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Buying used Tesla out of state. How do I supercharge on the way home?
- Thread starter TJ313
- Start date
It might be easy, it might be a pain depending on how the dealership got the car. Since supercharging charges the credit card of whoever's account has ownership of the car you may not be able to charge it until you get that squared away.
If the dealership has a Tesla account and transfered the ownership from the previous owner when they bought the car it's pretty simple. Just follow this guide to transfer the car to your account.
If the previous owner still has the car registered on their account then it'll require a bit more work. You need to go on your account and add the car which will then require you to send tesla a bunch of paperwork that proves you are now the rightful owner. This prosses takes 3-5 days before you will gain ownership and be able to supercharge.
I personally would buy a CCS adapter and bring it with you but just be careful because not all model Ss have CCS support. You might want to call the dealership and ask them to make sure it does. They can check by going out to the car and opening the "software" page then pressing "Additional vehicle Information", then look for the line that says "CCS Adapter Support". Make sure they send you a picture of that so you don't go out to pick up the car and end up getting stranded because some sells rep lied to you to close a deal.
If the dealership has a Tesla account and transfered the ownership from the previous owner when they bought the car it's pretty simple. Just follow this guide to transfer the car to your account.
If the previous owner still has the car registered on their account then it'll require a bit more work. You need to go on your account and add the car which will then require you to send tesla a bunch of paperwork that proves you are now the rightful owner. This prosses takes 3-5 days before you will gain ownership and be able to supercharge.
I personally would buy a CCS adapter and bring it with you but just be careful because not all model Ss have CCS support. You might want to call the dealership and ask them to make sure it does. They can check by going out to the car and opening the "software" page then pressing "Additional vehicle Information", then look for the line that says "CCS Adapter Support". Make sure they send you a picture of that so you don't go out to pick up the car and end up getting stranded because some sells rep lied to you to close a deal.
Brings me back to a little more than a year ago when I got my S. I rode a bus 6 hours to Florida to get the car only to show up and realize the seller (dealer) didn't have the car in a tesla account. I had no idea going in to a tesla purchase that you had to prove to tesla that you were the owner of the car in order to charge it on their SC network. Being a first time EV and tesla owner I figured it would work like a normal gas pump or EV CCS charger, it doesn't matter who owns the car.
Needless to say I was ready to walk from the car and go back home. We managed to talk to tesla and get the car immediately transferred into my account once I bought the car from the dealer. I concider myself very lucky that I got a support representative to help me out, I don't think that type of thing happens every day.
Needless to say I was ready to walk from the car and go back home. We managed to talk to tesla and get the car immediately transferred into my account once I bought the car from the dealer. I concider myself very lucky that I got a support representative to help me out, I don't think that type of thing happens every day.
Unless there was an upgrade performed, highly unlikely, then it wont support CCS. Next best option could be Chademo.
It will be very painful if you cannot supercharge. You can get a J1772 to Tesla adapter and then find any L2 charger hotels/locations but it will take a long time, probably 2-3 days ... drive for 3 hours, charge for 3 hours then may be 1-2 hours, then charge it overnight, repeat the same the next day or two, keep speed around 55mph can stretch the time a little bit, check the ampere of the charger though, less power ampere will charge slower and maybe adding only 16 miles per hour.
How much are they asking for the S and what's the condition of the vehicle, 17 only has one year battery/du warranty left though.
How much are they asking for the S and what's the condition of the vehicle, 17 only has one year battery/du warranty left though.
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Not that what I'm about to suggest will help much, but: From what I've been able to find, your car has a 48A AC charger built-in. With the appropriate AC charger, that means you've got 240 VAC * 48A = 11.52 kW. Battery size is 90 kW-hr.
EPA rating for a 2017 Model S.. one sec.. Looks to be around 320 W-hr/mile. So, first, that gives you a nominal range of 90 kW-hr/0.32 kW-hr/mile = 257 miles. Hm. Let's say you want to be safe, so that's 200 mile range between charges.
If you can find 48A chargers (yes, I know, the charger is in the car), then your rate of charge would be 11.52 kW/(0.32kW-hr/mile) = 36 miles of charge per hour.
200 miles/36 = 5.5 hours to charge up at a good charger to 200 miles of range.
200 miles at 65 mph is 3.07 hours; then 5.5 hours to charge, then another 3.07 hours on the road, and so on.
Problem is that must public L2 chargers are even worse than that; they do 32A, typically, and that would be 48/32*5.5 = 8.25 hours for a 200 mile charge. Yuk.
