Electricity 101 Course...

[CHG-ON]

Great comments guys. Many thanks. But I'm still confused. I would think that Tesla could come up with an algorithm that could could give a few scenarios of range: based on total user history over the LT; based on a common and typical trip, such as daily commute (could be geo and nav based); based on recent avg, such as during a trip; and lastly, based on a shorter term avg, such as when sport driving. Those would be quite useful for me. Of course, My ICE has never done this, but this is a new concept. So I think more tools will help users to acclimate. Of course, after some time, I expect that I will get the feel for it, as I have with my ICE.

 

[brianman]

I would think that Tesla could come up with an algorithm that could could give a few scenarios of range: based on total user history over the LT; based on a common and typical trip, such as daily commute (could be geo and nav based); based on recent avg, such as during a trip; and lastly, based on a shorter term avg, such as when sport driving. Those would be quite useful for me.

Firstly, I completely agree. This should be a core competency for Tesla and they should be nailing it, leading the way in this area showing everyone how it should be done in the EV era. Unfortunately, I think they've dropped the ball on this one so far.

That said, in the earlier firmware (including the one that came with my car at delivery) they had Projected range in the UI instead of Rated. Projected was based on your driving history (either 15mi or 30mi, I forget). I miss projected. I miss it every day I drive the car. I wish Tesla would bring it back. It's the only feature where I think they've taken a step backwards with no step forward to replace it.

 

[Electric700]

I've found the following numbers to be reasonable for energy vs Rated Miles in my P85 sig with an A battery. Of course, your mileage may vary. Also, remember any energy use while the car is not on, is not calculated or displayed; this includes things like vampire loss and pre-heating/cooling the car.

• 290 Wh/mi for using Rated Miles from the battery.
• 300 Wh/mi for putting Rated Miles into the battery with DC from a Supercharger. This corresponds to about a 3.3% charge/discharge loss. 290/96.7% is about 300 Wh/mi.
• 333 Wh/mi for Rated Miles into the battery from an AC source. This corresponds to 90% conversion efficiency from AC to DC. 300/90% is about 333 Wh/mi.

So I may have been about 1% or 2% off in my Supercharging efficiency calculations, but at least it's close. Thanks for that.

 

[Electroman]

I think all EV manufacturers including Nissan, Tesla, GM and BMW are a bit less then honest when they mention a battery capacity of 24 or 85 or 16 Kwh.

Because at the end the usable capacity is what matters and should be in the specs. How does it matter how large the buffer is and how large the battery is, when at the end I the day we are doing guess work of what the usable capacity is.

 

[Seattle]

I think all EV manufacturers including Nissan, Tesla, GM and BMW are a bit less then honest when they mention a battery capacity of 24 or 85 or 16 Kwh.

Because at the end the usable capacity is what matters and should be in the specs. How does it matter how large the buffer is and how large the battery is, when at the end I the day we are doing guess work of what the usable capacity is.

It's really noticeable in a Tesla how much capacity a tesla has, since we get a pretty clear measure. Did you ever think about that in a gas car, can you actually drain the tank completely dry? I always figured there might be a little fluid left in their because the drain wasn't at the bottom or something.

 

[shelbri]

That said, in the earlier firmware (including the one that came with my car at delivery) they had Projected range in the UI instead of Rated. Projected was based on your driving history (either 15mi or 30mi, I forget). I miss projected. I miss it every day I drive the car. I wish Tesla would bring it back. It's the only feature where I think they've taken a step backwards with no step forward to replace it.

Unless I am missing something, Projected Range is available in the Energy app. You can select Instant or Average over 5, 15 or 30 miles based on your specific driving.

 

[Cottonwood]

Unless I am missing something, Projected Range is available in the Energy app. You can select Instant or Average over 5, 15 or 30 miles based on your specific driving.

It only works if you are driving on reasonably flat ground and the conditions are not changing. It does not do much for us that drive in the mountains.

Here is a 30 mile average of highway driving that is not representative of expected range once I got to the bottom of the hill.

 

[brianman]

Unless I am missing something, Projected Range is available in the Energy app. You can select Instant or Average over 5, 15 or 30 miles based on your specific driving.

I'm talking about the Energy app of old in the instrument cluster. The new one isn't as good in the instrument cluster. Also, the big range number below the speedometer used to show the average projected 15/30 (I forget) range rather than Rated when you chose Projected instead of Ideal. Finally, the instrument cluster wasn't affected by the 5/15/30 setting of the 17" app, nor was it inflicted with the "default to Instant regardless of the user continually setting it back to Average" issue that the new app has for the 17".

- - - Updated - - -

It only works if you are driving on reasonably flat ground and the conditions are not changing. It does not do much for us that drive in the mountains.

I think you were replying to shelbri, but I think it's worth noting anyway.

For hilly (I5 and I90 in WA) and mountainous terrain (Snoqualmie Pass or random mountains I encountered travelling across states), the Projected was still incredibly useful back when. In those scenarios, it would give me a projection base on the hill/mountain I was currently on after a bit. It would also naturally react to the impact of climate. Rated (and definitely Ideal) are absolutely useless for these purposes. "How hungry are you today? Well my nutrionist says I should be exactly __ hungry based on some chart."

"But but the 17 inch..." No. Eyes on the road, or at least as close as I can get to it without a HUD -- the instrument cluster.

Which reminds me: ZOMG somebody make me an aftermarket HUD that can tap into the car info live so that I can keep my eyes on the windshield rather than looking through/over the steering wheel.