European Road trip (Feb 2022)

[adl999]

I am halfway through my first M3LR ( Dec 2021 delivery) trip from London to Hamburg and thought I would share my experiences so far.

1) Eurotunnel - you’re automatically assigned a LARGE coach - just follow the signs to the left of customs and you get in a single deck transporter

2) TACC / auto steer / lane assist - works just as in the UK. (Similar issues to wrong speed limits being recognised) But I found on German Autobahns it disables at 150 km/ hr (120 mph) you can go faster but have to have press the accelerator

3) Superchargers - i got an earlier departure from Folkestone so just a few mins to charge but I had enough to get me to Brugge : Bruges

A) Bruges - just off the motorway - looks like an expensive hotel entrance / exit is just right from the road and not wide enough for two cars tried to use at the same time - the receptionist gave me a strange look when I asked if I had to register my number plate! I would use that again. Cost €0.35 / kWh

B) Eindhoven - car park with barriers you take a ticket when you enter but (I enquired) no fee for up to 3 hrs - you can drive out and barrier rises automatically. All the Tesla chargers are on the right as you go through the barriers but first entrance is meant to be no entry so drive to the next right tur and go around. The parking space are stupidly short so most cars push out into the carriageway which makes manoeuvring into the spaces very tight. This was very busy with just a few bays available despite the navigation showing 20 free spaces. This place also has just V2 chargers so charging is shared between adjacent cars so a very slow charge. The first charger I tried didn’t give any charge at all so move along and started getting a charge which took me about 40 mins to drive off.
C) Oberhausen-nice brand new supercharger site not the maps but it is next to the new TopGolf building. No issues except my battery hadn’t prewarmed as I stayed overnight nearby and decided to depart early. €0.45 per KWh
D) Lohne - just off the motorway a mix of v2 and V3 chargers - I programmed this stop in and prewarmed the battery but got the same charging speed from both. €0.45/kWh

D) local hotel destination charger near Hamburg - working and charging me
€2 per 5 kWh so slightly cheaper than the superchargers

I hope this is helpful and sorry if it repeats what has been said before. If useful I will update for my return journey!

 

[NewbieT]

That over night hotel charging thing is a big issue here but I guess abroad too. Makes a difference starting full in the morning. I always leave hotels feedback on their forms about charging. Good when they have it and bad when they don’t. I plan my hotels with adjacent charging now but I see this being harder as more EVs are bought and not easier as hotels install charge points in small numbers.

Keep us posted.

 

[Mr H]

I’m going to Hamburg in July, still have over 2k of free miles to use up…

 

[Adopado]

Since when was 150km/hr equal to 120mph!!?

 

[adl999]

Since when was 150km/hr equal to 120mph!!?

Sorry - I meant 93 mph!

 

[UkNorthampton]

I found that in some parts of Europe, when Supercharging at a hotel, you go in to the hotel and you get a free coffee - I even got a cake and coffee once. Another hotel's location, menu and staff were so nice we just decided to stop for the night. I really think some hotels, restaurants and retail are missing a trick by being penny-pinching, unpleasant about parking when they should look at the opportunities from road-tripping holiday-mode or expensed road-warrior customers.

 

[adl999]

Part 2 - Return Journey

I used most of the same chargers on the return:

1) Oberhausen - as before

2) Moers (DE) which is at the Van Der Walk hotel. The navigation takes you to the entrance, but you have to turn hard left to get to the hotel or you end up in a residential street. Chargers are at the far end of the car park. Only 3 others there on the 12 chargers. €0.45/kwh

3) Eindhoven (NL) the barriers opened automatically this time, no need to get out and take the piece of paper. Still busy but more free bays, so managed to 'socially distance' the car to get a reasonable charge. I did spot another Tesla driver reverse up on the wrong side of the small hedge and attempt to charge up his Model S with the unused cable from a V2 charger that was already in use - he failed and left the cable in the mud.

4) Brugge / Bruges (BE) - as before. Asked the receptionist if I could use the toilet and it was allowed (under the current Corona restrictions).

5) Eurotunnel Terminal (FR) - the chargers are on the right immediately as you enter the waiting area - I had another car impatiently trying to get passed as I reversed in to the charger and almost clipped his front bumper.. I only had a few minutes to charge as I got an earlier departure - the Eurotunnel checkin diplays only your booked departure and the next available, which could be just 30 minutes away, so might not allow time for a reasonable charge. €0.42/kwh

 

[RichardTheKing]

Part 2 - Return Journey

I used most of the same chargers on the return:

1) Oberhausen - as before

2) Moers (DE) which is at the Van Der Walk hotel. The navigation takes you to the entrance, but you have to turn hard left to get to the hotel or you end up in a residential street. Chargers are at the far end of the car park. Only 3 others there on the 12 chargers. €0.45/kwh

3) Eindhoven (NL) the barriers opened automatically this time, no need to get out and take the piece of paper. Still busy but more free bays, so managed to 'socially distance' the car to get a reasonable charge. I did spot another Tesla driver reverse up on the wrong side of the small hedge and attempt to charge up his Model S with the unused cable from a V2 charger that was already in use - he failed and left the cable in the mud.

4) Brugge / Bruges (BE) - as before. Asked the receptionist if I could use the toilet and it was allowed (under the current Corona restrictions).

5) Eurotunnel Terminal (FR) - the chargers are on the right immediately as you enter the waiting area - I had another car impatiently trying to get passed as I reversed in to the charger and almost clipped his front bumper.. I only had a few minutes to charge as I got an earlier departure - the Eurotunnel checkin diplays only your booked departure and the next available, which could be just 30 minutes away, so might not allow time for a reasonable charge. €0.42/kwh

Did the headlights adjust automatically or do you still need stickers?