I think that everybody elses' ideas about getting your Tesla account and credit card in good working order is a Good One. For various reasons, I've had cause to contact the Account People last year and, despite the typical moans and groans around here about how a live body at Tesla is hard to get, I haven't had that much trouble in doing so. In fact, NOW would be a good time to work on getting a live body at Tesla and/or the dealership to (a) figure out how the dealership has been driving the car around (should have been transferred to their account) and to (b) explain to a Tesla drone what you have in mind, and what they need in order to get you up and running on the SC network. Much better doing that then asking $RANDOM people here on the forum.
By the by: If finding a 48A source of power is still in your future, might I suggest the Plugshare app?
The other possibility that comes to mind is that most Service Centers have a row of Tesla Wall Connectors, mostly for charging up vehicles they're delivering, and presumably good for 48A. I've generally found that if one asks politely, they might give you a break and let you charge there.
Finally: If this really is a 2017 MS, it likely came with a cloth bag and a Tesla Mobile Connector, and even more likely, both a NEMA5-15 (standard house socket) and a NEMA14-50 adapters. The NEMA14-50 would, one would think, be good for 40A charge rate (80% of 50A) but, unfortunately for you, is internally limited to 32A for various technical/safety issues. It Would Be Very Nice that, when you got to the dealer, if that cloth bag was present, along with a J1772 to NACS adapter (NACS is the connector in the Tesla) so that one can use public chargers, which are all J1772.
One can buy a Mobile Connector and its bag either at Tesla.com or, occasionally, at a Service Center. You'll need to send off for the NEMA14-50 at Tesla, assuming that you want to go that route. (NEMA14-50s are common at mobile camper parks.) If, as it happens, you get Supercharger access, the Mobile Connector is probably not worth the expense, but that may change depending upon what you decide to do about home charging and what, if any, power sockets might be in your garage.
But that J1772 to NACS adapter.. If there's not one in the car (previous owner sold it on Ebay?), then, really, you really want to get one of those. They're $50 at Tesla.
EPA rating for a 2017 Model S.. one sec.. Looks to be around 320 W-hr/mile. So, first, that gives you a nominal range of 90 kW-hr/0.32 kW-hr/mile = 257 miles. Hm. Let's say you want to be safe, so that's 200 mile range between charges.
If you can find 48A chargers (yes, I know, the charger is in the car), then your rate of charge would be 11.52 kW/(0.32kW-hr/mile) = 36 miles of charge per hour.
200 miles/36 = 5.5 hours to charge up at a good charger to 200 miles of range.
200 miles at 65 mph is 3.07 hours; then 5.5 hours to charge, then another 3.07 hours on the road, and so on.
Problem is that must public L2 chargers are even worse than that; they do 32A, typically, and that would be 48/32*5.5 = 8.25 hours for a 200 mile charge. Yuk.
I think that everybody elses' ideas about getting your Tesla account and credit card in good working order is a Good One. For various reasons, I've had cause to contact the Account People last year and, despite the typical moans and groans around here about how a live body at Tesla is hard to get, I haven't had that much trouble in doing so. In fact, NOW would be a good time to work on getting a live body at Tesla and/or the dealership to (a) figure out how the dealership has been driving the car around (should have been transferred to their account) and to (b) explain to a Tesla drone what you have in mind, and what they need in order to get you up and running on the SC network. Much better doing that then asking $RANDOM people here on the forum.
By the by: If finding a 48A source of power is still in your future, might I suggest the Plugshare app?
The other possibility that comes to mind is that most Service Centers have a row of Tesla Wall Connectors, mostly for charging up vehicles they're delivering, and presumably good for 48A. I've generally found that if one asks politely, they might give you a break and let you charge there.
Finally: If this really is a 2017 MS, it likely came with a cloth bag and a Tesla Mobile Connector, and even more likely, both a NEMA5-15 (standard house socket) and a NEMA14-50 adapters. The NEMA14-50 would, one would think, be good for 40A charge rate (80% of 50A) but, unfortunately for you, is internally limited to 32A for various technical/safety issues. It Would Be Very Nice that, when you got to the dealer, if that cloth bag was present, along with a J1772 to NACS adapter (NACS is the connector in the Tesla) so that one can use public chargers, which are all J1772.
