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Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

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Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#51

Post by subsubzero »

I don't know if its just me but electric trucks/cars and the buying experience there is one giant pit of frustration. I want to buy a electric truck, was thinking of a Rivian, but good luck getting one in the next 2-3 years. And if you do manage to get one watch out for your axel coming apart! [1], maybe I will get a lightning, looks like same leadtime issues, 2 years+ wait and they are totally changing the brain(from ford to android) so the ones now will be obsolete.

Also from tesla to rivian all I hear are horror stories about the service, and tesla's build quality is nowhere near any of the traditional automakers(fit and finish). I just want to buy a reliable electric truck or suv that has a decent finish and don't want to wait 2-3 years, someone please take my money!

[1] - https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/rivian-r1t-cv-axl...

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#52

Post by _dain_ »

eneumann wrote: post #48

As a cyclist, I'm super excited about one day being run over by one of these things. The giant vehicle trend is getting a lot of people killed. And why does any vehicle need to accelerate that quickly? It's irresponsible on public roads. I would really love to see acceleration and speed limiters on vehicles.

agreed on everything except acceleration

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#53

Post by lotsofpulp »

toast0 wrote: post #35
andrewla wrote: post #14

Generally speaking the horrifying quality of Ford's electronics have been enough to keep me away from even considering purchasing one. Absolutely nothing works right and certainly nothing works well. It may or may not be able to connect bluetooth, it may or may not acknowledge a USB device, it may or may not start blaring whatever FM station was last tuned in for no reason on startup, or start playing the first album…

I've got a 2013 Ford with the much derided Sync 2. Everything pretty much works, it's just the UX is really slow, and the colors aren't pretty. Also, inputs queue up which is weird with a touch screen. It adds up to infotainment being hard to use while driving, but the buttons pretty much work, and the radio stays off if it was off before turning off the car (if you were on Bluetooth before, and your phone isn't pres…

Anything compared to a Chrysler is not so bad.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#54

Post by mbesto »

codazoda wrote: post #18
andrewla wrote: post #14

Generally speaking the horrifying quality of Ford's electronics have been enough to keep me away from even considering purchasing one. Absolutely nothing works right and certainly nothing works well. It may or may not be able to connect bluetooth, it may or may not acknowledge a USB device, it may or may not start blaring whatever FM station was last tuned in for no reason on startup, or start playing the first album…

This happens in every car I own. Chevy. Kia. Ram. I agree the phone should do everything. The equivalent of an old aux cord (maybe via BT) would be enough. My Kia does have CarPlay, which is very nice for maps and audio, but that’s all I really use. It still has all kinds of issues. My wife plugs in her phone (cable) and it takes over, then suddenly mine wins it back, she flicks some stuff on her screen to get it bac…

> Chevy. Kia. Ram.

I'm pretty sure every single one of these just outsource to Aptiv (fka Delphi Automotive) for electronics.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aptiv

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#55

Post by bergenty »

andrewla wrote: post #14

Generally speaking the horrifying quality of Ford's electronics have been enough to keep me away from even considering purchasing one. Absolutely nothing works right and certainly nothing works well. It may or may not be able to connect bluetooth, it may or may not acknowledge a USB device, it may or may not start blaring whatever FM station was last tuned in for no reason on startup, or start playing the first album…

No, CarPlay is king and the best way to interact with it is a touchscreen.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#56

Post by filoleg »

kevinsundar wrote: post #44
filoleg wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I think we should be honest with ourselves about recent history: Apple and Google will be quicker to roll out functionality for EV specific navigation (i.e. chargers) in their apps then car manufacturers will be to fix their UI problems. I think you are missing the point of what the actual problem here is. Apple and Google already show EV charging stations on their maps just fine, you can even filter by type of cha…

It's coming: https://www.gearpatrol.com/cars/a40217409/new-apple-carplay/

Thanks for the link. I had no idea CarPlay was not only planning to go in that direction, but have already done the work to make it happen, and are fairly close to releasing it soon. Their car manufacturer partnerships look pretty solid as well.

