How to save a lot of time on long trips

[apacheguy]

How fast do you normally drive?

I've heard both sides. For my, it's the opposite (and I speed), trip planner estimates my travels pretty well.

75-80. I would think it would learn from the consumption during the previous leg, but it just turns around and estimates an optimistic number that subsequently loses 10% after I'm on the road again.

I have the S60 refresh with the 8.0 update.

I was surprised I couldn't find anything about it in my online search.

See post #341 where the suggestion is made to arrive with >10 miles:

Some California Superchargers not providing maximum charging rates

There have been others but I can't find them now.

 

[limo]

See post #341 where the suggestion is made to arrive with >10 miles:

Some California Superchargers not providing maximum charging rates

There have been others but I can't find them now.

Thanks for the link. I guess I will plan to keep it > 10 miles.

 

[Hrhkee]

Can anyone speak about Atlanta suburb to Orlando in detail? MS60D..4 passengers 5 carryon luggage balanced between frunk and trunk. <=700lbs total load. 75mph speed mostly during spring, fall thru winter.

Thx

 

[CalBlue 85D]

Can anyone speak about Atlanta suburb to Orlando in detail? MS60D..4 passengers 5 carryon luggage balanced between frunk and trunk. <=700lbs total load. 75mph speed mostly during spring, fall thru winter.

Thx

EV Trip Planner will tell you everything you need to know

EV Trip Planner

 

[kort677]

Can anyone speak about Atlanta suburb to Orlando in detail? MS60D..4 passengers 5 carryon luggage balanced between frunk and trunk. <=700lbs total load. 75mph speed mostly during spring, fall thru winter.

Thx

hit every SpC along the way, use the trip planner in your car to monitor consumption and range and SLOW down! going under 75MPH will extend your range

 

[Hrhkee]

I need to change my habits to match my lifestyle. I used to do ATLANTA to ORLANDO in 9hrs by leaving at 5am and check in at 2pm with stops. When I need fuel we eat and take potty breaks. We cruise at 79 until waZe says we need to do 74. We haul Arss....(sp).

Every tesla we pass seems to have the look of help me my cat IA forcing me to drive 65. I understand why buy I figured if I plan to hit every super charger I can haul aarss. No?

 

[David99]

I need to change my habits to match my new lifestyle. I used to do ATLANTA to ORLANDO in 9hrs by leaving at 5am and check in at 2pm "with 2 long stops". When I need fuel we eat and take potty breaks. We cruise at 79 until waZe says we need to do 74. We haul Arss....(sp).

Every tesla we pass seems to have the look of help my car is forcing me to drive 65. I understand why buy I figured if I plan to hit every super charger I can haul aarss. No?

You can go as fast as you want, just make sure you charge enough. Usually it is overall faster to charge more and then be able to drive faster.

 

[CalBlue 85D]

I need to change my habits to match my new lifestyle. I used to do ATLANTA to ORLANDO in 9hrs by leaving at 5am and check in at 2pm "with 2 long stops". When I need fuel we eat and take potty breaks. We cruise at 79 until waZe says we need to do 74. We haul Arss....(sp).

Every tesla we pass seems to have the look of help my car is forcing me to drive 65. I understand why buy I figured if I plan to hit every super charger I can haul aarss. No?

You sound like a candidate for a diesel vehicle. Load it up and don't stop for anything for the next 700 miles. I used to do that, but my family has quickly adjusted to supercharger stops to take 20 minutes to stretch the legs, grab a snack and top off the battery. The car is usually ready to go before we are too!

 

[jbcarioca]

You sound like a candidate for a diesel vehicle. Load it up and don't stop for anything for the next 700 miles. I used to do that, but my family has quickly adjusted to supercharger stops to take 20 minutes to stretch the legs, grab a snack and top off the battery. The car is usually ready to go before we are too!

Another advantage of your approach is that one arrives more rested than is the case with fewer and/or shorter stops. Frankly, arriving more relaxed and comfortable is more important to me than arriving in the minimum elapsed time.

For minimum elapsed time I fly! Not commercial, that takes longer than driving for anything in my normal car driving range.

 

[Hrhkee]

75kw not able to skip a SC with my Lind of lead foot and cargo

You sound like a candidate for a diesel vehicle. Load it up and don't stop for anything for the next 700 miles. I used to do that, but my family has quickly adjusted to supercharger stops to take 20 minutes to stretch the legs, grab a snack and top off the battery. The car is usually ready to go before we are too!

Just trying to get the driving over with. Get it out of the way. No diesel just a Kia Sedona SXT. AWESOME range but we are getting away from ICE vehicles in 2017.

 

[andrewket]

Our longest single day trip in a Tesla so far is 781mi, northern VA to Rockford, IL. I think we stopped at five Superchargers. Might have been six. The combination of multiple 30+ min stops and autopilot makes trips much more relaxing, and as others have said, we arrived far less fatigued than we had in previous years without AP/gas cars.

 

[scottf200]

75kw not able to skip a SC with my Lind of lead foot and cargo
Just trying to get the driving over with. Get it out of the way. No diesel just a Kia Sedona SXT. AWESOME range but we are getting away from ICE vehicles in 2017.

What you are missing is how much more relaxing and easy long distance traveling is with AutoPilot/Steer. I never likes long long days on the road but it is much easier and oh so nice with AP.

