Dulles Airport EV Charging

[Max*]

At one point, I thought I heard that they were going to put some charging connections at the TyCo Service Center where you could grab a charge, if needed. If Tesla installed a few chargers at the service center and they were available 24/7, that wouldn't be a bad alternative, as TyCo isn't too far from Dulles.

You could go to the Tysons showroom and get a charge (less than a mile from Tyco), but it's also hit or miss.

There's usually a bunch of Tesla's parked there (the handful of times I've been), and the only parking spaces I've gotten were next to the NEMA 14-50's (I think they have HPWC also).

 

[paulkva]

You could go to the Tysons showroom and get a charge (less than a mile from Tyco), but it's also hit or miss.

There's usually a bunch of Tesla's parked there (the handful of times I've been), and the only parking spaces I've gotten were next to the NEMA 14-50's (I think they have HPWC also).

I imagine if you *need* a charge and they're open, they'd be happy to free up a plug for you if you call ahead. Though I've never needed it so I can't say for sure. I also wonder if you ask during service hours whether they'd supercharge your car for you. (They have a supercharger, just not open to the public.)

 

[AMPUP]

Yes 3 Teslas not even plugged in. One parked head first!

My car is parked on the other side of the garage now with 44 miles of range and 160 miles to get back home. Hopefully there'll be enough range left to limp over to the Woodbridge SC which, at best, will add a couple of hours on to the jet lagged trip back home.

I work at one of the three building by the parking garage, I do travel quite a bit and leave my tesla in the underground of my building plugged in, so don't have this issue as I have a spot with a 110v outlet.

However, if anyone ever gets in a bind pm me and I'll help out if I'm not traveling. There are also quite a few chargers around Dulles(check out on plugshare) you could always leave the car at one of these and uber to the airport.

 

[LetsGoFast]

I have to get my TSA interview for Global Entry on my way through at Dulles next Sunday afternoon. If I skip Newark and Bethesda, I will have enough range to make it to the airport, but not to get the rest of the way to Woodbridge without a charge. The L2 charge would absolutely get it done and the 120v might even work depending on how slow they are in processing me and how efficiently I can drive. If it doesn't work, I can always backtrack to Bethesda afterwards. Does anyone want to guess what the odds are that there will be an open charger? Right now, chargepoint says they are all in use and PlugShare has a lot of older comments about all the chargers being full. However, Sunday afternoon might be a slow time, I'd guess.

 

[andrewket]

You may have a chance on a Sunday. It's been years since I had my global entry interview, but my recollection was that it was very quick. You may not be there very long.

There is a Chademo charger near route 50 and 28 which may not be a bad option for you on the way out.

 

[AMPUP]

I have to get my TSA interview for Global Entry on my way through at Dulles next Sunday afternoon. If I skip Newark and Bethesda, I will have enough range to make it to the airport, but not to get the rest of the way to Woodbridge without a charge. The L2 charge would absolutely get it done and the 120v might even work depending on how slow they are in processing me and how efficiently I can drive. If it doesn't work, I can always backtrack to Bethesda afterwards. Does anyone want to guess what the odds are that there will be an open charger? Right now, chargepoint says they are all in use and PlugShare has a lot of older comments about all the chargers being full. However, Sunday afternoon might be a slow time, I'd guess.

I would hit Dulles corner (just outside the airport, there is a free level2 there) it's also free parking, so you could park there and then uberx to the airport which would most likely be cheaper than the airport parking anyway. There are a few around Dulles, so I think that may be a better plan than the actual parking garage at the airport.

 

[Walker34]

From Dulles corner you could also walk a block and get on the hotel shuttle at the Sheraton.

 

[LetsGoFast]

Thanks for the tips. I'll see how I'm doing on electrons and make a decision on the fly, but the Dulles Corner option seems like a good one -- I know UberX guys tend to hang out around the airport anyhow.

 

[LetsGoFast]

Worked out great for me. I got the last space, did L2 charging for about 45 minutes and somehow was only charged $6. Made it to Woodbridge with 7% left. Most of the spaces were occupied by cars that weren't plugged in at all, which seems quite lame.

 

[Lanny]

Most of the spaces were occupied by cars that weren't plugged in at all, which seems quite lame.

Is it very common to find cars parked at the charging stations in the IAD garage that are not plugged in? ICE or EVs?

