2018 MX - Charging

[bayx]

Would you charge your MX to 90% or only 80%? In my case, I can only charge at supercharging stations and I am doing 90% and don't let it go below 20%.

Just curious to know what others think is the best thing for the battery?

 

[Rockster]

Lithium ion batteries are happiest at 50% state of charge. Ideally your driving would bracket 50% as closely as possible (e.g., if you use 40% in a day, charge it to 70% and drain it to 30%). So, if you don't have to charge it to 90% then charge it to 80%.

That said, there's evidence to suggest that optimizing battery usage in this way provides very slight longevity benefits, at best, and it's quite good enough to simply not charge above 90% unless you need to for a trip and when charging to 100% don't let the car sit at 100% for very long.

 

[TexasEV]

Charge it to 90%, as that will be more convenient for you without home charging, and don’t worry about it. There is no practical difference over a reasonable number if years, even though tests may show a statistically significant difference. If a few miles of range after many years matters to you, then you bought the wrong car.

As one data point, my Model S only lost 5% of range after 5 years, when charged to 90% nightly and to 100% for trips. You’re not going to do meaningfully better than that by charging it less.

 

[DCGOO]

I also would not worry about staying above 20%. Obviously you need to stay above 0, but 20% is a lot to leave on the table.

 

[Darksoldier360]

I also would not worry about staying above 20%. Obviously you need to stay above 0, but 20% is a lot to leave on the table.

Agree, wouldn't leave it empty for days, but no issue rolling into a super charger with 5% left in my experiance.

 

[puritan]

Interesting data point to consider:

Tesloop of Los Angeles have a 2016 MX that was supercharged to 100% on a daily basis and is approaching 300,000 miles.

Total range loss? 10%.

I think that is possibly the worst case charging scenario of any Tesla, probably ever.

 

[Anzir]

Aren't you concerned Tesla is going to start throttling you back with excess usage of the superchargers?

 

[cwerdna]

Interesting data point to consider:

Tesloop of Los Angeles have a 2016 MX that was supercharged to 100% on a daily basis and is approaching 300,000 miles.

Total range loss? 10%.

I think that is possibly the worst case charging scenario of any Tesla, probably ever.

On the flip side: Tesloop’s Tesla Model S Surpasses 400,000 miles (643,737 kM)

High Voltage Battery: The Model S has had its high voltage battery replaced twice under warranty at 194,000 and 324,000 miles. Battery degradation over the course of the first 194,000 miles was ~6% with multiple supercharges a day to 95-100%, instead of the recommended 90-95%. Between 194,000 and 324,000 miles Tesloop experienced battery degradation of ~22% (see below for details).

 

[bayx]

Aren't you concerned Tesla is going to start throttling you back with excess usage of the superchargers?

I have no choice but to use supercharging stations until a while.

 

[jboy210]

Unless you need the range, I would shoot for 80%. The charge rate drops off quickly as the battery get's charged. 20-40% is much faster than 70-90%. 90-100% takes forever and you lose brake regen after 93% or so.

BTW, where are the superchargers in the City? Do they have urban Superchargers?

 

[xyeahtony]

Aren't you concerned Tesla is going to start throttling you back with excess usage of the superchargers?

Not an issue. only happens in maybe 1 out of 500 owners who excessively supercharge, and only adds 10-15 mins tops to charging.

 

[ChuckG]

BTW, where are the superchargers in the City? Do they have urban Superchargers?

San Diego has an urban supercharger station downtown.

 

[Seattle Tom]

I started with 90% daily charging when I got my X last summer, but didn’t need it and then stumbled on the article below from Electrek. I trust the battery experts more than the randos on the forum, like me!

Tesla battery expert recommends daily charging limit to optimize durability

Based on the article, I went to an 80% daily charge - not quite the 70 recommended, but close enough.

I’ve had the X for a year and two months and have 22K miles on it. I charged up to 100% for a golf trip three weeks ago and had full range of 295 miles. I know the rated miles displayed on the instrument cluster is not a true indicator of battery loss, but my experience has been positive enough that I’d encourage anyone who wants to be proactive to charge less than 90% if you don’t need it.

Oh, I’ve supercharged for a road trip from Seattle to Los Angeles and back, plus a golf trip last summer too. Besides that...and maybe a few other instances I’m forgetting for short trips, it’s been all home (slower) charging. Good luck!

 

[Leo Snow]

I charge it up to 90% all the time for my regular commute and 100% for road trips.
Stop overthinking of your car, it's just a car and there is no difference that you'd notice between charging it to 80 or 90%.

 

[outie]

Interesting data point to consider:

Tesloop of Los Angeles have a 2016 MX that was supercharged to 100% on a daily basis and is approaching 300,000 miles.

Total range loss? 10%.

I think that is possibly the worst case charging scenario of any Tesla, probably ever.

So they not only take up the local SpC spaces for commercial purposes, they also spend an extra hour on the already-congested stations to charge the last 10% to 100%? Pathetic.