 

[David99]

Another advantage of your approach is that one arrives more rested than is the case with fewer and/or shorter stops. Frankly, arriving more relaxed and comfortable is more important to me than arriving in the minimum elapsed time.

I think that is the key. Taking road trips with my Tesla I feel more relaxed and my legs/back doesn't feel as bad as when driving very long legs without stopping. The reason I wrote the inital post was to know what the strategy is to save time. One way or another you have to stop and charge in a Tesla, but using my method helps optimizing the charging time.

 

[Romo]

We went to Santa Rosa Beach Fl from Lafayette In during Christmas. I just got my P85 so I decided to take it as well. OMG!!! my wife took the Honda Odyssey and her round trip average was 11 hours 45 minutes. It took me 17.5 hours to get there and 18 hours to get home. Averaged 393 kWh with heat down to 64. Left the supercharger when the car told me to I would arrive at my next destination.

 

[Max*]

Left the supercharger when the car told me to I would arrive at my next destination.

They change this algorithm all the time. At some point it was 7% IIRC, then 10-15%, now I feel like it adds a 20+% buffer for the next stop.

Once you get more comfortable, you can leave before the car tells you you're ready.

Each person has their own point when they feel comfortable, for me it's about 10%. So I leave somewhat before the car tells me to go, and it saves charging time, which adds up on longer trips (tapper, yadda yadda, over 50% charges slower than under 50%, yadda yadda)

 

[bxr140]

For more uncertain legs, I do a quick point to point calculation on ev trip planner. I'll check the starting and finishing temps and wind speed, then plug in the worst case into EVTP, along with my other more fixed variables (payload, interior temp, speed factor etc) to get a predicted rated miles use. I charge to that bogey and then I drive like normal, in comfort. Occasionally heavy rain or heavy snow will make me manage my reserve, but usually not.

On known legs (I travel the 5 between LA and SF all the time) I'll often take off with 15-20 miles buffer and land with 10-15 miles buffer.

 

[David99]

They change this algorithm all the time. At some point it was 7% IIRC, then 10-15%, now I feel like it adds a 20+% buffer for the next stop.

Once you get more comfortable, you can leave before the car tells you you're ready.

Each person has their own point when they feel comfortable, for me it's about 10%. So I leave somewhat before the car tells me to go, and it saves charging time, which adds up on longer trips (tapper, yadda yadda, over 50% charges slower than under 50%, yadda yadda)

Yes they have adjusted the calculation over time. What they do right now is while you charge, the car assumes driving extra slow to make it to the destination (or next SuC). As it charges more and have more energy, it assumes a faster driving speed and adjusts. I watched it on my last road trip. It showed I will make it with 3% left and the total drive time was 2:14. I kept charging for 10 more minutes and the arrival time stayed the same while the drive time dropped to 2:04. As the battery filled up the car calculated that I can drive faster and still arrive at the same time! Once it hits the tipping point where staying longer takes more time than you save by driving faster that's exactly the point when the car tells you 'you have enough to continue your trip'. On this trip I actually waited about 5 more extra minutes because it was very cold and I wanted to have some extra buffer to run the heater as much as I like.

 

[ColdRauv]

Our longest single day trip in a Tesla so far is 781mi, northern VA to Rockford, IL. I think we stopped at five Superchargers. Might have been six. The combination of multiple 30+ min stops and autopilot makes trips much more relaxing, and as others have said, we arrived far less fatigued than we had in previous years without AP/gas cars.

I agree completely. My first cross country trip had the first leg of 772 miles. I was not stiff, sore or crabby after a long day of driving, and I slept like a baby and did it again the next day. And the next. I tell my friends with ICE cars, and they don't believe me that it is the only way to travel.

 

[David99]

I agree completely. My first cross country trip had the first leg of 772 miles. I was not stiff, sore or crabby after a long day of driving, and I slept like a baby and did it again the next day. And the next. I tell my friends with ICE cars, and they don't believe me that it is the only way to travel.

Actually when I learned to drive that's what I was told to do for long road trips. Take a break every 2 hours and walk around. Of course no one did it. We all thought, go longer and faster and minimal breaks is the way to go and then that becomes the way to do it. Now that I'm forced to stop and take short breaks I experience how much better that is. My only gripe with the Model S is that it forces me to stop at a certain time and location. It dictates my schedule. Once we have charging stations everywhere this will be mostly solved, but as of now, the car's need determines my route and timing of stops.

 

[nickatgt]

We went to Santa Rosa Beach Fl from Lafayette In during Christmas. I just got my P85 so I decided to take it as well. OMG!!! my wife took the Honda Odyssey and her round trip average was 11 hours 45 minutes. It took me 17.5 hours to get there and 18 hours to get home. Averaged 393 kWh with heat down to 64. Left the supercharger when the car told me to I would arrive at my next destination.

I have a second home in Santa Rosa Beach and do quite a bit of driving between there and a northern Atlanta Suburb. In my previous car it took me between 5 1/2 and 6 hours. In my MS75D it takes me about an hour more. I leave the house with a full charge and fully top up at the Auburn AL Supercharger. The navigator wants to route me down I-65 to the Greenville SC which would add probably another one hour to the trip. I start going across back country LA (Lower Alabama) at exit 16 off I-85. This route empties me out at DeFuniak Springs FL which has a SC. So far I pass that by and charge at my house with about 15 miles remaining. I can always use the DeFuniak SC as a safety stop if get low.

Scheduling a lunch or breakfast stop in Auburn is a good way to break up the trip.