Tesla's Destination Chargers growing rapidly - an under reported story

[ecarfan]

This is a story that the press tends to ignore because it's not exciting reading unless...you are a Tesla owner who likes to take road trips. But the fact is that that the Tesla Destination Charging program has placed thousands of new chargers over the past year -- at little to no cost to the destination -- in North America, Western Europe, East Asia, Japan and Australia, and I expect that pace to continue for years to come. In a few years there will be tens of thousands of Tesla HPWCs and Clipper Creek L2 units in those regions of the world. Take at look at the "Find Us" page on the Tesla Motors website, select for it to show "Destination Charging" only, and then zoom out, you will see what I am talking about.

I was reminded of this because of an experience I just had. I occasionally work at a hospital in the small town of Willits, California, about 150 miles north of where I live near San Francisco. Early this year before making a trip to Willits I checked to see if there was any EV charging. All I found on Plugshare was a NEMA 14-50 at the WIllits City Hall. Not something I want to rely on for charging. Since the Ukiah Supercharger had just opened I could use that to make the trip feasible in my Model S but I really wanted to find a hotel in Willits where I could stay at and charge, it would be a lot more convenient. However there was nothing.

This week I am back in Willits and to my surprise and delight discovered through Plugshare that there is now a hotel with an HPWC and a Clipper Creek unit, provided and installed last month courtesy of the Tesla Destination Charging program! They are located at The Old West Inn, are brand new and free to motel guests. I was the first to use them yesterday. Their availability meant that I could drive my Roadster to Willits and charge overnight while staying at that motel, making it an easy trip.

I spoke to the hotel proprietor and thanked him for installing the EV chargers. I asked him what motivated him to contact Tesla and request them. He said that his uncle owns the Super 8 Motel in Ukiah, has a Model S, and is a huge EV fan. I suddenly realized that his uncle is TMC member @digitalonion who made post #37 in this thread Supercharger - Ukiah

So it is exciting to see increasing numbers of Tesla destination chargers appearing, chargers not just for Teslas but also for all EV because Tesla provides a Clipper Creek J1722 unit along with the Tesla-specific HPWC. I think that is a very generous thing for Tesla to do, and demonstrates that Tesla wants to advance the EV revolution in a broad way, not just for Tesla cars.

That is a story I wish would be written about more in the media. I bet there are many other TMC members who have been pleasantly surprised this year to find a Tesla destination charger at a location they traveled to. Post your stories!

 

[mhan00]

Awesome.

 

[ChadS]

It is especially good to hear that charging has improved in Willits. In early April 2010, I went from Seattle to San Diego in my Roadster. At the time there were no chargers North of San Francisco, so I had to use campgrounds. The KOA in Willits was nearly empty when I arrived mid-day on a very cold day, and I only needed to charge for an hour or two. I offered to pay, but was surprised when they not only insisted that I pay the high-season overnight rate, but that I use one of their premium spots (you know, with cable, sewer, and other amenities I could not use) as well. It was $47, the most I have ever paid for charging.

I completely agree that the destination charging network is going to be a big selling point by the time the Model 3 is available.

 

[shrspeedblade]

It is absurd what some places want to charge for charging, it's as if their power bill is $10,000 a month!

With destination charging it's far easier to charge your Tesla than to get gas here in the Napa area!

 

[thecloud]

This week I am back in Willits and to my surprise and delight discovered through Plugshare that there is now a hotel with an HPWC and a Clipper Creek unit, provided and installed last month courtesy of the Tesla Destination Charging program! They are located at The Old West Inn, are brand new and free to motel guests. I was the first to use them yesterday. Their availability meant that I could drive my Roadster to Willits and charge overnight while staying at that motel, making it an easy trip.

That's great to hear, and I really hope that trend continues.

Single destination chargers raise a question for me, though: what happens when multiple EV owners stay at The Old West Inn on the same night? Does overnight charging happen on a first-come first-served basis? That doesn't seem fair to the owner who arrives low on juice to find the spot taken by another guest. It also doesn't seem reasonable to have to get up in the middle of the night to move cars around. Nor am I particularly willing to hand over my keyfob to a valet or innkeeper.

