Average leg during road trip

[soaring47]

I'm waiting on a new custom order MX75D. For the holidays, my wife and I have been talking about potentially driving across country (roughly 2k miles) instead of flying so that we could bring our dog.

I've been looking at ev-trip planner and doing more research on people's experiences with road tripping in their X (for example this post about a 1200 mile trip: Road Trip: Driving 1,200 miles in a Tesla Model X SUV).

One thing I'm confused by is why both the EV trip planner and in that blog post their legs between charges were around 80 miles a pop when the car has a range of 237 miles. Especially when considering that charging when the battery is lower is faster, it would seem more advisable to use most of the range and go for longer legs. For example: charging to 80% and then driving it down to something like 15% (roughly 145 miles).

Am I missing something? Stopping essentially every hour when road tripping sounds pretty brutal. For those road tripping long distances in the MX, what is your average distance between SC stops?

 

[Notso Fast]

Driving an S, 75D, so my experience may not be equivalent. My battery started with 265 miles per charge in April. 5 months in, my charges only go to 250 miles, a loss of 15 miles.

I regularly drive about 1.75 hours one way, on both freeway and highway, about 115 miles. Air conditioning and radio drain on the battery cause me to arrive with about 41% charge remaining so I always have to charge before going home. I agree stopping frequently sounds tough but I would stop at every charger, with intervals of about 150 miles apart. If you run into a snag with traffic or unexpected delay you will be where I was - at a Nissan dealer who was very generous with a 110 plug for an 1.5 hours just so I could limp to a regular SC. (The leaf charger is a completely different plug and I did not have the proper adaptor.)

I believe being an early adopter has its negative benefits - this is one of them.

 

[ninefiveone]

We've done 220 miles/3.5 hrs per leg many times. MX90D.

 

[Notso Fast]

We've done 220 miles/3.5 hrs per leg many times. MX90D..

So jealous! This is why I should have purchased the 90! Good on you!

 

[rush6410]

I'm waiting on a new custom order MX75D. For the holidays, my wife and I have been talking about potentially driving across country (roughly 2k miles) instead of flying so that we could bring our dog.

I've been looking at ev-trip planner and doing more research on people's experiences with road tripping in their X (for example this post about a 1200 mile trip: Road Trip: Driving 1,200 miles in a Tesla Model X SUV).

One thing I'm confused by is why both the EV trip planner and in that blog post their legs between charges were around 80 miles a pop when the car has a range of 237 miles. Especially when considering that charging when the battery is lower is faster, it would seem more advisable to use most of the range and go for longer legs. For example: charging to 80% and then driving it down to something like 15% (roughly 145 miles).

Am I missing something? Stopping essentially every hour when road tripping sounds pretty brutal. For those road tripping long distances in the MX, what is your average distance between SC stops?

I have mad many 500 to 700 mile trips. I have a few observations based on the recommendations by the trip planner vs. actual results and legs. Telsa's onboard trip planner seems to do a good job on recommendations. It will always calculate the fastest time to complete the route based on calculated battery level and time to charge at each stop utilizing the rated mileage. If you maintain a maximum 330 w/hr average, the predicted plan will be pretty close to being accurate. 330 w/hr average will keep you pretty close to rated mileage. The variables that impact the plan is speed, driving habits, terrain, wind, weather, etc. As I experienced, I have gained a pretty good knowledge on how my X handles the variable conditions. But, real time observation of your w/hr average will be necessary. I would adjust my speed accordingly. Typical for me as I take an extended trip is I consider how fast I want to drive and how long I will be stopping at each supercharger. On average, my legs are between 150 to 220 miles 2 to 3.5 hours drive time. I usually spend more time then recommended at the stop with the usually grab something to eat and break. The supercharging time varies by station. I have noticed that you will only get maximum kw charging up to 50% battery level with it starting to tail off significantly at 80%. The planner will always recommend shorter legs with short charging since it will maximize the kw charging speed. I prefer allowing my stops to dictate time at stop because I tend to stop longer than recommended resulting in a longer charge and higher percent level then the planner expects. Some of the great features on the on board trip planner is it continuously adjusts based on real time w/hr usage. At start, it calculates based on rated mileage. Real time during trip it adjusts based on your real time w/hr average. So, you will see it increasing or decreasing your charge time at stop accordingly. Always keep in mind that your driving is the biggest contributor to how accurate it can predict. If you start out conservative maintaining a good average the planner will bespot on. If you adjust your speed or the road conditions change you will see it constantly adjusting real time. A 10 m/hr increase plus less than ideal terrain and weather conditions will impact the calculations dramatically. But, always know, the planner only is as smart as the actual avg w/hr readings. Don't expect it to predict any of the unknown to the vehicle conditions that will greatly impact that average. You will need to adjust your speed to manage the accuracy of the w/hr average readings and predictions.

