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Which is better 100% charging or using Super charger

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DRustici

New Member
May 19, 2020
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I have a round trip that I will take on a regular basis where I can either charge up to 100% and make it back without using a super charger or charge up to 90% and need to use the Super charger to add 13% charge (according to A Better Routeplanner).

Which is the better option for battery lifetime? I suspect this mostly an academic question and the difference is minimal, but curiosity got the better of me.
 
When your car sits in the cold at the destination what may have looked like a no-stop trip will require a charge on the way home.
Why not plan to always arrive at the Supercharger on the way home with <20% (<10% in warm weather) and then charge as fast as possible but only as much as you need to get home with <20%. This avoids 100% charge, minimizes Supercharge stop time, and avoids range anxiety.
It is ok to precondition and charge close to 100% if you depart home on schedule but bear in mind there is no regen into a full battery.
 
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I would go with the 90% home charge and hit the supercharger for a bit.

- if you are going to have sentry or overheat protection at your destination you will lose additional charge
- in winter the 100% home charge might not actually be enough to do the round trip
 
I recommend the Supercharging choice as well, but if you decide to charge to 100%, I HIGHLY recommend that you set the charging timer on the car so that you finish charging and then IMMEDIATELY get in the car and drive. One of the worst things for Li-Ion batteries (of all kinds, including Teslas) is to charge to 100% and then let them sit. You want to start the discharge process immediately.
 
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