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Driving an S from Montreal to Baie-St-Paul in less than 12 hours - feasible?

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Jeeps17

Cath Jockey in a P85
Mar 17, 2012
1,040
505
Montreal, Canada
Driving an S from Montreal to Baie-St-Paul (in less than 8-12 hours) - feasible?

I need to attend a conference in October at the Hotel La Ferme in Baie-St-Paul.

I made this trip last year in my G37, but would like to know if anyone made the trip without issues in a Tesla.

I plan on stopping to recharge in Trois-Rivières and Quebec at the 70A SCH chargers (I have a P85 with twin chargers), I should be able to allow about 2 hours at each (recovering about 120 km of rated range per stop). There are no charging stations past Quebec city up to Baie-St-Paul, but my main concern are the massive hills (both up and down) on the last leg of the trip.

An alternative would be to drive to the Parc des Chutes Montmorency, plug in the car at a Circuit Electrique station and take the train to the hotel (and back), but that would involve me blocking a plug for 3 days...

The hotel is looking into whether they have any 110V outlets close to their parking, but it's getting there that concerns me.

Any input appreciated!
 
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Hi Agileone,

Thanks for the tip! I already knew about it, I actually added it to PlugShare last winter when I scouted out the area with my ICE :smile:.

My question is more along the lines of how much charge do I need to make it there when leaving Quebec, having to go through the hills in the Eboulements region.

I know that elevation eats a lot more electricity, and those are some BIG hills.

I just don't have any experience driving my S with this degree of up / down (and to make it worse the hills are at the end of the trip...).
 
For your info, I did Ste-Foy (Quebec City) to Baie St-Paul round trip on a standard charge. Don't remember how muck km I had left as its been a while. The trip is amazingly fun with an electric car.

Hi Agileone,

Thanks for the tip! I already knew about it, I actually added it to PlugShare last winter when I scouted out the area with my ICE :smile:.

My question is more along the lines of how much charge do I need to make it there when leaving Quebec, having to go through the hills in the Eboulements region.

I know that elevation eats a lot more electricity, and those are some BIG hills.

I just don't have any experience driving my S with this degree of up / down (and to make it worse the hills are at the end of the trip...).
 
Hello Jeeps !!

Don't worry about topography there, because yes it takes more energy uphill but you get it back when going downhill !!

I'm going by memory ... I did Trois-Rivières to La Malbaie last June without stopping (started with a charge at about 95% or 400 KM rated) ... did not charge in La Malbaie, then got back to Baie St-Paul and I stopped at Pignonronde (had like 40 KM left of rated range). But my average was like 180 Wh / km on A-40 between Trois-Rivieres and Quebec. Then between Quebec and La Malbaie, it was around 185-190 ... not much more!

Temperature was foggy and cold after past Quebec (about 5°C) ... I even had to heat up my driver seat!

The trick, go at 95 Km/hour between Quebec and Baie St-Paul ... it will be a piece of cake !!

See picture of power usage ... lots of green ... MINUS -114 Wh /km ... the place where it's going down at over 10% ... and they have warnings about overheating break pads ... on the Tesla ... only regen !!
 

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Unfortunately, the charging infrastructure in Charlevoix has taken quite a hit.

The Auberge Pignoronde has closed for good. The owners intend to demolish it to build condos. The CS-90 has been removed. I hope it has found a good home. The Petit Manoir du Casino in La Malbaie has the region's other CS-90, but the hotel is closed for a year following a major fire.

I believe there's now only a single public L2 or above station in the region, a 30-amp Electric Circuit one at the Fairmont Manoir Richelieu Hotel (across from the casino in La Malbaie.) I have wanted to use it twice. The first time, there was a Silver Tesla, not plugged in, and a pick-up occupying the two spots next the station. It took over an hour to get access.

