Be honest: is SCing on a long trip annoying?

[Sasmania]

Ummmm, no, it's not annoying as long as you have the right mindset.

To me, it's all about time shifting.

Yes, getting from point A to B will take a bit longer in a Tesla due to charging. However, as long as you know this up front, it's easy to make this time productive. As long as you are not waiting, looking at your watch, it won't be annoying.

Do something you need to get done anyway. Eat, use the restroom. Catch up on reading. Clean your Tesla. Hop on your computer, get some work done. What difference does it make if you do it mid-trip, or wait till you get to your destination, then have to spend 2 hours catching up?

You will arrive refreshed, relaxed and caught up instead of stiff, burnt out and tired.

 

[RogerHScott]

what % of all Tesla drivers are in CA?

It would be interesting to get hard data on this, but I can easily believe Tesla owners in CA outnumber those in every other state put together.

 

[RogerHScott]

Catch up on reading. Clean your Tesla. Hop on your computer, get some work done.

You clearly don't travel with a family...

 

[Sasmania]

You are correct!!! No doubt that traveling with a family would make it much harder....but it would also make ANY road trip with or without a Tesla more challenging

 

[sdorn]

You are correct!!! No doubt that traveling with a family would make it much harder....but it would also make ANY road trip with or without a Tesla more challenging

This is definitely true.

 

[kort677]

the only places I've encountered crowded SpCs were newark DE, which has been double in capacity, syosset NY were locals and the store/service center are over using the 4 units and plantation FLA.
I've been as far west as CO and as far north as NYC, all over the south.
the most teslas are in CA followed by FL, GA and the NYC area

 

[Saghost]

the only places I've encountered crowded SpCs were newark DE, which has been double in capacity, syosset NY were locals and the store/service center are over using the 4 units and plantation FLA.
I've been as far west as CO and as far north as NYC, all over the south.
the most teslas are in CA followed by FL, GA and the NYC area

The only one I've ever had to wait for was Highland Park, IL.

I almost had to wait for Newburgh NY once, got a stall from someone who was just pulling out - I'm pretty sure the next car to arrive did have to wait a bit.

 

[jerry33]

I look forward to even seeing another Tesla at a Supercharger.

 

[kavyboy]

I look forward to even seeing another Tesla at a Supercharger.

I just did a round trip from Houston to New Orleans. Not a single Tesla was sighted the entire time. I think we live in a dead zone.

 

[jerry33]

I just did a round trip from Houston to New Orleans. Not a single Tesla was sighted the entire time. I think we live in a dead zone.

LOL. I saw six in the last 18 SC stops (DFW to Thunder Bay and back)

 

[GSP]

Not annoying at all.

I just got back from a 1500 mile Thanksgiving trip. I planned the trip with meals at the longer supercharger stops, and stayed at a hotel with a Tesla destination charger.

We never once had to wait for the car, it always had more than enough charge whenever we were ready to leave. Usually the car was ready before we even got our food. At other stops we just took a quick nature break, walked back to the car, unplugged and left. With superchargers and autopilot, driving the Tesla on long trips is a wonderful experience.

The hotel we stayed at was the Martha Washington Inn & Spa, in Abingdon, VA. It was a beautiful historic building with first class decor and a friendly and helpful staff. Reasonably priced as well.

GSP

 

[AlMc]

Be honest: is SCing on a long trip annoying?

Yes, but I can live with it.

 

[TexasBill]

just did a round trip from Houston to New Orleans. Not a single Tesla was sighted the entire time. I think we live in a dead zone.

@kavboy - Soon, you may be seeing one running around as I expect delivery by the end of Dec -- I'm in Montgomery and drive in Magnolia often.

Regards

 

[jcaspar]

They key is to have charging at your destination. Have done this several times from Sacramento to LA/Santa Barbara area and it is not bad, actually kind of fun to make the stops. Went to Disneyland on our last long trip without destination charging and we stopped 4 times to charge coming home. Took about 9 hours (should be about 6) Pretty ridiculous. El Tehon supercharger was out of service so that added to the problem. Still like taking it on all long trips. Never have run into problems with waiting at SCs except the Burbank SC. Will forever avoid that place like the plague...

 

[dhcp]

I just did a round trip from Houston to New Orleans. Not a single Tesla was sighted the entire time. I think we live in a dead zone.

