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Thinking about buying, a few questions

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I am thinking about ordering a Model 3, AWD. Perhaps blue, maybe the red.

I live in both Reno, NV and Auburn, CA. I own two houses here in the Reno area and the one in Auburn, CA.

I have a couple of electric Motorcycles, Zero DS & Zero SR and I love them. But neither can make it from Auburn to Reno without recharging, so I normally use an ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) bike or car for the 99 mile trip (driveway to driveway). I keep one of my electric motorcycles in Auburn and the other here in Reno.

My first question is if the AWD Model 3 can make it on a single charge at freeway speeds, mostly uphill, from Auburn, CA to Reno, NV on a single charge. Exact distances from Auburn is 99 miles and 120 miles depending on which Reno house. I know they claim 310 miles, IIRC, but conditions to get that range is not mentioned. I know from my electric motorcycles, every time I double the speed, I roughly get 50% of the range. One will get 200 miles city, 100 miles on the freeway and about 50 miles uphill on the freeway. How much does the Tesla vary in range? What I really want to know is the worse range possible at legal freeway speeds uphill, as I realize the best possible range will be what is shown, the 310 miles.

And what are the charging options? Can they be charged with 120 VAC at home? Even a wait of a few days is usually not an issue to me, if it takes that long. How many amp draw?

And no matter what zip code I put in on-line, it tells me there is no Tesla places within 50 miles and for me to try another zip code. . Even when I put in the zip code for the Rockin, CA Tesla place mentioned or Sacramento, or Reno. Is the Tesla ordering website have a bug? Or what zipcode should I try?

And what is the difference between the "performance package" and the standard package (besides the price!)?

And with the AWD version, do the tires and vehicle meet the CA I-80 requirement when there is a chain control "EXCEPT 4WD with snow tires" ?

And is it best if I order from Reno, NV or Auburn, CA?

This any other info, anybody here is willing to explain, I will appreciate very much.

-Don- Reno, NV
 
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Hi Don - a few resources you may find helpful...

Auburn to Reno: You’ll be fine. Plenty of Superchargers along the way should you need them: Go Anywhere | Tesla

Home charging options: Home Charging Installation

Per the configuration, Performance Upgrade Package is currently only available for the Performance Model 3. It gives you:
  • 20” Performance Wheels
  • Performance Brakes
  • Carbon fiber spoiler
  • Lowered suspension
  • Aluminum alloy pedals
  • Increased top speed from 145mph to 155mph
 
310 miles is fairly legit... not sure how much "mostly uphill" would knock off, but no way would 120 miles be an issue... driving it like you stole it (but still legally) should still get you well over 200 on a full charge.

You can charge using a normal home 120v wall plug but it'll only recover about 3 miles of range per hour of charge.

A 240v 50-amp 15-40 plug would charge it about 10x faster though.

You don't even need to worry about this though- there's a Tesla supercharger station in Truckee, CA, about 2/3rds of the way from Auburn to Reno... that can add 150-200 miles of range in about 30 minutes.
 
...single charge...

Your 310 rated mile Model 3 can easily handle Auburn, CA to Reno, NV fine.

A Better Routeplanner

Worst energy hogs are:

1) Speed: But I've been driving 70 MPH and that seems to be acceptable for Model 3. Higher speed would quickly deplete your battery.
2) Wind: It's just like your speed with additional resistance.
3) Heater: Cabin heater uses lots of energy. It's better to turn on your seat heater.

Elevation: I wouldn't worry about it because it depletes battery while going uphill but then it recharges it back when going downhill.

I drove from Visalia to Fullerton, CA for 213 mile trip with A/C on but it only used 193 rated miles from the battery. Model 3 had to climb up 4,144 foot Tejon Pass with ease and the net effect on energy is minimal.

I did the return trip and it only took 163 rated miles from the battery. Lower energy consumption because I cheated by not using A/C.

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...120 VAC...

