Feasibility of Tesla for Job with a lot of miles

[Oh_Henry]

Hello, Everyone

I’m new to this forum, and I joined because I am trying to determine whether a new Model Y Long Range would be feasible as a work vehicle for me. I am in outside sales and cover a territory spanning Illinois and Indiana. I live in the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago and frequently travel to Indianapolis, South Bend, Fort Wayne, Champaign, Peoria, etc. As well as around the Chicagoland area.

I drive about 40-50,000 miles per year and am currently driving a 2014 Toyota 4Runner with 311,000 miles on the ODO. I track my fuel consumption on an app called Fuelly, and over the course of the last 7.5 years, I have spent over $40,000 on gas… While the 4Runner has been a fantastic and reliable vehicle, it is hard to ignore the lack of fuel economy.

I totaled up all maintenance expenses, original vehicle cost, insurance, and fuel, and the 4Runner has a cost of ownership of about $0.38/mile. From videos that I have watched and based on my own projections, I estimate that the Model Y would cost about $0.28-0.32/mile. Over the course of 300,000 miles, that would be a savings of about $18,000 on the low end. (Assuming that the battery can handle it without replacement).

I have been researching the Model Y seriously for a couple of months now, and the vehicle itself can work for what I need. That being said, I have some hesitations mainly surrounding real-life highway range, charging time, and service center convenience in case of emergencies.

i frequently travel to Indianapolis, which is about 230 highway miles door to door. There are several SC stations along my typical route, and a few around the city. Based on some routes I plugged into ABRP, I can charge for about 40 minutes total and visit several customers in a single day. Not dipping below 10% charge and starting with 90%.

That sort of trip isnt every day, but certainly almost weekly. I figure that on average I likely would need to use an SC about 20x per month.

Is this sort of use going to abuse the battery at such a substantial rate that I will see abnormal degradation and range loss? I would be hoping to get about 6-7 years out of the vehicle, and probably 250-300,000 miles

is there anyone else out there who uses their Tesla in this manner? Or are 99.9% of Tesla owners daily commuters who charge at home 99% of the time?

I’m hoping for some insight, because I think the Model Y is a fantastic vehicle and the Auto-Pilot would really improve my long drive safety.

Looking forward to hearing from some of you on the topic. Thanks!

 

[Guppy]

I’m in a very similar work situation as you. Self employed and travel for sales in MI, OH, IN, PA region. Constantly. 1500-2000 miles driven per week. Meaning around 70k+ miles a year. Current vehicle is a BMW 3 series with 325k miles. As much as I love that car, the past few months it’s been in the shop more than on the road, so need something reliable.

I decided 3 years ago that my next vehicle would be an EV, and Tesla is currently the only offering that comes close to meeting my very high mileage needs due to best range and supercharger network.

I should’ve placed the order 6-9 months ago, but have been having the same internal debate. Is charging coverage adequate? Will it really save any money if I’m constantly using super chargers? Will I get frustrated with the additional time if I have to stop to charge every ~200 miles, rather than every 400 like I do now with the ICE (especially in winter!) Am I going to trash the battery after 100k miles and have a huge expense?

I placed an order for a Model 3 LR the other day. For me it came down to my priorities with the purchase of a new car. For me those are (in order)

1. Environmental reasons
2. Performance/comfort on long trips
3. Gas/maintenance savings

My other options were: long term rental (ICE, and will be more expensive than electric with all the fuel), buying some cheap used ICE to run into the ground, or buying a new ICE. The Tesla won for me, on the above criteria.

Luckily for my situation, some of my customers have free charging available on site, so that should help, and there are hotels in the areas I travel with free charging as well. At the end of the day I’m taking a risk that the high level of supercharging may decrease the battery’s life. Haven’t anyone discuss a similar situation to mine online yet (I joke that I’m pretty much a truck driver, except I drive a sedan).

I think the performance, autopilot features, and emissions savings of an EV make it worth taking the risk. And hey, I can deduct the mileage at the end of the year from my business income to save a bit of income tax.

Kinda wish BMW, Mercedes, or Audi had an EV available today with 350+ mi range, as I’m not a huge fan of the Tesla interiors. But Tesla’s the best option available now, and the SC network makes the constant travel appear to be maneagable.

I’m scheduled for December delivery, so will start out with the worst conditions once I get the car. Maybe I’ll report back in Feb-March how things are going

 

[wise82guy]

Some discussion here you may find interesting: Daily / Frequent Supercharging

Seems there is reason to believe daily SuperCharging will harm the battery, but if driving as much as it seems @Oh_Henry and @Guppy drive, arguably worthwhile given other overall value?

