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Big Sur Camping Trip Report

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This weekend I took a road trip down Big Sur to meet up with some friends and do some camping. It involved some dirt roads and evtripper.com indicated that I should have enough charge to get there and back. I took it easy driving there, stopping in Gilroy to do a full range charge before heading on.

One thing I learned is that dirt roads use a lot more energy and I used a bit more power than I would have liked, even with the AC off and taking it easy while driving. On my way back it said I would have 5 miles left from Monterey to Gilroy but that's cutting it too close so I looked up chargers in Monterey. I found a place with a couple of Chargepoint chargers at a mall and stopped in there. There were two EV only parking spots. One was taken up by a leaf and the other by a Volt. The spot next to the Volt was free and the cable was quite long. I stood there fuming that an ICE vehicle was taking up an EV only spot for a while, especially since there was a good chance I wouldn't make it to the Supercharger if I didn't top up some. To make a long story short, I unplugged the charger from the Volt (which set off its car alarm) and charged for an hour (18 miles/hour). The owner of the Volt never returned by the time I had enough charge or I would have politely explained that those spots are reserved for those who need it.

Anyway, I made it to Gilroy with 8 miles to spare and did a full charge. While charging a family pulled in next to me and their model S was as dirty as mine was. They also drove over a bunch of dirt roads and arrived with 2 miles to spare!

I think Tesla really needs to think about adding chargers along some of the more scenic routes like Highway 1.

I also need to get some note paper and a pen for my car. I would have left a nice note for the owner of the Volt explaining why they were unplugged. Had I not done that I likely may not have made it to the Gilroy Supercharger. I'm not really sure plugging a Volt into a Chargepoint charger that charges $0.49/KWh makes much sense since gasoline is cheaper.
 
I drove California Highway 1 last June, from Morro Bay to Monterey with my Nissan LEAF. I stopped in Big Sur at a camp ground and charged overnight on 240 volts from the NEMA 14-50 RV plug. Unfortunately, it cost $65 for that privilege!!

Putting EV charging stations in places that have no grid power is tough, and much of that drive has none.
 
Yes, there need to be more Superchargers.

Why isn't the Volt entitled to use the charging station? If it were in the charging space and not connected to the charging station, I'd be annoyed as well. However, the car is equipped for and capable of taking a charge from the station, so why shouldn't the owner be able to do so if he wants?

I ask as this is the first time I've seen it suggested that PHEVs aren't allowed to use charging stations.
 
Yes, there need to be more Superchargers.

Why isn't the Volt entitled to use the charging station? If it were in the charging space and not connected to the charging station, I'd be annoyed as well. However, the car is equipped for and capable of taking a charge from the station, so why shouldn't the owner be able to do so if he wants?

I ask as this is the first time I've seen it suggested that PHEVs aren't allowed to use charging stations.

I think he was annoyed that the Volt was just using it as a convenient parking space instead of for it's intended use.
 
I also need to get some note paper and a pen for my car. I would have left a nice note for the owner of the Volt explaining why they were unplugged. Had I not done that I likely may not have made it to the Gilroy Supercharger. I'm not really sure plugging a Volt into a Chargepoint charger that charges $0.49/KWh makes much sense since gasoline is cheaper.

When you own a Volt (like I do) you try to avoid using gasoline as much as possible, even if it might be similar in cost. After all it is helping the air. To suggest that you have priority over the Volt is disturbing. Most people (like me) think of the Volt as an electric vehicle that happens to have a gas backup that should only be used if necessary. I am sure if the Volt owner was around he/she would have gladly unplugged (look for the flashing green light on the dash to indicate it is full). Would you have felt any differently if it were 2 model S's with owners gone for hours? You would still be out of luck. Don't take it out on the Volt as it has as much right to charge up as any EV does.
 
I ask as this is the first time I've seen it suggested that PHEVs aren't allowed to use charging stations.

Definitely have been suggested before:
http://www.teslamotorsclub.com/showthread.php/15882-ICEing-vs-sock-blocking

I've also been guilty of using a J1772 for convenience of parking when I did not need a charge, but there were another 6 open spaces. In any constrained environment, I think both in-range Tesla's and VOLT's should leave open the spaces for people who really need it.

It's also unfortunate that a lot of J1772's on the road is cheaper than charging at home.
 
Here*s a pic of the charging stations in the garage on Franklin Street. 4 hours free charging. Monterey has a nice free trolley bus circuit that runs all summer. You can get a ride to Cannery Row or Fishermen's Wharf.


e2u7eta4.jpg
 
Looks like an AVCON (old J1772 connector from the 1990's). The other one is a Magnacharger, an inductive J1773 charger for the EV-1.

GSP

Someone should ask the city how often they get used. I bet they would be open to modernizing them if Tesla or a group of owners offered to pay for the box. It's a really nice location in the city and perfect for going to Tuesday Farmer's Market in downtown Monterey
 
Someone should ask the city how often they get used. I bet they would be open to modernizing them if Tesla or a group of owners offered to pay for the box. It's a really nice location in the city and perfect for going to Tuesday Farmer's Market in downtown Monterey
There's a CEC funded program to get these old stations upgraded at no cost to the site owner - should investigate that first and then use any donations to install additional stations.

Reconnect CA Program
 
Huh? Rewarded? The reality is that these are probably 30/32 amp charging stations, therefore the simple upgrade is to a J1772-2009 nozzle equipped EVSE. What did you have in mind?
Yeah, I'm also confused. My suggestion is to use the Reconnect CA program to upgrade the existing charging stations at no cost. If additional, higher power stations are desired, then address those separately with people's investments.

Since "upgrading" the existing stations to 80A from 30A would basically entail a complete re-install (may be able to use existing conduit, but the wire and stations need to be replaced and who knows if the existing service can handle the additional load), it's not likely to be significantly cheaper to upgrade the existing stations to 80A.
 
When you own a Volt (like I do) you try to avoid using gasoline as much as possible, even if it might be similar in cost. After all it is helping the air. To suggest that you have priority over the Volt is disturbing. Most people (like me) think of the Volt as an electric vehicle that happens to have a gas backup that should only be used if necessary. I am sure if the Volt owner was around he/she would have gladly unplugged (look for the flashing green light on the dash to indicate it is full). Would you have felt any differently if it were 2 model S's with owners gone for hours? You would still be out of luck. Don't take it out on the Volt as it has as much right to charge up as any EV does.
+1 I haven't used a public charger yet. But I feel entitled to use one for my Volt and for the Model S once it arrives.