Model S Yellowstone road trip

[David.85D]

So if you get someone to stand on the wrench who is about 120 lbs is that accurate? I suppose it would depend on the length of the wrench...

Are there no portable adjustable torque wrenches where you can set it to 129 foot pounds?

129 lb person should stand 1-ft from pivot to give you 129 ft-lbs. if you have an 18-inch (1.5 foot) long wrench, then apply 86 lbs of force...

There are plenty of inexpensive torque wrenches on the market. Even the Harbor Freight version test out to within a few percent. Surprises me...

If you get a “clicker” style, don’t store it preset to 129 ft-lbs. they teach you to always turn it to low settings for storage to avoid damage.

 

[FatherTo1]

Just want to share an update with OP and others. We started our trip from Sacramento to West Yellowstone. We took the RX and honestly am glad we did. We made good time and covered 600 miles to Twin Falls, ID in 11.25 total hours (which reflects the +1 HR time zone difference and 1.5 hrs in breaks).

Yes, our S Standard Range would have made it too but we made especially good time by only stopping twice instead of the planned four times. Our first stop was for 30 minutes at the Raley's on Keystone Ave in Reno, NV. It allowed us to use the restroom and pick up some lunch food, snacks, and drinks. We then drove four hours and stopped an hour at Elko to fill-up the RX. At this point, the RX went 420 miles and averaged 25 MPG. As much as I enjoy the stops at previous Superchargers, it was just plain easier to stop when and where we wanted. Seeing as how the gas light came on a few miles before Elko, an S Long Range Plus is really close to making the entire distance to the Elko Supercharger...except for the fact we were cruising along at the 80 MPH speed limit most of the way through Nevada.

The 2007 RX 350 engine sounds very crude compared to an EV, and there's tremendous wind noise at freeway speeds. That said, we packed the RX to the gills and there's no way the same amount would fit in the Model S (not to mention the added weight would hurt efficiency).

 

[WVCS]

I also have an upcoming road trip to Yellowstone from the bay area. I have a few questions.

• This Yellowstone National Park Service site lists charging stations available inside the park. The page says that the Level 2 chargers listed there provide power "to anyone who brings an electric vehicle". Does the "Level 2" reference automatically mean that my J1772 adapter will work at these stations?
• I wanted to alert other travelers about this person's experience getting traumatized for unauthorized use of an outdoor power outlet in the park. In this case, there was no sign indicating what use of the station was allowed vs. forbidden. Will be good to know how to be sure.
• I like to experience parks on foot and I keep driving inside the park to a minimum. The research I have done so far indicates that the distance between parking/charging spots in the list above and trailheads is significant and the route goes through (possibly busy) roads that won't be fun to add to the hike. Have people solved this problem? For e.g. are there shuttles from the lodges (with the parking&charging spots) to trailheads? Are there good hikes whose trailheads begin close to parking&charging spots?

 

[FatherTo1]

I also have an upcoming road trip to Yellowstone from the bay area. I have a few questions.

• This Yellowstone National Park Service site lists charging stations available inside the park. The page says that the Level 2 chargers listed there provide power "to anyone who brings an electric vehicle". Does the "Level 2" reference automatically mean that my J1772 adapter will work at these stations?
• I wanted to alert other travelers about this person's experience getting traumatized for unauthorized use of an outdoor power outlet in the park. In this case, there was no sign indicating what use of the station was allowed vs. forbidden. Will be good to know how to be sure.
• I like to experience parks on foot and I keep driving inside the park to a minimum. The research I have done so far indicates that the distance between parking/charging spots in the list above and trailheads is significant and the route goes through (possibly busy) roads that won't be fun to add to the hike. Have people solved this problem? For e.g. are there shuttles from the lodges (with the parking&charging spots) to trailheads? Are there good hikes whose trailheads begin close to parking&charging spots?

I haven't been paying much attention to charger locations on this trip without our S. If we had the S, I would just make sure to top off at the nearby Supercharger in West Yellowstone each morning. We have two days left and so far drove a total of 80 miles on Day 1 and 120 miles on Day 2. Others have visited Yellowstone with an S 85 so I know there's enough charge to cover each quadrant of Yellowstone and get back with plenty of charge.

So far, I've seen a total of one Model X and one Model 3 in Yellowstone. Considering that the maximum speed limit in the park is 45 MPH, even with elevation changes, I think any Tesla should be able to handle daily distances.

 

[Tesomega]

We did this trip July 2018. From Concord, CA and had used abetterrouteplaner.com for the whole trip; the planning aspect was very good.

Covered: Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Mt Rushmore, Rocky Mountains National Park, Arches National Park and back home..

