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Tesla increases Model S and X Supercharging rate to 225 kW

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Kind of a moot point for a most of us. Tesla only seems to want to place V3 chargers on the east and west coast... there are a very few exceptions, but I have never seen one V3 bank traveling extensively throughout the mid and southwest US. So to advertise this as a feature is a bit mis-leading - they should put an * on that statement because if you never get to use a feature then it is not a feature. And they should make clear that the majority of all new charger installs are still V2, certainly in the midwest.

In Tesla's defense I get it that the V3 chargers reduce wait time and lines in high demand areas, and in all honesty I've never seen wait Iines to charge except once when four chargers were down in Waco. I find it a bit of an empty promise still...

I am also curious to know at what point V3 begins to taper the charge amps down, and are you under 50kW when you hit 80%?

Are V3 actually faster if you need a 95 to 100% charge to reach destination?
 
Kind of a moot point for a most of us. Tesla only seems to want to place V3 chargers on the east and west coast... there are a very few exceptions, but I have never seen one V3 bank traveling extensively throughout the mid and southwest US. So to advertise this as a feature is a bit mis-leading - they should put an * on that statement because if you never get to use a feature then it is not a feature. And they should make clear that the majority of all new charger installs are still V2, certainly in the midwest.

In Tesla's defense I get it that the V3 chargers reduce wait time and lines in high demand areas, and in all honesty I've never seen wait Iines to charge except once when four chargers were down in Waco. I find it a bit of an empty promise still...

I am also curious to know at what point V3 begins to taper the charge amps down, and are you under 50kW when you hit 80%?

Are V3 actually faster if you need a 95 to 100% charge to reach destination?
Good points. I think it would be interesting/exciting to hear that they had decreased overall charge time @ V1/V2/V3 chargers vs just peak rate on V3. If the peak is only for a minute, who really cares.
 
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The new I-94 bank is all V3, as are the several new Denver-area stations we've gotten recently. A quick check of Supercharge.info shows that the vast majority of new stations the past few months are V3.

It's true that the older through-lines are v2, but that'll start to change as the distance between SC stations shrinks going forward since the new ones will all be V3.
 
The new I-94 bank is all V3, as are the several new Denver-area stations we've gotten recently. A quick check of Supercharge.info shows that the vast majority of new stations the past few months are V3.
This doesn't apply to the tens of thousands of older Model S/X on the road.
It's not 225 kW but I was able to hit 187 kW with my 2017 S100D at the new Centennial, CO v3 Supercharger when it first opened on 6/13/20. Years ago, it would max out at 130 kW but that was bumped up to 150 kW. Maybe now it's at 200 kW for older cars?

IMG_20200614_085447_041.jpg
 
It's not 225 kW but I was able to hit 187 kW with my 2017 S100D at the new Centennial, CO v3 Supercharger when it first opened on 6/13/20. Years ago, it would max out at 130 kW but that was bumped up to 150 kW. Maybe now it's at 200 kW for older cars?

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No 85 kWh car can enjoy these charge rates. Due to Tesla's intentionally throttling supercharging rate on these cars (#chargegate), we generally don't see rates above 70 kW.
 
FWIW, it's absolutely true that not all cars see a direct benefit from these changes. But all cars do potentially benefit indirectly. Every minute shaved off of the *average* car's charge time increases throughput of a Supercharger location, which is important for crowded locations & holidays. This is one reason why all cars benefit from v3 stations, even if they're still charging at lower rates themselves--there's no more paired-stall nonsense. Even if your own car maxes out at 70 kW, you can still benefit from v3 at a crowded station, as you won't ever be paired with someone else and limited to 30 kW until they throttle back.

As the fleet continues to grow, it's important to view these changes in the aggregate rather than just on a 'my car' basis.
 
FWIW, it's absolutely true that not all cars see a direct benefit from these changes. But all cars do potentially benefit indirectly. Every minute shaved off of the *average* car's charge time increases throughput of a Supercharger location, which is important for crowded locations & holidays. This is one reason why all cars benefit from v3 stations, even if they're still charging at lower rates themselves--there's no more paired-stall nonsense. Even if your own car maxes out at 70 kW, you can still benefit from v3 at a crowded station, as you won't ever be paired with someone else and limited to 30 kW until they throttle back.

As the fleet continues to grow, it's important to view these changes in the aggregate rather than just on a 'my car' basis.
I agree Tesla is looking at the big picture taking a homogeneous approach, which is really the only way to do it realistically because the blowback from lines at chargers is significantly greater than my small objection. But as owners we can't help but look at the situations from our perspective, that is human nature. I really see V3 as a means to get people in and out of chargers quickly by topping up the first 60% and sending them on their way to the next charger. Makes sense but does not exactly square up with the advertising slant.
 
I really see V3 as a means to get people in and out of chargers quickly by topping up the first 60% and sending them on their way to the next charger.

Definitely. In the long term, this is what makes the most sense. When chargers are located every 50 miles along major routes, the goal will be to show up with 5%-10% and leave with 60%-65%.

Makes sense but does not exactly square up with the advertising slant.

Comes with the territory, methinks. People hear 400 miles of range and get excited, even though 98% of the time 150 would do. They hear 250 kW charging and get excited, even though the average of 100 kW - 150 kW is plenty for most. They hear 0-60 in 2.4 seconds, even though 99% of the time they'll do it in 4-5s.
 
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The fact that I know my 2013 P85+ charges so much slower than my wife's X is part of the reason we exclusively take her car on road trips. It's also a contributing factor to making me want to get a newer car. Honestly, I stopped visiting TMC as much when all of the conversation seemed to be trending towards newer cars, which is only logical, but both Tesla and TMC have made the priority new owners not "classic" ones. I almost think within the Model S forum there should be a classic section. I've seen this within other forums prior to my Tesla ownership and it's been successful.
 
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It seems Arizona is doing well with V3 - more of them % wise than any other state at the moment it appears? I'm looking forward to charging at 225 in my Model X though... I thought it was already capable... hmm... wonder if this will help keep higher rates on V2s?

Kind of a moot point for a most of us. Tesla only seems to want to place V3 chargers on the east and west coast... there are a very few exceptions, but I have never seen one V3 bank traveling extensively throughout the mid and southwest US. So to advertise this as a feature is a bit mis-leading - they should put an * on that statement because if you never get to use a feature then it is not a feature. And they should make clear that the majority of all new charger installs are still V2, certainly in the midwest.

In Tesla's defense I get it that the V3 chargers reduce wait time and lines in high demand areas, and in all honesty I've never seen wait Iines to charge except once when four chargers were down in Waco. I find it a bit of an empty promise still...

I am also curious to know at what point V3 begins to taper the charge amps down, and are you under 50kW when you hit 80%?

Are V3 actually faster if you need a 95 to 100% charge to reach destination?
 
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