Ice & Easy: Winter Driving Tips for Electric Vehicle Owners
Hitting the open road for the holiday season is a trend that continues to grow with more folks opting to travel by car to avoid the hassles of flying.
Last year, AAA projected nearly 90% of holiday travelers would drive to their destination over the year-end holiday period from Saturday, Dec. 21 to Wednesday, Jan. 1.
Increasingly, people are using the weekend before the holidays to get to their destination, whether it’s to go on vacation or over the river and through the woods to grandmother's house.
This was evident in our BlueCruise data from the last two years.1 The Saturday ahead of the week of Dec. 25 (2024) and ahead of Thanksgiving week (2023) were the days with the most miles logged out of the entire year.
Last year, the day with the most miles and hours driven by Ford and Lincoln customers was Saturday, Dec. 21, when 610,000 hands-free highway miles were logged.1 That added up to 8,600 hours spent using BlueCruise that day alone.2
That’s an increase of over 50% from 2023’s peak, which was 400,000 hands-free miles driven on Saturday, Nov. 18, heading into Thanksgiving week.3
This data tells us customers are using the weekend to get to their destination so they can enjoy the full holiday week, and they’re traveling further distances to one destination, perhaps to maximize time with family and friends. For these folks, BlueCruise is providing enhanced comfort on long holiday hauls, helping them arrive refreshed and ready for the festivities.
To give us a glimpse into what we can expect this year, around 84% of Ford owners are planning to use BlueCruise to take a road trip over the holiday season. Of those people who have made their plans already, nearly 30% are planning to head out on Saturday, Dec. 20, according to a voluntary survey of a group of owners with BlueCruise-equipped vehicles.4
Many are traveling across the country, some for annual family gatherings and some to enjoy some quiet time in the mountains. Here are a few tales we’re hearing directly from customers.
Texas to Kansas (95% hands-free highway driving with BlueCruise)
Mike P. is traveling with his wife and yellow lab Patrick to their family’s annual Christmas spectacular, which brings together over 50 people.
“We travel to Kansas every year for the holidays, but this year we are excited to go in our new 2025 Expedition Max Ultimate and use BlueCruise to help make the 7-hour road trip easier,” he said.
Over the week, they’ll enjoy BBQ, a football game, and their annual white elephant gift exchange.
Florida to North Carolina (90%+ hands-free highway driving with BlueCruise)
Ronnie C. is a seasoned road-tripper taking advantage of the holiday break to head north with his family for some time in the mountains and snow.
“We love going on road trips, especially with the F-150 Lightning!” he said. The family takes advantage of the available Wi-Fi® hotspot so the kids can use their tablets to stay entertained on the 8+ hour drive.
“Just recently, we used BlueCruise on a trip to North Carolina to go camping, and it definitely helped relieve some of the stress during the stop-and-go traffic we had to deal with on the highway, so I am looking forward to using it again,” he said. “When we got to our camp site, we also used Pro Power Onboard to power space heaters to keep us warm, cook, and even let the kids enjoy some Xbox.”.
Virginia to Ohio (70%+ hands-free highway driving with BlueCruise)
Cecilio B. just bought a 2025 F-150 Lightning and is headed to Ohio with his wife and son for their annual trip to the family’s farm.
“We just did a quick road trip to Washington, D.C. with BlueCruise and loved it," he said. "I am looking forward to using BlueCruise for the first time on our annual holiday trip since it takes around 9 hours to get there, then enjoying good food and music during the week, since I am a retired chef and my son is a music major."
The growing demand for advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) further suggests this trend isn’t going to slow down. In 2025, hands-free highway driving capability was the most wanted feature for 43% of new vehicle intenders, up 20% since 2024, according to an AutoPacific study.
With over 1 million BlueCruise-equipped vehicles on the road, we anticipate even more folks will opt to use it during the upcoming holidays.
Before we close out the year, check out the hands-free highway driving trends we saw in 2024 across the U.S. from Ford and Lincoln owners. I’m even more excited to see what this year’s data is going to tell us.
Map your holiday trip here and share your BlueCruise journey with us via #BlueCruiseHoliday.
Whitney Pineda is a member of the Ford Communications team.
Full disclosure: This data is anonymized and is only collected from customers who have opted in to share it with Ford.
1Available feature on select vehicles. BlueCruise requires an active plan or trial – see ford.com/bluecruise or lincoln.com/technology/bluecruise for details. Terms apply. BlueCruise is a driver-assist feature and does not replace safe driving or driver’s attention, judgment or need to control the vehicle. Only remove hands in a Hands-Free Blue Zone. Always watch the road and be prepared to resume control. See Owner’s Manual for details and limitations.
2Based on internal Ford data on BlueCruise engagement in the United States between Jan. 1, 2024 and Dec. 31, 2024.
3Based on internal Ford data on BlueCruise engagement between Jan. 1, 2024 and Dec. 31, 2024 in the United States in comparison to 2023 (Jan 1. 2023 – Dec. 31, 2023).
4Ford sent a survey to over 300 Ford owners from the Early Access Program and Electric Vehicle Owner Community with BlueCruise-equipped vehicles across engine types including gas-powered, hybrid and electric. Of those who received the survey, 106 owners responded, with 89 owners saying they plan to take a road trip and use BlueCruise on their trip and 26 plan to travel on Saturday, Dec. 20.
