Thinking about buying, a few questions

[DonTom]

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.

OIC. The part I was missing is that the electrician goes direct to the breaker box as the electric dryer outlet could have thinner wires. However, I just checked my circuit breaker box and the 240 VAC is on two 30 amp breakers, which should mean the in-house wiring should handle 30 amps or more.

FWIW, the 240 VAC outlet is just a few feet from the outside circuit breakers, so I would not expect much voltage drop.

And perhaps I can measure the voltage at the vehicle end, under max load.

Or by any chance is such info as the charging voltage and /or wattage shown on the Model 3 screen? That could be handy.

My electric motorcycles show the output charging wattage & voltage via Bluetooth to a Smartphone with a Zero app.

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[stonelance]

The car shows voltage and current.

The charger comes with a 20 foot cord or so. Hopefully that is enough?

 

[golfpilot]

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.

I am averaging 238 wh/mi in my AWD. I have a heavy foot. OP, you’ll make that drive round trip all but a few very cold, very slow moving days of the year. If you have a place to trickle charge on a 15amp just to keep the battery warm and not deplete fast while sitting in the cold, you’ll make that trip year around no issues with range.

Running the ac isn’t going to be your problem. It’s the middle of winter where the car is sitting producing little extra heat, in traffic, trying to stay warm.

If you have a 240 to plug into at night, AWD is your car. Enjoy it!

 

[rdunniii]

As a Reno resident who just picked up his P3 Sunday in Rocklin I can tell you I used about 150 miles of range between the delivery center and Reno, but, I drive fast, usually between 75 and 80. When I left Rocklin I had 273 miles of range. There are Superchargers at the Rocklin DC and there are 2 locations at Donner and one in Reno. They are supposedly adding another in Reno by the end of the year.

Go check out the Rocklin DC. It's on Granite right off of Sierra College so you're only 10-15 miles away. They really went out of their way for me to make a Q3 delivery. When I went there Saturday to pick up the car I was scheduled to get they couldn't find it. The manager from the San Francisco center was there so he did a deeper search and found the car was still being built in the Fremont factory. He knew of a match in San Francisco except it was a P3 rather than an AWD. He made a price adjustment due the car being a demo car so I agreed to the upgrade and he had the car moved to Rocklin overnight.

 

[Feathermerchan]

DonTom - Coincidence. My great grandmother, grand parents and uncle used to live in Auburn. Uncle's name was Don...Huber.
I have been over the hill several times to attend the Reno Air Races. (VW transporter)

 

[Sg911]

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 3 took how long from Fremont? I just got a vin and Fremont location of it...shipping to me here in Charlotte. They said 21days

 

[Glamisduner]

10-30 /14-30 outlets use solid wire, extension cords use stranded wire. Also the type of casing on the wire matters, extension cords are typically not meant to get hot. I would avoid using an extension cord, although I could see it possibly being ok since with the adapter the car will only pull 22 amps.

 

[Vines]

I believe the number 1 reason why Tesla does not allow extension cords is liability. Electric cars draw a ton of power and the Tesla UMC has a sensor in it to detect an outlet that has begun to overheat.
If you use an extension cord, you lose this functionality, that's why they tell you not to use them (I think).
We have already dealt with one customer who burned down his garage with an improper electric vehicle charge circuit.

 

[UCIBtheG]

Not sure easing your range anxiety is still necessary at this point, but I had to drive from my house in Elk Grove to Reno for work a few weeks back. This is in a LR Model 3, kept it at 72-73 miles per hour. Thought I might have to hit a supercharger on the way back, but made the round trip with 6% remaining when I pulled into the garage. Trip mileage was 316 miles if I remember correctly.

 

[DonTom]

As a Reno resident who just picked up his P3 Sunday in Rocklin I can tell you I used about 150 miles of range between the delivery center and Reno, but, I drive fast, usually between 75 and 80. When I left Rocklin I had 273 miles of range. There are Superchargers at the Rocklin DC and there are 2 locations at Donner and one in Reno. They are supposedly adding another in Reno by the end of the year.

Go check out the Rocklin DC. It's on Granite right off of Sierra College so you're only 10-15 miles away. They really went out of their way for me to make a Q3 delivery. When I went there Saturday to pick up the car I was scheduled to get they couldn't find it. The manager from the San Francisco center was there so he did a deeper search and found the car was still being built in the Fremont factory. He knew of a match in San Francisco except it was a P3 rather than an AWD. He made a price adjustment due the car being a demo car so I agreed to the upgrade and he had the car moved to Rocklin overnight.

I already checked Rocklin on-line and put in for a test drive, leaving my Auburn phone number. I will head for Auburn tomorrow, most likely.

