[POLL] 60 kWh owners : Do you wish you had purchased more range?

[u00mem9]

The flaw in that reply is that it is not a limited 75kWh battery, it's an original MS60 ....

Sorry, missed that.

We need a new name for the 2nd gen S60...S62 maybe, based on wk057 findings.

 

[salukidiaz]

We had purchased a software limit 60 this past December and upgraded to 75 right after the $2k offer. For 95% of the driving we do, which is our 100-mile round trip daily commute, the 60 was adequate. For the handful of supercharger-route trips we have taken, I appreciate the additional cushion the 75 gives, but I don't think it is an absolute necessity. For the 1% of off-network trips, where supercharging is not available and the only thing between you an home is 1 to 3 hours of level 2 charging... well that is where those extra 30-ish miles might make a difference. With all that said, the only other options available at the time we purchased were the 90 or 100, and that just wasn't in the cards for us, so no regrets here with either the initial purchase of the 60 or the upgrade to 75.

 

[croman]

What would you say your average speed was for the Erie to Ithaca trip was?

I'm also considering the drive down to Carbondale for the eclipse!

To the OP--the only semi-regular long trip I embark on is to our "ranch" in Peshtigo, WI. It's a 250 mile trip, so, I imagine if I were hypermiling the entire way I could make it with my 75D unlocked? I'm pretty sure driving 55mph in 70mph zones and making minimal use of climate control would drive me more nuts than a 15 minute restroom/ drink break in Sheboygan or Green Bay. I'd much rather do 80+mph in comfort and hit a charger once there and once back, so yeah, 60kwh for all my intents and purposes is suiting just fine.

I'm holding out to see if the $2k upgrade drops even further, as it'd be an unnecessary luxury at this point, and would be better spent on adding RFS which I'm starting to wish I got in the first place.

We are going to Carbondale as well (well, that neck of the woods). We are also visiting IL state fair and Lincoln historic sites on the way.

Erie to Ithaca -- not sure my average speed. With the 60D I kept to the speed limit (despite the car initially telling me I wouldn't make it all ("charging required"), changing to you'll make it only if you "drive 45mph" and finally just acknowledging we'd be ok about 4 miles from the destination). Keeping to the speed limit is painful for me. In FSD, I'd be fine with whatever. But trucks passing me isn't acceptable to me and isn't safe. 90 (17 miles) is like 65mph and I-86 varies between 65 and 60. I took 96 in from there and it wouldn't let me use AS but I kept TACC at whatever that limit was (55mph I think). Going up each elevation rise it would say we wouldn't it but by the time we were back down it would level off. Ithaca is at the bottom of a valley but our destination was back up that ravine but we were still ok due to the town's limit of 35mph. The car's regen ability, if you plan it right, is amazing. But you can avoid all that planning and stress and execution with a 75D.

RFS are tempting. My understanding is that you can consider a retrofit but I think Tesla has little interest

 

[dknisely]

Interesting. I have a 60 and live in Tacoma. I frequently ski at Crystal in the Winter (140 miles, round trip), and have routine commutes up to 90 miles in a day, and I have never had any serious issue with range (OK, I really sweated the first trip to the mountain to ski, since there is no real charging there or on the way, after making it back with 35% at a temperature of about 30F, I have never worried again). I am sure that out on the Olympic Peninsula (or up in the Cascades) it is possible to get far enough away from charging to be a problem, but with a bit of fore thought even that has worked out well. Now, if I were driving to Lake Chelan or someplace like that on a regular basis, I'd want a 90 or 100.

It appears this is really about how you use the vehicle and what your expectations are--which is probably true of most things... In any case it is good to hear all the perspectives.

Lake Chelan was an issue, yes. Our rather unambitious 2 day trip indicated +/- 25K' elevation! Yikes. But the Olympic trip would have been a complete fail without overnight 120 V charging (both nights we were there), and the Lake Chelan trip would have been impossible without an overnight medium-rate charge to 100%. We couldn't have done any side traveling. SC coverage in NW Washington is not great.

 

[scole04]

Got my 60 in January '13. Still has 95% capacity at 91k miles. I've traveled all over with no problem.

 

[⚡️ELECTROMAN⚡️]

We had purchased a software limit 60 this past December and upgraded to 75 right after the $2k offer. For 95% of the driving we do, which is our 100-mile round trip daily commute, the 60 was adequate. For the handful of supercharger-route trips we have taken, I appreciate the additional cushion the 75 gives, but I don't think it is an absolute necessity. For the 1% of off-network trips, where supercharging is not available and the only thing between you an home is 1 to 3 hours of level 2 charging... well that is where those extra 30-ish miles might make a difference. With all that said, the only other options available at the time we purchased were the 90 or 100, and that just wasn't in the cards for us, so no regrets here with either the initial purchase of the 60 or the upgrade to 75.

How long does it take for the unlock to occur after you call and give Tesla your credit card info? Just in case you got desperate on a road trip and found that you wanted the extra charging capacity.

 

[DrivingRockies]

How long does it take for the unlock to occur after you call and give Tesla your credit card info? Just in case you got desperate on a road trip and found that you wanted the extra charging capacity.

Less than 15 minutes topically.