 

[IdaX]

Especially when considering that charging when the battery is lower is faster, it would seem more advisable to use most of the range and go for longer legs. For example: charging to 80% and then driving it down to something like 15% (roughly 145 miles).

Am I missing something? Stopping essentially every hour when road tripping sounds pretty brutal. For those road tripping long distances in the MX, what is your average distance between SC stops?

Because charging is faster at a low state of charge, the optimal strategy is to only charge to 45%, and then arrive with 5-10% and charge just enough to reach the next supercharger. If you're really on a speed run. The key insight is that, unlike a gas car, you rarely fill up all the way except overnight, if you're at dinner, or if you've got a long leg ahead.

Usually I stop for like lunch sometime, wherein I charge up higher and can then skip a charger as desired.

 

[HankLloydRight]

I've done several multi-thousand mile road trips in my P85+ and now P85D. The longest legs between SCs on those trips were easily 2.5 hours or about 180 miles. Looking at Tesalfi.com, my most recent trip with a leg like that between Columbia, SC and Savanah, GA I started with 88% SOC (about 220 rated miles) and ended with 15% (about 38 rated miles) so plenty of buffer to go even further if I had to, or charge more before I left Columbia, SC.

This was in the summer, so the A/C was running and the weather was clear.

Driving an S, 75D, so my experience may not be equivalent. My battery started with 265 miles per charge in April. 5 months in, my charges only go to 250 miles, a loss of 15 miles.

Consider yourself lucky! On both my P85+ (sold) and P85D, I get about 249 miles on a 100% range charge.

 

[TexasEV]

I regularly drive about 1.75 hours one way, on both freeway and highway, about 115 miles. Air conditioning and radio drain on the battery cause me to arrive with about 41% charge remaining so I always have to charge before going home.

No, air conditioner has minimal impact and radio not at all.

 

[animorph]

You do the longest leg you can when you start with the battery at 100%. We might drive 3 hours then. After that you're trying to minimize trip time by only charging enough to reach the next Supercharger with whatever your comfortable margin is. Then your legs are usually 1 hour to 2 hours, depending on SC spacing. You only charge to 90% or 100% if you have a long stay at a Supercharger for reasons other than charging, such as to eat or sleep. Charging gets very slow at that point.

We were usually happy to build a little extra margin on shorter legs if the charge rate was still 80 kW or better and we were not in a hurry. Below that, it just seemed pretty slow and better to add charge at the next SC at a better rate.

EVTripPlanner reflects all this timing, so you can play with it and see what looks good to you.

 

[BigMskiman]

We do SF bay area to Phoenix in 150-200mi legs though the car range is 280. The reasons mentioned here are why.

 

[cpa]

Generally today, once you are away from the urban areas, the Superchargers are at intervals that require stopping at each one. As others have pointed out, the trip planning is pretty good to determine your level of charge upon departure and estimated reserve upon arrival. And traveling with your canine companion might require those stops anyway!

If I could offer a suggestion: Try to find overnight stays that have Tesla's destination chargers or other public-type chargers proximate. Sometimes there is a hotel/motel that is between Superchargers. Starting your morning's journey with a 90% battery might let you bypass the first Supercharger stop if the second stop is comfortably within your car's range.

Enjoy!

 

[TexasEV]

If I could offer a suggestion: Try to find overnight stays that have Tesla's destination chargers or other public-type chargers proximate. Sometimes there is a hotel/motel that is between Superchargers. Starting your morning's journey with a 90% battery might let you bypass the first Supercharger stop if the second stop is comfortably within your car's range.

