Be honest: is SCing on a long trip annoying?

[Lyon]

I just got back from a long, condensed trip in the Model X. We drove from Eugene, OR to Reno, NV and then from Reno, NV to Las Vegas and back to Eugene, OR. Just over 2100 miles starting Friday morning and ending Sunday afternoon. We Supercharged 17 times (I think that's the number). I didn't find it annoying but it certainly made the trip take longer than if we had driven an ICE. The last time I took a road trip this long I was driving back from college over a decade ago. They're not common for me.

Anyway, OP, if you're still reading this, that's another bit of opinion data for you.

 

[Shinteetah]

I do a lot of long hauls. Drove 666 miles yesterday, for example. It's honestly part of why I wanted a Tesla.

To be perfectly honest, yesterday's drive took me longer than it should have. I could have done it in 11 hours in an ICE, 13 or so in my Model S, per the planner. It took me about 15.

Part of that was unusual logistics. I generally grab a toilet and food during charging, but there was one charger which didn't have any food or drink sales (hotel lot) and so I had to make an extra stop later. Part of it was a hole in the SC network combined with my own poor management; for some reason Philadelphia doesn't have a Supercharger, and since I'd burned extra electrons taking curious enthusiasts at the conference out for joyrides, I had to detour south to pick up an earlier charge than I would have if I had kept my car to myself. (Still totally worth it to share the Tesla grin with others.) Twice I charged longer than necessary because I was working on my laptop and wanted to reach a stopping point.

I frequently catnap during charging. (I have a "nap" driver setting programmed for quick seat adjustment.) This, combined with Autopilot, means long drives are much less fatiguing than when I made the same day-long drives in my ICE/hybrid. I had several intense days of conference and then just four hours of sleep before yesterday's 15-hour drive, and I got home and finished a creative project before going to bed at 2 am.

When I don't want a nap, I geocache during charging. Yesterday I found a cache just 30 feet from my charging space! and later another in the same mall lot. Gets me moving, which also helps with preventing road fatigue.

In two weeks I'll be driving a 1500 run and then 1700 to a workshop and then 350 home. Next month I'll be driving 1100 each way to Denver. While these trips do take more hours overall than when I ran nonstop in an ICE, there's a lot less fatigue and I feel better especially when I'm traveling solo.

 

[NikeWings]

When I don't want a nap, I geocache during charging. Yesterday I found a cache just 30 feet from my charging space! and later another in the same mall lot. Gets me moving, which also helps with preventing road fatigue.

Geocaching has added a dimension to our travel and supercharging diversions.........love it!
PS - just read your signature, are you a member of the tribe?

 

[aus]

Just did a SoCal Vegas roundtrip and stopped at all the SpCs just to scout out the locations for future reference; every one of them had at least three empty stalls. Keep in mind this is Friday evening to Vegas and Sunday afternoon back to SoCal (typical heavy traffic times).

Also did a SoCal Norcal trip with my Q5 (Pre-MS delivery) over Memorial Day weekend and stopped at Tejon Ranch to scout the SpC there as well, and there was no wait on Monday afternoon of Memorial Day Monday. I was expecting there to be a significant line because of the long weekend and traffic.

I had to use the Fountain Valley SpC the first week after we took delivery because our wall charger hadn't shipped yet and that was annoying. Sunday evening and there was 4 cars in line for the SpCs. As an Orange County resident, MS and MX drivers are everywhere so its not surprising the two OC SpC are so crowded.

Tesla should really consider putting a 20 stall SpC at The Spectrum, perfect location where the 5 and 405 meet and it will alleviate the congestion at Fountain Valley and SJC. I know there are plenty of people in this forum who believe locals charging at SpCs are abusers of the network and that Tesla's expansion in OC would just encourage this behavior. This broad brush approach does not take into account that with the recent expansion of a lot of mid-rise apartments and condos, garage charging may not be readily available for a lot of people, especially once M3 comes out.

I simply avoid the local SpCs because the monetary savings vs charging at home isn't worth the hassle and waste of time waiting for a charger.

