Frustration with Lack of Superchargers/CCS adapter

[DarkNightP3D]

Last night I had my first situation occur where I genuinely felt frustrated, angry and helpless that I had an EV. I had to drive to Asheboro, North Carolina from Raleigh, North Carolina, a trio that’s about 85 miles each way. I left Raleigh with around 88% SOC. I was meeting my grandfather for a board meeting at a company we are investors in. My grandfather (who is 79) drove to Asheboro from Wilmington, NC. Our meeting wrapped up around 6:30PM and we each went our separate ways (I traveled US-64 (a 4-lane highway) back towards Raleigh, while my grandfather traveled on I-73/I-74 towards Wilmington. While we were talking on the phone around 7:20, I heard a bang and the phone cut out. I called him back in a panic and he answered saying “I can’t breathe, my car is torn to pieces”. I immediately slammed on brakes and pulled off the road trying to figure out where he was and how severely he was injured. He could just tell me he was near Rockingham, NC but he didn’t know exactly where he was.

He said a lifted red pickup pulled out from a side road into the highway apparently without looking and he literally didn’t even have time to react before slamming into the driver side door of the truck at 65mph. He told me all the airbags had deployed and the car was totaled. He also said his head was bleeding and he thought his ankle or leg was broken.



At this point I only had around 33% SOC and according to the navigation system I’d arrive in Rockingham with only 5% remaining. So now not only did I have to worry about my grandfather being okay, I had to worry about how to even get there as there is no Supercharger anywhere between Jordan Lake (close to where I was at the time) and Rockingham. I don’t have a ChaDeMo adapter because until now I thought spending $450 seemed insane, but all of a sudden it looked like a good investment. The only real option I would have was to either drive to my house (40 minutes the wrong direction) and get my ICE vehicle, or drive to the Cary Supercharger (20 minutes the wrong direction) and Supercharge for 20-minutes in the hopes I could get to Rockingham with enough SOC that once my grandfather was discharged from the hospital I could make it to the next closest supercharger (probably Lumberton, another 45-50 mile detour on my trip home to Raleigh). I just started driving towards I-540 because either way I had to go north to either SC or go to my house, when I needed to really go south.



By this time I had gotten up with my two aunts who live in Wilmington and they told me they could probably beat me to Rockingham knowing my situation. So they ended up driving to Rockingham to be with him. I felt so helpless because in a time of true emergency I had to try and figure out how to even get to where I needed to go. I truly believe we need to have Supercharger stations at least every 50 miles on any large interstate or highway, even if only two stalls, in a time of emergency anything would be helpful. If there had been a supercharger between Raleigh and Rockingham on US-1 (maybe in Sanford or Pinehurst) I could have made it to him in less than 90 minutes, however with diverting so far out of the way it would have ended up being over 2 and a half hours to get there. In an emergency every minute matters. Our current lack of charging stations on certain corridors could certainly lead to situations like this happening for other people, perhaps in even more dire situations. I look at even major Interstate highways like I-26 from Charleston to Asheville and don’t understand how Tesla is allowing these huge holes in charging infrastructure to exist. I also feel like we must be offered a CCS adapter at relatively low cost as CCS chargers are becoming more and more prevalent. I could have used a couple of different CCS charging stations that exist on the route I needed to go had I had a CCS adapter.


Thankfully my grandfather escaped relatively unharmed. He’s got a big old bruise and gash on his forehead from the airbag, his ankle is sore but not broken and he was released from the hospital a little while ago and my aunts and grandfather are on their way back to Wilmington now.

 

[jmaddr]

I’m really glad your grandfather is ok. Wow, makes you think.
The charging infrastructure is in its infancy. It’s a new technology being deployed and will only become ubiquitous as EV ownership grows so it will get better, but that doesn’t help you or your new anxiety. Eventually all manufacturers will settle on a standard, just like gasoline cars did (size of the filler neck, gasoline mixtures), supply/demand will make access more convenient, and technology will speed the the process.
Feeling helpless in situations like this may make you question your decisions, but it’s an exception condition that is very difficult to prepare. Overall, EV ownership is a better overall decision due to better daily experience, better driving dynamics, and better for the environment. Don’t let such an awful situation you can’t affect alter your direction. You did great getting to your grandfather as fast as you could.

 

[zecar]

It wasn't an emergency, it was a desire to be with an injured family member. Society has vast infrastructure so that you did not need to be a first responder or provide medical treatment.

