Keep the Lightning or R1T ?

[Aroohoo]

I see you are in Dallas...with the power issues that Texas has had the past few years, is V2H something that would be a keeping point for the Lightening?

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[NmbrsNvrLie]

Nope. I’m close to a college and tied into an emergency grid. Neighbor told me they’ve never lost power in 20 years of living here.

Really all about comfort and enjoyability. I like the smaller form factor of the R1T and that it’s the new toy, but will miss car play. Just hope it rides nice and smooth, which I assume it will given the air suspension.

 

[Aroohoo]

Nope. I’m close to a college and tied into an emergency grid. Neighbor told me they’ve never lost power in 20 years of living here.

Really all about comfort and enjoyability. I like the smaller form factor of the R1T and that it’s the new toy, but will miss car play. Just hope it rides nice and smooth, which I assume it will given the air suspension.

For my lightning reservation (which this reminds me I need to cancel it), I was planning on living with both the R1 and the Lightning for a few weeks if they showed up around the same time. But that isn't going to happen.
I'm all on on the R1...easier to maneuver, more value, and sexy
The only positive point for the Lightening in my book atm is that there doesn't seem to be nearly as many Quality issues (e.g. bolts not torqued correctly) looking at the lightening forums.

As for the ride quality, I haven't driven a Lightening yet, however I would assume it is a smoother ride from the ICE F-150s due to the independent rear suspension, but have no clue. All I can say is that the R1T with 20s that I had at the first mile was extremely smooth.

 

[SASSquatch]

I’m of this position. I’ve grown to really like the Lightning, especially with CarPlay available but I like the size of the Rivian better.

One thing I would definitely miss if I were to go F-150L only is the storage. I’ve got my work gloves, my disposable gloves, sunglasses, antibiotic wipes, normal wipes, flashlight, an umbrella for every passenger, tissues, extra diapers, extra clothes, and every mug, container, soppy cup, food pouch etc just has a sturdy place. Everything is neatly stashed but readily accessible.

After years of driving Tesla, I’ve gotten really excited about….storage and cup holders.

That's the circle of life my friend. You get older and all of a sudden storage and cupholders are what excite you. Note how you didn't say you would miss the excessive speed. Imagine your teenage self thinking about being in an electric pick up truck of the future that could do 0-60 in 3 seconds flat and you are sitting here talking about cup holders and storage!

Meanwhile, I'm trying to figure out how I will cope with going from 3 (!) cup holders in the front of my i3s to only 2 in the R1T!

 

[ScottnAZ]

DITCH THE FORD!

that’s only cause I’m a GM guy ?

Seriously though, I am enjoying the smaller size of the R1T as compared to the full size Sierras I’ve driven for so many years. But it’s all about how you live; if you don’t need the larger size of the lightning, then I don’t understand why you’d keep the lightning. I can certainly understand the dilemma though, it’s almost like Rivian is new and unknown while Ford is a long standing proven company. There’s something to be said there, for sure a “safety-net” feeling…….. except we’re talking EV’s and innovation. I, personally, don’t see any old-school vehicle manufactures keeping up with the progressive innovations of these current EV companies. IMO, they’ll prove to be too conservative in the long run.

My father in law has an e-tron and a Mach E, (for the record, he thought I was a dumbass when I went electric and bought a MX 4 years ago); anyway, correct me if I’m wrong, but he has to take his vehicles to the dealer for simple updates. How is it that Riv/Tes/Etc can send over the air updates, but legacy car makers are requiring the car be brought in to the dealership? Just another example of those old timers not adjusting to changing times. This annoys the shit out of him - his words, not mine. Is the Lightning the same process for updates?

I believe If we looked at some of those smaller, convenience, differences between the 2 then the decision would be obvious. And this is coming from a guy that has 2 Silverado + 1 Hummer + a future Sierra EV reservation. So I guess I should take my own advice ?

good luck with your decision, definitely 1st world problems (and, again, I’m taking to myself too).

 

[gombater]

Well, I sold my Lightning last week and took delivery of the R1T. I have nothing negative to say about the lightning - I actually liked it quite a bit, but now that I moved to North Carolina for my specific use case the F150 is just too big [garages don't fit F150's here...]. It's too early for me to give a direct comparison yet, but a few initial items - Ford's frunk is much better, plus the obvious standard rear bed including power up/down tailgate with integrated step. A big one I am noticing - no running boards on the R1T - already irritating my short wife and I can see extra wear on left side of drivers seat as you slide out to ground every day. Hope to play with height adjustments to fix that...

 

[NmbrsNvrLie]

Appreciate the advice and yes, first world problems. I’ve gone from a Yukon Denali, to a Lexus CT200h, to first gen Volt, to a Tesla model 3, to a MachE First Edition, to a MachE GT, now to a lightning. Clearly I’m likely to switch cars again in due course no matter what I decide. Luckily I’ve hustled from car to car and made good buys which has made this hobby inexpensive (greatly benefited by the weird ass appreciation of EVs over the last 2 years).

I’m gonna at least wait until I take delivery of the Rivian at lunch tomorrow. Only reason to rush is because I think more people will flip at a profit as both increase deliveries and I’d like to get top dollar (wholesale, as I’ll sell either to the dealer who hooked up my Lightning and MachEs at MSRP without shenanigans and always been fair with my trades). But probably best to just take a few days to decide. Not like either is dropping by $10k in a week.