Large hotels already have this problem, and they use valet service to solve it. I don't use destination charging at those hotels as a result, but so far, I've been able to avoid it because a supercharger was somewhere in range. If I was staying overnight in Willits in a Model S, I could just go to the SC in Ukiah the next morning. (In a Roadster, that wouldn't be an option.)

So while increased destination charging is a good thing, and your experience as the first user of that motel's new service was positive, I'm thinking ahead and wondering how quickly it will need to scale.

 

[Jeff N]

I've been surprised at how slow many hotels have been in adding charging stations.

Tesla's destination charging program is an excellent way to help get the ball rolling. I really want to be able to charge overnight while I sleep during a road trip.

PlugShare needs a simple way to filter on hotel chargers to help me figure out where to stay.

 

[Cosmacelf]

Is it normal or usual now for Tesla to also donate Clipper creek J1772 chargers?

Anyways, yes, I agree the destination charging program is Tesla's hidden jewel and probably should be publicized more. On these forums and elsewhere you often see newbies who think the only way to charge on a trip is to use Superchargers. They don't even think of finding a way to plug in for the night.

 

[Cosmacelf]

I'm seeing more and more Airbnb listings on the destination charger program too...

 

[ecarfan]

Single destination chargers raise a question for me, though: what happens when multiple EV owners stay at The Old West Inn on the same night?

As I stated in my post starting this thread, The Old West Inn has a Tesla HPWC and a Clipper Creek J1772. Two chargers, not one.

And it is a small hotel, about 15 rooms. I think that for the next few years it will do just fine with two chargers. Currently EVs are a tiny fraction of all cars on the road, even in California.

Is it normal or usual now for Tesla to also donate Clipper creek J1772 chargers?

Based on what I've heard it is typical.

 

[Bgarret]

It's a good point. When we road tripped this summer - about 5,000 miles, I chose hotels in Cleveland, Binghamton, Boston and Toronto for their destination chargers. I could have used the Binghamton supercharger, but it was easier to pull in, plug in, sleep and have both the car and me fully charged in the morning. The larger hotels in Boston and Cleveland were pretty knowledgeable and adept at all things Model S.

I really like the pattern of start fully charged in the morning, quick supercharge 2-3 hours into a trip, stop for a late lunch and charge fully then pick out a hotel and either quick charge in the afternoon to just make it to the hotel or end up there if it is an "easy" day....rinse and repeat. Makes 500-700 mile legs fairly relaxing. I think with the Model III and S/X shipping in volume, businesses will get the drift. Was thinking that some enterprising Teslaphile should create a Yelp app around Hotels, restaurants and services around super chargers and for destination charging establishments.

 

[SageBrush]

My home building plans are inactive for now, but since I tend to choose rural-ish areas to live I've thought more than once that letting Tesla put up a destination charger at my property deserves consideration:

1. I get a free charger installed, that offsets provision of electricity for years
2. I can offset consumption with marginal PV cost
3. The EV charging network expands!

This is win/win grass-roots support, and Tesla deserves a lot of credit for the idea.

 

[KJD]

We recently stayed at CedarBrook Lodge near Seattle airport. They also had one Tesla HPWC and one Clipper Creek J plug.

A great place to stay and I made sure the front desk knew that we where there because of the Tesla Charger.

SeaTac Hotels - Cedarbrook Lodge - Hotels Near Seattle Airport

 

[JSergeant]

That is a story I wish would be written about more in the media. I bet there are many other TMC members who have been pleasantly surprised this year to find a Tesla destination charger at a location they traveled to. Post your stories!

I keep track of the Destination Charger rollout in a Google Spreadsheet - it contains a complete list of the Destination Chargers in North America by State and Province as well as current stats by State/Province and Country. I update it every month or so. If the mods would like to have this permalinked somewhere, let me know:

Desination Chargers North America 5/25/16

Here are the current Stats (as of Sept 10):

USA 1,728
Canada 269
Mexico 37

Austria 24
Belgium 14
Croatia 8
Denmark 15
Finland 6
France 88
Germany 45
Italy 59
Liechtenstein 1
Luxembourg 1
Netherlands 19
Norway 20
Serbia 1
Slovenia 2
Spain 29
Sweden 11
Switzerland 30
United Kingdom 54

Total Europe 422

Australia 139
China 351
Hong Kong 46
Macau 1
Japan 53

Total World 3046

 

[thecloud]

As I stated in my post starting this thread, The Old West Inn has a Tesla HPWC and a Clipper Creek J1772. Two chargers, not one.

