Full up during Memorial weekend. I got 110 KW initially upon arriving, but declined to 40 KW due to heat. Switched to a cool plug and returned to 80 KW so definitely heat-related. After that the station filled up. On Monday there were only 3 of 5 filled, but still heat-related slowing since it was 95F. Crazy traffic westbound on Monday which I thankfully waved at while speeding along eastward
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Is this the first time a WA supercharger has been completely full? I'm not counting Tesla meet ups, but rather when it happens "naturally" like the first or last day of a 3-day weekend.
I don't look at it in my car nav every day or anything but I have noticed Centralia being busier lately. The last couple times I was there it was half full and it wasn't a holiday or weekend or anything. Just evening time on a week night. Of course, it's rather pathetic that it's the only supercharger between Seattle and Portland, therefore absolutely every Tesla making that common drive needs to use it.
I don't look at it in my car nav every day or anything but I have noticed Centralia being busier lately. The last couple times I was there it was half full and it wasn't a holiday or weekend or anything. Just evening time on a week night. Of course, it's rather pathetic that it's the only supercharger between Seattle and Portland, therefore absolutely every Tesla making that common drive needs to use it.
rpo
Member
No. In fact, I have waited at the supercharger in Ellensburg on numerous occasions over the past 2.5 years.
This is the busiest I've seen. ICEing is/was more common, especially in the early AM hours during summer. I don't arrive before 10am any more. Last summer I arrived around 9am to find 3 Teslas (2 charging and one waiting) and 4 out of 5 spots ICED. Yes, I know the math doesn't add up. One Tesla was angle backed into an ICEd pull-in stall. The late night arrivals to the hotel tend to ICE the spots since the parking lot is full. Then these folks don't wake up very early. We all complained to the hotel and Tesla, but they weren't willing to do much. Eventually two bleary-eyed drivers arrived and moved their vehicles. Tesla plans to upgrade to more SCs in Ellensburg, and certainly not at this location due to the crowding. Hopefully, they will add 8 SCs at the western exit and leave these 5 in place.
Loose sign blowing in the wind on 3A. Don't back in too far. If anyone has a wrench, please give the bolts a quick tightening. It looks like 1/2".
I have seen the Burlington SC full of Teslas, no ICE's and as I pulled out of a stall another Tesla arrived to take my spot.
StaticDischarge
Utterly Unknown....
On the way to the eclipse, Sunday around 12:30p, we got the last empty stall. One or two cars left shortly after that. No line. Returning on Monday around 4:30p, again got the last stall. Only one other car when we left.
geoc
Member
Saturday 80F going EAST around 9AM I was the only one there. The pull forward stall was ice'd by a general contractor. Got 100+kW at ~50% normal taper to 88kW ~65%
Monday 90+ F going WEST around 6PM ALL stalls were occupied, waited for ~10 minutes. Pulling 30kW for 15 minutes as leftover juice from the paired stall, then was able to pull 75kW from 50% upwards.
Charged until enough to get home, then geniuses at WSDOT decided to close Snoqualmie Pass for ROCK BLASTING on the busiest travel day in recent memories... Took me in all 10 hours from Huntington, OR to Redmond.
Live supercharger status is still messed up?
Monday 90+ F going WEST around 6PM ALL stalls were occupied, waited for ~10 minutes. Pulling 30kW for 15 minutes as leftover juice from the paired stall, then was able to pull 75kW from 50% upwards.
Charged until enough to get home, then geniuses at WSDOT decided to close Snoqualmie Pass for ROCK BLASTING on the busiest travel day in recent memories... Took me in all 10 hours from Huntington, OR to Redmond.
Live supercharger status is still messed up?
Friday morning I flew out to Seattle to pick up my new S and Ellensburg was my first stop on the way home. I arrived to find all stall occupied except one with the two cones in it. I guess the two cones in that stall meant that it was inoperable as I tried multiple times with only errors. I called the Tesla 800 number and requested a call back (which I never received!). At this point I was waiting for a stall to open and someone else had just shown up to also charge. About ten minutes after arrival someone left and I was able to charge. Charge rates seemed as to be expected. Everyone thought it was weird to see Ellensburg so busy.
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While not CA-style full, we really need EIGHT stalls that are available and not ICED. This SC and The Dalles, OR are often blocked or in use. This can't come fast enough. Other SCs around Seattle are at least eight (Burlington) or more. Unfortunately, The Dalles and Ellensburg are both early installs and before Tesla realized that, yes, many people want to leave the big cities and travel east.
I've noticed all the 2017 superchargers are 8 or more stalls so they are at least preparing for the future. We are already seeing problems at even the rural 4-stall locations. Unfortunately there is not much room to expand at the Dalles and Ellensburg locations. Last time at the Dalles, I put a cone on the hood of an ICEr lol.
I already use the CHAdeMO in Hood River instead of, or in addition to The Dalles because the location is so much better. It's right across the street from Full Sail Brewery. Mmmmmm.
Put a supercharger in Moses Lake and it would reduce the need for more stalls in Ellensburg. Al lot of the I-90 Teslas would just skip Ellensburg.
Sorry, that was my first "thumbs down" on TMC. SC need to be at major intersections to be the most use. Ellensburg meets that criteria (or pretty close, as I-82 and I-90 split just outside of town). Without Ellensburg, you cannot make Kennewick from Seattle (or whenever they finally put one there), Arlington, Monroe, Centralia, Burlington, etc. Driving out of the way to Mose Lake is not the answer. The correct answer is to add a 2nd station, eight stall minimum, at Ellensburg, preferably at the W. University exit. Alternatives could be downtown (with incentives from the downtown association or chamber of commerce) or south of I-90 at canyon rd. There are disadvantages to both of these alternatives (1st has power constraints and will require significant utility upgrades and the 2nd only has, well, a truck stop, and no other restaurants, shops, etc. Believe me, I've looked at the alternatives closely and W. University is the best location unless Tesla somehow managed to shoehorn another eight stalls into a parking lot that is constantly ICED. If you've got to have it at Canyon Rd, then farther down behind Burger King, McDonalds, maybe even across from the GM dealership, might work, but without purchasing and constructing on new land, those places are pretty constrained as well.
goneskiian
Active Member
Or maybe add a Supercharger in Yakima. Then again, neither my back or bladder are going to make it from Seattle to Moses Lake or Yakima. Heck, Ellensburg is already a stretch as I'm ready to stop at the Indian John Hill rest area!
Sorry. Oops, I must have read that into the post. Unfortunately, this still doesn't alleviate ICEing in Ellensburg. From Kennewick, travel to the Seattle area requires Ellensburg (yes, it IS uphill, against the wind, and we do get below zero temperature) and with the M3, there will be even more need. Adding Snoqualmie or Moses Lake, while useful, are not as well situated as EBurg. I've been traveling between the Tri-Cities and Seattle for over 50 years and almost always stop in EBurg, unless bringing my own food and stopping at Rye Grass or Indian John rest areas.
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