Western Canada Superchargers

[Vger]

Hounded my friends in Revelstoke to take some pictures, behold!

Great to see, since I will be there starting Wednesday (staying at the Best Western, conveniently! :smile Boy they better get that shelter finished for the equipment, before it gets buried under a metre of snow!

- - - Updated - - -

Hi all, I grew up just 5 miles out of town (Lytton) on the Highway 12, along the Fraser towards Lillooet, and while I live in Ontario today, I am working on a nudge to my brother on the farm to get him to add some form of shared/private/public charger at our farm! I was thinking of what would be the best in terms of cost, as well as use - maybe a 40 Amp unit?

It has a great View, so I wonder - what the interest might be for such a location - just 5 miles from the nearest SCH CS60 in town? Google Map Mixed image shown:

This view is about 1,000 Feet Higher than the main street in Lytton, and is a few hundred yards from the highest point on the highway for miles in both directions! the Farm is on Bench Land - Medium Desert Country, and the building shown was my Dad's Body Shop, and where I did some work on assembling an RV-3 Homebuilt kit.

This is a good thought. I would offer, however, that being so close to an existing SCH station, the main benefit of a charge station at your brother's place would be if it were significantly faster than the one in town. This is especially true, since one would have to "pay" (and plan) for the penalty of climbing the hill to the farm. While the view is certainly attractive, it would also be away from any place to eat, etc. (unless your family opens a cafe :wink: . So if he were to go ahead, I would recommend a CS-100 to yield the full 80A to a Model S.

 

[3s-a-charm]

As it is, with Canmore opening soon we should be able to make it from Canmore to Revelstoke in a charge and not stop in Golden.

 

[KenN]

^^^

312 km from Canmore to Revelstoke through mountain passes. Maybe in summer, nursing your speed all the way, but I'd say no chance in wintertime.

 

[gpetti]

As it is, with Canmore opening soon we should be able to make it from Canmore to Revelstoke in a charge and not stop in Golden.

I've been considering my approach to the new superchargers and I think I will normally do Calgary - Golden (maybe replenish some Kms in Canmore if conditions dictate a large safety margin). Then Golden to Revelstoke. I'm normally going to Summerland so should normally be able to go from Revelstoke to SUmmerland OK. What surprised me when I was tracking this in the summer is that Calgary - Canmore seemed to be the only leg that had a net increase in altitude. Although there are plenty of up and down hills to Golden and Revelstoke, you end up at lower and lower altitudes as you continue (particularly for me as I end up in the Okanagan). Canmore 1480m, Golden 800m, Revelstoke 480m. This resulted in better efficiency than I expected but I've never done it in the winter so first trip I would probably stop everywhere. I'm thinking that Canmore will primarily be a safety stop for me on the return journey.

 

[mrElbe]

Now all you need is a car!

 

[gpetti]

Now all you need is a car!

Good point. Range = 0 Kms right now.

 

[Mayhemm]

I've been considering my approach to the new superchargers and I think I will normally do Calgary - Golden (maybe replenish some Kms in Canmore if conditions dictate a large safety margin). Then Golden to Revelstoke. I'm normally going to Summerland so should normally be able to go from Revelstoke to SUmmerland OK. What surprised me when I was tracking this in the summer is that Calgary - Canmore seemed to be the only leg that had a net increase in altitude. Although there are plenty of up and down hills to Golden and Revelstoke, you end up at lower and lower altitudes as you continue (particularly for me as I end up in the Okanagan). Canmore 1480m, Golden 800m, Revelstoke 480m. This resulted in better efficiency than I expected but I've never done it in the winter so first trip I would probably stop everywhere. I'm thinking that Canmore will primarily be a safety stop for me on the return journey.

This conforms to my experience traveling west last summer. After being so worried about how mountain travel would drain my energy dry, I actually experienced very little increase in energy consumption compared to more "efficient" territory. I don't know whether it was the slower speeds (~70kph vs. 100kph), the high amounts of regen, or some combination thereof that was responsible for this.

