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SuperCharger - Tuscaloosa, AL

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What is everyone thoughts on the lack of SuperChargers in Alabama. While traveling from Jackson to Atlanta last week. I was a little nervous after not fully charging (80%) in Meridian. I ended up stopping in Tuscaloosa at a Destination charger but that took forever just to get a few miles. It would have been really nice to have a SuperCharger in Tuscaloosa since that is a good stop before going into Birmingham. Also the station in Birmingham at 2am doesn't seem the safest place to be.

If Auburn has a SuperCharger shouldn't Tuscaloosa have one.... RollTide!!! :)
 
I just stayed at the hotel with the destination charger (Hotel Indigo). Coming from Tupelo...on 80% max...yeah I was a little nervous...but I still had 50 miles range. Tesla really needs to get some stations up mid route somewhere on those. You know once the T Town charger is up...it will be crowded like Birmingham's as well...so hopefully they go big on it with stalls.
 
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I just stayed at the hotel with the destination charger (Hotel Indigo). Coming from Tupelo...on 80% max...yeah I was a little nervous...but I still had 50 miles range. Tesla really needs to get some stations up mid route somewhere on those. You know once the T Town charger is up...it will be crowded like Birmingham's as well...so hopefully they go big on it with stalls.
Wow that's really good. What model are you driving? I have a 2017 MX 75D. On max charge I'm only getting around 225 miles of range and have never come close to actually getting that.
 
I want to say at 80% it's like 256 miles? Tupelo to T Town is like 128 miles so not really edge of your seat...but I'd always like to see multiple options since I came from Jackson TN supercharger. If Tupelo was down for example, I would have been spending the night there.
 
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I want to say at 80% it's like 256 miles? Tupelo to T Town is like 128 miles so not really edge of your seat...but I'd always like to see multiple options since I came from Jackson TN supercharger. If Tupelo was down for example, I would have been spending the night there.
If I was getting 250 miles on a max charge I would be okay. I've learned over the years how to make it (225 mi) stretch (i.e. use regen braking going down hill, ride behind the big trucks, try to keep a constant speed, etc) but when charging stations are down and there's traffic / accidents. I start to get nervous in the middle of nowhere.
 
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Yeah I think the biggest range boost is speed. Going say 65-70 max keeps the range as high as you can expect on a highway. What the long range battery gives me is more flexibility to really blast down the road at 75+. I normally keep it around there and not worry about high battery consumption. It's also a bit more piece of mind in harsh cold winters up here. I don't know if I have enough confidence in super long road trips in the dead of winter..as my 2018 lacks a heat pump to max cold weather range. I think it would be fine...but it would require planning before leaving to be sure on some routes. :)
 
Yeah I think the biggest range boost is speed. Going say 65-70 max keeps the range as high as you can expect on a highway. What the long range battery gives me is more flexibility to really blast down the road at 75+. I normally keep it around there and not worry about high battery consumption. It's also a bit more piece of mind in harsh cold winters up here. I don't know if I have enough confidence in super long road trips in the dead of winter..as my 2018 lacks a heat pump to max cold weather range. I think it would be fine...but it would require planning before leaving to be sure on some routes. :)
I get right around rated range at 70-74 mph on the highway. I think the aero covers really help.

Here's a long leg with average speed of 68mph and 103% of rated range: TeslaFi.com Shared Drive

This past March, though, I did get first-hand experience with a cold weather road trip. The cold does cut into range, at least for the first leg. It seemed to do much better after that, but I was also heading south.

Here is one of the first legs of that trip, with only a 76% efficiency: TeslaFi.com Shared Drive

The second leg improved that to 84%, even with battery pre-conditioning being on for 44% of that leg: TeslaFi.com Shared Drive
 
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I just stayed at the hotel with the destination charger (Hotel Indigo). Coming from Tupelo...on 80% max...yeah I was a little nervous...but I still had 50 miles range. Tesla really needs to get some stations up mid route somewhere on those. You know once the T Town charger is up...it will be crowded like Birmingham's as well...so hopefully they go big on it with stalls.
I've used one of the three destination chargers at the Hampton Inn in Columbus, MS - once when I was staying there and other times not. The front desk said that they are infrequently used. Just pop in and hook up, if you are are having a little range anxiety. No assistance is needed by hotel staff.

Driving from NC to Columbus, a future supercharger in Tuscaloosa is something I really look forward to. From a outsider's viewpoint, the location on the southside of the McFarland & US 11 intersection would be nice.
 
Either those truck stops off Buttermilk Road and I-20/59 or the Pilot off Skyland or that shopping plaza off AL-69/Skyland would be perfect for a supercharger. I used to live in the Atlanta area and have family in Mississippi, and Tuscaloosa is roughly the halfway point, so its a logical area for a supercharger location. I also think there should be one in Hoover off I-459 so drivers can bypass DT Birmingham and I-20/59 can be pretty bad through the city. I plan on driving to Jackson at some point from Maryland, so this is personal to me, LOL. I hope a location opens in this area at some point.
 
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