 

[Morhydro]

Just drove from Edinburgh to Innsbruck (Austria). Simply no problem at all. SuperChargers everywhere. One even had 53 free stalls. Used one non-Tesla charger although I did not need to but stopped for coffee and it was at the service station (6 x 300kW chargers).

According to the Tesla manual you do not have to adjust the lights or put a sticker on them. Not done much of the trip at night though but what I did no-one flashed at me.

 

[RichardTheKing]

Just drove from Edinburgh to Innsbruck (Austria). Simply no problem at all. SuperChargers everywhere. One even had 53 free stalls. Used one non-Tesla charger although I did not need to but stopped for coffee and it was at the service station (6 x 300kW chargers).

According to the Tesla manual you do not have to adjust the lights or put a sticker on them. Not done much of the trip at night though but what I did no-one flashed at me.

Excellent, thanks for the info

 

[Mr H]

Just drove from Edinburgh to Innsbruck (Austria). Simply no problem at all. SuperChargers everywhere. One even had 53 free stalls. Used one non-Tesla charger although I did not need to but stopped for coffee and it was at the service station (6 x 300kW chargers).

According to the Tesla manual you do not have to adjust the lights or put a sticker on them. Not done much of the trip at night though but what I did no-one flashed at me.

What are the entry requirements for Austria, we're both triple jabbed. Do you still need a test?? Thanks

 

[adl999]

Did the headlights adjust automatically or do you still need stickers?

That's a good point - no they did not - or if they did, it was not sufficient. I read the other posts on this and the owner's manual, which states:

Headlights do not require adjustments when temporarily driving into a region where the traffic direction is different (for example, driving in right-hand traffic region, and then driving into a region with left-hand traffic).

Based on that I did not put any stickers on.

I noticed that there was a significant bias of the lights to the left side, and I kept getting flashed by oncoming drivers - it wasn't a problem on dual carriageways, but happened a few times on single carriageway local roads.

 

[dobbers]

Thanks for the info. Going to Berlin later in the year so useful stuff. Did you have any backup cards for paying for charging beyond supercharger network or did you plan to use regular UK bank card for payment? Are there any extra items you had for the trip that you would not normally have for a UK trip? What breakdown cover did you get?

dobbers

 

[RichardTheKing]

Another question, I am living in UK and I spend 4 to 6 month in France. When I will receive my MY next Saturday, I will setup the payment for the supercharger with my British direct debit card. I would like when I am in France Tesla to use my French direct debit card. Is that possible for the Tesla systems to use the UK one when I am in UK and the French one when I am in France?

 

[Mr H]

Thanks for the info. Going to Berlin later in the year so useful stuff. Did you have any backup cards for paying for charging beyond supercharger network or did you plan to use regular UK bank card for payment? Are there any extra items you had for the trip that you would not normally have for a UK trip? What breakdown cover did you get?

dobbers

Keep your eye out for Lidl and Aldi stores as lots of them have a free 50kw triple charger

 

[Mr H]

Another question, I am living in UK and I spend 4 to 6 month in France. When I will receive my MY next Saturday, I will setup the payment for the supercharger with my British direct debit card. I would like when I am in France Tesla to use my French direct debit card. Is that possible for the Tesla systems to use the UK one when I am in UK and the French one when I am in France?

I don't think it matters as long as there is a payment method registered

 

[adl999]

Thanks for the info. Going to Berlin later in the year so useful stuff. Did you have any backup cards for paying for charging beyond supercharger network or did you plan to use regular UK bank card for payment? Are there any extra items you had for the trip that you would not normally have for a UK trip? What breakdown cover did you get?

dobbers

I planned the trip using ABRP and stuck to the SuperChargers, which were well positioned along the route. I did sign up for a Plugsurfing tag just to use as a backup, but didn't need it.

The only extras I carried were a fire extinguisher and two breathalyser tests (which are required for France) and a spare bulb kit left over from my previous car (you can't change the bulbs on a Tesla, but are still required to carry spares). The other mandatory items, hi-viz vests (one of which needs to be carried in the cab), breakdown triangle and first aid kit come in the car in the Tesla bag in the frunk.

I took out AA European Breakdown cover - they quoted £40 for a week, or £100 for a year.

 

[Mr H]

Don't bother with the breathalysers, yes there is a requirement to carry them (although it does seem the law was scrapped completely in 2020) but there is no penalty in not doing so as the law was never finalised, and at the time they cost 20 euro but the proposed fine was only 11 euro lol. It was a backhander at the time in government.

France Breathalyzer law, do you need them?

France Breathalyser Law, do I need to take a breathalyser kit to France?

www.drive-france.com

 

[adl999]

I don't think it matters as long as there is a payment method registered

I tried adding a secondary card on my Tesla account, but it only accepts one and did not save the previous card details. Tesla charge in the local currency of the charger, so use a card that has no foreign exchange fees.

 

[RichardTheKing]

Don't bother with the breathalysers, yes there is a requirement to carry them (although it does seem the law was scrapped completely in 2020) but there is no penalty in not doing so as the law was never finalised, and at the time they cost 20 euro but the proposed fine was only 11 euro lol. It was a backhander at the time in government.

France Breathalyzer law, do you need them?

France Breathalyser Law, do I need to take a breathalyser kit to France?

www.drive-france.com

They cost around 2 euro in any French supermarché like Auchan, Carrefour, Leclerc, super U or other. Forgot what can say the law, they can be useful if you have drunk a little bit and you are not sure if you can take the road. This can save your life and Life of other. I have few in my car, never use them, but we never know...