Then yesterday, the valet "had to check" with his superior to see if I could even park there since I was not a guest of the hotel. They decided to allow me, as long as I went through the valet. However, I decided to pass since the $2.50 Electric Circuit fee + valet tip seemed a bit stiff for an expected 4kWh. Being a bit miffed that they considered the station semi-private also was a factor in my decision.
 
That's not good news at all...

Hopefully the Hotel La Ferme can step up to the plate and add some decent charging options. They advertise themselves as being green, but offer nothing for EVs.

Both times I stayed there I talked to the person in charge at the reception to pitch the idea, and was told that the concept had been discussed in staff meetings.

Eco-Route Québec should jump on the opportunity to replace the Pignoronde CS-90 at a bigger establishment.
 
Hello Jeeps !!

Don't worry about topography there, because yes it takes more energy uphill but you get it back when going downhill !!

I'm going by memory ... I did Trois-Rivières to La Malbaie last June without stopping (started with a charge at about 95% or 400 KM rated) ... did not charge in La Malbaie, then got back to Baie St-Paul and I stopped at Pignonronde (had like 40 KM left of rated range). But my average was like 180 Wh / km on A-40 between Trois-Rivieres and Quebec. Then between Quebec and La Malbaie, it was around 185-190 ... not much more!

Temperature was foggy and cold after past Quebec (about 5°C) ... I even had to heat up my driver seat!

The trick, go at 95 Km/hour between Quebec and Baie St-Paul ... it will be a piece of cake !!

See picture of power usage ... lots of green ... MINUS -114 Wh /km ... the place where it's going down at over 10% ... and they have warnings about overheating break pads ... on the Tesla ... only regen !!

That attached image should be framed :biggrin:.
 
Both times I stayed there [La Ferme] I talked to the person in charge at the reception to pitch the idea, and was told that the concept had been discussed in staff meetings.


As we know, Ecoroute/Suncountry is usually a better solution than the Electric Circuit for establishments like La Ferme. However, the general public tends to think of Hydro-Quebec's Electric Circuit when they think of charging stations.

This is where they may be a problem with La Ferme. Being a part of Le Massif Ski resort, it's in a cold war with Hydro-Quebec. Ski station operators believe they're being way overcharged for electricity. For its part, H-Q refuses to lower rates, claiming they spend a lot on infrastructure in order to service snow-making operations. Resorts point to Vermont, where utility companies import electricity at wholesale from Quebec and resell it to local ski stations at rates lower than what is being charged in Canada.

So, I believe La Ferme would reject the Electric Circuit out of hand, but they may not know of their other options. Naturally, this is a good opportunity for Ecoroute to pitch their higher-power products. Then again, Le Massif has been struggling, so may not be open to sales people in general.
 
Management of the hotel La Ferme in Baie-Saint-Paul has been handed over to the Germain Group. This is great news, because the group's other hotels are part of TM's destination charging program.

There soon should be something more powerful than a 120V receptacle available to guests at La Ferme. Access from Montreal is no longer a problem, with the distances being 249 km from the Drummondville Supercharger and 164 km from the Easternmost CHAdeMO on the 40 in Deschambault.
 
Management of the hotel La Ferme in Baie-Saint-Paul has been handed over to the Germain Group. This is great news, because the group's other hotels are part of TM's destination charging program.

There soon should be something more powerful than a 120V receptacle available to guests at La Ferme. Access from Montreal is no longer a problem, with the distances being 249 km from the Drummondville Supercharger and 164 km from the Easternmost CHAdeMO on the 40 in Deschambault.

I noticed that change in ownership this weekend in LaPresse, and had the same "Oh Yeah!" moment.

Can only be good for EV owners travelling to BSP.
 
It appears from PlugShare that le Massif now has two 80 amp Tesla HPWCs and a 48amp ClipperCreek in the parking lot at the summit. But no one has "checked in" yet.

Is anyone able to confirm this information?


I will be able to confirm it sometime in the next two weeks if that's fast enough for you.

EDIT: someone posted a photo on ps today. Make sure you have a tool to free the cables from ice and snow if necessary.
 
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