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Tesla, Show Us The Love In WA Sate ... More Planned SC's!

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It strikes me as odd, looking at Tesla's plans for SC's, that WA state, being one of the hottest markets for the Tesla S, has so few Super Charging stations planned. I don't know if WA state is somehow unique or if there is a flaw in Tesla's placement strategy overall, but the way our state is laid out, the typical couple of Super Chargers along the main routes between big cities is just is not going to be adequate! I keep seeing truck loads of S's being delivered here and I am seeing them on the road pretty much daily. I guess I'm jealous of CA and feel like we are being shorted even in the long run. The placement model for Super Chargers that Tesla is using is going to leave a lot of favored destinations rather tricky to visit. I was hoping the adapter bag of tricks in the trunk was going to make this a non-issue but I am experiencing a lot of difficulty finding places to plug in even though I have every adapter Tesla makes. Owners are now forming a variety of groups in this state to address these challenges, which is great, but I believe it illustrates some lack of foresight on Tesla's part. We are scrambling to get Roadster HPC adapters in lock boxes, HPWC's and Clipper Creek SC 90's in place and several of us are vying with Tesla for a CHAdeMO adapter. Some of this is simply good fun for the early adopters but I'm very worried that in the long run we are going to be left short given Tesla's placement model.

I believe Tesla needs to take a special look at WA state, given the large number of customers up here and the plethora of remote destinations. In addition to the planned SC's, we at least need one SC along Route 2 east of the pass, two along the 101 loop on the Olympic Peninsula and one up north mid state and one down south mid state.

Being left with 12A/110V on several trips I've been on is very frustrating as it takes 4+ days to charge the S at that rate! having to wonder if you are charging fast enough over several days to go a few miles into town to get a bag of ice for the cooler and still get home is a bit crazy making! Several more, carefully placed SC's in remote areas of WA state would eliminate most of the challenges I'm running into.
 
You realize there are lots of Model S owners in states that don't have a single supercharger yet?
Personally I would love it if I had "to few" superchargers, rather than 'no superchargers'.

Tesla is rolling them out as they can. I am sure they are as eager to get them all up and running as you are.
 
it's the lack of planned charging stations that I have issue with. at this moment we have none and yes, that is about to change. the sad part is, given Tesla's placement model, the ones that are about to be placed will have virtually no effect on getting to the more remote areas I've been frequenting this summer. the incredible diversity of plug types out there, beyond what Tesla is making adapters for doesn't help either.

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OTOH- a CHAdeMO adapter would virtually eliminate the need for more SC's in our area- pretty please Tesla?!
 
it's the lack of planned charging stations that I have issue with. at this moment we have none and yes, that is about to change. the sad part is, given Tesla's placement model, the ones that are about to be placed will have virtually no effect on getting to the more remote areas I've been frequenting this summer. the incredible diversity of plug types out there, beyond what Tesla is making adapters for doesn't help either.

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OTOH- a CHAdeMO adapter would virtually eliminate the need for more SC's in our area- pretty please Tesla?!

File a request for a SuperCharger if you know of a place that would make sense to place one.

What I've been doing is tracking down the CHAdeMO charger location owners, and filing a SuperCharger request with their contact information and comments that since Tesla doesn't provide a CHAdeMO adapter, it will go a long way to improve customer relationships if it provides SuperChargers at all the existing CHAdeMO routes. (E.g. WA-2, WA-30, WA-28 etc.)

Elon has said that they plan to provide several more SuperChargers than just the ones listed on the 2015 map - so you should get your requests in early.

I bet the most work for Tesla is to actually track down locations and owners who are able and willing to house SuperChargers.
 
Looking at the map, there are two that will be done within weeks that will cover the entire I-5 north/south corridor.
That probably deals with 80% of the population of the state.

Longer term, I-90 will also be covered with one near Ellensburg.

So I don't really see a problem with the near term or long term plans for Superchargers in Washington.
Of course more would be better, but those 3 planned Superchargers cover 90% of the likely long road trips for the state.

Long term 2015 shows a total of 8 Superchargers in Washington or right on the border with Idaho and Oregon. The state is basically covered.
 
Looking at the map, there are two that will be done within weeks that will cover the entire I-5 north/south corridor.
That probably deals with 80% of the population of the state.
You're assuming that 80% of the population of the state only drives north and south. That is incorrect for Washington residents and, well, normal people everywhere.

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Of course more would be better, but those 3 planned Superchargers cover 90% of the likely long road trips for the state.
Um, no. Clearly you are missing the Z axis of the state and its impact on mileage.
 
Personal fantasy location list for superchargers in/near WA:

6) Near Astoria/Seaside Oregon
5) I82 around Prosser for trips down that way
4) Hwy 97 between Wenatchee and Chelan for trips up to the Okanagon
3) Cranbrook, BC
2) Port Orchard/Bremerton area
1) The Ridge Motorsports park near Shelton ( ok intersection of 101 and 102 would be fine for that also )
 
I have put in requests and am trying to rally support for others to do so, in part through such a thread and I also think it's good for Tesla to have a chance to read comments here, which they do. It's an interesting idea to target the QC hosts, I've assumed they are already heavily committed and unlikely to host two stations but who knows. if a CHAdeMO adapter is offered in the states, I will urge the DOT to put in lock boxes with DOT funded adapters at key locations or maybe even some kind of built in adapter where you plug the CHAdeMO into a box that is fixed to the ground and has an S extension coming from it. I suspect that Inslee would be very amenable to augmenting the existing CHAdeMO since that is so much cheaper than adding whole new charging stations.