Thanks for scoping them out and reporting back. SC's along the 15 to Vegas are usually pretty open, but keep in mind that extra 40-60 minutes of charging you do (depending on if you charge once or twice) can really kill you on traffic. My buddy drove home from Vegas at 11AM Sunday, and had to charge twice because he has a S70 and was driving too fast. That took about 90 minutes total and his drive turned into an 8-9 hour ordeal from a 5-6 hr drive because it put him in the meat of the afternoon traffic.

Unfortunately, Fountain Valley is the main SC we visit since we have family down South. Sunday evening is TERRIBLE there. All the locals are charging up for the week.

No, you didn't. You told a little white lie and you got called on it.

Don't worry, it's all good. Just about everyone has exaggerated on the Internet to try and make a point, and near as many have been called out for doing so. It's not a crime.

Just keep it to the facts next time, or at least don't be so defensive when someone calls foul and corrects you.

What lie??

 

[Ciaopec]

I do a lot of long hauls. Drove 666 miles yesterday, for example. It's honestly part of why I wanted a Tesla.

To be perfectly honest, yesterday's drive took me longer than it should have. I could have done it in 11 hours in an ICE, 13 or so in my Model S, per the planner. It took me about 15.

I generally grab a toilet and food during charging,
.

Stay alert when you are tired: don't mix up what you are grabbing !

 

[Shinteetah]

PS - just read your signature, are you a member of the tribe?

My signature's a reference to a madcap parody tabletop RPG and occasional LARP, called Advanced Dimensional Green Ninja Educational Preparatory Super Elementary Fortress 555 (ADGNEPSEF555), which features among other things a sentai team of kids piloting oddly-named and color-coded craft which come together to form the mighty Teslatron. (If you're not familiar with sentai teams, think Power Rangers.)

Annie Starkiller (yes, another geek joke) is a kindergartner who pilots the red Flying Squirrel, which forms the head of the Teslatron.

 

[ThosEM]

Since receiving our Model S in early 2013, we've spent less time "fueling" the car than an ICE.

Even though it takes a little longer for long road trips, we skip the frequent stops at gas stations - which can take 10 to 15 minutes sometimes, waiting to get a pump.

And since we may take a long road trip only a few times a year - most of the time, recharging at home saves us more time than having to visit gas stations...

All true, and I buy into it totally. But my wife still complains that what used to take us 10-11 hours now takes 12. Never mind that we are bursting by the time we get to the next supercharger, or that the trip now includes a real sit down meal instead of fast food, and maybe some shopping. She also lobbies to take the gas car when superchargers are thin. Evidently an hour more separating us from our family visit can seem annoying, unless, that is, we can manage to meet up with family on the road at a supercharger ;=)

 

[ElectricTundra]

All true, and I buy into it totally. But my wife still complains that what used to take us 10-11 hours now takes 12. Never mind that we are bursting by the time we get to the next supercharger, or that the trip now includes a real sit down meal instead of fast food, and maybe some shopping. She also lobbies to take the gas car when superchargers are thin. Evidently an hour more separating us from our family visit can seem annoying, unless, that is, we can manage to meet up with family on the road at a supercharger ;=)

Different strokes and all...

My wife was concerned about the overall time prior to our first road trip but now enjoys it. She likes stopping in nice restaurants to sit and enjoy a good meal and clean bathrooms vs typical gas station bathrooms. She also likes that I feel much more awake. Her biggest complaint was trying to figure out what was nearby for shopping and eating. Something that is slowly getting better as more people add reviews to Chargerville

 

[BigAirHarper]

Took a road trip home after picking up the car in Orlando. In ICE car it can be done in 6.5hrs if only stop is for gas. In the Tesla it took....I have no idea because we stopped, shopped at Costco, ate a meal, shopped some more, all stuff we never would have done in our ICE except maybe the Costco part, cause who doesn't love that store. The point is, like others have said, it's about the journey in the Tesla, not so much about rushing to the next destination. We stopped at 4 superchargers on our route.
I loved the experience so much that when we got home I immediately started planning another excuse to take the car to more superchargers. So for Labor Day weekend we are headed to north Georgia mountains using superchargers and Tesla's destination charging network!
Once you own the car, there is this awesome sense of planning and executing a road trip that wasn't there in the ICE. Almost like flight planning a flight in a plane. It's very fun and the stops let you see areas of the country that you otherwise would have flown right by.