If you are not in a hurry, 120V 12A on a 15A circuit is fine. The charging rate would be 4 miles/hour.

Newer 120V sockets are on 20A circuit so it'll be a bit faster at 120V 16A charging instead of 120V 12A charging.

310 miles / 4 miles/hour = 77.5 hours or more than 3 days to charge from empty to full.

Another factor in 120V charging: In sub-freezing environment, it might be ineffective because all the energy is devoted to heat up the battery pack and there's hardly any left to charge the battery up. That means you might get 0 to 1 miles/hour charging rate in cold environment.

In that case, just install 240V socket, please.


..."EXCEPT 4WD with snow tires"...

Tesla don't come with snow tires so you have to pay extra for them.

...Reno, NV or Auburn, CA...

That depends on taxes and incentives.

California offers $2,500 check if you are poor ($150,000 annual single person income). I don't know about Reno, NV.
 
Your 310 rated mile Model 3 can easily handle Auburn, CA to Reno, NV fine.

A Better Routeplanner

Worst energy hogs are:

1) Speed: But I've been driving 70 MPH and that seems to be acceptable for Model 3. Higher speed would quickly deplete your battery.
2) Wind: It's just like your speed with additional resistance.
3) Heater: Cabin heater uses lots of energy. It's better to turn on your seat heater.

Elevation: I wouldn't worry about it because it depletes battery while going uphill but then it recharges it back when going downhill.

I drove from Visalia to Fullerton, CA for 213 mile trip with A/C on but it only used 193 rated miles from the battery. Model 3 had to climb up 4,144 foot Tejon Pass with ease and the net effect on energy is minimal.

I did the return trip and it only took 163 rated miles from the battery. Lower energy consumption because I cheated by not using A/C.

View attachment 339609





If you are not in a hurry, 120V 12A on a 15A circuit is fine. The charging rate would be 4 miles/hour.

Newer 120V sockets are on 20A circuit so it'll be a bit faster at 120V 16A charging instead of 120V 12A charging.

310 miles / 4 miles/hour = 77.5 hours or more than 3 days to charge from empty to full.

Another factor in 120V charging: In sub-freezing environment, it might be ineffective because all the energy is devoted to heat up the battery pack and there's hardly any left to charge the battery up. That means you might get 0 to 1 miles/hour charging rate in cold environment.

In that case, just install 240V socket, please.




Tesla don't come with snow tires so you have to pay extra for them.



That depends on taxes and incentives.

California offers $2,500 check if you are poor ($150,000 annual single person income). I don't know about Reno, NV.
By CA standards, I am poor, but by very little. Just barely under that 150K, so that means CA, as long as I can do that with a NV driver's license (and CA REAL ID Card). "All Terrain" tires (not the so-called all weather tires) meet the CA requirement for "snow tires" but I assume you mean the AWD Tesla still comes with normal street tires, That kinda defeats the reason for having 4WD or AWD in the first place, but changing tires is NBD.

One of my E-bikes has a CA plate, the other has a NV plate.

Even one mile per hour charge is not an issue with me, as the car will be garaged several days in a row at either place. I mainly ride my electric motorcycles but I also have plenty of ICE vehicles, including a couple of old Jeeps which are 4WD.

In fact, I have not driven a "cage" in about two weeks as it is.

Can we select if the Model 3 draws 12 or 16 amps at 120 VAC? All my 120 VAC circuit breakers are 20 amps at all three houses. I don't think I have a 240 VAC outlet at any of my houses, I will have to look to be sure.

My electric motorcycles draw 13 amps at 120 VAC, with the onboard charger alone, but I can run as many as four external chargers also at 13 amps each. I keep two of these at each house, so that is 39 amps total at 120 VAC into three separate outlets, so still 13 maps each. Bike charges MUCH faster, of course. about 16.5 KWH of battery in my best E-bike. These chargers can accept any voltage from 90 to 240 VAC, but the charge time will be the same as these chargers are designed to drop the current as the input voltage increases. I am usually fully charged in two hours with the external chargers added in.

BTW, what is the total battery voltage on the Tesla Model 3? My motorcycles use 116.5 VDC at 100% charge. And what does the Tesla do to get the 12 volts for lights and such? My E-bikes use a DC to DC converter, a rather high current one, can handle 50 amps at 13.8 VDC (690 watts) IIRC.

-Don- Reno, NV
 
Keep in mind the AWD is less efficient than RWD so definitely less than 310 range, but still plenty for your trip. I drove some mountain passes and elevation makes a big difference probably only second to speed. Downhills help mitigate it, but of course that doesn't help much if your destination is a much higher altitude. Still plenty of range to make it though.

The car comes with all season tires, but I don't think they are rated for snow.

120v works to charge, but keep in mind it is more efficient to charge with 240v because less energy is wasted to boost the voltage up to 480v.
 
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elevation: I wouldn't worry about it because it depletes battery while going uphill but then it recharges it back when going downhill.
First, I would like to thank everybody here who replied. It's all been very helpful.

Going easy from Auburn, I will leave at 1,500' elevation and climb up to 7,240' elevation before seeing much down hill.

With my E-bike deceleration regeneration, they claim going up the same hill and then back down it, recovers about 10% of the charge to go back up. How much regen I have can be programmed in the custom mode. I find I get the best range on the freeway by turning OFF deceleration regeneration (set to zero percent) as then the bike will coast much farther and faster down the hills. But I set the braking deceleration to 100% as that save my rear brake when I need to stop anyway, as well as charge for a few seconds.

I find deceleration regeneration to be great at slow speeds, but to be totally useless at freeway speeds as it slows the bike down too much going down hill and then I have to accelerate to get the speed back.

I assume the Tesla does a better job here. Are there different modes like on my E-bikes? The Zero ebikes have an eco mode (which I normally keep it in) a Sport mode (puts performance at max (0-60 MPH in 3.0 seconds) , but reduces (but still has some) deceleration regen. I use the programmable custom mode on the freeway, to get rid of deceleration regeneration so it will coast down the hills a lot better. This stuff is set via Bluetooth with a SmartPhone app. I can also see the logs which stores just about everything done with the bike and charging. And they can be e-mailed either to me or Zero (in Scotts Valley, CA Near Santa Cruz, where the bike is made).

I an wondering if any of this stuff is similar with the Tesla Model 3.

And, do I understand that there is a place in Rocklin, CA where I can test ride a Model 3?

And is the two to four month's wait that is claimed accurate?

My plan is to test ride one in Rocklin when I am in Auburn later this week. And if I like it, (which I am fairly sure that I will), I will then order one.

-Don- Reno, NV
 

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There are two regen modes in the Model 3. I believe the highest is called Standard and is up to 0.2g of decelleration. It will definitely slow you down in a hurry, but it isn't a problem because if you dont want to slow down as fast you just press the accelerator or use cruise control and it will limit the regen. Basically you drive at the speed you want and any extra energy will be diverted to the battery.
 
...Can we select if the Model 3 draws 12 or 16 amps at 120 VAC?...

Not from standard adapters that come with your car.

You need to pay an extra $35 to get NEMA 5-20 for your 120V 20A circuit and your car would recognize which adapter is on and adjust the maximum amperes, which, in this case, 16A for 20A circuit breaker.



Note that the blades/prongs are not parallel but at a right angle at each other.

...voltage on the Tesla Model 3...

Until some youtubers can confirm, it's a speculation:

350V, 230 Ah, 80.5


....DC to DC converter...

Model 3 also has a 12V battery. I measure its voltage from cigarette socket as 13.7V.

...I assume the Tesla does a better job here...

No question about it! Tesla regen is much better than your bike's although the principle is the same: If you want to gain more miles back, set your cruise speed slower.

...And is the two to four month's wait that is claimed accurate?...

Tesla delivery timeline is all over the place and it's very difficult to predict.

