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Boston to Chicago
- Thread starter deepakti
- Start date
Your Tesla account needs to have a credit card associated to it. You can do that on the website I think.
When you get in your car in Boston put in the address of your destination in Chicago. The car will find the best route and plan appropriate stops at Superchargers.
When you stop at a Supercharger you just plug in the same as you do at home and the car charges and the fee is added to your Tesla account.
I recommend finding accommodations in Chicago that have a charging option. You can use PlugShare - Find Electric Vehicle Charging Locations Near You to help you search. There are MANY. Otherwise, charge up to 90% at the last Supercharger on your way there, and use the Superchargers available in Chicago if you need to.
When you get in your car in Boston put in the address of your destination in Chicago. The car will find the best route and plan appropriate stops at Superchargers.
When you stop at a Supercharger you just plug in the same as you do at home and the car charges and the fee is added to your Tesla account.
I recommend finding accommodations in Chicago that have a charging option. You can use PlugShare - Find Electric Vehicle Charging Locations Near You to help you search. There are MANY. Otherwise, charge up to 90% at the last Supercharger on your way there, and use the Superchargers available in Chicago if you need to.
Since this appears to be your first time to be using Superchargers it is important to know a few things.
Sometimes there are individual stalls that are not working. The "TESLA" logo will not be illuminated if it's a detectable failure. If it has failed in an undetectable way the sign will still be lit up. If you plug in and it doesn't work the car should give you an error message. Just move to another stall.
At version 2 Superchargers (150kw) the power delivery is shared by pairs of stalls. They are numbered 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, and so on. It is best to park at an unoccupied pair so that you get full power from that charging unit. If you park at a stall where the other stall of the pair is in use you will receive slower charge rate and also reduce the charge rate of the other car. Version 3 Superchargers (250kw) do not have this limitation as each stall has its own charging unit. You can identify the difference most easily by the thickness of the cable. The V2 stalls have much thicker cables - like the size of a gas pump hose. V3 are much smaller like a large garden hose.
If the Supercharger location is VERY BUSY your car will prompt you that it has set the charge limit to 80%. You are not required to stop charging at that capacity and can manually reset it to whatever you need. However, the Superchargers (especially on your route) shouldn't require that much charge to reach the next location anyway.
I've visited more than 70 unique Supercharger locations and haven't ever been unable to charge. However, a few times I've had to wait in line, share a charging unit on a V2, or just gotten slow charge. You may want to pad your travel time a little.
Sometimes there are individual stalls that are not working. The "TESLA" logo will not be illuminated if it's a detectable failure. If it has failed in an undetectable way the sign will still be lit up. If you plug in and it doesn't work the car should give you an error message. Just move to another stall.
At version 2 Superchargers (150kw) the power delivery is shared by pairs of stalls. They are numbered 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, 4B, and so on. It is best to park at an unoccupied pair so that you get full power from that charging unit. If you park at a stall where the other stall of the pair is in use you will receive slower charge rate and also reduce the charge rate of the other car. Version 3 Superchargers (250kw) do not have this limitation as each stall has its own charging unit. You can identify the difference most easily by the thickness of the cable. The V2 stalls have much thicker cables - like the size of a gas pump hose. V3 are much smaller like a large garden hose.
If the Supercharger location is VERY BUSY your car will prompt you that it has set the charge limit to 80%. You are not required to stop charging at that capacity and can manually reset it to whatever you need. However, the Superchargers (especially on your route) shouldn't require that much charge to reach the next location anyway.
I've visited more than 70 unique Supercharger locations and haven't ever been unable to charge. However, a few times I've had to wait in line, share a charging unit on a V2, or just gotten slow charge. You may want to pad your travel time a little.
RichAZ/CapeCod
Member
Hope I'm not too late to help. There are plenty of Superchargers around Boston. Go to one or two and practice charging prior to going on your trip, just to get the hang of things.
Rich
(on Cape Cod at the moment)
Rich
(on Cape Cod at the moment)
I was in Boston recently - it seems all the downtown Boston Superchargers are in paid garages. I'd definitely go to one outside of town to get a more normal experience.
These are all excellent tips. I would also add the website ABetterRoutePlanner to your pre-trip planning as you can also add waypoints (a la Google Maps). The site will break everything down including estimated charging costs as long as you properly enter your car model and where you want to stop. You can even further refine your results if you want to stop near restaurants or hotels along the way. Safe travels!
RichAZ/CapeCod
Member
Good idea. I know this is going to sound self-serving, but I wrote a book, Electric Vehicles, What About Them?!? (Amazon is your friend) in which I wrote about a trip from south of Tucson to Cape Cod (this past April) in our model Y.
Road travel in a Tesla is actually quite easy, but there are some basic things you ought to know.
The right "button" on the steering wheel can be used for navigation to all levels of chargers (1, 2 and Supercharger). Press on that button and in a clear "command" voice state; "Navigate to Podunk!" The car will calculate the charger stops you need to get there.
Only charge up to around 70% at your stops. Things slow down after that percent of charge is reached.
On the lower portion of your screen you will see several symbols. The bottom symbol, when pressed, will show you all the chargers on the map. Careful, as three power options are offered and you only want the Supercharger option most of the time.
The round button at the bottom right of the screen with the lightning symbol will show you your chargers. Note the three options under the word Chargers, one, two or three lightning symbols. Superchargers have three.
You should spend some time in the car and play with the screen controls to get the hang of things.
Questions?
Rich
this is good idea. You are not late I am going in 2 weeks to PA and Chicago in 3 weeks.Hope I'm not too late to help. There are plenty of Superchargers around Boston. Go to one or two and practice charging prior to going on your trip, just to get the hang of things.
Rich
(on Cape Cod at the moment)
It's not so much about "only charge to 70%". But allow the car to determine how much charge is needed to get to the next charger. Sometimes that may be 50 or 60 %. Sometimes it may be 80% or more if the Superchargers are more spread out. Planning for an arrival SoC of around 10% helps maintain the range anxiety while also keeping the battery in the fastest charging zone. And if you find that along your way the car is saying you'll arrive with plenty more charge than needed ... drive faster!
Thanks RichGood idea. I know this is going to sound self-serving, but I wrote a book, Electric Vehicles, What About Them?!? (Amazon is your friend) in which I wrote about a trip from south of Tucson to Cape Cod (this past April) in our model Y.
Road travel in a Tesla is actually quite easy, but there are some basic things you ought to know.
The right "button" on the steering wheel can be used for navigation to all levels of chargers (1, 2 and Supercharger). Press on that button and in a clear "command" voice state; "Navigate to Podunk!" The car will calculate the charger stops you need to get there.
Only charge up to around 70% at your stops. Things slow down after that percent of charge is reached.
On the lower portion of your screen you will see several symbols. The bottom symbol, when pressed, will show you all the chargers on the map. Careful, as three power options are offered and you only want the Supercharger option most of the time.
The round button at the bottom right of the screen with the lightning symbol will show you your chargers. Note the three options under the word Chargers, one, two or three lightning symbols. Superchargers have three.
You should spend some time in the car and play with the screen controls to get the hang of things.
Questions?
Rich
In the navigation screen you can touch anywhere on the map and additional buttons will appear. In them is a lightning bolt. Touch that and it will show you all the nearby chargers. You can simply touch one of those and navigate to it. Once you're there, re-navigate to your final destination and it will tell you how long you need to stay there to reach the next charger.
boulder.dude
Member
In the A Better Route Planner (ABRP) app there is a slider in the Settings area for how frequently you like to stop.
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