Is there a plausible explanation for the non-plugged EVs such as they have an "OK TO UNPLUG" note on the dash and someone had swapped the connector with permission?

Lanny

 

[JST]

Is it very common to find cars parked at the charging stations in the IAD garage that are not plugged in? ICE or EVs?

Is there a plausible explanation for the non-plugged EVs such as they have an "OK TO UNPLUG" note on the dash and someone had swapped the connector with permission?

Lanny

I don't fly through IAD that often, but I've noticed this. Often it's Volts. The problem with the IAD chargers is that they are right by the walkway--probably some of the best parking spots at the airport. People with plausible EV claims are likely to park there even if they don't need a charge.

The other thing about IAD, if memory serves, is that there are twice as many spots as there are J1772 charging cables.

 

[Lanny]

Yes, there are two parking spots for each J-1772 connector, however, there is also a NEMA 5-20 outlet under the door at each station.

 

[DFibRL8R]

I added a new location for Daily garage 1 on Plugshare with photos. They are 120v outlets (NEMA 5-20 style) and seem to be located on several of the support columns on the lower level that are painted red. These seem like a great alternative to the overcrowded EV spots in Daily Garage 2. Would be nice to have these turned into reserved EV parking spaces. As you can see I was (barely) able to reach with the UMC without an extension cord from the space that happened to be open.

Dulles Daily Garage #1 | Sterling, VA | Electric Car Charging Station | PlugShare

 

[pakman00]

Hope you don't mind me reviving an old post. May have an upcoming trip to Dulles with our soon to be delivered Model X. How's the situation at Garage 2 lately? Still overcrowded? I think we should have enough to do a round trip safely from the last SC on our way in, but as we will likely need to stay at the terminal for a couple hours to make sure a relative gets on their plane safely, we'd like to use the down time to top up if possible while at the airport.

 

[MacGreiner]

I often fly out of IAD and I have never seen a charger at garage 2 free. Lots of non-charging PIHs taking up room, but never a free spot. Never seen any tows there either so I'm not sure if enforcement is going on.

 

[CatB]

I just charged at IAD. Arrived just before 6am on Friday morning for my 7am flight out to TMC Connect. There were a few spots open, but some of the EV charging stations were out of order. I was able to plug in. When I arrived this morning (also just around 6am), no spots available.

I love DFibRL8R's idea. I don't like leaving my UMC unsecured though (I've seen some creative ideas like "coil up an extension cord and a piece of your UMC cable and drive over it so that a thief would have to jack up your car to steal it" that I'm not crazy about). I wish someone would produce a cheap, simple Level1 J1772 station that could be attached to these columns to create more options...

 

[pakman00]

MacGreiner/ CatB, thanks for the quick feedback.

 

[DFibRL8R]

I just charged at IAD. Arrived just before 6am on Friday morning for my 7am flight out to TMC Connect. There were a few spots open, but some of the EV charging stations were out of order. I was able to plug in. When I arrived this morning (also just around 6am), no spots available.

I love DFibRL8R's idea. I don't like leaving my UMC unsecured though (I've seen some creative ideas like "coil up an extension cord and a piece of your UMC cable and drive over it so that a thief would have to jack up your car to steal it" that I'm not crazy about). I wish someone would produce a cheap, simple Level1 J1772 station that could be attached to these columns to create more options...

The UMC is locked into the car's charge port unless you have the key fob or unlock it via the app. So the only piece that could easily be taken is the $45 adapter.

 

[CatB]

You're right. Plus potentially the extension cord if you used one.

And yet, I vaguely recall a picture where someone rolled down their window and put most of the UMC in the car with only the charging connector hanging out, and then mostly rolled the window up. I think that must have been before we figured out that the car locks the UMC in.

Thanks for the correction, I completely forgot that very important piece of information. I wonder if it was always that way, because I also vaguely remember some very old conversations around people getting unplugged when they didn't stay with their car getting supercharged and then they got bounced down to lower current flow (As the second to plug in). And I know that's not possible now. Gosh, I must officially be an old-timer now...

 

[svp6]

Why in the world do they need higher power chargers in airports? I would settle for plain 110V / 15 A, but they should be widely available. If I fly is generally for more than 24 hours, sometimes up to a week - plenty of time to recharge even at lowest speed.