Supercharging Nightmare Begins

[tecis]

you guys have at least 24/7 SUPERCHARGER access. Superchargers around Mexico City are 11 AM - 10 PM.

 

[goofy166]

Agree about that area having a dense population of Teslas, yet it is not confusing to me. I may be wrong, but I was understanding the selection of an SC station isn't necessarily about where the most Teslas are located, but often a selection of where it is convenient for people passing through the area. Sure there is some consideration for local people, yet it is mostly about having a network of chargers that allow people to get around the country. At least that has been the general consensus from people I've talked to on that team.

I understand the idea is to create a network of stations that allow keeping cars charged as you travel, but the distance from the north most San Francisco super charger to the next northward SC is a very long distance. I had heard that the Marin City Shopping Center, where the newest Target is located, was the next target, and that would make way more sense than Corte Madera Village which is already crowded.

I wish Elon would allow other EV manufacturers to build SCs using his technology. I don';t see how Porsche and it's Taycan is ever going to catch up.

 

[Docpro]

Ah, when will FakeX give us more SCs? No full-self-driving after 2.5 years promised ... and now fewer chargers! Instead of pretending to send a roadster to space, fwiw, "you can tell its real cause it looks so fake." (--FakeX, 2018)

 

[Silicon Desert]

I understand the idea is to create a network of stations that allow keeping cars charged as you travel, but the distance from the north most San Francisco super charger to the next northward SC is a very long distance. I had heard that the Marin City Shopping Center, where the newest Target is located, was the next target, and that would make way more sense than Corte Madera Village which is already crowded.

I wish Elon would allow other EV manufacturers to build SCs using his technology. I don';t see how Porsche and it's Taycan is ever going to catch up.

I would also like to see more charging in that area too. Curious. When you say the distance is long from SF to next most SC, are you talking about Ukiah or Corning? Corning, according to my X is about 170 miles and easy for me to make with the X

 

[Interferon]

I have read the 110 only gives about 3 miles per charging hour. It would seem DaveTP is getting 3 times that with his converter.

The 15 amp 120 plug will limit the charger to 12 amps. So that would be 120*15=1440 watts. Or 1.44kWh per hour. Model X gets about 333 wh/mile. So that would be about 4 miles/hour.

The 20 amp 120 plug is limited to 16 amps. That would be 16*120=1920 watts. Or about 6 miles/hour.

The most the converter could draw from a standard NEMA plug would be 20 amps. That would be 2400 watts. Or about 7 miles/hour.

Model 3 gets about 250 wh/mile, so if that is the car he drives it would be more like 6, 8, and 9.6 miles/hour for the above three scenarios.

 

[RogueCat]

You do realise you are part of the problem here! Superchargers were never intended to be used for daily charging and now the market is flooding with M3s it will only get worse. Especially if they are using them in the same way as you are for their daily charging routine!

Agreed.

 

[jkoya]

The Corte Madera Superchargers are almost finished. But be prepared for it to be full 100% of the time and probably hogged by the demo cars from the adjacent Tesla stored.

I apologize for my stupid question here, but where is the Tesla store in Corte Madera charging their cars now ? I was hoping to use the Corte Madera location to charge on the way to the Presidio.

 

[oliman06]

I have seen an astounding increase in supercharging station use within the past 3 months. Went from no waiting for a charging station almost any time of the day to waiting for a station every time (sometimes at least for 30mins!).

I don’t have any other means to charge the MX at the moment other than the supercharging station.

Almost every 2nd car I see is a Model 3 waiting to charge. Obviously this has impacted the supercharging stations.

This is in the SF Bay Area.

Just like you, there are many other Tesla Owners (Model S, X and 3) who have no other means of charging fast enough to get to their desired state of charge. This should not be viewed as a negative - these superchargers are not reserved to Model X or Model S, the last time I checked. I have my own means of charging at home but I do still use Supercharging when I am at a location where there is one and the last thing I want to hear is a Model S or X owner giving me grief for charging at a supercharger. Just a thought. =)

 

[khomaizad]

I live in Brooklyn, NY, and park in an uderground parking lot. I am able to charge my model X with the quick 220 system . It gives me 9 mi/hr which gives me about 100 miles overnight. I was using superchargers until I bought it.

This is the website I got mine from.
110-120 and 220-240 Voltage Converters & Accessories

Hi, I am very curious about this as I currently plug into 120v a lot of times. So does this just go into 120v and covert on the fly? Simple as that?
Is this the unit you are using? Quick 220 Systems: Model A220-20D 20 Amp Power Supply Straight Blade Outlet

I would be happy to get up to 9 miles compared to the 3 or 4 I am getting now. Plus this is mobile and I can take where ever I go. Thank you for the information

 

[darxsys]

You do realise you are part of the problem here! Superchargers were never intended to be used for daily charging and now the market is flooding with M3s it will only get worse. Especially if they are using them in the same way as you are for their daily charging routine!

Agreed.

You know, that’s like saying that gas stations were never intended for daily refueling. The real issue here that will be very hard to solve is getting it to charge faster. And faster.

In reality, how can you expect from a lot of people to have a charger at home? Especially in SF/Bay Area where most can’t afford to buy a home. I live in a residential building (not SF) that has a few chargers installed, but that’s also pretty rare here so we are considered lucky. If all residents had an electric car, how would we all ever be able to charge overnight? Sure, the building could always install more, but that also seems far fetched right now.

Or, are you saying that only people with the means to install a charger at home should buy a Tesla and the rest can just go screw themselves? that’s a funky statement right there that I won’t go too much into.

Edit: one of my friends actually returned his Model X because of this. He drives a lot and his home charger was too slow to recharge over night to the range he needed daily, but supercharges in the area were always packed. What would you tell him?