I used the term "multiple EV owners," but now I'll explicitly say "three EV owners" so the point doesn't get lost.

And it is a small hotel, about 15 rooms. I think that for the next few years it will do just fine with two chargers. Currently EVs are a tiny fraction of all cars on the road, even in California.

A ratio of 1 charger to 7.5 rooms is pretty good. And in less-traveled locations, it may be fine for a long time. I have stayed at places elsewhere in California where I've been the third car, so it's something I think about when planning a trip: a location may offer destination charging, but there's no guarantee I will get to use it overnight if another guest beats me to it. (And one place required all cars to park in a lot far away from the charging opportunities at the cabins, but that's a different issue.)

Maybe hotels and motels need a system of reserving the charging spot at the time you make the room reservation.

 

[TexasEV]

I've been surprised at how slow many hotels have been in adding charging stations.

Tesla's destination charging program is an excellent way to help get the ball rolling. I really want to be able to charge overnight while I sleep during a road trip.

PlugShare needs a simple way to filter on hotel chargers to help me figure out where to stay.

Go to tesla.plugshare.com and you can filter on hotel chargers. This address emulates the car browser. If you're using the car browser, just plugshare.com allows you to filter for hotels.

 

[David99]

While I love seeing Tesla chargers (because I drive a Tesla) overall, I do not like the idea of pushing a plug that only one company controls and supports.

Tesla has no problem making adapters so that Tesla cars can use everyone else's chargers (J1772 and CHADeMO) but they have not made any product nor adapter that would reciprocate.

I hope Tesla and Tesla owners will be just as willing to have other EVs charge at Tesla's destination chargers (once Tony Williams has his adapter on sale) as they are willing to charge at J1772 and CHADeMO stations.

 

[Jeff N]

Go to tesla.plugshare.com and you can filter on hotel chargers. This address emulates the car browser. If you're using the car browser, just plugshare.com allows you to filter for hotels.

Awesome! Thanks.

That was a well-hidden secret. It's bizarre that they don't support filtering for hotels on their smartphone app.

 

[Saghost]

While I love seeing Tesla chargers (because I drive a Tesla) overall, I do not like the idea of pushing a plug that only one company controls and supports.

Tesla has no problem making adapters so that Tesla cars can use everyone else's chargers (J1772 and CHADeMO) but they have not made any product nor adapter that would reciprocate.

I hope Tesla and Tesla owners will be just as willing to have other EVs charge at Tesla's destination chargers (once Tony Williams has his adapter on sale) as they are willing to charge at J1772 and CHADeMO stations.

Tesla is spending Tesla's own money on the destination charging program - donating the EVSEs and paying for the installation.

That being the case, it seems perfectly reasonable for them to install chargers for their cars specifically- and they are also willing to donate a J1772 for every two HPWCs and pay for its installation, too.

If hotels decide that they want to install chargers on their own dime, they can certainly choose the type and something universal makes sense.

I'm not at all sure it makes sense for Tesla to foot the bill for chargers for other types of cars (and yet they are doing some of that, seemingly for good will.)

 

[TexasEV]

While I love seeing Tesla chargers (because I drive a Tesla) overall, I do not like the idea of pushing a plug that only one company controls and supports.

Tesla has no problem making adapters so that Tesla cars can use everyone else's chargers (J1772 and CHADeMO) but they have not made any product nor adapter that would reciprocate.

I hope Tesla and Tesla owners will be just as willing to have other EVs charge at Tesla's destination chargers (once Tony Williams has his adapter on sale) as they are willing to charge at J1772 and CHADeMO stations.

Apples and oranges. Tesla supports the destination charging program as marketing for its cars. J1772 and CHAdeMO charging stations are universal standards intended for anyone, usually installed by a charging network company.

 

[Paul Carter]

I hope to post a story here soon. The BC club is trying to place some charging equipment in the British Columbia interior where charging is almost non-existent and makes going north difficult. Tesla destination charging program is very willing to help that out. I'm very impressed working with that department. Their willingness to help, provide the equipment, help pay towards to install and their follow up has been amazing so far. Keep it up Tesla!