Exciting Charging Announcement Speculation

[Tommy]

I am thinking Tesla will choose Outlet Malls as the location to put their chargers. There is shopping and eating and one can easily spend an hour doing these activities. They tend to be between major cities and are not a one brand type of location, nor are the centers owned by just one company. I think this diversity is important. Here is a site that lists Outlet Malls by state. http://www.outletbound.com/cgi-bin/indexob.cgi

 

[engle]

I am thinking Tesla will choose Outlet Malls as the location to put their chargers. There is shopping and eating and one can easily spend an hour doing these activities. They tend to be between major cities and are not a one brand type of location, nor are the centers owned by just one company. I think this diversity is important. Here is a site that lists Outlet Malls by state. http://www.outletbound.com/cgi-bin/indexob.cgi

The outlet malls are a great idea, IMHO, Tommy. They are ubiquitous and always right off the interstate exit. Outlet mall owner REITs should give free parking spaces and electricity to Tesla, in return for attracting the upscale Tesla vehicle owners to spend $$ in these places and eat there, etc. Would be nice if some chargers are at upscale places, too, e.g. Santana Row, for those so inclined.

 

[dsm363]

Museums, Parks, Movie theaters, and any other locations that a visitor could kill some time at. Tesla should also me sure to include level 2 chargers at the charging stations so us 20 kWh folks are not left out in the cold completely.

I spoke with someone at Tesla who said the charging sites would have 2 DC fast charging connectors and a level 2 charger. We'll see how accurate that is though. If that's true, that would be great. If you knew you were going to be there for awhile, you could use the 80A source or if you had a 40 kWh Model S, you could still charge at 40A.

 

[vfx]

To add:

Fed-Ex stores, train and bus stations, airports and national and state parks. Wineries and Casinos.

Fed-Ex 'cause the CEO is pro EVs
Transportation sites cause you deliver people to travel.
Wineries because they have huge power in the parking lots
Casinos because a car charging would be a blip on their power bill
Parks because they are usually far away from everything.

 

[Norbert]

I spoke with someone at Tesla who said the charging sites would have 2 DC fast charging connectors and a level 2 charger. We'll see how accurate that is though. If that's true, that would be great.

Yes, that sounds good.

As I said elsewhere, I think the best places are parking lots/garages near those city-center-like restaurant/cafe/boutique intensive areas close to highways. For example in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara, the freeway makes a curve around downtown (and I've often seen similar situations all over CA). You can get off the freeway at one exit, drive through those restaurant/cafe/bookshop/movie-theatre intensive streets, and get back on the freeway almost just at the other end, at the next exit. It's almost like taking a short cut, except you have to slow down.

(However, I don't like what's usually called a "shopping mall", for stopping, in general, unless you need something from the supermarket. Also, they are usually deserted after 8/9 pm.)

 

[NigelM]

Wineries and Casinos.

Anyone else feel an intervention coming on?

 

[bonnie]

why would you think an intervention was necessary - that sounds like a great idea!

 

[brianman]

Wineries and Casinos.

Anyone else feel an intervention coming on?

This is another argument for implants rather than keyfob. Harder to bet your car at the roulette table...

 

[NigelM]

Whoa. Just noticed this:

Spending way too much time on here...perhaps I need an intervention?:scared:

(Sorry for going off topic!)

 

[Norbert]

Spending way too much time on here...perhaps I need an intervention?:scared:

<---- Posts: 2081

Yeah, looks like you are catching up with me...

(Sorry for going off topic as well!)

 

[SByer]

Mmm, wineries! It takes at least 45 minutes to properly taste, and it would be so cool to do a whole tasting trip up and down the state without worry!

I would never stop at a gas station - stinky, yucky places they are. Or rest stops - not enough to do for long enough. Same with Starbucks (not to mention I'd much rather get good coffee at Peet's).

At an eating chain that has proper place of presence along interstates in a particular region (but not, y'know, burger or other junk food places). I could see Cracker Barrel in the southeast, but not In'n'out here. There aren't any chain restaurants along interstates with enough class, really, IMO.

One you missed was kitschy tourist traps - tree tunnel, world's largest sauce pan, that kind of place... where if you're doing a proper road trip, you'd stop. Like the Sundial Bridge in Redding, or Hearst castle, or water parks.

Or state parks, if there would be some way of structuring it so that it would help keep the parks open.

 

[vfx]

Sad to say one of the DC Fast Chargers is in front of a Mc Donalds.

 

[engle]

Sad to say one of the DC Fast Chargers is in front of a Mc Donalds.

McD's food used to be just garbage IMHO, but more recently they added some "healthier" choices. I never go near these places, but it's one of my favorite Dividend Aristocrats, since millions of people worldwide seem to be addicted to their offerings.

I hope there will be cool app that uses the car's GPS & NAV to show you where all of your DC and slow chargers are located *and* if they are being used (red) or available (green). A way to reserve one when within X miles/km of it would be great, too, for a small fee. It would be very frustrating to arrive at a DC charger expecting to be there for a 1/2 hour or so to find that it is being used and another vehicle is waiting for it!

The app should communicate with your turn-by-turn NAV to know your path, and your charge remaining to propose where it makes sense to stop to supercharge.

 

[strider]

Sad to say one of the DC Fast Chargers is in front of a Mc Donalds.

Well, if you have small children and they have a playground you could easily kill 45 minutes. Get everyone through the restroom, order, eat, play, restroom again, and you're off.

 

[spatterso911]

Well, if you have small children and they have a playground you could easily kill 45 minutes. Get everyone through the restroom, order, eat, play, restroom again, and you're off.

That is a novel idea. I often wondered how Tesla would conspire to distract people along the supercharger network, and restaurants and places with child play areas are certainly effective in making the time really pass.

 

[dsm363]

There's also been a fair amount of discussion here
Tesla DC charging network

I'm pretty excited. When they say things like 'this is going to be big' and such, I hope it just isn't a few chargers on the east and west coasts.

 

[Botbldr45]

:biggrin:My vote is for Shopping Malls ..... At least get some walking or gawking done!

 

[ViperDoc]

My guesses are:

1. Map of a USA fast-charging network along the Interstate Highway System with rollout plans -- "range anxiety solved!" :biggrin: Hopefully, in partnership with other auto manufacturers to share installation cost. Or, perhaps Tesla partners with Starbucks (or similar) in key locations near said interstates to provide the parking spaces? (Just brain-storming here).
2. They figured out a way to DC charge even faster.
3. They figured out a way to charge the 40 KWh battery without degradation.
4. They will have an adapter for the new standard fast charging interface all the majors agreed on recently (leaving out the Leaf and Tesla's proprietary ones).

My hope is all 4 are true, but we'll have to wait and see. Maybe it will be a classic Jobsian-style: "Oh... One more thing..." from Elon?

Sure is a very exciting time for us Model S evangelists, reservationists, stockholders, etc. between now and August 1st! :biggrin: It's "Tesla Fever Time"!!

Of course the announcement I want is that the have an "upgrade" for the Roadster to retrofit the fast charge system that will be in my Model S. I want to be able to take my "fun" car for a long trip, not just the "family" car!

 

[vfx]

...

I hope there will be cool app that uses the car's GPS & NAV to show you where all of your DC and slow chargers are located *and* if they are being used (red) or available (green). ....

And a circle on the map showing your driving range. The McD charger may well have other eating nearby.

Here is the HPC in Barstow CA (not supercharger).

There is a Starbucks, Popey's and a few other non chain eateries nearby as well.

 

[mklcolvin]

How about locating some in front of bookstores? Wait, they DO still exist, right? :smile: