Supercharging and Navigation

[Attica]

I have not had my ModelY Long Range long enough yet to do any road trips yet but I may be doing one soon and when I do I want to be prepared
When I enter a destination on the screen in the car and it shows superchargers that I need to stop at and for how long, do I need to tap on the first supercharger needed or will it automatically route me to it?

 

[Stirfry]

I should automatically route you to it and pre-warm the batteries for fast charging. You can also tap on the supercharger icon on the screen (red drop-like icon) and it will show you how many chargers are open and what speed the chargers are (72 kW, 150 kW, or 250 kW).

 

[Jerry Ham]

Yes, you not only get automatically routed to the chargers, but the screen will tell you when you have enough charge to continue the trip. It is quite amazing how well that works.

The one thing I wish it would do is allow you to specify how much charge you need when you arrive. It acts like you will have home / destination charging at your destination - which you probably won't. So knowing that, you might decide to either make your last stop longer than what it specifies, or add an additional stop so that you end up at your destination with enough charge for running around while you are there.

 

[Marc Connery]

I think you can, by voice command ask what chargers are on your route. Helpful if you think you want to get out earlier or later (eg. the SC after the one it lists has a restaurant you'll eat at during a longer charge.

 

[gtae07]

The one thing I wish it would do is allow you to specify how much charge you need when you arrive. It acts like you will have home / destination charging at your destination - which you probably won't.

THIS! Or at the very least it would be nice to see the percentage it wants to charge to for continuing, so you can know ahead of time and set your target SoC to include margin, instead of waiting till you see "ready to continue" and then adding X% on top of it.

 

[jcanoe]

Depending on the trip route you may want to enter the first Supercharger on the route where you plan to stop, charge as the final destination in the Navigation system. Repeat this for the next Supercharger you plan to use along the route, etc. When you arrive at the last Supercharger on the route before your final destination enter the final destination in the Navigation system and it will indicate how much you need to charge to reach the final destination. When Supercharging you don't set the charging amperage (the Tesla vehicle controls the charging amperage throughout the Supercharger charging session.)

By default most Supercharger locations will default to 80% as the charging limit while Supercharging. In general you will not want to take the additional time needed to charge beyond 80% when Supercharging. You can override this limit and increase or decrease the charging limit according to your needs. When following a trip route, while Supercharging, the Tesla Navigation system will inform you when you have charged enough to reach your next stop or final destination. Unless you anticipate bad weather or road conditions ahead this level of charge will be sufficient to reach your destination with at least ~10% charge remaining. If you are uncomfortable with this amount of battery remaining you can continue Supercharging.

Skipping chargers with Navigation system - is it possible?

 

[Dennisis]

Yes, you not only get automatically routed to the chargers, but the screen will tell you when you have enough charge to continue the trip. It is quite amazing how well that works.

The one thing I wish it would do is allow you to specify how much charge you need when you arrive. It acts like you will have home / destination charging at your destination - which you probably won't. So knowing that, you might decide to either make your last stop longer than what it specifies, or add an additional stop so that you end up at your destination with enough charge for running around while you are there.

I recommend using Plugshare to review what chargers are available at your destination as part of the planning process. That way you can plan on a charging strategy if Superchargers aren't readily available. For instance, I travel to Park City regularly. While SLC has Superchargers available 30 minutes away Park City does not so I leave my car charging overnight at one of their public charging stations for no fee, then I'm ready in the a.m. for whatever plans I may have for the day. Plugshare is great for trip planning and I always recommend owners sign up for it (free) and incorporate it along with ABRP - each has its strong points. I'm currently planning a Yellowstone/Grand Teton Trip early next year and have already scoped out what charging is available as it may influence which hotels I choose. All part of the fun for me and helps keep surprises to a minimum.

 

[Calliope]

The one thing I wish it would do is allow you to specify how much charge you need when you arrive. It acts like you will have home / destination charging at your destination - which you probably won't.

If I want to arrive with more than it thinks I should have (I think 15%), I just ignore the "you have enough charge to continue your trip" notification, and watch the nav calculation of the expected SOC until it gets to what I'm comfortable (usually over 20%).

 

[Jerry Ham]

If I want to arrive with more than it thinks I should have (I think 15%), I just ignore the "you have enough charge to continue your trip" notification, and watch the nav calculation of the expected SOC until it gets to what I'm comfortable (usually over 20%).

Right; that was what I exactly what I was telling the original poster. That he would have to ignore that enough charge notification and let it charge more on the final stop.