 

[javawolfpack]

So I've only used 1 supercharger on a long drive since picking up my Model S at the factory, as needed to use one to get home from the factory. We stopped in Roseville, and by the time we found a restroom and got back to the car... had enough more than enough range to get home and/or to another supercharger. I know there are some edge cases and I have minimal range compared to some Tesla vehicles; however, the only thing that I think will be annoying is coming to a SC and having to wait for a spot or getting a trickle vs full charge with a shared stall. So far I haven't had either of these issues...

 

[pchilds]

Until last week, I hadn't bought gas since mid 2011. It took me 20 minutes to buy 2 gallons, pumping gas is often slower than Supercharging. Why is it that people only want to count ideal fill up times, not real world times?

 

[Buckeye]

Drove Cincy/ATL r/t. Gotta stop 2 times away, including a meal. Better to get out and stretch, not do the drive thru (crumbs, etc.). Much more relaxed. Plus, get to practice being a Tesla Ambassador as folks want to know about the car. Amazon how many haven't seen a Tesla up close. Bottomline, equal or better than stopping for gas.

 

[bxr140]

The point is, like others have said, it's about the journey in the Tesla, not so much about rushing to the next destination.

The counterpoint is, like others have said: Sometimes its not.

Why is it that people only want to count ideal fill up times, not real world times?

It goes both ways. People often only count ideal charge times, not real world charge times...not to mention weather inefficiencies, etc.

 

[Chopr147]

Actually when I ordered the S one of the things I looked forward to was supercharging. Hang, relax maybe talk to some other Tesla owners etc.......... Now that I have my S , albeit only a little more than a week , but really enjoyed supercharging. Now I just have to convince my wife how much nicer it will be to travel. A couple of road trips should do it

 

[Garlan Garner]

That's a very strange question as the only answer by a sane person would be NO. No its not annoying.

If SC'ing on long Tesla trip is annoying to you....then you are an idiot for taking the trip with a Tesla.

That's as honest as I can get.

 

[ohmman]

If SC'ing on long Tesla trip is annoying to you....then you are an idiot for taking the trip with a Tesla.

And if you only have a Tesla? Some people only own one car. And some trips take longer in a plane.

Broad brush, that.

 

[gavine]

Until last week, I hadn't bought gas since mid 2011. It took me 20 minutes to buy 2 gallons, pumping gas is often slower than Supercharging. Why is it that people only want to count ideal fill up times, not real world times?

Ironically, this picture was taken at a Supercharger rest stop. We were in and out in 15 minutes at the Supercharger. I wonder how long the wait was for gas.

 

[K-MTG]

I am not really a patient person so 3 SC stops from SoCal to SF really pushes it. I typically like to go all the way with one 5 minute stop. It made a 7 hour drive 8 hours and 30 minutes.

 

[ww73]

We recently completed a 10,000 mile trip from Seattle to NJ and back. I70 on the way east, I90 on the way west. On average we did about 400 miles a day. 500 miles on travelling days, 300 miles w/ sight seeing.

SCs are typically 90-150 miles apart, so every 1.5-2 hrs, my wife and I swap driving.

We have 2 kids so there are no "quick" stops. Usually by the time we eat, restroom break, catch pokemon, sight see, the car has enough juice for the next leg of the trip. There are a few exceptions for superchargers at hotels or gas stations with nothing near by like Syracuse, NY, Murdo, SD, Tridelphia, WV, Big Timber, MT, etc.

One thing we discovered and noticed is the number of SCs that are close proximity to Texas Roadhouse: Topeka, Harrisburg, Ann Arbor, Rapid City, Coeur d'Lane. At one point we had Texas Roadhouse 3 consecutive nights, where the car charged full while we ate. Under $25 for a ribeye/rib combo w/ 2 sides and bread. Can't beat that!

We chose to overnight at hotels near the SCs. Some were literally the same parking lot or across the street. Some were a 5 minute drive. I wish the /findus page had a filter for destination charging. I hear there are some discount chain hotels rather than the $200+ a night boutiques.

So, to answer the question, SC'ing is just fine for long roadtrips. You should do it.

 

[brucet999]

Geocaching has added a dimension to our travel and supercharging diversions.........love it!
PS - just read your signature, are you a member of the tribe?

Geocaching? What, pray tell, is that?