 

[Earl]

Supercharging a few times per week won't affect much. I might recommend that the OP go with a Model III instead of a Y though, unless, of course, the business can swing a Model S. Maximizing range is probably going to make the heavy load easier, especially in winter if there's a headwind.
A Y will work fine, however, Supercharging time on those long runs to Indy will be less with more range.

 

[Sans-gas]

Hello, Everyone

I’m new to this forum, and I joined because I am trying to determine whether a new Model Y Long Range would be feasible as a work vehicle for me. I am in outside sales and cover a territory spanning Illinois and Indiana. I live in the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago and frequently travel to Indianapolis, South Bend, Fort Wayne, Champaign, Peoria, etc. As well as around the Chicagoland area.

I drive about 40-50,000 miles per year and am currently driving a 2014 Toyota 4Runner with 311,000 miles on the ODO. I track my fuel consumption on an app called Fuelly, and over the course of the last 7.5 years, I have spent over $40,000 on gas… While the 4Runner has been a fantastic and reliable vehicle, it is hard to ignore the lack of fuel economy.

I totaled up all maintenance expenses, original vehicle cost, insurance, and fuel, and the 4Runner has a cost of ownership of about $0.38/mile. From videos that I have watched and based on my own projections, I estimate that the Model Y would cost about $0.28-0.32/mile. Over the course of 300,000 miles, that would be a savings of about $18,000 on the low end. (Assuming that the battery can handle it without replacement).

I have been researching the Model Y seriously for a couple of months now, and the vehicle itself can work for what I need. That being said, I have some hesitations mainly surrounding real-life highway range, charging time, and service center convenience in case of emergencies.

i frequently travel to Indianapolis, which is about 230 highway miles door to door. There are several SC stations along my typical route, and a few around the city. Based on some routes I plugged into ABRP, I can charge for about 40 minutes total and visit several customers in a single day. Not dipping below 10% charge and starting with 90%.

That sort of trip isnt every day, but certainly almost weekly. I figure that on average I likely would need to use an SC about 20x per month.

Is this sort of use going to abuse the battery at such a substantial rate that I will see abnormal degradation and range loss? I would be hoping to get about 6-7 years out of the vehicle, and probably 250-300,000 miles

is there anyone else out there who uses their Tesla in this manner? Or are 99.9% of Tesla owners daily commuters who charge at home 99% of the time?

I’m hoping for some insight, because I think the Model Y is a fantastic vehicle and the Auto-Pilot would really improve my long drive safety.

Looking forward to hearing from some of you on the topic. Thanks!

 

[Sans-gas]

Hello, Everyone

I’m new to this forum, and I joined because I am trying to determine whether a new Model Y Long Range would be feasible as a work vehicle for me. I am in outside sales and cover a territory spanning Illinois and Indiana. I live in the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago and frequently travel to Indianapolis, South Bend, Fort Wayne, Champaign, Peoria, etc. As well as around the Chicagoland area.

I drive about 40-50,000 miles per year and am currently driving a 2014 Toyota 4Runner with 311,000 miles on the ODO. I track my fuel consumption on an app called Fuelly, and over the course of the last 7.5 years, I have spent over $40,000 on gas… While the 4Runner has been a fantastic and reliable vehicle, it is hard to ignore the lack of fuel economy.

I totaled up all maintenance expenses, original vehicle cost, insurance, and fuel, and the 4Runner has a cost of ownership of about $0.38/mile. From videos that I have watched and based on my own projections, I estimate that the Model Y would cost about $0.28-0.32/mile. Over the course of 300,000 miles, that would be a savings of about $18,000 on the low end. (Assuming that the battery can handle it without replacement).

I have been researching the Model Y seriously for a couple of months now, and the vehicle itself can work for what I need. That being said, I have some hesitations mainly surrounding real-life highway range, charging time, and service center convenience in case of emergencies.

i frequently travel to Indianapolis, which is about 230 highway miles door to door. There are several SC stations along my typical route, and a few around the city. Based on some routes I plugged into ABRP, I can charge for about 40 minutes total and visit several customers in a single day. Not dipping below 10% charge and starting with 90%.

That sort of trip isnt every day, but certainly almost weekly. I figure that on average I likely would need to use an SC about 20x per month.

Is this sort of use going to abuse the battery at such a substantial rate that I will see abnormal degradation and range loss? I would be hoping to get about 6-7 years out of the vehicle, and probably 250-300,000 miles

is there anyone else out there who uses their Tesla in this manner? Or are 99.9% of Tesla owners daily commuters who charge at home 99% of the time?