You might get it as soon as a few days if Tesla has made popular batches that match yours.

But don't be surprised if it takes a long time like you said 4 months or even more.
 
I just got my Model 3 AWD last week, so haven't got a chance to take it to the mountains yet.

Based on my experience with my Model-X, each 1000-ft elevation equals to ~10-15mi rated miles. So you will use 60-80 rated miles for the climb from 1500' to 7300'. Don't think range will be an issue at all. And you will most likely get those miles back from regen brake on your way down. :) So even charging at 120V is probably enough, unless you have to turnaround right away.
 
Your Tesla display will show a warning for you to slow down it it calculates that you will not have enough juice to make your next nav. destination.
Really pretty handy. You can watch your display and it will continously show you how much % juice you will have when you reach your destination.

It will also tell you how long you will need to stop at the next Supercharger before getting back on the road.
 
I just discovered an 240 VAC outlet in this house! I just measured 245.5 VAC (unloaded) on the NEMA 10-30R outlet. It's at a good location, right next to the garage. It was hidden behind a spare refrigerator.

So I just ordered two 25' 10-30 extension cords, so I can use either 25' or 50' lengths here. 50' will reach well past the garage out in the driveway. I already know that there is an adapter from Tesla to use such a dryer outlet.

I first looked at the circuit breaker box and that made it obvious I had 240 VAC here. Than I realized all three houses have such as each house has a 240 VAC A/C installed. So now the only question is if I can find an outlet in the other houses, especially Auburn. IIRC, all the A/C units are hard wired.

So now that I have 240 VAC, what will my charge times be?

-Don- Reno, NV
 
240V @ 32A (using the cord that comes with the car) is about 30 mph.
Most houses have a dryer socket. It is normally 30A. An electric range can be 40 or 50A.
The cord that comes with the car is limited to 32A (you can adjust that down from inside the car).

For charging at 120V, the standard is 12A so it can be used on a 15A circuit.
For a 120V 20A circuit, you can adjust the current up to 16A (recommended 80% of circuit capacity).
 
Tesla does not approve an extension cord.

But if you do, I would recommend a bigger wire then required to avoid a voltage drop, heat, and fire.
Well, I ordered two 30 amp 25' cords at close to $100.00 each. I will use only one when possible. I can also use these with my electric motorcycles. The higher voltage has some benefit there also.

I know to check to see how hot they get. For 120 VAC with my bikes, I was using ten gauge cords, which stay cool at the 13 amps (120 VAC). But I plan to start using the 240 VAC with the bikes also, for the two external chargers. So even if I cannot use them with a Tesla, I will have a good use for the new cords.

-Don- Reno, NV
 
DonTom, Teslas and the company recommend against using extension cords. Keep it simple. You should consider getting an electrician to extend the outlet out to a place closer to the driveway so you can plug the mobile connector straight in to your power.
 
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DonTom, Teslas and the company recommend against using extension cords. Keep it simple. You should consider getting an electrician to extend the outlet out to a place closer to the driveway so you can plug the mobile connector straight in to your power.
I can't say I understand a difference, as long as the extension is used under the current rating as much as the wiring the electrician adds in. And is the same total length, etc.

An electrician will also have to run wire, with perhaps the same current rating as my 30 amp extension, the only real difference I can see is those wires are hidden where they cannot be checked for heat and such. There will still be two connectors involved either way as well.

So what is it that I am missing here?

-Don- Reno, NV
 
The electrician will determine how thick the actual copper (inside the cable) needs to be based on how long the run from the circuit breaker box to the outlet is. Thicker if the run is much longer.

If you add a long extension cord, you're messing with that calculation -- you could find that the copper needs to be thicker than it actually is. It can cause overheating in the circuit. In practice, you usually get "voltage drop" instead.

So basically you have to make sure that all the cables and wall wiring involved have thick enough copper to handle the current for the TOTAL length from the circuit breaker to the car. The copper in the wall might not.
 
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