File a request for a SuperCharger if you know of a place that would make sense to place one.

What I've been doing is tracking down the CHAdeMO charger location owners, and filing a SuperCharger request with their contact information and comments that since Tesla doesn't provide a CHAdeMO adapter, it will go a long way to improve customer relationships if it provides SuperChargers at all the existing CHAdeMO routes. (E.g. WA-2, WA-30, WA-28 etc.)

Elon has said that they plan to provide several more SuperChargers than just the ones listed on the 2015 map - so you should get your requests in early.

I bet the most work for Tesla is to actually track down locations and owners who are able and willing to house SuperChargers.
 
You're assuming that 80% of the population of the state only drives north and south. That is incorrect for Washington residents and, well, normal people everywhere.

Just hitting Centralia, Burlington and Ellensburg likely covers 90% of the state's population. The rest after that is all gravy. Ellensburg would allow someone to reach the Idaho border on a single charge. Burlington covers all points north. Centralia covers all points south. From the Ellensburg Supercharger you could reach Spokane or Boise Idaho in a single charge.

I would bet for Washington that 80% of the traffic is I-5 compared to the area 150 miles east of Seattle on I-90.
Looking at major population centers in the Pacific NW, it is Portland, Seattle/Tacoma/Olympia, then further points north towards Everett, then towards Vancouver BC. It makes total sense in that area for Tesla to focus first on I-5 as the primary corridor.

if you further look at where the EV sales are, I would bet it tilts even more in Seattle compared to Spokane.

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Um, no. Clearly you are missing the Z axis of the state and its impact on mileage.

because in that region, it is a much lower priority for the first Superchargers. Long term by 2015 the entire state has good coverage. The major population centers are completely covered on the current map.
 
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Would it surprise you to know that the rest of the country is in the same boat? All of us drive to places that aren't along the interstate.

I think that if Tesla covers the major interstates every 100-150 miles with islands, circles of range that connect, that is all we can reasonably expect Tesla to front from corporate funds. That is a huge project as currently mapped for Tesla to build and commit to supporting. The gaps off of the major highways can be filled with lesser level 2 chargers. Tesla has to maximize their dollars and get the most bang per Supercharger. I look at their Washington map and it makes sense to me. I lived there, they nailed it in my opinion.
 
No, it doesn't. Your notion of coverage and travelling is far different than mine. Driving up and down one interstate is not "travelling" it's "a leg" of travelling.

Your expectations of Tesla Motors seem unrealistic. They cannot be expected to provide Supercharger access to 100% of the USA and every nook with low population density. From my knowledge of Washington, their current plan for Washington nails it.
 
Actually, it's Tesla that has set the expectation bar high. it says right on the web site "PLUG IN ANYWHERE". Tesla's choice of going with a proprietary charging plug puts the onus on them to provide their proprietary charging stations practically everywhere or, provide essentially every type of adapter, which they don't. the fact is, you can't plug the S into well over a hundred DC fast chargers in the Northwest or thousands of outlets at campgrounds here that only have TT30 plugs (double the speed of 12A/110) or even some dryer plugs. Furthermore most of the other EV charging stations are 30A L2 which is OK for destination charging but just not practical for on the go charging. The good news is that a few more strategically placed SC's would take care of much of the issue. As Brainman points out, people don't just travel from city to city, they also pass through cities on the way to their destinations or out into the sticks. We need SC's not just inbetween cities, but smack in the middle of metro areas as well as a few in more remote areas where the only other alternative is all to often 12A/110V/3mph.

Your expectations of Tesla Motors seem unrealistic. They cannot be expected to provide Supercharger access to 100% of the USA and every nook with low population density. From my knowledge of Washington, their current plan for Washington nails it.
 
To the folks bitching at 100thmonkey about shutting up 'cause "the rest of the country is worse off", look at the SC plans for Michigan and eastern Wisconsin. It seems like they have decided to LOVE that part of the country. And it looks like the NE near NYC is getting plastered with SCs too. In general, instead of crapping on WA people trying to get a little more love from Elon, why don't y'all start doing the same for your neck of the woods. Like follow the obvious route from Atlanta to Dallas - you can count the SCs on one finger. You don't lift yourself up by pushing some one else down.

As for my WA wishlist. Hiway 97 Brewster-Omak area. Then a Route 101 series (Astoria, Newport?)
 
To the folks bitching at 100thmonkey about shutting up 'cause "the rest of the country is worse off", look at the SC plans for Michigan and eastern Wisconsin. It seems like they have decided to LOVE that part of the country. And it looks like the NE near NYC is getting plastered with SCs too. In general, instead of crapping on WA people trying to get a little more love from Elon, why don't y'all start doing the same for your neck of the woods. Like follow the obvious route from Atlanta to Dallas - you can count the SCs on one finger. You don't lift yourself up by pushing some one else down.

As for my WA wishlist. Hiway 97 Brewster-Omak area. Then a Route 101 series (Astoria, Newport?)

Brewster-Omak is on my wish list as well. Add in Kelowna, BC and one would be able to use Superchargers from Calgary to Portland via the Okanagan/Columbia river valleys. Brewster-Omak would also serve to supercharge the North Cascades loop.