One can buy a Mobile Connector and its bag either at Tesla.com or, occasionally, at a Service Center. You'll need to send off for the NEMA14-50 at Tesla, assuming that you want to go that route. (NEMA14-50s are common at mobile camper parks.) If, as it happens, you get Supercharger access, the Mobile Connector is probably not worth the expense, but that may change depending upon what you decide to do about home charging and what, if any, power sockets might be in your garage.
But that J1772 to NACS adapter.. If there's not one in the car (previous owner sold it on Ebay?), then, really, you really want to get one of those. They're $50 at Tesla.
brainhouston
Active Member
dealerships usually don't bother transferring cars to app...
transferring with pics of documents could take 5min or few days
transferring with pics of documents could take 5min or few days
Welcome to EV ownership, always good to see people embrace the future.
No trip in an EV is spontaneous and so plan, plan, plan ahead. Go here (link below) and map out the route and stops you will be making ahead of time. Research services and restaurants/facilities at each stop, some have them some do not.
I would not attempt this trip if you cannot get supercharger access.
No trip in an EV is spontaneous and so plan, plan, plan ahead. Go here (link below) and map out the route and stops you will be making ahead of time. Research services and restaurants/facilities at each stop, some have them some do not.
Tesla Supercharger Map | PlugShare
Looking for Tesla Superchargers? Use PlugShare's map of Tesla Superchargers to view photos and reviews from the Tesla community.
www.plugshare.com
I would not attempt this trip if you cannot get supercharger access.
It's been a while, I have used Brink's L2 charger with adapter, it's very slow, getting like 16 miles/hour. I have also seen both Tesla universal destination charger and Tesla destination charger in Hilton, they are quite good and set as 48A. You can use the universal one, just install the app, setup payment method and charge any non Tesla EV - in your case with the adapter. The other option is find a transport company to deliver your vehicle. Abrp (a better route planner) app can be configured to search for only L2 charger and can be used as a reference. The best way is still get SC settle first before picking up the vehicle, you will likely use it later anyway.
Man, you guys are freaking awesome. Can’t tell you how much I appreciate the input.
Well, I hired a third-party car inspector to go to the dealership and inspect the car and test drive it. That will be Wednesday afternoon. The dealership said they would hold the car for me until that inspection is done. If he says it looks good, I’m going to buy it and hire a truck transport service to bring it to me for $500.
In addition to not wanting to drive 20 hours on Saturday, I also don’t want to face the potential of not being able to supercharge on the way home. It’s worth it to me to pay $750 and avoid the potential headaches. Plus, the car is a bargain. 50,000 miles, awesome Carfax history, exact color combination I’m looking for, and I can get the $4000 used tax credit, bringing the cost of the car down to 20 grand
A huge thank you to everyone who replied.
Well, I hired a third-party car inspector to go to the dealership and inspect the car and test drive it. That will be Wednesday afternoon. The dealership said they would hold the car for me until that inspection is done. If he says it looks good, I’m going to buy it and hire a truck transport service to bring it to me for $500.
In addition to not wanting to drive 20 hours on Saturday, I also don’t want to face the potential of not being able to supercharge on the way home. It’s worth it to me to pay $750 and avoid the potential headaches. Plus, the car is a bargain. 50,000 miles, awesome Carfax history, exact color combination I’m looking for, and I can get the $4000 used tax credit, bringing the cost of the car down to 20 grand
A huge thank you to everyone who replied.
Curious how did you hire a person for inspection ? I'm looking for a car remotely and might benefit with some inspector to test drive and give me a honest feedback. Then I can ship it over if I move forward.Man, you guys are freaking awesome. Can’t tell you how much I appreciate the input.
Well, I hired a third-party car inspector to go to the dealership and inspect the car and test drive it. That will be Wednesday afternoon. The dealership said they would hold the car for me until that inspection is done. If he says it looks good, I’m going to buy it and hire a truck transport service to bring it to me for $500.
In addition to not wanting to drive 20 hours on Saturday, I also don’t want to face the potential of not being able to supercharge on the way home. It’s worth it to me to pay $750 and avoid the potential headaches. Plus, the car is a bargain. 50,000 miles, awesome Carfax history, exact color combination I’m looking for, and I can get the $4000 used tax credit, bringing the cost of the car down to 20 grand
A huge thank you to everyone who replied.
Out of curiosity: Did he find that the standard, comes-with-the-car accessories of the Tesla Mobile Connector, the NEMA5-15 and NEMA14-50 adapters for same, and the J1772 to NACS adapter were all with the car? Or missing?