Still, late 2023 as of now seems a bit far out. But I don't think that majority of car manufacturers will manage to get to the CarPlay level of quality for their own in-house infotainment systems even by 2033.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#57

Post by lotsofpulp »

andrewla wrote: post #34
lotsofpulp wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have had no issues with wired CarPlay. Do you have wireless CarPlay? I have not heard of that being reliable yet. If both of you are wiring into CarPlay, I do not see why Kia would allow two wired connections to CarPlay.

The issue is that the car tries to decide which phone to have take over CarPlay. I actually have a cigarette lighter USB adapter so at least a second person can charge without confusing the poor car. I generally find CarPlay to be annoying -- it is too limiting a version of what is offered on the phone itself. Notably the last time I tried to use it, it did not have Google Play Music support (now that product is dead…

If Apple Maps does not let you navigate in north up orientation, then another navigation app should be able to. It does not seem like that would be a CarPlay specific restriction, but rather something the app makers did not implement.

And there are a lot more apps that work with CarPlay nowadays. I think it just took a few years for all of them to roll out.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#58

Post by lotsofpulp »

7952 wrote: post #45
bowsamic wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The entire auto industry is driven by hype and trends rather than functionality

Yes. Just look at the appalling forward blind spot on a lot of trucks and SUVs. Or the way cars have become taller at the expense of aerodynamics.

People like sitting higher up, or do not like being seated lower, or so much lower, than others.

It might also be safer to be in a higher up car in the event of a collision.

Pretty much all the families I know with young kids and toddlers has a full size SUV. Every time I ask why they did not get a minivan such as Odyssey or Sienna, every response is they like SUVs and do not want to sit lower in the minivan. Even though the minivan has better fuel economy, seats more people with more legroom, and has more cargo space, the answer is still SUV is cooler than minivans.

I even see families who live with elderly parents prefer to drive two SUVs (or 1 SUV and 1 pickup truck) somewhere with 3 to 4 people in each, rather than have one minivan to be able to transport all 7 or 8 at the same time. And these same families growing up went everywhere in minivans because it was the most economic way, but now that they can afford SUVs, that is what they choose to use.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#59

Post by qbrass »

bonestamp2 wrote: post #26
Rooster61 wrote: post #7

It's incredibly frustrating to me that buying a vehicle with a pushbutton, working, reliable interface is becoming increasingly impossible to do. Why is UX so horrifically bad in the vehicle space? Is it poor management decisions or a shortage of good UX engineers? I get that lumping everything into the touchscreen can be a cheaper option to build, but I'd GLADLY pay for a different option. I don't understand it.

A lot of automakers are chasing Tesla's one screen design -- they're so envious of the cost savings there. Except the Germans, they're still putting in lots of buttons and knobs -- my next car will likely be German because they seem to understand what people actually want.

Hope it's not a new Golf. VW did more damage to their reputation with that interior than from Dieselgate.

Re: Ford F-150 Lightning: Fast Truck, Slow Computer

#60

Post by genocidicbunny »

PaulWaldman wrote: post #50
andrewla wrote: post #14

Generally speaking the horrifying quality of Ford's electronics have been enough to keep me away from even considering purchasing one. Absolutely nothing works right and certainly nothing works well. It may or may not be able to connect bluetooth, it may or may not acknowledge a USB device, it may or may not start blaring whatever FM station was last tuned in for no reason on startup, or start playing the first album…

>Mazda is apparently taking the right approach here -- increasing the tactile buttons on the dash and console, and ditching touchscreens. Huh? After using both Ford's (2022 Explorer) and Mazda's (2022 CX-7) infotainment systems recently for several weeks, I couldn't disagree more. Android Auto and CarPlay interfaces were designed for touchscreen control. Mazda forcing the use of a wheel, like a joystick is a safety h…

> Turing the wheel unpredictably selects objects on the screen, forcing you to keep your eyes off the road while you keep turning the wheel until the item you need is selected.

You shouldn't need to do anything requiring the wheel while you're driving though. All the controls that you would want to have accessible while you're driving are physical (climate control, basic media/phone controls.) For everything else you should be setting that up while you're parked.

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