Just placed my Order - What Next (PG&E, Charging, etc.)

[HardHitter]

I went ahead and placed my order for a 2020 Model 3 Performance. Don't anticipate it to come before the December time frame, so I'll continue to check inventory in the case I get lucky and can buy to take advantage of the tax credit.

With that said, what are the "things" I need to do to get prepared? The immediate things that come to mind is

1. Installing a plug for home charging
2. PG&E Plans

Home Charging
Does everything come with the car to charge? All I need to do is add a socket (which kind?) into the garage to plug into right? What is the typical estimate/cost of doing this?

PG&E Plan
I'm currently on a Tiered Plan where on a 6 month average, I do about 453 kWh. This puts 297 kWh @ $0.22 and then 156 kWh @ $0.28. Estimated monthly charge use would be an extra 375 kWh @ $0.28 for a cost of $105.60 extra. I understand that there are EV specific plans where you can take those 375 kWh and charge over night and get a 50% reduction, but I don't have visibility of where the rest of my normal day-to-day energy use is being spent. If it is happening in the peak hours, then we could be paying significantly more. What has everyone else done to maximize their savings once they switched to EV?

Anything Else
Is there anything else I should have prepared for whenever my delivery day comes?

 

[miimura]

You should try to install a NEMA 14-50 outlet in your garage. Until then, you can trickle charge from a normal household outlet. The 14-50 adapter for the provided Mobile Connector is now extra charge. You might want to order one now if you're sure you will be able to get that 14-50 outlet installed. The cost depends on how far and how difficult it is to pull the wires from your main electrical panel to where you need the outlet. Figure anywhere from $500 to $2,500 depending on your situation. Use an electrician that will pull a permit or give you the paperwork to file for the permit yourself.
Gen 2 NEMA Adapters

Log into your PG&E account and use Rate Comparison tool. Scroll down to the All Rates section and see what today's estimated annual cost is for EV2-A, if it will show it. That will tell you how much your current usage will cost given the time of use rates given the high priced Peak period. Take your estimated miles per month and divide by 3. That is your added kWh/month. EV2-A is $0.16234/kWh Off-Peak now. If you stay on the E-1 tiered rate plan and go over 400% of baseline, that incremental usage will cost you $0.50667/kWh. Ouch.

If you own your house and plan to stay there for a while, you should definitely consider getting solar.

 

[ucmndd]

@miimura’s advice is good. If you stay on E-1, you’re looking at about $215/mo.

to compare with EV2-A, which is your other likely good option, log into PGE and check the estimated cost in the rate comparison tool, then add ~$60 to that to cover your estimated charging costs (375kwh at 16 cents/kWh).

If less than your current E-1bill, switch. If not, stay put.

 

[HardHitter]

@miimura’s advice is good. If you stay on E-1, you’re looking at about $215/mo.

to compare with EV2-A, which is your other likely good option, log into PGE and check the estimated cost in the rate comparison tool, then add ~$60 to that to cover your estimated charging costs (375kwh at 16 cents/kWh).

If less than your current E-1bill, switch. If not, stay put.

Yep, my estimates for E1 is going to come out to be around $215/mo and about 600-700 kWh under the 400% threshold.

When looking at PGE, my E1 plan shows $1,390/year or $115/mo. Add in $105.60 for the charging cost at tier 2 and we are at $215/mo.

EV2-A, shows $1,460/year with current use, so around $121/mo plus the estimated off peak charging cost of $60/mo. So total being $181/mo.

Estimated $30-$35 savings a month by switching plans.

 

[jboy210]

Decide if you want an High Performance Wall Charger (HPWC) installed at your home. If so, order one, or better call over to a local showroom or the Fremont delivery center and see if they have one in stock. The online store is often out, but they often have them locally.

Option 2 is to get a 14-50 outlet and order a 14-50 adapter for the Universal Mobile Charger (UMC) that comes with the car. As I understand it, they no longer do not ship the UMC with 14-50 adapter plug.

In either case, you should have an electrician do the install. They will know about permit requirements and whether you need to upgrade your panel or wiring. Any competent electrician can do the install.

PG&E plan-wise you should look at the EV and Time of Use plans. I went Time of Use, since that worked out best for me and required not additional wiring. But everyone's situation is different. The PG&E Website is pretty good for letting you play "what-if" with plans and seeing the cost and trade-off of each plan. Also on the site are options on the site to get fine-grained usage information. I got a CSV file with my usage for the last year in 15 minute increments.

 

[HardHitter]

Decide if you want an High Performance Wall Charger (HPWC) installed at your home. If so, order one, or better call over to a local showroom or the Fremont delivery center and see if they have one in stock. The online store is often out, but they often have them locally.

Option 2 is to get a 14-50 outlet and order a 14-50 adapter for the Universal Mobile Charger (UMC) that comes with the car. As I understand it, they no longer do not ship the UMC with 14-50 adapter plug.

In either case, you should have an electrician do the install. They will know about permit requirements and whether you need to upgrade your panel or wiring. Any competent electrician can do the install.

PG&E plan-wise you should look at the EV and Time of Use plans. I went Time of Use, since that worked out best for me and required not additional wiring. But everyone's situation is different. The PG&E Website is pretty good for letting you play "what-if" with plans and seeing the cost and trade-off of each plan. Also on the site are options on the site to get fine-grained usage information. I got a CSV file with my usage for the last year in 15 minute increments.

Going to be using the Model 3 primarily for my work commute to Alameda and back. According to Google maps, it is going to be a 80-85 mile round trip commute. Even with no chargers at work, I don't anticipate any kind of problem doing the commute plus maybe some additional miles running errands after. There are no chargers at my work, but I am hoping I won't have a problem.

 

[jboy210]

Going to be using the Model 3 primarily for my work commute to Alameda and back. According to Google maps, it is going to be a 80-85 mile round trip commute. Even with no chargers at work, I don't anticipate any kind of problem doing the commute plus maybe some additional miles running errands after. There are no chargers at my work, but I am hoping I won't have a problem.

Based on my experience you should be fine with 100 miles or so daily drive. Enjoy your car!!