-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
Supercharger - Los Gatos (expanded Jun 2021, 20 Urban stalls)
- Thread starter JoelH
- Start date
-
- Tags
- California Supercharging USA
Maybe they need to develop some anti-theft system. How about exploding dye packs like they do for armed car robberies of bags of cash (or is this just in the movies?
) and mark the little buggers. A little Tesla Red dye might be nice. Or a nice electric shock that would stun someone and cause them to think about further tearing apart the device might be a nice way to go... I find this copper theft activity if that's what this is really abhorrent. I've read about bay area communities having street and park lights disabled, great cost to all of us.Looks like the spray paint lines have been updated for pole installation to bring power down from main lines!
Attachments
Haxster
Member
A couple of photos from today 9-12-18:
The configuration is 8 + 4 72 kW? chargers with a couple of "Tesla-envy" chargers in between.
Still nothing mounted on the transformer base.
Reasonably wide lanes, though they could use a little new paint.
Lots of shade (with potential leaf, sap, and bird droppings).
The location is directly behind the Starbucks and not so easy to find.
You may want to raise your suspension when entering this "back lot" or risk adding another scrape mark to the driveway and the bottom of your Tesla. You can also enter the "alley" off of Highway 9. It will be interesting to see how Tesla nav guides you the the chargers from Highway 17.
Too bad that there are so few Teslas in the Los Gatos area to make use of these chargers.
The configuration is 8 + 4 72 kW? chargers with a couple of "Tesla-envy" chargers in between.
Still nothing mounted on the transformer base.
Reasonably wide lanes, though they could use a little new paint.
Lots of shade (with potential leaf, sap, and bird droppings).
The location is directly behind the Starbucks and not so easy to find.
You may want to raise your suspension when entering this "back lot" or risk adding another scrape mark to the driveway and the bottom of your Tesla. You can also enter the "alley" off of Highway 9. It will be interesting to see how Tesla nav guides you the the chargers from Highway 17.
Too bad that there are so few Teslas in the Los Gatos area to make use of these chargers.
I believe all 12 of the Supercharger pedestals are the Urban type which will provide a maximum of 72kW.
It's not so bad. Coming from 17 on Highway 9, just head down the alley. Coming down Highway 9 from Saratoga, make a left on Santa Cruz, cut through the Safeway parking lot to the alley, and you are there.
Too bad that there are so few Teslas in the Los Gatos area to make use of these chargers.
Yeah - right. Fortunately there are enough Teslas in Monte Sereno and Saratoga to make up for it...
I think you are kidding about so fee Tesla in Los Gatos. They are the new BMWs. Yesterday I couldn't Ted 5 Tesla at the wholefoods intersection. This supercharger will be overwhelmed like Cupertino .they should have put in 20 like in Palo Alto .A couple of photos from today 9-12-18:
The configuration is 8 + 4 72 kW? chargers with a couple of "Tesla-envy" chargers in between.
Still nothing mounted on the transformer base.
Reasonably wide lanes, though they could use a little new paint.
Lots of shade (with potential leaf, sap, and bird droppings).
The location is directly behind the Starbucks and not so easy to find.
You may want to raise your suspension when entering this "back lot" or risk adding another scrape mark to the driveway and the bottom of your Tesla. You can also enter the "alley" off of Highway 9. It will be interesting to see how Tesla nav guides you the the chargers from Highway 17.
Too bad that there are so few Teslas in the Los Gatos area to make use of these chargers.
View attachment 334348 View attachment 334349
Haxster
Member
Kidding? Obviously!
They're practically the Camry's of the South Bay.
Once the L.G. SuperCharger is on-line and the locals discover it, it's likely to see HEAVY usage...and a lot of queuing congestion along the narrow parking strip. Time will tell...
And it should be a boon to the local Starbucks (like it needs it) and a few of the other "Old Town Outskirts" businesses nearby.
Ulmo
Active Member
When I left my bank this afternoon, I counted 7 Teslas in two blocks in Los Gatos.
Here's the kicker: the 8th one was on the third block on the outskirts* of town leaving toward SCruz (parked at the park by the post office), and it was the FIRST Model 3 that I had counted; the rest were older more expensive Teslas that looked in great condition (P85+, Model X, so on), most likely bought by people who already had the money for those types of cars back when Teslas were first getting popularized, really showing that those people had wealth. Those people may or may not be status symbol buyers, and I'm perfectly OK with that (success is a good status; affordability is also a good status; they're both good statuses).
* Yes, I consider the post office the outskirts of town, the way that town is currently laid out. I wish I had pictures of the train track that used to snake up the mountains. I could swear that there were train tracks there, and some people even told me I was mis-remembering. Finally, I did find a track history of that area, and it confirmed my childhood observations. It was a beautiful track; too bad train tracks are a bad idea.
