was getting mid to upper 20s under normal driving conditions.

 

[Tripdaddy95]

I have a '23 loaded FX4 PB. No real issues in 8 months. Avg 21 daily driving consisting of 15 miles each direction which includes a short section of 70MPH freeway. At 80MPH on cruise I got 20MPG over a 1000 mile trip. Like @Snakebitten said the battery allows the engine to off and the climate control to still function. A big plus in the South. So LOVE IT!!!!

 

[DM2059]

Ford is buying my 23 PB Platinum back next week. They treated me pretty fair I think. I'm considering buying a 3.5 Ecoboost Tremor very soon.

 

[SteveP150]

My '21 is at 24K miles and haven't really had any issues. Mileage isn't quite as good as what I've hoped for, but I've got a rack and rooftop tent on a lot of the time, take short trips not infrequently, and live in a climate that's cold in the winter.
The generator is a fantastic feature if you're camping, and this is a much better truck than the Lightning for that.

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