Enjoy!

If you're staying at a hotel with charging-- start the day with 100% charge, not 90%.

 

[HankLloydRight]

If I could offer a suggestion: Try to find overnight stays that have Tesla's destination chargers or other public-type chargers proximate. Sometimes there is a hotel/motel that is between Superchargers.

I rarely, if ever, stop and charge for the night (SC or L2 charging). I always find a hotel between SC stops.. For instance, I'll stop for a late dinner at a SC and charge as much as I can.. find the hotel about an hour or so further than that. Sleep. Get up, drive an hour to the SC, and stop and have breakfast and charge, usually to at least 80%, usually more. Rinse, repeat.

While it is getting better, trying to plan hotel stops with charging often disrupts the trip when the chargers you hoped for are already occupied, more more likely broken or ICEd. At 11pm, it's hard to solve those problems, and then you're stuck at an L2 charger in the AM waiting to charge enough to get to the next SC.

During my latest road trip, I pulled into a hotel that had 2 Chargepoint chargers I didn't even know were there, but hey, since they're there and I'm stopping for the night, I'll plug in. Stall #1 was ICEd. Stall #2 was open, but broken, and even spending 30 minutes on the phone with CP couldn't fix it. I almost gave up when I realized I could park in the regular spot next to stall #1 and stretch the cable to reach. I was lucky in that I really didn't need to charge up that night, but the extra full charge did dominoe into the rest of the trip.

 

[kort677]

I've done several multi-thousand mile road trips in my P85+ and now P85D. The longest legs between SCs on those trips were easily 2.5 hours or about 180 miles. Looking at Tesalfi.com, my most recent trip with a leg like that between Columbia, SC and Savanah, GA I started with 88% SOC (about 220 rated miles) and ended with 15% (about 38 rated miles) so plenty of buffer to go even further if I had to, or charge more before I left Columbia, SC.

This was in the summer, so the A/C was running and the weather was clear.



Consider yourself lucky! On both my P85+ (sold) and P85D, I get about 249 miles on a 100% range charge.

fwiw: the run from columbia is a downgrade for much of the trip, going from savannah up to columbia will be an upgrade, plan accordingly

 

[HankLloydRight]

fwiw: the run from columbia is a downgrade for much of the trip, going from savannah up to columbia will be an upgrade, plan accordingly

Good to know, but I went back north along the I-95 route -- Savannah to Santee. I doubt I'd ever drive the reverse again.

 

[Notso Fast]

No, air conditioner has minimal impact and radio not at all.

Thanks for info. Maybe I am just a rotten driver, something I did not want to admit!

 

[CSFTN]

Driving an S, 75D, so my experience may not be equivalent. My battery started with 265 miles per charge in April. 5 months in, my charges only go to 250 miles, a loss of 15 miles.

I regularly drive about 1.75 hours one way, on both freeway and highway, about 115 miles. Air conditioning and radio drain on the battery cause me to arrive with about 41% charge remaining so I always have to charge before going home.

As stated elsewhere, you are incorrect. Radio has <0.000001% effect on range (at highway speeds) and AC not much more (maybe like 2%). The biggest drainers of the battery are speed, speed, speed, wind, and cold enough that you have to crank the heat. And speed.

I believe being an early adopter has its negative benefits - this is one of them.

I'm sorry, but if you own a S75D, IMO you are not an early adaptor. No owners of any Ds should call themselves early adaptors.

 

[dsm363]

A good rule of thumb is to set your range to percentage and leave a 20% buffer. If your trip planner in the car say you'll arrive with less than 20%, charge longer.

 

[HankLloydRight]

I do actual miles * 125% (or more) and have never had a problem. But this was always summer months with pretty good weather.

Winter with higher winds and rain I'd bump it up to 135% minimum.

 

[kort677]

As stated elsewhere, you are incorrect. Radio has <0.000001% effect on range (at highway speeds) and AC not much more (maybe like 2%). The biggest drainers of the battery are speed, speed, speed, wind, and cold enough that you have to crank the heat. And speed.

you omitted rain and snow, both can have a severe impact on range