LA Road Trip

[TechOps]

I took my Model S 75 on its first longer trip this weekend, driving from SF to LA and back along 101.

It's such a pleasure driving with autopilot. It only tried to kill me once by steering directly into the side of a semi truck cab I was passing. (It's done this before too -- I think it's magnetically attracted to semi's.)

Charging was easy. Stopped in Salinas and Arastradero on the way down, and Buellton, Arastradero, and Gilroy on the way back (couldn't quite make it from Buellton to Salinas -- that was the plan but I started getting warning messages so made a pit stop).

Had a couple of defective superchargers where they decreased to 60kW pretty quickly (Gilroy), or stopped charging after 10 minutes (Arastradero), but changing stalls fixed this.

Overall, it was a great trip. I was happy to have HEPA installed when LA got really smoky yesterday. The only time I smelled anything inside the cabin was a faint whiff of garlic in Gilroy... then got out of the vehicle and WHAM..onion overload.

Noticed there are a *lot* of Model S's on the road in LA.

 

[calisnow]

HEPA is the bestest.

 

[OilSucks]

So happy they have a Supercharger in Salinas now, that run from Atascadero to Gilroy in my 75D always had me nervous because there are stretches after Atascadero that you can hit 80 to 90mph. That type of speed drains the battery pretty quickly.

 

[thecloud]

Spotted the Bay Area native. There is an Arastradero Road in Palo Alto, and I also used to say that name when I meant Atascadero (the city).

Yes, it's good to realize that changing stalls (as well as avoiding a paired stall whose other half is occupied) will get you a better charging rate than 60kW when you arrive with a low state of charge. Depending on the location and time you arrive, you may or may not have the luxury of picking a different stall.

 

[Tam]

...magnetically attracted to semi's...

Is yours AP1 or AP2 please?

 

[OilSucks]

Spotted the Bay Area native. There is an Arastradero Road in Palo Alto, and I also used to say that name when I meant Atascadero (the city).

Yes, it's good to realize that changing stalls (as well as avoiding a paired stall whose other half is occupied) will get you a better charging rate than 60kW when you arrive with a low state of charge. Depending on the location and time you arrive, you may or may not have the luxury of picking a different stall.

Down in the Central Coast we all call it ATRASHcadero unfortunately lol

 

[allenkoehler]

I took my Model S 75 on its first longer trip this weekend, driving from SF to LA and back along 101.

It's such a pleasure driving with autopilot. It only tried to kill me once by steering directly into the side of a semi truck cab I was passing. (It's done this before too -- I think it's magnetically attracted to semi's.)

Charging was easy. Stopped in Salinas and Arastradero on the way down, and Buellton, Arastradero, and Gilroy on the way back (couldn't quite make it from Buellton to Salinas -- that was the plan but I started getting warning messages so made a pit stop).

Had a couple of defective superchargers where they decreased to 60kW pretty quickly (Gilroy), or stopped charging after 10 minutes (Arastradero), but changing stalls fixed this.

Overall, it was a great trip. I was happy to have HEPA installed when LA got really smoky yesterday. The only time I smelled anything inside the cabin was a faint whiff of garlic in Gilroy... then got out of the vehicle and WHAM..onion overload.

Noticed there are a *lot* of Model S's on the road in LA.

So pumped to go on our first long distance road trip from eastern PA to Cincinnati area in our (hopefully delivered beforehand) new 75D.

We have lane keeping assist in our MDX now, but excited to truly try out AP. How hard did the wheel pull toward the semi?

 

[Matutino]

Very nice.
Haven't taken the S for a long trip yet but, we did pick up our X on Thursday and did a round trip from Orange County to Fremont (800 miles total) the very next day with no hiccups, Had to stop twice to charge, each stop 50 minutes or so.
Love gong from ICE to 100% EV household.

 

[TechOps]

Spotted the Bay Area native. There is an Arastradero Road in Palo Alto, and I also used to say that name when I meant Atascadero (the city).

Yes, it's good to realize that changing stalls (as well as avoiding a paired stall whose other half is occupied) will get you a better charging rate than 60kW when you arrive with a low state of charge. Depending on the location and time you arrive, you may or may not have the luxury of picking a different stall.

LOL! You caught me on the Atascadero typo.

Good point on the charging stalls. I was delighted that every single Supercharge I stopped at had a ton of stalls, and most (or all) of them empty. I always try to avoid paired stalls, but due to hardware failure, I did see the above mentioned issues pop up.

Is yours AP1 or AP2 please?

AP2. (or 2.5? not sure.) It's an August 2017 build.

We have lane keeping assist in our MDX now, but excited to truly try out AP. How hard did the wheel pull toward the semi?

It pulled pretty quick, and when you're at 70+MPH, that is terrifying. Definitely got the heart pumping. It's not too hard to grab the wheel and override the autopilot, but you have to be paying attention! I always perk up when it's passing big trucks or vehicles that are too close to (or partially in) my lane. Staying dead center in the lane, which autopilot currently does, is not the right move in that case.

Love gong from ICE to 100% EV household.

Yes!! It's an awesome feeling. SC is a bit of a headache, but on non-roadtrip days (95%+ of them), just plugging in at night and being fully charged in the morning is the best!

 

[Blu Ludicrous]

Definitely glad to hear that HEPA actually works and will keep odors out. I hate that part of the drive from LA to SF