 

[NmbrsNvrLie]

Garage space is a minor consideration as well. The Lightning leaves about 18” to the front and 3” to the back. Pretty tight.

 

[MNLightning]

Hope to be in a similar spot later this year.

Got a standard XLT lightning as I didn't think an extended lariat+ was worth $80k.

If the XLT pays for the rivian, I may lean towards rivian.

The size / functionality of the lightning is better for me. I'm tall and the Rivian rear seats have poor leg room for me and anyone sitting behind me. It was similar to my old egolf which was a little disappointing. If my kid still was still in a rear facing child seat, I don't think I could stomach the Rivian.

I currently transport my road bike in the cab of my lightning, wheel on, no adjustments. It's stupidly roomy, I love it. And my bike would barely fit in rivians bed (zero interest in bike racks).

But ... Rivian has fancy tech , and also a lot more range and faster charging. Plus being small has its advantages sometimes. They also are actually improving the truck, ford talked big about otas and it's been pretty sad so far.

But, would be hard to live without Android auto. I listen to pocket casts and there's no native feature to listen in the Rivian and it's not safe to have to use my phone while driving to adjust what I want to listen to.

Decisions, decisions... First world problems....

If the size suits you and your happy with 560hp. I think the Lightning is a better truck atm. The Lightning ride, quietness, storage and AA & CP are where the Ford shines. For me the size and conserve mode factored in to efficiency coupled with 250 more ponies was why I kept the R1T

 

[NmbrsNvrLie]

I’m 5’8 on a good day (ha) and park in a garage for work. Plus I’m a millennial and like the cool factor of the Rivian. That’s why I’m leaning that way, but man it’s a close call.

Will see how I’m feeling when I get behind the wheel of it tomorrow and officially take delivery.

 

[kizamybute']

Pick up my LE R1T tomorrow and had my Lightning for about 3 months. Leaning towards selling the Lightning. Anyone own both who can comment? 37 year old dad of 1 who really likes the Lightning but like new technology as well. Comfortable ride quality on crappy Dallas roads is one of my top priorities. Any advice?

I owned both and faced with the same decision. I thought I'd be keeping the Ford for sure. Got them side by side and took me all of 5 seconds to change my mind.

If the home backup is of very high importance to you, then the Ford is a good option.

Beyond that, for me, it came down to accepting the size of the Rivian. Beyond that, the Rivian beats the Ford in every measurable statistic and is a hands down winner.

I suggest getting the Rivian in your driveway, then look at both and the answer should come to you. It smacked me across the face once I did so.

 

[RtOnelove]

They're different enough. I'd keep the lightning if I wanted something to haul more stuff, was using it more as a work truck, needed to fit 4 or more people. I'd keep the rivian if you're mostly driving solo, live somewhere congested with difficult parking, etc.

 

[SeaGeo]

So I gave my Lightning reservation to a friend, but had to pretend to be with her so she could get it at MSRP. When e picked it up my impressik s were the Lightning is an F150. Obviously. It's a really good functional truck. But, I personally found the Lariat interior to feel less premium than the Rivian, and for some reason the seating position up front felt a little less open than with the R1T. I still can't figure out why. I definitely prefer the driving characteristics of the R1T period, and feel that the Lightning is a bit... boat like up front. It tends to kind of take awhile to damp out bumps and you bounce up and down a bit, which is what reviewers have said as well. It peels out at like 30, which I found a bit odd coming from my R1T. I went from an ID.4 to my R1T as my primary driver, so it was a big step down in turning radius. Then I drove the Lightning and was... not impressed. Lol. It's just a big truck. The frunk is cool, but a bit smaller than I expected from photos. It's nice having AA or CP, but other thathat I generally prefer Rivian's UI, they just need to continue to build out the feature set.

The things I'd like to pull from the F150 are the fold flat storage, the AA/CP, better EA integration, massaging seats, and maybe a hybrid of the frunk designs. Oh, and a bigger inverter. They're all (to me) very minor compared to my preferences and use cases that all fagor the R1T personally.

 

[Gsxr150]

I’m of this position. I’ve grown to really like the Lightning, especially with CarPlay available but I like the size of the Rivian better.

One thing I would definitely miss if I were to go F-150L only is the storage. I’ve got my work gloves, my disposable gloves, sunglasses, antibiotic wipes, normal wipes, flashlight, an umbrella for every passenger, tissues, extra diapers, extra clothes, and every mug, container, soppy cup, food pouch etc just has a sturdy place. Everything is neatly stashed but readily accessible.

After years of driving Tesla, I’ve gotten really excited about….storage and cup holders.

You need an R1S, my man!

 

[Yellow Buddy]

You need an R1S, my man!

The R1S is probably the worst solution for me. I utilize my bed and need both the length and height. The interior of the R1S wouldn't be very easy to hose down.

I tried something similar when I had the Model X. Used a trailer when I needed to haul furniture, that got old fast; especially if it was 3+ hours away each way. Also got some funny looks backing up to a loading dock and telling folks to take the 400A ATS off the pallet and load it into the back while I strapped it and the hatch down.

The R1T having open air, enough width, and a bed that extends to 7 ft is perfect. The cabin materials are good. The size is good. I just want...more cubbies, cupholders, and CarPlay. Is that too much to ask? Now if you excuse me, it's time for my afternoon nap before I yell at some kids to get off my lawn.

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