I just can't wrap my head around this. I posted in another thread that this morning at 8:30am on the way to work (Silicon Valley) I pulled up to a red light and there were 4 other Teslas at the light (plus me). This isn't that unusual around here!

 

[Steveb48]

I just can't wrap my head around this. I posted in another thread that this morning at 8:30am on the way to work (Silicon Valley) I pulled up to a red light and there were 4 other Teslas at the light (plus me). This isn't that unusual around here!

We live in an alternate universe. You should see Apple's parking lot!

 

[Missile Toad]

@kavboy - Soon, you may be seeing one running around as I expect delivery by the end of Dec -- I'm in Montgomery and drive in Magnolia often.

Regards

I'm in Kingwood. Maybe I'll see you around the charger's in this neck of the woods. I'm still getting used to pulling into the odd Houston lots that have a steep incline... just a quirk between the Tesla S and the local geography.

 

[houstonian]

I just can't wrap my head around this. I posted in another thread that this morning at 8:30am on the way to work (Silicon Valley) I pulled up to a red light and there were 4 other Teslas at the light (plus me). This isn't that unusual around here!

I'm in Kingwood. Maybe I'll see you around the charger's in this neck of the woods. I'm still getting used to pulling into the odd Houston lots that have a steep incline... just a quirk between the Tesla S and the local geography.

Katy checking in here

Generally see a Tesla or two at IAH in Surepark and maybe about every week or so in the Galleria. Galleria store mentioned they were the one of the busier Tesla store nation wide. Not sure I believed them, but that's what they said.

My Tesla's still on order and I have no first hand experience with supercharging but this is what I'm thinking. Yeah, there's going to be a time / PITA penalty for road-trips with a Tesla (Houston to southern CO is my quarterly one, about 980 miles with no detours) but I offset that with the following two items:

1. Daily charging at home equates to no time at gas pumps. So supercharging takes an hour. And yeah, I've got to make multiple SC stops between here and there. And detour. And blow extra time in doing so. But when I add up the time saved by not gassing up my ICE regularly due to daily at home charging, I see this as a wash. That said, I still do expect to find supercharging annoying but see this major-few-times-a-year-annoyance as an even exchange for minor-weekly-annoyance of gassing up.

2. I'm opting for the FSD option and assuming Tesla will deliver a feature where I can safely focus on email/work/browsing while the car does the driving. This is big for me as my daily commute is often 100m+. Clawing back one to two hours of productivity through automated driving far exceeded any penalty / annoyance of the extra time spend supercharging on road trips. Certainly realize not everyone's in this boat (e.g. those with youngsters) but for me, this is huge. If AP 2.0 is actually able to navigate safely enough to snooze and Tesla rolls out automated supercharges, then we've got a match made in heaven. I can zone out and let the car worry about charging enroute from point A to B.​

 

[sdorn]

2. I'm opting for the FSD option and assuming Tesla will deliver a feature where I can safely focus on email/work/browsing while the car does the driving. This is big for me as my daily commute is often 100m+. Clawing back one to two hours of productivity through automated driving far exceeded any penalty / annoyance of the extra time spend supercharging on road trips. Certainly realize not everyone's in this boat (e.g. those with youngsters) but for me, this is huge. If AP 2.0 is actually able to navigate safely enough to snooze and Tesla rolls out automated supercharges, then we've got a match made in heaven. I can zone out and let the car worry about charging enroute from point A to B.​

I think the general consensus on TMC as far as I can tell is that the level of FSD that would allow you to do anything other than watch the road with your hands on the wheel is several years out at best. Personally I think they will roll out many of the FSD functions by the end of 2017, but only with a fully alert driver behind the wheel and some system of making sure the driver is paying attention (like the current nag system, but maybe implemented in a better/different way).

Going to a level where the driver is not required to pay attention is going to mean various government entities will have passed regulations permitting it, which takes a lot more time than developing the technology. Until those sorts of regulations are passed everywhere, Tesla will have to either figure out a way to enable certain features based on the car's current geographic location or wait to enable a feature until all relevant jurisdictions permit it.

 

[Chuq]

You are correct!!! No doubt that traveling with a family would make it much harder...

I would expect it would be easier - so long as the SCs are near parks or playgrounds - kids get sick of being chained to the back seat for too long - get them out to run around every so often = happier kids = happier trip!