 

[Vger]

This conforms to my experience traveling west last summer. After being so worried about how mountain travel would drain my energy dry, I actually experienced very little increase in energy consumption compared to more "efficient" territory. I don't know whether it was the slower speeds (~70kph vs. 100kph), the high amounts of regen, or some combination thereof that was responsible for this.

I agree. All of the above, in my experience!

 

[Spurkey]

After being so worried about how mountain travel would drain my energy dry, I actually experienced very little increase in energy consumption compared to more "efficient" territory.

This was my experience as well. The high torque of the electric motor helps the uphill and the healthy regen rate helps during the downhill portions. The biggest concern will be during winter and the highly-variable traffic delays - if an accident happens on the Rogers Pass or if an avalanche triggers or something leaving you stuck waiting on the side of the road for a few hours waiting for it to clear, you'll want to have even more of a buffer so you can run the cabin heater whilst waiting. That said, I can't wait to try the trip in winter.

 

[Vger]

^^^

312 km from Canmore to Revelstoke through mountain passes. Maybe in summer, nursing your speed all the way, but I'd say no chance in wintertime.

I would generally agree. Also, there is a fairly convenient SCH 70A charge station in Golden, so that can be a safety stop if need be.

 

[Edm P85D]

New Superchargers in Golden, BC. Pics taken on January 16, 2015. Opening soon it looks like.

 

[KenN]

Ah. So, waiting for the BC Hydro xformer.

 

[Tim Alguire]

Well all is looking good for when my "X" arrives.. The tough decision will be what direction do I head:
1. Southern Trip into the USA
2. Or try out this new Western Network?
(1st world Tesla Owner Problems)

 

[Hugh Mannity]

Well all is looking good for when my "X" arrives.. The tough decision will be what direction do I head:
1. Southern Trip into the USA
2. Or try out this new Western Network?
(1st world Tesla Owner Problems)

Easy decision, one after the other :biggrin:

 

[pairtrader]

I've been a bit out of touch on the SC progress over the past month, but it looks like they'll all be operational for my Apr.4th drive from Vancouver to Edmonton. I'm looking forward to comparing the travel time to my trip last April on SunCountry chargers. That effort was 30 hours Van-Edm and 28 hours on the way back. I should be able to increase my speed by 15km/hr in addition to the much faster charging time. It will be nice to not have to sleep in the car outside hardware stores and hotels!

 

[Cottonwood]

Well all is looking good for when my "X" arrives.. The tough decision will be what direction do I head:
1. Southern Trip into the USA
2. Or try out this new Western Network?
(1st world Tesla Owner Problems)

If it's 2016, you may be able to do both on Superchargers with the Calgary, AB to Butte, MT Supercharger connection. Which will be on the faster of the Tesla times, Supercharger rollout or X deliveries...

 

[m1ker]

I've been a bit out of touch on the SC progress over the past month, but it looks like they'll all be operational for my Apr.4th drive from Vancouver to Edmonton. I'm looking forward to comparing the travel time to my trip last April on SunCountry chargers. That effort was 30 hours Van-Edm and 28 hours on the way back. I should be able to increase my speed by 15km/hr in addition to the much faster charging time. It will be nice to not have to sleep in the car outside hardware stores and hotels!

Pairtrader, by then we will have our Model S, and our charger will be in place. If you need an HWPC Charge in Calgary, just get in touch, via this forum or Plugshare.

 

[Tim Alguire]

Easy decision, one after the other :biggrin:

I like the way you think!

- - - Updated - - -

If it's 2016, you may be able to do both on Superchargers with the Calgary, AB to Butte, MT Supercharger connection. Which will be on the faster of the Tesla times, Supercharger rollout or X deliveries...

View attachment 69808

yes... So many Superchargers.... So little time!

 

[Hugh Mannity]

I like the way you think!

yes... So many Superchargers.... So little time!

Our cars are close in number, we may end up taking delivery at the same time, how bout you go east i will go west and we can meet for coffee in salmon arm and compare vehicles and notes!

The plan is to take the fam down the west coast some day to visit disney and all that good stuff

 

[Zapped]

Who's got the latest on Red Deer ?
I heard a rumor it's opening tomorrow.