[Resolved w/12V Battery] Model 3 Hypermiled 606 Miles Down To 0% - Now Will Not Take A Charge

[TexasEV]

I just don’t get this weird, protectionist attitude in some of you? Tesla has received some negative press. So what?

Tesla sells consumer products. Time to grow some thicker skin.

Because we believe in the mission of the company and want it to succeed. And unlike most other consumer product companies, there are many billions of dollars of forces against it that want it to fail.

 

[apacheguy]

Prediction: Battery is fine. Firmware update will fix (corner case?) issue where car won't charge.

As an aside, I suspect the issue of their only getting 66KWh usable is likely attributed in large part to other vehicle overhead. With a 32 hour stint, a draw of 250W works out to another 8kWh used...

Nope. The kWh consumed and the consumption rate (wh/mile) includes the energy to move the car and the auxiliary power like AC and heating.

The hypermiling is all well and good, but I’m more concerned as to why only 66 kWh was usable. That’s a considerable difference from the rated 75 and assumed 80 kWh.

 

[Uncle Paul]

Believe doing this range test was valuable. Lots was learned, and the battery issue can be corrected.

Once again the media has taken something good and put a spin on it to gain clicks. It is what they do, and for some reason they feel entitled to post articles that mislead the public in their headlines, but fail to publish a balanced article. Seems like everything they do has an agenda that is not noted.

The important fact that the Model 3 is capable of traveling 600 miles between charges was glossed over.

 

[scaesare]

The hypermiling is all well and good, but I’m more concerned as to why only 66 kWh was usable. That’s a considerable difference from the rated 75 and assumed 80 kWh.

Yeah, I'm interested in that as well... especially given my earlier miscue in thinking about it...

 

[MP3Mike]

The hypermiling is all well and good, but I’m more concerned as to why only 66 kWh was usable. That’s a considerable difference from the rated 75 and assumed 80 kWh.

We have always known that the energy usage reported in the trip meter isn't accurate and always underreports how much energy was used. What we don't know is if that is because certain energy usage isn't tracked, or is that the energy lost inside the battery? (i.e. heat generated)

Sean and Erik have said that they hope to shed more light on this issue this weekend.

 

[Robert831]

We have always known that the energy usage reported in the trip meter isn't accurate and always underreports how much energy was used. What we don't know is if that is because certain energy usage isn't tracked, or is that the energy lost inside the battery? (i.e. heat generated)

Sean and Erik have said that they hope to shed more light on this issue this weekend.

Good point! Maybe the energy it tracks is just what's used for driving the motor. Could it be that running the computer / lights / fan used up the other 9kWh? In 30 hours of driving that would average 300W. Seems perfectly reasonable.

Maybe the next hypermile attempt could try to reduce the driving time by going a little faster. Maybe the true "sweet spot" is at a higher speed, like 30mph.

 

[Dogwhistle]

We have always known that the energy usage reported in the trip meter isn't accurate and always underreports how much energy was used. What we don't know is if that is because certain energy usage isn't tracked, or is that the energy lost inside the battery? (i.e. heat generated)

Sean and Erik have said that they hope to shed more light on this issue this weekend.

Could be that the fact they were running at a super-efficient state over such a long distance only amplified the “guage error” that the computer has when trying to guesstimate usage. My interpretation is that the 66kWh report is just an amplified error. The battery guage was correct the whole time. 12% was 12%, not another 30kWh remaining by doing math.

 

[MorrisonHiker]

We have always known that the energy usage reported in the trip meter isn't accurate and always underreports how much energy was used. What we don't know is if that is because certain energy usage isn't tracked, or is that the energy lost inside the battery? (i.e. heat generated)

Sean and Erik have said that they hope to shed more light on this issue this weekend.

Exactly. I fully charged my S90D last weekend and drove about 250 miles before charging again. My car reported I'd used 61 kWh and had about 45 miles range remaining (~11 kWh). 61 kWh +11 kWh is only 72 kWh and I know my battery is larger than that. The other energy was used for A/C, battery cooling, headlights, TACC, AP, etc.

 

[jsmay311]

I’d like to know why there are people here, on a Tesla support forum, who aren’t protective of the company.

Wow. Just wow.

I visit this site to learn facts about Tesla and its cars, not to see people to spin every story and excuse every shortcoming in order to give Tesla "protection". (Tesla's reputation deserves every bit of protection that they earn. No more. They're a big boy company now.)

I can't believe anyone would seriously suggest anything different.

 

[SeaDoc]

There were quite a few starts and stops during every lap - it would be interesting to see a 600 mile course going 30 mph on level terrain - Kansas anyone??? That may explain the kWh discrepancy... I think their efforts should be applauded, even though, at the time, I thought they were nuts... Tesla owners are unique individuals, to say the least...

 

[vinnie97]

^^They remind me of the early Prius owners/pioneers.

 

[SeaDoc]

^^They remind me of the early Prius owners/pioneers.

Indeed, that seems like decades ago - indeed it was... Never felt hybrids were committed to the cause... Tesla changed my mind and my outlook on EV's forever. It is amazing to see the rapid expansion of SuperChargers - Tesla knows that the SuperCharger infrastructure is the glue that solidifies Tesla as the world leader in EV's for the foreseeable future...

 

[MorrisonHiker]

There were quite a few starts and stops during every lap - it would be interesting to see a 600 mile course going 30 mph on level terrain - Kansas anyone???

One would still need to find a flat spot in Kansas! Overall, Kansas is actually sloped downhill to the east.

Sean's first attempt was actually from Colorado to Kansas and many people complained about the downhill slope and tail winds which affected the results. It really does make a difference as I get really good Wh/mile values whenever driving from Colorado to Kansas...and much worse values when making the return trip.

But yes, overall, Kansas is a lot flatter than Colorado.

 

[SageBrush]

The important fact that the Model 3 is capable of traveling 600 miles between charges was glossed over.

If I was reporting on the drive I would de-emphasize the 600 miles too since it took a hypermiling stunt to achieve.

 

[SageBrush]

Tesla knows that the SuperCharger infrastructure is the glue that solidifies Tesla as the world leader in EV's for the foreseeable future...

Yup

 

[insaneoctane]

I find this test helpful as an owner. I hope that I never run my Tesla to empty. But now I know what to expect. I think having the 12V battery deplete it's charge is unintentional and likely a bug and the behavior will hopefully be address in a future OTA update because of this effort. It is a shame that some media outlets sensationalize too much at the cost of the real story. Nonetheless that is the world we live in and if you don't approve try and fix it.

 

[sub]

Does it matter the size of the battery in the 3? I'm glad Tesla went with "LR" and "SR" to keep the nonsense to a minimum. The car, from reports I've seen, easily does the claimed 310 miles. Case closed.

 

[SageBrush]

Does it matter the size of the battery in the 3?

Perhaps in your car Tesla can hide the Wh/mile and SoC meters.

 

[Sean Mitchell]

People are positive with the outcome that the car had to be towed to a service center and the 12v battery replaced? Not the people that have asked me about it. They keep asking me about Tesla reliability.

That's your perception. EVERYONE I spoke to were excited that a Model 3 went 600+ miles. Though they were curious if the car was up and running again, not once did the question the reliability of the car. I don't doubt that there are some people who question the reliability, but I think it's a minority.

 

[SageBrush]

That's your perception. EVERYONE I spoke to were excited that a Model 3 went 600+ miles. Though they were curious if the car was up and running again, not once did the question the reliability of the car. I don't doubt that there are some people who question the reliability, but I think it's a minority.

Don't sweat it Sean.

The people emphasizing the negative are not budding Tesla customers.