1. Destination Chargers and Hotels that had Tesla Destination charger was a big time saver.
2. The Yellowstone park has J1772 (Free Charging) in Mammoth Springs Area, Canyon Lodge - Use it. We had stayed in the park so it was very convenient.
3. Not all superchargers are going to be fast and may not work as expected, plan for it. We had several issues with 3 or 4 superchargers and took about more than 2 hrs in lost time on the entire trip.
4. Plan for your battery degradation to show up once you complete your trip, I did.
5. Most of the roads in UTAH is about 80 miles speed limit, so plan for it.
6. Depending on the traffic map update, your autopilot speed could be incorrect and you may need to drive on your own to match speed limit of the road.

 

[Tesomega]

I also have an upcoming road trip to Yellowstone from the bay area. I have a few questions.

• This Yellowstone National Park Service site lists charging stations available inside the park. The page says that the Level 2 chargers listed there provide power "to anyone who brings an electric vehicle". Does the "Level 2" reference automatically mean that my J1772 adapter will work at these stations?

Yes, all you need is your J1772 adapter.

 

[PhilDavid]

We did this trip July 2018. From Concord, CA and had used abetterrouteplaner.com for the whole trip; the planning aspect was very good.

Covered: Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Mt Rushmore, Rocky Mountains National Park, Arches National Park and back home..

1. Destination Chargers and Hotels that had Tesla Destination charger was a big time saver.
2. The Yellowstone park has J1772 (Free Charging) in Mammoth Springs Area, Canyon Lodge - Use it. We had stayed in the park so it was very convenient.
3. Not all superchargers are going to be fast and may not work as expected, plan for it. We had several issues with 3 or 4 superchargers and took about more than 2 hrs in lost time on the entire trip.
4. Plan for your battery degradation to show up once you complete your trip, I did.
5. Most of the roads in UTAH is about 80 miles speed limit, so plan for it.
6. Depending on the traffic map update, your autopilot speed could be incorrect and you may need to drive on your own to match speed limit of the road.

Could you please elaborate on point # 4?

4. Plan for your battery degradation to show up once you complete your trip, I did.

We are considering a fairly long Tesla road trip and have been thinking about possibly renting a Tesla for a month with unlimited miles to not put the wear and tear of an extended road trip on our own car. Battery degradation after a long trip is not something I had even considered.

 

[Tesomega]

Could you please elaborate on point # 4?

4. Plan for your battery degradation to show up once you complete your trip, I did.

We are considering a fairly long Tesla road trip and have been thinking about possibly renting a Tesla for a month with unlimited miles to not put the wear and tear of an extended road trip on our own car. Battery degradation after a long trip is not something I had even considered.

What i noticed was that my battery capacity (Capacity readings using OBD2 Connector and ScanMyTesla) showed about a 4kW reduction in capacity; When I completed my Trip (Total trip was 13 days about 3900 miles with pretty much 100% full charge every day and peaked about 3-4 super charger stops upto about 60% charge for 2 days)

 

[Evee]

I just went around 3k miles and my pack levels went up by .1 kWh then down by .1 kWh during the trip.

 

[Tesomega]

I just went around 3k miles and my pack levels went up by .1 kWh then down by .1 kWh during the trip.

It could be the battery age thing, my vehicle had only about 9000 miles less than a year old when i did this trip.

 

[PhilDavid]

What i noticed was that my battery capacity (Capacity readings using OBD2 Connector and ScanMyTesla) showed about a 4kW reduction in capacity; When I completed my Trip (Total trip was 13 days about 3900 miles with pretty much 100% full charge every day and peaked about 3-4 super charger stops upto about 60% charge for 2 days)

Yikes are you sure that is correct? A loss of 4kW after a 3,900 mile trip is a bit crazy.

Have you "regained" any of that back subsequently under normal use?

 

[Evee]

It could be the battery age thing, my vehicle had only about 9000 miles less than a year old when i did this trip.

yeah it seems to be unaffected overall, same with max power outputs. Was a great road trip car even with non v3 supercharging and less range.

 

[Tesomega]

Yikes are you sure that is correct? A loss of 4kW after a 3,900 mile trip is a bit crazy.

Have you "regained" any of that back subsequently under normal use?

Noop.

 

[roblab]

So if you get someone to stand on the wrench who is about 120 lbs is that accurate? I suppose it would depend on the length of the wrench...

Are there no portable adjustable torque wrenches where you can set it to 129 foot pounds?

Yes there are. But it's very easy to use a cheaper wrench with a pointer. Remember, 129 is "optimum" and nothing will happen if you're off a little one way or the other.

Getting someone weighing 120 lb. to stand on a lug wrench exactly 1.075 feet horizontally from a lug nut is really unnecessary in my opinion. Your main goal is to keep the tire from falling off while you drive, and I would imagine the heating and cooling of the wheel bolts would affect the torque of the nuts a few pounds one way or the other anyway. And are you having them stand before or after the bathroom break?

