Charging with the car 'on'?

[NigelM]

I'm curious about the answer to this question for another reason - said there is a need to make a 1000+ mile road trip. What the possibility of putting a generator in the frunk just for the road trip - so the generator is running all the time supplying power to the car... charging or supply power to the powertrain....

First, running a generator in the car you'll stand a high chance of killing yourself.

Second, towing a generator is going to add weight as well as increasing drag so expect reduced range from your batteries. Oh, and don't forget some way to transport gas for the generator.

Third, even a towable generator isn't going to be able to produce enough power to give you much more than about 10 miles of range per hour.

The 1,000 mile idea is impossible (today) without stopping and it's much easier to find a socket (even 110v) than to run a generator for 30 hours recharging your batteries.

There's a thread here that's worth a read through: Is-that-a-generator-in-your-frunk-(or-are-you-just-happy-to-see-me)

 

[MikeK]

Second, towing a generator is going to add weight as well as increasing drag so expect reduced range from your batteries. Oh, and don't forget some way to transport gas for the generator.

With the tZero, AC Propulsion was able to tow a 20kW DC generator that was able to provide enough power to operate the car at highway cruise, achieving 30-35mpg.

AC Propulsion tzero - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[4sevens.com]

I've been following ac-propulsion even before their li-ion tzero! I remember the tzero had a optional generator for additional range.

 

[MikeK]

Yup, it was called the LongRanger.

 

[mknox]

With the tZero, AC Propulsion was able to tow a 20kW DC generator that was able to provide enough power to operate the car at highway cruise, achieving 30-35mpg.

Back in the late 80's or early 90's, Volvo had an EV prototype with a trailer-mounted genset for road trips. The idea, as with AC Propulsion, was to use the trailer for the trip, and detach when you're at your end destination.

It does turn the Model S into a "Rube Goldberg" Chevy Volt, and as such, will probably never happen!

Mike

 

[mitch672]

Here is a link to Daryl's page on the "long ranger trailer", complete with pictures of it connected to the gen1 RAV4EV
Rav Long Ranger

Mitch

 

[doug]

Thread on that topic: Towable Generators

 

[AndyM]

Great question for the FAQ.

It's in there. But I clarified/expanded the question.

 

[neroden]

Regarding running accessories while charging:
(1) We have been told that the Model S is "always on".
(2) There is an automotive lead-acid battery which the accessories run off of, which is recharged from the main battery. It is suspected that this also provides enough power to turn charging on if the main battery is deeply depleted, solving an occasional problem reported by Roadster owners who pushed their car to its limits.

Therefore, I suspect that what actually happens is that the accessories pull from the 9V battery while the charger fills the main battery up. Will the lead-acid battery recharge from the main battery while the main battery is charging? Good question. If not, then as soon as you stop charging, the main battery will start reloading the lead-acid battery...

 

[dadaleus]

We are sitting in our model S with the heater going, the heated seats on, and our phones charging all while charging the car over J1772. So YES, you can charge while the car is "on"!

 

[markwj]

We are sitting in our model S with the heater going, the heated seats on, and our phones charging all while charging the car over J1772. So YES, you can charge while the car is "on"!

Hopefully you can't put it in drive

 

[Robert.Boston]

We are sitting in our model S with the heater going, the heated seats on, and our phones charging all while charging the car over J1772. So YES, you can charge while the car is "on"!

That's great news, @dadaleus. Entirely possible, then, to drive cross-country without hotels, just sleeping bags with showers at the RV parks. Not exactly the Ritz, but perfectly manageable.

 

[VolkerP]

@Robert So that means factory delivery for you? :biggrin:

 

[dadaleus]

That's great news, @dadaleus. Entirely possible, then, to drive cross-country without hotels, just sleeping bags with showers at the RV parks. Not exactly the Ritz, but perfectly manageable.

Ummm.... Yea... Sure! Should work but I'll let you be the one to test it out Robert.

 

[widodh]

We are sitting in our model S with the heater going, the heated seats on, and our phones charging all while charging the car over J1772. So YES, you can charge while the car is "on"!

Is there any indication that you are slowing the charge? With that I mean, is the info screen telling you anything about the power you are drawing with that?

Obviously you charge is going slower, since you are drawing power from the system while charging, but I'm just wondering if it's showing you how much.

 

[dsm363]

Could have movie night while camping (Who Killed the Electric Car and Revenge of the Electric Car). Great idea to rent a camping space at an RV park and sleep in the back.

 

[W.Petefish]

Could could have movie night while camping (Who Killed the Electric Car and Revenge of the Electric Car). Great idea to rent a camping space at an RV park and sleep in the back.

+1 and a couple of others too.

 

[jerry33]

Could have movie night while camping (Who Killed the Electric Car and Revenge of the Electric Car). Great idea to rent a camping space at an RV park and sleep in the back.

+1 That's my plan too.

 

[dadaleus]

Is there any indication that you are slowing the charge? With that I mean, is the info screen telling you anything about the power you are drawing with that?

Obviously you charge is going slower, since you are drawing power from the system while charging, but I'm just wondering if it's showing you how much.

I couldn't tell. I saw no indication that it was slowing it down. I'm not electrical wiz, so I don't know how much relative power it takes to keep the cabin comfortable vs. the charge.

 

[Todd Burch]

Could have movie night while camping (Who Killed the Electric Car and Revenge of the Electric Car). Great idea to rent a camping space at an RV park and sleep in the back.

It would be nice to have movie night playing a movie directly on the touchscreen...but that's another topic .