I'm not sure if you've learned about this yet, but it's the same kind of wire to run for either a 120V or 240V circuit. The wire thickness is just related to the current it needs to carry. So the cost for the wire installation would be the same, whether it is a 120V 20A outlet or a 240V 20A outlet.I measured the 120v 20 amp line my electrician installed, I need about 140 feet of wire. 150' roll is about $250, add to that the 50 amp breaker and a safety switch box; parts alone is about $300 without either a NEMA outlet, Tesla or Chargepoint ($500 utility rebate.) My current 120v currently has a 15 amp outlet. I haven't figured out if I should change the outlet to 20 amp or go 220v.
You've picked up on that exactly. It does use up a lot of energy unnecessarily if you let it get cold all night long and then try to warm it up again in the morning. There is nothing wrong with driving it cold, and you don't even need to be gentle. That's not a thing with electric motors. The only thing you might not like is that the regeneration might be a bit limited from the battery being cold.I find it is better to charge when I get home when the battery is warm rather than spend quite a bit of 120v power to heat up the battery in the morning.
Is there an issue driving a couple miles in the morning when the battery is cold >30 deg C garage temperature if I am gentle?