Kingsland, Ga to Santee, SC

[Bobbo8]

I will be making this trip Kingsland, Ga to Santee, SC a total of 210 miles as part of my journey. The Tesla trip app says I need to charge up at Savannah. I drive a Model 3 Long Range rear wheel. Why are they recommending to charge 1/2 way between Kingsland and Santee?

 

[gavine]

I would recommend skipping Savannah if you can. That spot is not ideal. The planner is probably recommending the stop based on the high speed limit on that stretch and the fact that supercharging tapers so its trying to minimize charge times at each stop. I tried skipping Savannah in my X90D, but we had to stop there.

Depending on conditions and how much weight you’re carrying, you may have to slow down a little. The car will tell if/when you need to slow down. High speeds kill range. Low speeds allow for more. You might have to decide if it’s worth slowing down a little to skip Savannah. Worth it in my opinion.

 

[PJFW8]

I will be making this trip Kingsland, Ga to Santee, SC a total of 210 miles as part of my journey. The Tesla trip app says I need to charge up at Savannah. I drive a Model 3 Long Range rear wheel. Why are they recommending to charge 1/2 way between Kingsland and Santee?

I have done that route twice. There is no need to stop in Savannah, but to be safe get a decent charge at Kingsland. 90% plus. Worst case, you can drop your speed. I expect no problem. A strong head wind or wet conditions will reduce your range.

 

[outdoors]

This middle stop is often so you spend the time charging between the ideal %'s of your battery. Which equates to less time charging and more time driving. Referred to as the taper of the battery. Getting to 100% or even 90% takes a great deal more time than getting it to 73 or 74%

I find the Tesla trip app conservative. Really it wants people not on the side of the road and the user experience created by such situations. Abetterrouteplanner shows me leaving at Kingsland at 84% arriving Santee at 12%. If you wanted to skip it. Just a 10 minute charge at Savannah would make one less stressed, and maybe a little more comfortable in the cabin and not worried about range anxiety. I have no idea how you drive, or the weather currently.

I personally have no problem pulling into a supercharger at 6 or 7%. Others I know look at me like I am crazy. Then I often remind them about how often they drive around with less than a 1/8th of a tank of gas trying to avoid the inevitable.

Many of my SC visits are around 25 minutes or less on road trips. Only ones that are an hour are ones by design (needing a nap) or in very remote western locations.

I can tell you the Savannah SC can be one of less than pleasing charging experiences. In the airport garage. Many times playing charging musical chairs to find a good stall. Also often full as it is a stop in the middle of the route you refer to. I did leapfrog it on my last trip north.

 

[M3BlueGeorgia]

As said above, charge up to 90+% then review the situation as you approach the junction for Savannah airport.

Nothing wrong with the Savannah Airport Superchargers, though its a bit of a hunt if you've never been there before.
When you drive out, use a manned station and tell them you were charging your car. They'll have you sign the ticket and you won't be charged for parking

 

[outdoors]

I pulled up to the Savannah, GA Supercharger to a line of 3 cars ahead of me. 1 of 6 stalls were down, the rest taken. 30 minutes I get into a stall, and my charge rate maxed out at 17 kWh.

I called Tesla and they said they were aware of outages at that location and wouldn’t have someone out until January 4th. The nearest Supercharger was 100+ miles away and it would’ve taken me 1.5-2 hours to finish charging. Thank GOD it upped to 80 kWh after 20 min. I don’t even know if there are nearby CCS/CHAdeMO stations, but it would’ve been GREAT to have an alternative.

Might be worth a check on this SC as of Dec. 29th. Was my experience last year as well. Click on the arrow to go to that thread.

 

[ewoodrick]

If the weather is cold and speeds high, you might be on the edge. Also, do you want any spare range as you pull into your destination?

 

[Bobbo8]

As said above, charge up to 90+% then review the situation as you approach the junction for Savannah airport.

Nothing wrong with the Savannah Airport Superchargers, though its a bit of a hunt if you've never been there before.
When you drive out, use a manned station and tell them you were charging your car. They'll have you sign the ticket and you won't be charged for parking

I think that will be my stategy to access the situation as I approach Savannah and decide if I can make Santee on the remaining charge if not visit Savannah SC. Thanks