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highfalutintodd
Member
Thanks everyone for the feedback and great advice. I'm REALLY glad to have known that the Superchargers were in the intermediate lot - otherwise there would have been a lot of hunting around to do.
Despite the fact that the airport is, let's face it, a really weird place for a Supercharger, everything went off without a hitch. Pulled in, plugged in, charged very, very quickly, and then we were on our way. The snack bar in the terminal was perfectly serviceable and we didn't have to hang around at all - by the time we were done eating, we were done charging.
I know many others have said this before but I'll add my voice to the chorus - this truly is a game-changer. I was slightly apprehensive about taking the Tesla all the way down to Atlanta with the wife and kids but it couldn't have been a more pleasant, comfortable trip. And not having to pay for gas doesn't suck. ;-)
One thing Tesla could do to improve the network (that will come to no shock to those who have used them) is to make them easier to find. The nav was great to get me to the general location, but both the Chattanooga and Atlanta (Atlantic Station) Superchargers I used weren't in obvious spots and the nav stopped once it determined that we were "at the destination" despite the fact that we weren't actually at the Superchargers themselves. Thankfully, you guys had told me exactly where the Chattanooga 'chargers were located, but I hadn't thought to look into Atlantic Station at all. We ended up just kind of driving around in circles in the parking garage until we stumbled across them. A sign, a beacon, better nav, a blurb in the Nav telling where to go once you get there, anything would be helpful for first time Supercharger visitors.
Despite the fact that the airport is, let's face it, a really weird place for a Supercharger, everything went off without a hitch. Pulled in, plugged in, charged very, very quickly, and then we were on our way. The snack bar in the terminal was perfectly serviceable and we didn't have to hang around at all - by the time we were done eating, we were done charging.
I know many others have said this before but I'll add my voice to the chorus - this truly is a game-changer. I was slightly apprehensive about taking the Tesla all the way down to Atlanta with the wife and kids but it couldn't have been a more pleasant, comfortable trip. And not having to pay for gas doesn't suck. ;-)
One thing Tesla could do to improve the network (that will come to no shock to those who have used them) is to make them easier to find. The nav was great to get me to the general location, but both the Chattanooga and Atlanta (Atlantic Station) Superchargers I used weren't in obvious spots and the nav stopped once it determined that we were "at the destination" despite the fact that we weren't actually at the Superchargers themselves. Thankfully, you guys had told me exactly where the Chattanooga 'chargers were located, but I hadn't thought to look into Atlantic Station at all. We ended up just kind of driving around in circles in the parking garage until we stumbled across them. A sign, a beacon, better nav, a blurb in the Nav telling where to go once you get there, anything would be helpful for first time Supercharger visitors.
Cottonwood
Roadster#433, Model S#S37
What I find to be very helpful in these situations is to zoom all the way in on the nav screen and turn on the aerial (sat) view. The actual Supercharger location in on the map to within feet and the aerial view gives you good reference to the local landmarks like buildings, parking areas, etc. Using this technique, I have never had a problem finding a Supercharger.
Good luck and have fun!
highfalutintodd
Member
Great idea.... which unfortunately wouldn't have helped me with the underground parking structure at Atlantic Station. ;-)
A Tesla owner relayed the following news to the Atlanta group on Facebook: "Just a heads-up for those of you planning a trip via Chattanooga's SuperCharger. I was informed today by the Republic Parking Manager that the SC will be off-line in the near future while they complete an expansion and beautification project in the Intermediate Lot. They are going to repave the lot and the SC will be closed during the process. He did not know exactly when (within the next month or so) and he did not know how long it might be closed."
This will temporarily suck for me. I live in Atlanta and work from home, but my office is in Chattanooga. I typically go up there for one day, and have to stop at the SC for 5-10 minutes just to get enough buffer to make it home. Now I guess I have to pay for a Blink charger for a few hours.
Having the SC in Chattanooga was one of the prime reasons I even got a Tesla rather than an ICE car, because I knew of my frequent trips to the area.
highfalutintodd
Member
So...... how exactly would this work? This is a little different than temporarily closing a parking lot - this affects whether or not someone can make it to their destination in a Tesla or not. How is Tesla going to handle a situation like this? Do they notify users? Is there a status page somewhere?
The family is taking another trip to Atlanta this weekend and I was planning on taking the Model S, but if there's even a chance that we'll get to Chattanooga and it not be operational...............
Ebony Star
Member
Thanks for the update. Glad to know you will share your charging station. I had planned to visit in Chattanooga area in the near future. Will reschedule trip. Checked Nav, it has no indication that this SC is not available. Lucky I do have a ChadeMode adapter. Unavailable Super Chargers should be reported ASAP. How long will it be unavailable?
The SC is still available today. It will be unavailable sometime in the next month for nobody knows how long.