I’m hoping for some insight, because I think the Model Y is a fantastic vehicle and the Auto-Pilot would really improve my long drive safety.

Looking forward to hearing from some of you on the topic. Thanks!

I think if you drive the same routes you will be easily able to charge and utilize your charge time effectively to maximize your time during your stop (food, restroom, work, stretch, short walk). The car will give you a mini-thrill each time you drive making any shortcoming of your new EV minimally annoying. Remember your winter efficiency drops significantly, however. You may need to charge longer and/or more frequently. Do it! You won’t look back!!

 

[FatherTo1]

OP, if you really want to minimize cost then have you considered a pre-January 2017 Model S? Some of the older Model S from that vintage allowed transferable lifetime free unlimited Supercharging. If you do snag one of those, the caveats would be slower Supercharging speed (costing you more time) and probably less range compared to a new Y (compounding the time cost). Just an option to think about.

I had a 2019 Raven Model S with free unlimited Supercharging (non-transferable to next owner) but gladly gave up that perk for faster Supercharging (and other benefits) of the Y. Of course, I don’t drive as much as OP and probably only used $200 worth of free Supercharging in the two years I had the S.

 

[tangible1]

Hello, Everyone

I’m new to this forum, and I joined because I am trying to determine whether a new Model Y Long Range would be feasible as a work vehicle for me. I am in outside sales and cover a territory spanning Illinois and Indiana. I live in the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago and frequently travel to Indianapolis, South Bend, Fort Wayne, Champaign, Peoria, etc. As well as around the Chicagoland area.

I drive about 40-50,000 miles per year and am currently driving a 2014 Toyota 4Runner with 311,000 miles on the ODO. I track my fuel consumption on an app called Fuelly, and over the course of the last 7.5 years, I have spent over $40,000 on gas… While the 4Runner has been a fantastic and reliable vehicle, it is hard to ignore the lack of fuel economy.

I totaled up all maintenance expenses, original vehicle cost, insurance, and fuel, and the 4Runner has a cost of ownership of about $0.38/mile. From videos that I have watched and based on my own projections, I estimate that the Model Y would cost about $0.28-0.32/mile. Over the course of 300,000 miles, that would be a savings of about $18,000 on the low end. (Assuming that the battery can handle it without replacement).

I have been researching the Model Y seriously for a couple of months now, and the vehicle itself can work for what I need. That being said, I have some hesitations mainly surrounding real-life highway range, charging time, and service center convenience in case of emergencies.

i frequently travel to Indianapolis, which is about 230 highway miles door to door. There are several SC stations along my typical route, and a few around the city. Based on some routes I plugged into ABRP, I can charge for about 40 minutes total and visit several customers in a single day. Not dipping below 10% charge and starting with 90%.

That sort of trip isnt every day, but certainly almost weekly. I figure that on average I likely would need to use an SC about 20x per month.

Is this sort of use going to abuse the battery at such a substantial rate that I will see abnormal degradation and range loss? I would be hoping to get about 6-7 years out of the vehicle, and probably 250-300,000 miles

is there anyone else out there who uses their Tesla in this manner? Or are 99.9% of Tesla owners daily commuters who charge at home 99% of the time?

I’m hoping for some insight, because I think the Model Y is a fantastic vehicle and the Auto-Pilot would really improve my long drive safety.

Looking forward to hearing from some of you on the topic. Thanks!

I used to drive 30K per year. But just 165mi/day, weekday.
My testing / experience is if you're home every night, you shouldn't have any issues. Charge in the garage at night, next morning you're good.
But if you're not, you have to heavily factor in SC usage and locations, which are relatively well located for highway usage but a bit of a hunt local roads-wise.
Tesla publishes this location info online.
The good news is the Navigation function is very good for hunting and assigning you to SC's.

Highway range testing at 70 degrees and limited wind, no rain:
85mph - 190mi range
75mph - 240mi range
65mph - approx 300mi

 

[GBMaryland]

If your daily driving is typically no more than 200 miles and you can have it home every night, you’ll save a *sugar* load in gas.

If you find yourself having a super charge the car a lot, then you will find that you are paying approximately four times more for electricity. (~.07/kWh vs ~.30/kWh)

Now, truth be told, that’s quite a lot less money than buying gas.

I used to have a relatively small commute of 76 miles round-trip every day and I went from $240 a month in gasoline to roughly $60 a month in electricity. I rarely drive under 80 miles an hour… and there is a huge difference between 70 and 85 and a Tesla.