I envision Tesla expanding that station to the whole parking lot, with a "first come first serve" basis on whether they can be ICE'd. The transformers would be upgraded to handle the load, and unless the % of Teslas supercharging exceeded about let's say some number Tesla picks like ~35%, all the cars could pull full power, but then the power would be meted out at over that concentration level. So, more urban SuperChargers than transformer provision, but still by far in the top transformer provisions for SuperChargers.Kidding? Obviously!
They're practically the Camry's of the South Bay.
Once the L.G. SuperCharger is on-line and the locals discover it, it's likely to see HEAVY usage...and a lot of queuing congestion along the narrow parking strip. Time will tell...
And it should be a boon to the local Starbucks (like it needs it) and a few of the other "Old Town Outskirts" businesses nearby.
However, I see that happening over time, since most Teslas in Los Gatos are driven to be seen and driven, as commuters, showpieces, and shopper vehicles, i.e., regular civilian use; not that many would necessarily be gearing up for a longer drive by stopping in the back lot not near downtown and not well seen behind some banks and coffee places. That's actually where the business dumpsters are staged, even though fairly well appointed due to Los Gatos sensibilities. The people who would occasion to use that urban charger station would doubtless like the local ammenities, which are decidedly downmarket from a few blocks away but in their own right quite decent (a well appointed 24 hour Safeway, a 24 hour Walgreens, a Starbucks), and I think mostly by those going long distance in their travels, such as to an estate with poor electrical provisions up in the mountains, to a home with too many luxury vehicles parked in the way of their home charger plug, for commuters that find a reason to stop by for a charge on the way to or from work (maybe as a buffer for valley and mountain traffic, or due to expected later errands), or Santa Cruz revelers (although I haven't seen the lower cost Teslas reach down market enough to ven-circle into the beachgoers much, but that's bound to happen soon enough for a few with Model 3, and eventually with Model Y, Model Pickup, and the "even cheaper" car everyone including Elon wants to happen). So, the timing of this vision of expansion I have is on a multi-year timeline.
Last edited:
Cheburashka
Active Member
Yeah I agree, I was sitting at that asian place beside the wine bar the other day and every tenth car was a Tesla. This location will get pretty packed.
dennis
Model S Plaid
Last edited:
Ulmo
Active Member
Ulmo
Active Member
Another photo.
The pole connection I’m guessing is three phase, fused, but the lower voltage lines at the bottom of the pole. Apparently, 24 SuperChargers and some slow chargers (L2) can easily be served by the lower lines of that pole, which we previously determined to be 12kV (see my quote below).
Ok, it’s Tesla’s turn!
Often some pedestal covers are off; I think maybe Tesla never screwed them shut. They’re just plastic. They’re not built with rugged security in mind. I wonder if they’re built with shocking thieves in mind. I’ll put this one back on that I found laying down again:
Success!
I changed my mind about “rugged security”: I don’t know if the materials there can withstand much. If you know how to fit them following all the key ways, they go back together snugly.
Often young people hang out in this parking lot between where Starbucks and Petco area.
Last edited:
TerranApart
Member
A modern 12kV distribution circuit should be able to serve up to around 10MW of load, give or take a bit depending on the length of the circuit and other factors.
Excited to see this supercharger so close to being finished. Thanks for taking all the electrical pics; that's my favorite part of these installs!
Ulmo
Active Member
I guess a dedicated transformer direct from 60kV to the parking lot would be too much to ask. I wonder if that area was built in such a way to allow for future expansion. Perhaps the 60kV to 12kV transformers are specially located to allow precise management.
10MW is 138 72kW SuperChargers assuming 100% efficiency; of course, they are not 100% efficiency. Assuming 90% efficiency, it is 125 SuperChargers. But the kicker is that those lines are shared with the neighborhoods around there, so not all 10MW would be available for charging pedestals. Their expansion to 24 pedestals would already take one fifth of all the circuit they just selected.
TerranApart
Member
A 60kV transformer would be a lot larger and have large cooling fans, etc. Wouldn't be very popular with the neighbors...
As long as PG&E doesn't attach too many customers to the circuit, it should be just fine.
Ulmo
Active Member
Numbers on the pedestals (near the bottom where leaves can cover them); construction tape off. Two semi-discrete Tesla techs parked in their Model S’s said the SuperChargers are or will be working soon (they gave both answers). They were doing something on their laptop. They’re likely provisioning it and finishing logs, configurations, paperwork, etc. First testers probably todayish.
Similar threads
- Article