20% is much less that I would go on our typical trip. For example a few hundred miles from home to say Santa Barbara. I usually want 60% on arrival for running around town and the local environs for a few days (hiking, going on a kayak trip, wine tasting, etc.). By then down to 20% and hit an SC on the way back home.

 

[broke_S]

I made a trip in Europe this summer, about 2000 miles. Few times I was in hotels, about one hour, one hour and half from a supercharger. Following Tesla navigation I arrive at the hotel with 10%-15% battery and next morning not able to get to the closest supercharger. I found annoying not being able to set desired battery level at destination and having to do a lot of work to choose other superchargers than Tesla recommended. Poor design in my view.

 

[Calliope]

20% is much less that I would go on our typical trip.

and next morning not able to get to the closest supercharger.

Everyone's circumstances are different, and we all need to do a little prep to figure out what we need. For instance, I know that the nearest Supercharger was 10%-12% from my cottage, so I would plan to arrive with 20%, in case there's a lengthy detour (possible out in the hinterland), or I arrive at my cottage to find the power is out and I can't get even a trickle charge there.

 

[Dennisis]

I made a trip in Europe this summer, about 2000 miles. Few times I was in hotels, about one hour, one hour and half from a supercharger. Following Tesla navigation I arrive at the hotel with 10%-15% battery and next morning not able to get to the closest supercharger. I found annoying not being able to set desired battery level at destination and having to do a lot of work to choose other superchargers than Tesla recommended. Poor design in my view.

Tesla doesn't know where you'll want to go next after you reach your destination nor the status of chargers not on their network so you have to do your own planning if counting on those. Sign up for Plugshare - it's a great help!

 

[Mike NPG]

Depending on the trip route you may want to enter the first Supercharger on the route where you plan to stop, charge as the final destination in the Navigation system. Repeat this for the next Supercharger you plan to use along the route, etc. When you arrive at the last Supercharger on the route before your final destination enter the final destination in the Navigation system and it will indicate how much you need to charge to reach the final destination. When Supercharging you don't set the charging amperage (the Tesla vehicle controls the charging amperage throughout the Supercharger charging session.)

By default most Supercharger locations will default to 80% as the charging limit while Supercharging. In general you will not want to take the additional time needed to charge beyond 80% when Supercharging. You can override this limit and increase or decrease the charging limit according to your needs. When following a trip route, while Supercharging, the Tesla Navigation system will inform you when you have charged enough to reach your next stop or final destination. Unless you anticipate bad weather or road conditions ahead this level of charge will be sufficient to reach your destination with at least ~10% charge remaining. If you are uncomfortable with this amount of battery remaining you can continue Supercharging.

Skipping chargers with Navigation system - is it possible?

how does a speed of 85 mph affect the charge needed? Also does posted MPH matter if speed limit is 80 vs 70 will calculator figure higher energy need?

 

[Mike NPG]

how does a speed of 85 mph affect the charge needed? Also does posted MPH matter if speed limit is 80 vs 70 will calculator figure higher energy need?

how does a speed of 85 mph affect the charge needed? Also does posted MPH matter if speed limit is 80 vs 70 will calculator figure higher energy need?

Setting charger as destination is Great suggestion. This works allowing to skip a short trip to next suggested charger and go to next charger in range.

 

[jcanoe]

how does a speed of 85 mph affect the charge needed? Also does posted MPH matter if speed limit is 80 vs 70 will calculator figure higher energy need?

Experience has shown that optimal Supercharging will have you starting the Supercharger charging session with the battery state of charge (SOC) at or below ~20% (you can go lower if you are comfortable with this) and ending the Supercharger session when the SOC has reached no more than 80%. You can extend your Supercharger charging session beyond 80% if you need an additional charge buffer to reach the next stop but this will significantly extend the time needed to Supercharge. Some even end the charging session at 70%.

Always use a V3 (250kW max) or V2 (150kW max) Supercharger station; only use an Urban Supercharger (72kW max) if there are no nearby V3 or V2 Superchargers or if you plan to stop for the better part of 1 hour (so you can have a sit down meal.) You will find Urban Superchargers in parking garages and shopping malls. The Tesla Navigation system will display information about the nearby Supercharger locations, i.e. available stall, maximum charging rate, cost and nearby amenities.

Always use the Tesla Navigation system to navigate to the Supercharger as this will automatically initiate Preconditioning of the battery for optimal Supercharging. Preconditioning for Supercharging will warm the battery to ~115F (for optimal charging) and result in the quickest Supercharger charging session so you can get you back on the road as quickly as possible.

Compared to driving at 70 MPH driving at 85 MPH will increase your energy consumption by approximately 25%. (For every 5 MPH you drive faster than 50 MPH consumption will increase by ~8%.)