I am aware of some of the charger locations on the route. Have you tried the train station in Colfax? One side of the train station has small (J-1772) chargers that I have used with my electric motorcycle kept in Auburn, and there is a fast large charger on the other side that I canNOT use with my electric motorcycles. They are not close to each other and you can see one of these chargers without seeing a trace of the other. And they are across the street from each other. Can the Model three use any of the chargers? I realize the charge times will be a lot different depending on the charger used.

I now realize the range between here and Auburn will probably never be a problem, besides there are chargers on the way as well. I plan on riding my E-bike from Auburn to the Rocklin Tesla place even if it's before my scheduled test ride. I know the area somewhat, but I never really noticed the Tesla place as I have not looked for it in the past.

Did you go the the Reno EV event September 9, 2018 @ Virgin Lake here in Reno? I was there with the other two Zero motorcycles.

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[DonTom]

Not sure easing your range anxiety is still necessary at this point, but I had to drive from my house in Elk Grove to Reno for work a few weeks back. This is in a LR Model 3, kept it at 72-73 miles per hour. Thought I might have to hit a supercharger on the way back, but made the round trip with 6% remaining when I pulled into the garage. Trip mileage was 316 miles if I remember correctly.

What is the difference in range between the AWD and the single motor drive?

I purchased my 2017 SR 13 w/Pwr Tank there in Elk Grove. Elk Grove Power Sports. The electric bike that I keep in Auburn. For now, that is even the nearest Zero dealer to Reno! But that will change in a couple of months when the Triumph dealer here in Reno takes over doing Zeros.

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[Knightshade]

The 3 can use nearly any public charger in the US... it comes with a J1772 adapter and a couple of others (and several more are available from Tesla for a few bucks)- most are much slower than Teslas superchargers though

The RWD model 3 managed 334 miles of range in EPA testing- Tesla asked them to downgrade the "official" number to 310...because that's about what the AWD one managed in EPA testing and they wanted them all to "look" the same.

 

[DonTom]

I believe the number 1 reason why Tesla does not allow extension cords is liability. Electric cars draw a ton of power and the Tesla UMC has a sensor in it to detect an outlet that has begun to overheat.If you use an extension cord, you lose this functionality, that's why they tell you not to use them (I think).We have already dealt with one customer who burned down his garage with an improper electric vehicle charge circuit.

I figured it was mostly a liability issue. The safe way is for them to say don't use them regardless of anything.But I would like to hear the details about how the guy burnt his garage down.

Scott's Valley? That is where my Zero motorcycles are made. Have you ever noticed the place? I have never been there myself, but I have been in that area many times over the years as I lived most of my life in the San Mateo County and did a lot of riding down south. But all well before Zero existed.

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[DonTom]

California offers $2,500 check if you are poor ($150,000 annual single person income).

What do you have to do to get that check? Will I qualify not paying any CA income tax and living mainly in Reno, as long as I have a CA plate and buy the car in CA?

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[Tam]

...not paying any CA income tax....?

It is not a tax. It's a rebate check if you are not a rich Californian.

You need to upload some documents to prove that you are Californian:

1) CA driver license
2) CA registration (either permanent one or peel off the one from the windshield)

You do not send in your consent for income audit until you are audited.

If you are audited for income, it wants you to sign a request for Federal income tax report for it to read, NOT state income tax.

Please go to:

Clean Vehicle Rebate Project

 

[Vines]

I figured it was mostly a liability issue. The safe way is for them to say don't use them regardless of anything.But I would like to hear the details about how the guy burnt his garage down.

Scott's Valley? That is where my Zero motorcycles are made. Have you ever noticed the place? I have never been there myself, but I have been in that area many times over the years as I lived most of my life in the San Mateo County and did a lot of riding down south. But all well before Zero existed.

-Don- Reno, NV

Unfortunately i do not know the details, whether it was an extension cord, improper wiring, or improper installation. Best bet is to really do everything to code unless you have a really good reason not to. Electrical is easy to get wrong, all it takes is one poorly stripped wire to make a high resistance connection.

I actually applied to Zero at one point, but they were looking for a different type of worker. We see tons of their bikes around here though, its really cool

 

[DonTom]

You need to upload some documents to prove that you are Californian:

1) CA driver license
2) CA registration (either permanent one or peel off the one from the windshield)

Well, I hope they will accept a CA Real ID Card as I do not have a CA DL. But proving I am a California resident (at least part time) is not an issue.

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[Akikiki]

What if they want to see your CA state income tax submission? These tax credits are often tied to a tax liability.

 

[DonTom]

Can the AWD select FWD, RWD, only or is it stuck in AWD at all times?

BTW, I decided will head for Auburn on Friday when there is no rain. Flash flood watch near the summit today. I want to take my RV to leave it in Auburn (that's how I winterize it!).

-Don- Reno, NV

 

[Knightshade]

It's always AWD.

Given how fantastic the traction control is I can't think of many reasons you'd ever want it not to be.