I had a call by one of the local Tesla service center people yesterday about a different issue and I asked about the closing. He said the only thing they know is what was told here - the airport may not have notified Tesla and may not be under any obligation to notify Tesla of what's going on, which is troublesome.
Just to be clear, I do not have a "charging station" I have a High Powered Wall Connector (HPWC). 80 Amps continuous charge or about 58 miles per hour for those with dual on-board chargers.
dhanson865
Well-Known Member
Charging station is any solution that includes power and cable to connect to the car. It can be L1, L2, or high voltage DC (commonly called L3 even if it isn't technically an approved term). If you took a UMC or a j1772 evse and put it inside a box with the cable hanging out and someone could charge from it we'd sill call it a charging station no matter what's inside the box or how slow it works.
The only thing that isn't a charging station is if you have a bare plug and we have to bring the evse. If you offered a 14-50 socket that wouldn't be a charging station.
JPWhite
Member
(Chuckling out Loud) You can call yours whatever you'd like dhanson, but there is no "station" at my house, just a garage. I have a CONNECTOR, not a station. Just sayin'.
I posted a question on Chattanooga Airport's Facebook page on a photo where they were showing the repaving for the lot (which they are renaming to Lot 2) and this was their response:
"Bobby, we are taking a phased approach through the construction of the parking lots. This graphic shows the current progress and will be updated to reflect changes. We will be paving those spaces at some point in the next few months but we don't have a timeframe on that section yet. We are working with Tesla to determine the best way to repave those spaces with as minimal impact on Tesla customers as possible."
https://www.facebook.com/ChattAirport/photos/pb.642040239145847.-2207520000.1437140139./1130566763626523/?type=3&theater
"Bobby, we are taking a phased approach through the construction of the parking lots. This graphic shows the current progress and will be updated to reflect changes. We will be paving those spaces at some point in the next few months but we don't have a timeframe on that section yet. We are working with Tesla to determine the best way to repave those spaces with as minimal impact on Tesla customers as possible."
https://www.facebook.com/ChattAirport/photos/pb.642040239145847.-2207520000.1437140139./1130566763626523/?type=3&theater
Ebony Star
Member
Thanks for correction, my mistake you said you had a HPWC and that is what I should have said.
highfalutintodd
Member
We ended up taking the risk and driving through Chattanooga over the weekend. The parking lot is very much under construction but the Supercharger spots are absolutely accessible.
I had called Tesla ahead of time and the assured me that they were working with the airport to make sure the Supercharger stalls remain available during construction and it looks like they're being true to their word.
As an aside, it was interesting to me that the last time I drove through Chattanooga I didn't see a single Tesla at either charging stop - this time I saw several. I'm sure it's just the luck of the draw, but the Chattanooga station is certainly starting to be more hopping! (Although it looked like there was one owner possibly taking advantage of the situation - I saw a white Model S parked and connected to one of the stalls and the exact same car parked there on my return trip two days later. Possibly a coincidence, but if not, shame, shame, shame.....)
PS to Tesla - While I really appreciate having the Supercharger in Chattanooga at all, the airport location is really weird and not necessarily conducive to family travel. The kids enjoyed looking at the airplanes but the "food" at the only place outside of security is both crap and hideously overpriced. Kind of defeats the purpose of saving money on gas when you're paying over $30 for a couple of crappy burgers and a sandwich. First world problems, I know, but just throwing it out there.
I had called Tesla ahead of time and the assured me that they were working with the airport to make sure the Supercharger stalls remain available during construction and it looks like they're being true to their word.
As an aside, it was interesting to me that the last time I drove through Chattanooga I didn't see a single Tesla at either charging stop - this time I saw several. I'm sure it's just the luck of the draw, but the Chattanooga station is certainly starting to be more hopping! (Although it looked like there was one owner possibly taking advantage of the situation - I saw a white Model S parked and connected to one of the stalls and the exact same car parked there on my return trip two days later. Possibly a coincidence, but if not, shame, shame, shame.....)
PS to Tesla - While I really appreciate having the Supercharger in Chattanooga at all, the airport location is really weird and not necessarily conducive to family travel. The kids enjoyed looking at the airplanes but the "food" at the only place outside of security is both crap and hideously overpriced. Kind of defeats the purpose of saving money on gas when you're paying over $30 for a couple of crappy burgers and a sandwich. First world problems, I know, but just throwing it out there.
I went to the Chattanooga SuperCharger yesterday and spoke with a Republic Parking employee who told me Tesla corporate had told the airport the SC's had to remain open during their remodel/repave of the parking lots. Plans have now been put in place to keep the chargers operational during the construction. Thanks, Tesla!
So apparently this SC is down to just two working units due to the resurfacing of the lot, and there's some dude who took a flight parked in one of them. Going to make it interesting this weekend when I'll be up there for a day trip from Atlanta.
I really hope that person parked there isn't anyone on these forums...
I really hope that person parked there isn't anyone on these forums...
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