If you has the responsibility to be a long range first responder then its too early to use an EV. Tesla's V3 shows the future when wit will be possible to add range quickly from a low state of charge. But obviously that sort of charging can't be counted on today. It's not practical for Tesla to add fast charging everywhere when selling cars at 500,000/year worldwide.

Tesla does need to allow CCS1 charging and build announced superchargers within a reasonable time frame.

 

[DarkNightP3D]

It wasn't an emergency, it was a desire to be with an injured family member. Society has vast infrastructure so that you did not need to be a first responder or provide medical treatment.

If you has the responsibility to be a long range first responder then its too early to use an EV. Tesla's V3 shows the future when wit will be possible to add range quickly from a low state of charge. But obviously that sort of charging can't be counted on today. It's not practical for Tesla to add fast charging everywhere when selling cars at 500,000/year worldwide.

Tesla does need to allow CCS1 charging and build announced superchargers within a reasonable time frame.

I said MAJOR highways should have a Supercharger every 50 miles or so OR we need a CCS adapter. I also said it’s ridiculous that cities like Charleston, SC have not a single supercharger station even after years of promises and the entire I-26 corridor (hundreds of miles) has no Superchargers on its entire length. Imagine instead of my grandfather having an accident 100 miles from the nearest family member, that someone in my vehicle was having a medical emergency but I was too far to reach the nearest hospital without going 30 miles out of my way to a supercharger... That could be a life and death situation.

We’re also not talking about building superchargers in Siberia, we’re talking about building a single station along a 90-mile stretch of highly traveled interstate-grade highway (US-1 S from Raleigh to Rockingham) that goes right through one of the largest tourist attractions in the State of North Carolina (Pinehurst, N.C.).

I love Tesla, I’m just simply saying that last night was the first time I had a situation that really left me feeling vulnerable and helpless simply because unlike an ICE I couldn’t just stop at 6000 different places to get gas, instead I’d have to go well over an hour out of my way to hit a supercharger when there should be one on this section of roadway.

I also mentioned that if a ccs adapter was available I could have charged and gotten to him, but unfortunately we continue to be denied that adapter. If it’s going to be $450 like the Chademo adapter many people won’t buy it just because it’s so expensive. $450 is a lot of money to a lot of people. I also think the biggest problem with Chademo is the 50kW charging speed. Obviously that’s 1/3 the speed of most Superchargers and 1/5 of V3s. Tesla has built many Superchargers that I would consider to be in unnecessary locations, but high priority corridors are completely without them. Btw, I consider getting to someone who’s been in a serious car crash to be an emergency. You can play semantics and say “it’s not an emergency, it’s a “desire to get to someone”, but to me that’s insulting and utter BS. If it had been your child, spouse, parent or significant other I’m sure you’d be feeling the same way I do. If you don’t then you might have something wrong.

 

[CyberGus]

Sorry to hear you were squeezed by low SoC. Thirty years ago, a running-on-empty ICE car would have been useless after 10PM lol. The charging infrastructure will get better, give it time.

Walking away from a 65MPH T-bone is quite fortunate, I'm glad everyone is more-or-less ok.

 

[DarkNightP3D]

Sorry to hear you were squeezed by low SoC. Thirty years ago, a running-on-empty ICE car would have been useless after 10PM lol. The charging infrastructure will get better, give it time.

Walking away from a 65MPH T-bone is quite fortunate, I'm glad everyone is more-or-less ok.

I agree. I just don’t want to see someone in an even more dire situation have a life or death consequence over something that with relatively low cost ($200K to build a DCFC station) could be solved. One life saved is worth a lot more than the cost of a charging station. I get not building Superchargers in the middle of BF nowhere unless again it’s on a major road, but I think we need to get to a point where every major road (4-lane interstate like highways) have at least one supercharger or Tesla-compatible DCFC station no more than every 50-75 miles at the most.

 

[Sebat4]

I'm glad to hear that your grandfather is well and that all will be well. I recently look at the same point of view that you ended up being in. I wanted to figure out what would I have to do in order to get to someone in need. I see all those Wawa's and Quickcheks in the area where I live and state of NJ giving grants to build EV infrastructure I was wondering why they aren't apply it for it? If 1/3 of those two corporation store locations had Tesla charging (some Wawa do but not a lot) the infrastructure would have been crazy in NJ and the distance between charging stations would be 10 min at most apart. Idk anything about NC or SC states but I hope things will change sooner than later. Just my two cents about.

 

[F14Scott]

I tend to agree with the sentiment that, while your desire to be there was real and understandable, your physical presence was unnecessary.

