FINALLY!!! With the completion of the Supercharger chain through eastern KY plus Cincy, it became possible for me to execute a round trip from Florida to Chicagoland for Thanksgiving week - the first one without the ICE minivan. Although range anxiety is an intellectual non-issue, the emotional effects linger in the background. This affected our decisions on how much to charge and how fast to drive. It also caused us to take a side trip to the Country Club Hills station before entering Chicago "just to be sure". I know this topic has been debated in the forum before: charge longer so you can drive faster due to the bigger charge reserve; or charge quickly but less and drive slower than usual to the next station. My wife and I did it both ways but we haven't had time to analyze the data to come to a firm conclusion. To top it off, our record keeping was erratic and spotty outbound but a little bit better on the return trip. Since the return was a mirror image except for one segment, this will be the source of the posted numbers.
All in all, the car did all it was asked to do. Here are some numbers to chew on:
Some Observations:
*This trip took 6 hours more outbound and 4 hours more on return than what I am used to when using the western route via Nashville, Paducah and southern Illinois which is my personal preference. Even when accounting for the time zone change. It is almost 100 miles longer. Plus charging does take longer than a gas fill-up no matter how you slice it. Not complaining. The fuel savings and the smoothness of the ride more than offset it.
*Amenities at charger sites notwithstanding, your physiology cannot be based on charging stops except when they coincide with the need for intake or output.
*Additional causes for the longer trip: Atlanta road construction (south of) on outbound leg and a closed exit to the Chattanooga airport also due to construction, also on the outbound leg, that needed a long slow detour. It was open but reduced to one lane on the return trip.
*I got the seat belt recall notice the night before I left FL. It was taken care of with dispatch without the need for an appointment by the Highland Park service center the day after I arrived. Then my 12-volt battery gave me a dire notice a few days later. That also got taken care of the day after I called. Kudos to the folks there for their courtesy and efficiency.
Sorry for the long post but I tried to anticipate questions. I hope some of you will find this useful.
Caddieo
All in all, the car did all it was asked to do. Here are some numbers to chew on:
| RATED MILES USED | ACTUAL MILES | kWh Used | Wh/Mile | TRAVEL TIME | COMMENTS | ||
| Northfield, IL to Lafayette, IN | 238>59 (179) | 144.7 | 49.1 | 340 | 2:29* | *Includes one "pit stop" | |
| Lafayette to Indianapolis | 170>88 (82) | 69.3 | 22.5 | 325 | 1:08 | ||
| Indianapolis to Cincinnati | 201>70(131) | 109.6 | 36.4 | 332 | 1:23* | *Onen pit stop | |
| Cincinnati, OH to Lexington, KY | 187>71 (116) | 101.1 | 33.2 | 329 | 4:18* | *Includes lunch stop | |
| Lexington to London, KY | 224>131 (93) | 69.3 | 24.9 | 359 | 0:59 | ||
| London, KY to Knoxville, TN | 215>60 (155) | 113.8 | 39.2 | 345 | 1:50* | *one pit stop. Stopped for the night after charging. | |
| Knoxville to Chattanooga, TN | 222>114 (108) | 91.3 | 30.5 | 334 | 1:26 | ||
| Chattanooga, TN to Atlanta, GA | 205>66 (139) | 113 | 38.4 | 339 | 1:38 | Lunch in Atlantic Station while charging | |
| Atlanta to Macon, GA | 213>112 (101) | 89.1 | 27.6 | 310 | 1:29 | ||
| Macon to Tifton, GA | 175>50 (125) | 104.6 | 34.3 | 328 | 1:42* | *with pit stop | |
| Tifton, GA to Lake City, FL | 175>39 (136) | 107 | 37.5 | 351 | 2:26 | dinner at Lake City while charging | |
| Lake City to St. Augustine, FL | 227>99 (128) | 101.2 | 34.9 | 345 | 1:32* | *one pit stop | |
| St. Augustine to Palm Coast, FL | 152>110 (42) | 33.7 | 13.1 | 386 | 0:37 | ||
| TOTALS | 1535 | 1247.7 | 421.6 | 341 | 23 hrs. |
*This trip took 6 hours more outbound and 4 hours more on return than what I am used to when using the western route via Nashville, Paducah and southern Illinois which is my personal preference. Even when accounting for the time zone change. It is almost 100 miles longer. Plus charging does take longer than a gas fill-up no matter how you slice it. Not complaining. The fuel savings and the smoothness of the ride more than offset it.
*Amenities at charger sites notwithstanding, your physiology cannot be based on charging stops except when they coincide with the need for intake or output.
*Additional causes for the longer trip: Atlanta road construction (south of) on outbound leg and a closed exit to the Chattanooga airport also due to construction, also on the outbound leg, that needed a long slow detour. It was open but reduced to one lane on the return trip.
*I got the seat belt recall notice the night before I left FL. It was taken care of with dispatch without the need for an appointment by the Highland Park service center the day after I arrived. Then my 12-volt battery gave me a dire notice a few days later. That also got taken care of the day after I called. Kudos to the folks there for their courtesy and efficiency.
Sorry for the long post but I tried to anticipate questions. I hope some of you will find this useful.
Caddieo
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