For the mortals without a homecharger...

[Elmoosey]

Hi Tesla-owners, greetings from Denmark here

In the coming months, I'll hopefully become a Model 3 owner myself but the road to get there is a difficult one - especially if you are a first-time car buyer going all electric! Decisions, decisions!

The situation is that we live in a relatively big city and in the city center and actually don't really NEED a car but we would really like the freedom that comes with being a car owner. It's a nice luxury to have when visiting family and friends and going on longer road trips - to e.g. Germany, Netherlands, France etc..

Our current living situation is like this:

• We live in an apartment complex/area without the opportunity to get a personal/private charger installed
• Today, I'm commuting with the train to work: Roughly 112 miles roundtrip which translates to 2 hour train ride + 20 minutes for transportation from our apartment to the train station and to our office. This actually works pretty well and efficient as I can get work done on the train or have a quick nap if I'm wasted - but I reckon I can still save time by driving.
• My fiancé is self-employed and works 90% of the time at our home office so the car will be mostly driven by me to work
• In general, I commute 2-5 days to the office a week as I have the opportunity to work from home - I'm also working abroad (Europe/US) 3-4 months per year
• The winter months can be cold in Denmark but usually the temp. are between 0 to -10 celcius

One of the main reasons for being so hesitant with buying the Model 3 is that we don't have the possibility to install a home-charger, as we live in an apartment complex. However, we do have some public 11kW/22kW chargers close to us within a radius of 500 meters/0.3 miles. We also have a SC-station within 5 miles from our apartment.

So for a mere mortal living in apartment complex in the urban area without the opportunity to have a home-charger installed; What path should I take?

There's no doubt in my mind that I would buy an EV instantly if we had home charging opportunity but that's sadly just not an option for us and we can't justify moving just to have a home charger (housing prices here are also close to $800.000 in our area). Initially, I actually wanted to go for a Corolla 2.0 Hybrid but I reckon it won't be THAT efficient when doing most of the miles on the highway.

Since we can't charge at home and because of the temp. dips in the winter months I reckon the M3 LR would be the best option? Maybe just wait it out until it becomes more convenient for us to be an EV-owner?

If you are a Tesla/EV-owner without home-charging, how do you manage?

 

[Candleflame]

what do you actually want to do with the car? if it just sits there waiting for the occasional trip you can just get an SR+.
If you have a 112 mile commute you want to do in the car it doesnt matter whether you get an SR or LR, you are gonna spend a lot of time at public charging stations.

112 mile commute is too long for cars imho. on the train you can get work done at least. either way its insane and you should just move closer to work.

 

[Elmoosey]

what do you actually want to do with the car? if it just sits there waiting for the occasional trip you can just get an SR+.
If you have a 112 mile commute you want to do in the car it doesnt matter whether you get an SR or LR, you are gonna spend a lot of time at public charging stations.

112 mile commute is too long for cars imho. on the train you can get work done at least. either way its insane and you should just move closer to work.

Hi, thanks for your reply.

Actually, 56x2 miles to work/home is not uncommon in our country - it's part of our work-culture to commute - even longer distances so I wouldn't call it insane but it might be different in Australia.

 

[RandyS]

I think the main problem / frustration you would have with a Tesla is that the car uses energy all the time. So you might park it with, say, 179 km of estimated range remaining, but then when you come back to the car in a day or two, that number will be reduced (maybe 162 km, etc.) because of the systems on the car using energy (sentry mode, for example, is the worst because uses about 1.5 km of battery range per hour of use - but other systems on the car use energy as well). So it may feel like you are always in need of a charge because of the driving you would do and this consumption of energy just sitting still...

 

[PianoAl]

Can you leave the car charging overnight at one of the public 11kW/22kW chargers? That is:

1. Wake up in the morning
2. Walk .3 miles to charger, get in the car
3. Drive to work
4. Drive back to charger
5. Walk .3 miles home

If that's not feasible, calculate how long you'll need to supercharge each day and run the numbers (for both time and money).

A few times a week, I "commute" 120 miles to surfing, and it works fine.

 

[bedoig]

Is it possible to get a dedicated charging spot set up at work? That's the only way I'd personally see this as feasible.