First responders not only don't need your help, they likely prefer your absence so they can get to work. If there were any information they needed, you were a cell phone call away.

And, if your physical presence were truly needed immediately (although I can't think of how), there are Ubers and taxis that, while expensive, would have gotten the job done.

Twenty-five years ago, people racing around in cars to get to emergency situations was a common plot element in movies, because, back then, there was no substitute for "being there." Today, you don't see that (or when you do, it seems hyperbolic), because you just FaceTime and get there when you get there. If you had run home to get your ICE, your grandfather's outcome would have been exactly the same, right?

 

[wooter]

If you has the responsibility to be a long range first responder then its too early to use an EV.

I would even say that proper EV's can actually make sense for first responders. I've been a first responder a few years ago, and we did the following:

• refill the gas tank after the level went below 2/3rds
• continuously plugged in to keep the engine block heater, battery chargers and HVAC going
• leaving the engine running on-scene to avoid drained batteries because of HVAC/lights
• our zone was limited, so that every call would never be more than 40mi of driving

As a few PD's are finding out, a Tesla Model 3 can be a pretty good patrol car. I'm pretty sure there will be room in the future to also deploy electric drivetrains in ambulances and fire trucks.

And as someone said: 30 years ago you were risking the same inconvenience late at night in an ICE. The infrastructure will come.

 

[GtiMart]

Happy your father is okay as well. Whatever the reason, it's always better to have more options. I DO NOT UNDERSTAND why Tesla doesn't offer a CCS adapter. An ICE car can fill up at any station, whatever the brand. An EV should be able to charge at any provider's stations as well. Obviously we'd prefer Superchargers but we should be able to use all of them. Yes, we have a CHAdeMO adapter but it's slow and there are way more CCSs around in America. Unless there's a technical impossibility, the adapter should be made.

 

[mackgoo]

My 2014 S came with an adapter I could use to use any other charger. It was in the glove box. Newer cars don't have this?

 

[brkaus]

My 2014 S came with an adapter I could use to use any other charger. It was in the glove box. Newer cars don't have this?

The adapter that you are referring to is a j1772 and enables slow charging at most charge points. The OP is referring to an adapter for a faster charging standard.

Glad everyone is ok. I hope the

 

[Rocky_H]

My 2014 S came with an adapter I could use to use any other charger. It was in the glove box. Newer cars don't have this?

That only works on the slow charging points. CHAdeMO and CCS are different standards for much faster charging, with different connectors, and Tesla's car do not come included with the ability to connect to those.

 

[CyberGus]

Maybe Tesla vehicles require premium, Tesla-branded electrons

 

[GtiMart]

If Tesla made a lot of money with charging, I would understand (though I would not agree) with the lock-in. It's not the case. MAybe they're trying to simplify things for wide adoption. Maybe it's so their crs - charging pair looks better than the competition. In any case, having the possibility, clearly optional, should be a priority.

 

[DarkNightP3D]

I tend to agree with the sentiment that, while your desire to be there was real and understandable, your physical presence was unnecessary.

First responders not only don't need your help, they likely prefer your absence so they can get to work. If there were any information they needed, you were a cell phone call away.

And, if your physical presence were truly needed immediately (although I can't think of how), there are Ubers and taxis that, while expensive, would have gotten the job done.

Twenty-five years ago, people racing around in cars to get to emergency situations was a common plot element in movies, because, back then, there was no substitute for "being there." Today, you don't see that (or when you do, it seems hyperbolic), because you just FaceTime and get there when you get there. If you had run home to get your ICE, your grandfather's outcome would have been exactly the same, right?

Uber 150 miles? Good luck finding many Ubers or taxis in BF Nowhere NORTH CAROLINA. My entire point is that if you drive any gas or diesel car you can refuel your car at hundreds of thousands of fuel stations. You can be ALMOST anywhere in the US and be to a fuel station within 20 miles, most cities have fuel stations every 0.05 miles apart, while on most well traveled Interstates you’ll find one about every 5 miles. In today’s world of EV ownership, there are HUGE gaps in coverage of major interstates and highways that have persisted for years. If my grandfathers injury had been life threatening and he died before I could get to him because of a lack of EV chargers, I’d likely feel guilty for a long time that I bought my car. While I may not have physically been required to get there within the snap of my fingers, the fact is I would’ve had to drive 75 miles out of my way to

I don’t find it controversial to suggest major highways have at least two DCFCs no more than every 50 miles apart. 50 miles is a long way, but it would make a huge difference in many parts of the country that aren’t California or mid-Atlantic/New England.