 

[teethdood]

You know, that’s like saying that gas stations were never intended for daily refueling. The real issue here that will be very hard to solve is getting it to charge faster. And faster.

In reality, how can you expect from a lot of people to have a charger at home? Especially in SF/Bay Area where most can’t afford to buy a home. I live in a residential building (not SF) that has a few chargers installed, but that’s also pretty rare here so we are considered lucky. If all residents had an electric car, how would we all ever be able to charge overnight? Sure, the building could always install more, but that also seems far fetched right now.

Or, are you saying that only people with the means to install a charger at home should buy a Tesla and the rest can just go screw themselves? that’s a funky statement right there that I won’t go too much into.

Edit: one of my friends actually returned his Model X because of this. He drives a lot and his home charger was too slow to recharge over night to the range he needed daily, but supercharges in the area were always packed. What would you tell him?

A BEV is not for everyone unfortunately. A potential purchaser of a BEV needs to do his/her homework and figure it out before ordering. We are fortunate in that Tesla has the foresight to install superchargers and built its cars to have fast charging capability. Tesla is the only game in town as far as cross-country long distance BEV mobility. It's only been a couple of years ago that you could drive cross country in a BEV. Things will change as more companies invest in EV technologies/charging capacities. Your friend who returned his Tesla is not ready for a BEV and did not do his homework to see whether he is ready for a BEV. His fault. Tell him to get an ICE and move on until a BEV will work for his needs.
When you order a Tesla, one of the first things you are advised to do is to get at least a 240V home outlet ready. If you can't get one installed, don't order or cancel it. Do everyone a favor and don't hog SCs which are meant for cross-country driving. Tesla is building out Urban SCs (72kW chargers) for the urbanites to use far away from freeways. If you cannot get a home outlet, wait for the urban SCs to open up.

 

[TessieEddie]

San Mateo, but when I was over at MV & SV, both times had to wait although maybe that's how those locations always are? More supercharging stations is good although I suspect all of them will be busy too due to such a high volume of M3's being sold in the Bay Area.

I agree, anyone considering buying an EV, without any option to charge at home or work, in a place where the volume of those EVs is high (as it is in the Bay Area) must think and be comfortable with spending significant amount of time at a supercharging station - waiting to get a station & then waiting to charge.

Have you looked at J-1772 and Tesla destination chargers around the bay? Plugshare shows 135 in downtown SF and the surrounding area and 95 nearby San Meteo. If you cannot use any of these, you can plug into 120V and get around 4 RM/hr or around 50 overnight. Virtually all buildings and parking garages have 120V outlets. And if you can find an outdoor outlet at your employer's building and get permission to use it that could put you near 100 RM/day. A lot of garages have J-1772 and Tesla destination chargers and most should be listed on Plugshare.

I suspect that this is more of a Bay area or CA issue for now. We have made several long trips in FL, GA, MS and LA this fall and never once had to wait. In fact Tesla have opened several new SCs around Atlanta this year with more planned. Also I would imagine that the rush of M3 owners at SC's will settle down as they start having to pay for the charging. And Tesla bills everyone if you leave your car at an SC past full charge if more than two are in use. I see that Tesla have planned another San Meteo SC NW of the two current ones. Since it says opening is planned for 2018 I would expect it to open within the next few months.

Good luck!

 

[EnigmaPhoenix]

You should add charging capability at your place of residence. IMO you are adding to the problem. Super Chargers are not intended to be your only charging option.

 

[ChrisJ]

I apologize for my stupid question here, but where is the Tesla store in Corte Madera charging their cars now ? I was hoping to use the Corte Madera location to charge on the way to the Presidio.

They have a bunch of level 2 chargers behind the store.

 

[dhrivnak]

Hi, I am very curious about this as I currently plug into 120v a lot of times. So does this just go into 120v and covert on the fly? Simple as that?
Is this the unit you are using? Quick 220 Systems: Model A220-20D 20 Amp Power Supply Straight Blade Outlet

I would be happy to get up to 9 miles compared to the 3 or 4 I am getting now. Plus this is mobile and I can take where ever I go. Thank you for the information

I believe this is plugging into two DIFFERENT 120v plugs on two DIFFERENT circuits to perform its magic. Often easier said than done.

 

[apsen]

Plug it in every night. Charge the car while I sleep. Start the day with a full tank of electrons. Easy and convenient.

Lol, you have full tank of electrons even in the empty battery - just on the wrong side of the battery to be able use the charge. This is what charging does - moves them across.

 

[pagrimm1120]

I bought a 100 S Ludicrous. At that time '3' was NOT going to have FREE supercharging. Now 'wait ' time is going to make traveling in a Tesla hard to plan for, time wise.

 

[KJD]

I guess the possible wrong assumption here is that the OP has the ability to do this and has a garage.

The Tesla connector can be installed outdoors on a post. No garage required. See this link.
Successful completion of Condo charging installation – Now I can charge at home!

 

[apsen]

Just remember that when you do start seeing more Teslas at chargers in your neck of the woods, they will mostly be those urban Teslas out on vacation.

I'll offer them to charge from my NEMA 14-50.

 

[CarveDeeper]

it still never ceases to amaze me how many people are using the Tesla Superchargers as their primary means of charging. I bill myself out at $180/hr., so even if I had "free" Supercharging, my time is waay more valuable to me than sitting at a charging station (which I see countless people while their hours away at!). I just use 120 at my house for both my MS and M3. My daughter gets all of my "charging time"...more time to surf, cycle, skate, etc. My main use of Superchargers is when we travel...which was the point, right?!!!