Then, being practical, today's tires are far superior to those of a decade ago. Chances are you will never need your extra wheels or torque wrench, as you'll never have a flat. I drove to Coeur d' Alene the first month I got my car, then put another hundred thousand on it, with never a flat or puncture. Next car I had, I ran over a screw, but pulled it out and put in a quick repair plug and drove it another forty thousand miles. (Them good ol' Michelins!)

Just enjoy your trip. It's a great car, and the car tells you where all the chargers are. In the above trip, I found that although Tesla had talked of putting in chargers, none had been yet installed anywhere, and I got very good at planning stops at RV parks during the day, and using motels that advertised RV outlets every night. Never a problem. Even less of a problem now.

 

[PhilDavid]

Yes there are. But it's very easy to use a cheaper wrench with a pointer. Remember, 129 is "optimum" and nothing will happen if you're off a little one way or the other.

Getting someone weighing 120 lb. to stand on a lug wrench exactly 1.075 feet horizontally from a lug nut is really unnecessary in my opinion. Your main goal is to keep the tire from falling off while you drive, and I would imagine the heating and cooling of the wheel bolts would affect the torque of the nuts a few pounds one way or the other anyway. And are you having them stand before or after the bathroom break?

Then, being practical, today's tires are far superior to those of a decade ago. Chances are you will never need your extra wheels or torque wrench, as you'll never have a flat. I drove to Coeur d' Alene the first month I got my car, then put another hundred thousand on it, with never a flat or puncture. Next car I had, I ran over a screw, but pulled it out and put in a quick repair plug and drove it another forty thousand miles. (Them good ol' Michelins!)

Just enjoy your trip. It's a great car, and the car tells you where all the chargers are. In the above trip, I found that although Tesla had talked of putting in chargers, none had been yet installed anywhere, and I got very good at planning stops at RV parks during the day, and using motels that advertised RV outlets every night. Never a problem. Even less of a problem now.

Wait, are you telling me I asked my girlfriend to keep her weight exactly at 120 in order to properly torque the wheels all for nothing?

I've already replaced the 21" wheels with 19" wheels so hopefully they will be more durable for trips...

I do plan to buy a Modern Spare wheel for the Model s to keep in the car for trips though.

 

[roblab]

...At this point, the RX went 420 miles and averaged 25 MPG. My S gets over 100 mpg equiv. Woohoo! And since my goal is not to make a trip in one day (one could take a plane), I don't mind stopping for twenty or thirty minutes while I go eat and hit the bathroom and my car charges enough to finish my day's route.

...As much as I enjoy the stops at previous Superchargers, it was just plain easier to stop when and where we wanted. No, you stopped where you had to. Every stop had to have a gas station. I can't imagine that you actually wanted to stop and stand around while your tank filled in the wind and (often) rain. At least in my S, I can sit in the car and read and/or listen to music. I don't have to be anywhere by three PM anyway.

...That said, we packed the RX to the gills and there's no way the same amount would fit in the Model S.
And this last is debatable. Counting seats, the RX actually has two cubic feet LESS storage area than the Model S. Many has been the time when my wife assured me there was "no way" the car could carry "all that", but with me being very spatially oriented, it always has.

On top of all this, your RX dumped several tons of pollution into the air, for which we EV drivers say, "Thanks a bunch."
Hope you choose the S next time.

 

[FatherTo1]

@roblab, so glad you know what works best for me and my family. We took the best vehicle for the trip, period.

RX getting 25 MPG is impressive to me because it was carrying a full load, travelled at 80 MPH speed limits, with elevation gain, and still exceeded its EPA rating. Try packing any Tesla full and drive 80 MPH... your 100+ MPGe rating goes out the window.

I actually enjoy the act of driving and chose not to fly, especially during a pandemic. You can go trap yourself in a plane with hundreds of others breathing the same recycled air but I'd rather not.

To your second point, no, not every stop needed a gas station. We just needed a potty stop. If I did pump gas, you do realize pumps have a handle lock so I can still sit comfortably inside the car while it fills up, right? EVs are not the only vehicle where you can sit inside while you wait.

Thirdly, you're going off of spec sheet for cubic storage rather than taking into account the shape of storage. I consider myself a master organizer too, squeezing more into the refrigerator or car than my wife thinks is possible. I parked both cars in the driveway and literally tried to pack the same amount into the S and couldn't do it. On top of that, the S is still lacking a spare tire! (Side note: the RX also has a secret compartment beneath the cargo floor that isn't accounted for in those publicized cargo specs you quote.)

The S is a great car and I would have loved to take it on this roadtrip, but it didn't work out and I didn't need to force the issue like you have the need to. Try to keep an open mind next time. An EV is not always the best choice and that's okay. I want to help the environment too and am making progress each day I drive the S. Yea, I still drive an ICE, but I drive one ICE instead of two previously so get off your high horse.