 

[jrweiss98020]

For a 112 mi round trip, you could get any Model 3 you want. However, plan on stopping at the Supercharger every day, either on the way to or from work. Since you are already used to a 2+ hour commute, stopping for a 20 minute recharge should not be a burden...

 

[jjrandorin]

I have said this before, but its my opinion that anyone looking to buy an Electric car, that has no access to home charging (preferred) or work charging (still doable) HAS to be doing so for some other reason than convience.

People do it, all the time, but they generally have to charge more than they think.

OP I have also said this on a bunch of different threads here, but since your commute is 112 miles, round trip, you might be thinking "Oh if I buy a car with a 350 mile range, I can just charge every 2 to 3 days, and that wont be so bad". It wont work like that. You will be charging every day for that commute, or if you go two days, you will likely be "white knuckle" driving to the charger, hoping you make it.

Another thing, unless you are using DC fast chargers that bypass the onboard charger of a model 3, the max charging speed is 11kW from a level 2 charger on a model 3, even if the station can provide faster charge because its 3 phase or something. DC fast charging is different, but model 3s on board charger caps out at 11kW.

In your situation, I personally would not buy an EV (any EV), but thats because I consider fueling where you park to be one of the largest benefits.

Again, before people who dont have home or work charging yell at me, I am fully aware that people do this, lots of people. "I" never would, however, and I wouldnt ever advise anyone to do that either, unless they have goals that include spending more time dealing with the car than they do now, not less.

 

[pipp]

Hi Tesla-owners, greetings from Denmark here

In the coming months, I'll hopefully become a Model 3 owner myself but the road to get there is a difficult one - especially if you are a first-time car buyer going all electric! Decisions, decisions!

The situation is that we live in a relatively big city and in the city center and actually don't really NEED a car but we would really like the freedom that comes with being a car owner. It's a nice luxury to have when visiting family and friends and going on longer road trips - to e.g. Germany, Netherlands, France etc..

Our current living situation is like this:

• We live in an apartment complex/area without the opportunity to get a personal/private charger installed
• Today, I'm commuting with the train to work: Roughly 112 miles roundtrip which translates to 2 hour train ride + 20 minutes for transportation from our apartment to the train station and to our office. This actually works pretty well and efficient as I can get work done on the train or have a quick nap if I'm wasted - but I reckon I can still save time by driving.
• My fiancé is self-employed and works 90% of the time at our home office so the car will be mostly driven by me to work
• In general, I commute 2-5 days to the office a week as I have the opportunity to work from home - I'm also working abroad (Europe/US) 3-4 months per year
• The winter months can be cold in Denmark but usually the temp. are between 0 to -10 celcius

One of the main reasons for being so hesitant with buying the Model 3 is that we don't have the possibility to install a home-charger, as we live in an apartment complex. However, we do have some public 11kW/22kW chargers close to us within a radius of 500 meters/0.3 miles. We also have a SC-station within 5 miles from our apartment.

So for a mere mortal living in apartment complex in the urban area without the opportunity to have a home-charger installed; What path should I take?

There's no doubt in my mind that I would buy an EV instantly if we had home charging opportunity but that's sadly just not an option for us and we can't justify moving just to have a home charger (housing prices here are also close to $800.000 in our area). Initially, I actually wanted to go for a Corolla 2.0 Hybrid but I reckon it won't be THAT efficient when doing most of the miles on the highway.

Since we can't charge at home and because of the temp. dips in the winter months I reckon the M3 LR would be the best option? Maybe just wait it out until it becomes more convenient for us to be an EV-owner?

If you are a Tesla/EV-owner without home-charging, how do you manage?

Your situation is quite interesting and I think you will get many replies, however I’m not sure there are many “mortals” on this site, or if there are, they maintain a low profile. I found a Reddit thread from a couple years back that some mortals actually replied to: EV without home charger

 

[Elmoosey]

Thank you all for your honest input and replies. I'll make sure to answer your questions/input more thoroughly during the week.

I also forgot to mention that yes, our company is going to establish 10 charger stations in 2022 (3rd quarter), so I will be able to charge at work.

 

[jjrandorin]

Thank you all for your honest input and replies. I'll make sure to answer your questions/input more thoroughly during the week.

I also forgot to mention that yes, our company is going to establish 10 charger stations in 2022 (3rd quarter), so I will be able to charge at work.

if its "free" charging, expect to have to compete with everyone arriving early to "get that free gas" (so to speak) lol.