 

[DarkNightP3D]

[

First responders not only don't need your help, they likely prefer your absence so they can get to work. If there were any information they needed, you were a cell phone call away.

And, if your physical presence were truly needed immediately (although I can't think of how), there are Ubers and taxis that, while expensive, would have gotten the job done.

Twenty-five years ago, people racing around in cars to get to emergency situations was a common plot element in movies, because, back then, there was no substitute for "being there." Today, you don't see that (or when you do, it seems hyperbolic), because you just FaceTime and get there when you get there. If you had run home to get your ICE, your grandfather's outcome would have been exactly the same, right?

Uber 150 miles? Good luck finding many Ubers or taxis in BF Nowhere NORTH CAROLINA. My entire point is that if you drive any gas or diesel car you can refuel your car at hundreds of thousands of fuel stations. You can be ALMOST anywhere in the US and be to a fuel station within 20 miles, most cities have fuel stations every 0.05 miles apart, while on most well traveled Interstates you’ll find one about every 5 miles. In today’s world of EV ownership, there are HUGE gaps in coverage of major interstates and highways that have persisted for years. If my grandfathers injury had been life threatening and he died before I could get to him because of a lack of EV chargers, I’d likely feel guilty for a long time that I bought my car. While I may not have physically been required to get there within the snap of my fingers, the fact is I would’ve had to drive 75 miles out of my way to

I don’t find it controversial to suggest major highways have at least two DCFCs no more than every 50 miles apart. 50 miles is a long way, but it would make a huge difference in many parts of the country that aren’t California or mid-Atlantic/New England.[/QUOTE]

="GtiMart, post: 5097967, member: 120326"]If Tesla made a lot of money with charging, I would understand (though I would not agree) with the lock-in. It's not the case. MAybe they're trying to simplify things for wide adoption. Maybe it's so their crs - charging pair looks better than the competition. In any case, having the possibility, clearly optional, should be a priority.[/QUOTE]

I would even say that proper EV's can actually make sense for first responders. I've been a first responder a few years ago, and we did the following:

• refill the gas tank after the level went below 2/3rds
• continuously plugged in to keep the engine block heater, battery chargers and HVAC going
• leaving the engine running on-scene to avoid drained batteries because of HVAC/lights
• our zone was limited, so that every call would never be more than 40mi of driving

As a few PD's are finding out, a Tesla Model 3 can be a pretty good patrol car. I'm pretty sure there will be room in the future to also deploy electric drivetrains in ambulances and fire trucks.

And as someone said: 30 years ago you were risking the same inconvenience late at night in an ICE. The infrastructure will come.

30 years ago was 1990. I can tell you many fuel stations were open overnight or had invested in credit card readers at that point. Also, late at night isn’t when my issue happened. It happened in the early evening. It would have happened regardless of time, anyway.

what is wrong with the idea that there should be at least one or two DC Fast chargers no more than every 50 miles on all major highways and interstates? This has to happen if we’re ever going to transition the entire fleet to EVs.

 

[wooter]

what is wrong with the idea that there should be at least one or two DC Fast chargers no more than every 50 miles on all major highways and interstates? This has to happen if we’re ever going to transition the entire fleet to EVs.

There's nothing wrong with that. But you are very early in the adoption curve on EV's, so things like this happen.

When I bought my Model X 3 years ago, I did it because they were about to open a supercharger 15mi from here. Without that one, I'd have to drive 30mi, 55mi or even longer to reach my first supercharger.

We're 3 years later and another proper non-Tesla fast charger has opened 15mi south of me, and another company is planning multiple fast chargers on highway stops, the closest being 6mi.

It will happen. It will take a while. But close to no emergency services will ever use these fast chargers because they will be charging at their station.

There will also be a time where gasoline will be hard to find again, where, just like trying to find someone to repair a horse carriage, you will need to get out of your way to a specialised store to get this ancient magic liquid. But we're a long way from that.

 

[ArcticStation]

Your grandfather is going to need a new car. Buy him a Tesla. Two years ago, my wife, kids and grandkids bought me a very nice RWD LR for my 70th birthday. Safest car on the road. He will love it.

 

[Webeevdrivers]

Glad grand dad is okay.

Sounds like a regional thing. Here it would have been different. There are as many Chademo location los as CCS and most CCS are still limited to 50 KW like the Chademo. Chademo adapters are super useful here in BC.

Hope your granddad makes a full recovery.

cheers.