@ michiganmodels
Whoa, 258 Wh/mi. Haven't heard of it before. You've got to share how did you achieve that efficiency. We are planning a trip to Traverse City, however have few concerns as a new owner. The distance to Traverse City from my place is 250 miles, so I have got to stop once for few hours in my 60 kWh, then will also need to recharge at Traverse City before leaving and stop again on way back. I looked up the road in plugshare, and found few J1722 in Midland and in Old Town Parking Deck. Here are few questions.
(1) Can I borrow your car? just kidding
(2) I guess I will have to switch my car in Range mode, even then I can get only 210 miles
(3) How fast (miles/hour) is the charging rate on J1772?
(4) We will only be gone for 2 days, is this enough time for Model S to be charged fully in Traverse City?
(5) Which route to take, via Midland or via Lansing?
(6) I know most of us are in SE Michigan, I really wish we had an owner somewhere in Mid michigan and would have asked him if I could use charger for the night. wmgill in Grand Rapids seems to be the only savior in this situation.
(7) Would it be possible for you to do a blog in TMC about your trip? It would be first blog from Michigan and will really help us.
I will be calling you for recommendations.
(1) Can I borrow your car? just kidding
I will let anyone borrow my Model S if I can borrow their Model X
(2) I guess I will have to switch my car in Range mode, even then I can get only 210 miles
If you have a 60 kWh Model S, you have two options (see below)
(3) How fast (miles/hour) is the charging rate on J1772?
17 Miles of Range Per Hour
(4) We will only be gone for 2 days, is this enough time for Model S to be charged fully in Traverse City?
Yes, see below
(5) Which route to take, via Midland or via Lansing?
Best route: West Bloomfield Township, MI to Old Town Parking Deck - Google Maps This is also how your Model S' Google Maps/Tesla Nav will direct you
(6) I know most of us are in SE Michigan, I really wish we had an owner somewhere in Mid michigan and would have asked him if I could use charger for the night. wmgill in Grand Rapids seems to be the only savior in this situation.
See below
(7) Would it be possible for you to do a blog in TMC about your trip? It would be first blog from Michigan and will really help us.
Here you go:
Speaking from experience, heading "Up North" from Metro-Detroit, as of today, there are two "best practices:"
1) Charge Max Range with a 60 kWh or you can be adventurous (like me) and charge "standard" with an 85 kWh battery. This route is the most direct and provides the most optimal speed limit(s) for range efficiency from Metro-Detroit to Traverse City:
West Bloomfield Township, MI to Old Town Parking Deck - Google Maps Here are the key points:
i) Drive the speed limit and use cruise control. Yes, we have the fastest and coolest car made. However, it goes from being the really cool car to really lame when you run out of juice. So, if the speed limit is 70 MPH, drive 70 MPH. Also, use cruise control; your watts per mile will be lowest when in cruise control rather than attempting to manually maintain a constant speed.
ii) Here's another data point: I left Traverse City with a standard charge of "240 Rated Miles." Here is how I fared:
iii) The difference between my drive up to Traverse and down state from Traverse was:
-Going North to Traverse City: a) I rode solo b) cargo was a weekend's gym bag worth of clothes c) experienced 20 miles of single lane traffic through Coleman, Michigan
-Driving South from Traverse City: a) My wife, daughter, and dog rode in the car b) we carried a baby stroller, the Tesla Rolling Duffel full of clothes, and another 35 pounds of baby-related "stuff" c) we experienced a 45 minute delay on I75 South around Flint (in addition to the same 20 mile single lane traffic through Coleman, Michigan).
-Heading North and South, climate control was set between 65 and 70 and I had the music on.
iv) As illustrated in iii - the trip is possible on a "Standard" charge with an 85 kWh Model S, but I would not try a "Standard" charge with a 60 kWh Model S. Actually,
I would try it. I would not recommend anyone else try it. In other words, if you would not attempt a 236 mile trip with a "240 Rated Range" projection with your wife, kid(s), and dog in the car, then I would not attempt the trip with the "Standard" charge 60 kWh :smile:
2) The best option if you want to play it safe is: Rent an RV spot at Soaring Eagle Casino in Mount Pleasant. My original plan was to charge at Soaring Eagle Hotel and Casino. However, I experienced the Model S was going to handle this trip with no problem, and I canceled the reservation(s). Here are the details:
i) Soaring Eagle Hotel and Casino (
Soaring Eagle Casino Resort) has an RV park located approximately 5 miles (
Soaring Eagle Hideaway RV Park) from the Hotel & Casino.
ii) The RV park has NEMA 14-50 service, which will allow you to charge at 27 miles of range per hour.
iii) The RV park has a shuttle service that runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to the hotel and casino every 30 minutes (I can't recall if it is 15 minutes or 30 minutes, someone would need to verify that).
iv) The cost for an RV spot varies based on season, but the peak rate is $64.00 (
Hideaway RV Park Rates and Information).
Let me know if anyone has any other questions. I am heading back to Leelanau next week, so I can report my statistics if anyone is interested.