We have 10 stations where I work, that were installed in 2019. I remember when the company had a "Lunch N learn" (meeting during lunch time with free lunch) to discuss the chargers they were putting in. Those meetings would normally have 15-20 people, and the one talking about "charging stations being installed" had like 100+ (at a, at the time, 500 employee campus).

During the presentation, you could hear the audible "groan" when the company announced that the charging stations would be "employee paid charging", and during the Q&A every other question was some variation of "I thought the company was going to pay for charging, why are they not?".

People had been making all sorts of plans to buy EVs to get "free electricity", and many of them canceled them after that meeting. Our campus chargers are private chargepoint stations, and the price is competitive, so you can charge there if you need to, but its similar to paying at home. If it was free, you wouldnt be able to get a spot.

 

[PianoAl]

our company is going to establish 10 charger stations in 2022 (3rd quarter), so I will be able to charge at work.

Yay! Run the numbers to see if that will give you enough miles, and if so, go for it. Get it now in case world ends soon.

 

[Elmoosey]

@jjrandorin

Fortunately, the charging is not free. The provider will either be eON (German company) or Clever. Clever has numerous charging stations spread out close to where we live and you can get an unlimited free charging subscription for approximately $100/month.

Gas prices here in DK are high at the moment - 1 litre (0,264 gallons) is $2.15 here

 

[KenC]

Denmark is relatively flat, so you have that in your favor! As has been mentioned, plan on charging every day. When your work has chargers, that's almost as good as having a home charger, as long as there are plenty! So, you seem okay.

I would also look specifically at your locale, and see where the Superchargers and other Level 3 chargers are located around you. Make sure your coverage is good enough to make all of your favorite roadtrips easy. Try ABRP, ABRP, and put in your trips with cold temps, etc. It'll give you some idea of whether a SR+ or LR will work for you.

Strangely, just looking at the map, if you commute to Cøpenhagen, then 50miles away would be Sorø and yes, they have a Supercharger. Traveling cross borders to Sweden, Norway and Germany all seem fairly well covered in Superchargers. Good luck with your planning.

 

[Apprunner]

Sounds like a huge pain...just get the hybrid and fill up once a week. If you like to drive fast and for fun, that is a different conversation. If you want an appliance, the hybrid will serve you much better.

 

[Elmoosey]

Sounds like a huge pain...just get the hybrid and fill up once a week. If you like to drive fast and for fun, that is a different conversation. If you want an appliance, the hybrid will serve you much better.

It could be a huge pain. However, I think the transition/adaptation to EVs is easier for me since I've never really owned a car before.

A hybrid car (non-plugin) for a couple of 3-4 years until the charging infrastructure and batteries are more efficient could be the answer. An alternative to the M3/M3 LR for me is a Corolla 2.0 Touring Sports. In DK a fully loaded 2.0 Touring Sports is priced similar to the M3 RWD.

 

[PianoAl]

Have you driven a Tesla? Also, consider how much easier your daily drive would be if the card in most of the driving.

 

[Apprunner]

It could be a huge pain. However, I think the transition/adaptation to EVs is easier for me since I've never really owned a car before.

A hybrid car (non-plugin) for a couple of 3-4 years until the charging infrastructure and batteries are more efficient could be the answer. An alternative to the M3/M3 LR for me is a Corolla 2.0 Touring Sports. In DK a fully loaded 2.0 Touring Sports is priced similar to the M3 RWD.

Sounds like the perfect car for your situation. Good luck and happy motoring.

 

[Elmoosey]

Have you driven a Tesla? Also, consider how much easier your daily drive would be if the card in most of the driving.

Unfortunately not. We have only 1 Tesla center in my region and a total of 5 in my country. There's a long que for test-driving. I could try and rent one.

Also, with the kind of milage I'll be doing (112 miles round trip from home to work), it'll cost me roughly $430/month in fuel alone with the Hybrid 2.0 Corolla - a little less if I opt for the 1.8 engine.

The Tesla would cost me $100 in charging expenses - excluding Supercharging

 

[PianoAl]

Correction: "... if the car did most of the driving ..."

Absolutely rent or otherwise try out a Tesla before you decide. I think that when you see how easy it is to have it doing the driving, that will outweigh the other considerations.