Went from NC to Port Canaveral Florida: Nov, 2018
Lumberton, NC: Not many bays but not heavily used. Good kW rate.
Florence, SC: 20+ bays but in front of the food court of a shopping center. A lot of non-Tesla vehicles were parked there and I had to squeeze in next to another Tesla, sharing the KW, so slower than normal charging. I went from 73kW down to 40kW pretty quickly.
Santee, SC: Similar to Lumberton, limited bays, but no one else was there, so it worked great
Savannah, GA: 2-3 vehicles were sharing 6 connectors. The first bay and third bay were limited to about 35kW. Bays 2 and 4 gave me 70-80kw for a few minutes, then settled into the 50kw range. Note, this one is tricky to find. Its at the airport under the two level parking garage toward the back, but directly in front of the terminal. As you approach the terminal, look to the left for 'Economy' parking and go straight across the exit lanes. Chargers will be on the left. You will need to get a parking ticket. When are ready to leave, look for a booth with an attendant. They will ask for name and phone, do a look up, and not charge anything for short term charging.
Kingsland, GA.: There were 3 cars sharing 8 connectors. The kW rate was good enough until someone pulled in beside me.
St. Augustine, FLA: Another shopping center/factory outlet mall. The connectors were reasonably well centered in the complex. 3 cars were sharing 6 connectors. Started at 85 KW, settled down to about 58KW. Not terribly well lit at night.
Port Orange, FLA: Outlet mall. Again not terribly well lit, but we were the only car so the kW rate was good. Nice eateries within a five minute walk, and a little lake to walk around if you need a stretch break.
Kennedy Space Center, FLA: Destination charger. Parking is $10. There are two 240v chargers but they are free with the parking fee. First come, first served. Leave your cell number on the dashboard. That way, someone needing to charge up, can call you to switch parking spots with them. Its the right thing to do. Elon was too busy to see me
, but SpaceX had the rocket sitting up next to the strongback, so that was cool. Check the flight manifest on Space.com or the NASA site. You might get lucky enough to see one go up. There is a pretty good view of the SpaceX launch pad from some of Port Canaveral's parking lots.
Other notes: If you plan to stop at every other supercharger, you have to watch your distance/speed. For example, its over 200 miles from Kingsland to Santee (skipping Savannah). At 80 mph, on an 90% charge, especially at night, with the lights on, heat on, and perhaps windshield wipers eating up power, you really might not make it. It does not take that long to top up a few miles and be on your way. That was the only part of the trip that would have given me any anxiety. BTW: 80mph on wet roads in a heavy car is a prescription for disaster. Just saying. Stay away from everyone. They are texting, drinking, sleepy, and what not, and could care less about you and your beautiful amazing car. I am dead serious. Fun is preceded by safety.
This was my first extended road trip in my Model S since my purchase 4 years ago. I was able to load up 8 bags of luggage and three people. Even my wife was amazed at how much luggage fit in there. We have a Honda Ridgeline truck and the luggage fit into the Model S better than it fit into the Ridgeline. Having said that, no car on this earth is going to be comfortable for a 12 hour drive. Don't have unrealistic expectations and let the extra charging time be a chance to walk, work out the leg cramps, butt sores, and neck muscles.
Lumberton, NC: Not many bays but not heavily used. Good kW rate.
Florence, SC: 20+ bays but in front of the food court of a shopping center. A lot of non-Tesla vehicles were parked there and I had to squeeze in next to another Tesla, sharing the KW, so slower than normal charging. I went from 73kW down to 40kW pretty quickly.
Santee, SC: Similar to Lumberton, limited bays, but no one else was there, so it worked great
Savannah, GA: 2-3 vehicles were sharing 6 connectors. The first bay and third bay were limited to about 35kW. Bays 2 and 4 gave me 70-80kw for a few minutes, then settled into the 50kw range. Note, this one is tricky to find. Its at the airport under the two level parking garage toward the back, but directly in front of the terminal. As you approach the terminal, look to the left for 'Economy' parking and go straight across the exit lanes. Chargers will be on the left. You will need to get a parking ticket. When are ready to leave, look for a booth with an attendant. They will ask for name and phone, do a look up, and not charge anything for short term charging.
Kingsland, GA.: There were 3 cars sharing 8 connectors. The kW rate was good enough until someone pulled in beside me.
St. Augustine, FLA: Another shopping center/factory outlet mall. The connectors were reasonably well centered in the complex. 3 cars were sharing 6 connectors. Started at 85 KW, settled down to about 58KW. Not terribly well lit at night.
Port Orange, FLA: Outlet mall. Again not terribly well lit, but we were the only car so the kW rate was good. Nice eateries within a five minute walk, and a little lake to walk around if you need a stretch break.
Kennedy Space Center, FLA: Destination charger. Parking is $10. There are two 240v chargers but they are free with the parking fee. First come, first served. Leave your cell number on the dashboard. That way, someone needing to charge up, can call you to switch parking spots with them. Its the right thing to do. Elon was too busy to see me
, but SpaceX had the rocket sitting up next to the strongback, so that was cool. Check the flight manifest on Space.com or the NASA site. You might get lucky enough to see one go up. There is a pretty good view of the SpaceX launch pad from some of Port Canaveral's parking lots.Other notes: If you plan to stop at every other supercharger, you have to watch your distance/speed. For example, its over 200 miles from Kingsland to Santee (skipping Savannah). At 80 mph, on an 90% charge, especially at night, with the lights on, heat on, and perhaps windshield wipers eating up power, you really might not make it. It does not take that long to top up a few miles and be on your way. That was the only part of the trip that would have given me any anxiety. BTW: 80mph on wet roads in a heavy car is a prescription for disaster. Just saying. Stay away from everyone. They are texting, drinking, sleepy, and what not, and could care less about you and your beautiful amazing car. I am dead serious. Fun is preceded by safety.
This was my first extended road trip in my Model S since my purchase 4 years ago. I was able to load up 8 bags of luggage and three people. Even my wife was amazed at how much luggage fit in there. We have a Honda Ridgeline truck and the luggage fit into the Model S better than it fit into the Ridgeline. Having said that, no car on this earth is going to be comfortable for a 12 hour drive. Don't have unrealistic expectations and let the extra charging time be a chance to walk, work out the leg cramps, butt sores, and neck muscles.
