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enough range to make it home for the first time?

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I am picking up my new(used) roadster 2.0 sport tomorrow and i am thinking about driving it home. It is a total of 184 miles to get her back. Driving 70 miles per hour is this a reasonable trip or is it unlikely to make it?

I have looked for charging stations on the route and have not found any.

Thank you in advance
 
That would be cutting it close - you can put the car into range mode and depending if you have any hills/mountains to climb that just might make it. My commute is about 55 miles and
I average about 70 miles and hour - in standard mode my estimated range is 145 miles (I have a big hill to climb) with a full charge. If you drive slower though, you can increase the range.
A full charge and driving in standard mode should get you about 200 miles.
 
I'd drive conservatively at first (especially if any big hills) and watch the difference between estimated miles and ideal miles. When the two are converging or as long as the total estimated miles (based on how you're driving) doesn't fall below what you need (with a little padding, of course!) ... then have fun.

My first drive home after picking up my Roadster, I cruised into my garage with about 20 miles to spare. But I watched it and as soon as I knew I had more than enough to get home, I quit driving so carefully and enjoyed my new car to the fullest.
 
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It is a total of 184 miles to get her back. Driving 70 miles per hour is this a reasonable trip or is it unlikely to make it?

According to Tesla (Roadster Efficiency and Range | Blog | Tesla Motors) at 70mph it looks like the max range of a new Roadster would be...just about 184 miles. If it's not fully charged, or the battery has deteriorated since new, or you use HVAC, or you climb hills, or have a headwind, or the weather is bad...you aren't going to make it.

At least, not at 70. As noted by others, you can always slow down. At 55mph the range is 244 miles. That should be easy.
 
Tip: After 30 miles of driving, the Estimated Miles are very accurate - as long as you continue to drive the same way. Program your GPS for the trip and make sure the number it shows for distance remaining is LESS than estimated miles, after you've driven 30 miles. If not, slow down and your range will increase accordingly.

For more instant feedback, you can also read your current Wh/mile on the VDS. 53,000 Wh / 184 miles = 288 Wh/mile. Keep your average Wh/mile under this number.

Better yet, add a pad, i.e. 53,000 Wh / 214 miles = 248 Wh/mile. Maintain that and you'll get home with miles to spare. Spare is good - you never know when you might hit a detour. The first time I did a long road trip the GPS map was WRONG!
 
Folks here keep saying "full charge" without qualifying that they most likely mean full Range Mode charge. A full Standard Mode charge gives you only 80% to 90% of the 245 mile range, depending upon driving mode.

If you're totally new to the Tesla, ysrman, then study up on the Range Mode for charging and driving before you take off on your trip home.
 
Good point, if collecting the car make sure they have charged it in range mode for you not standard mode. Just to be clear it needs to be charged in range mode - not to be mixed up with driving in range mode. It could also be worth asking them to check the tire pressures - there are two settings, comfort and range.

Avoid rapid acceleration, high speeds, use of heating and air con and you should be OK.

As mentioned you can not take a lot of notice of the estimated range on the dashboard display until you have driven a few miles as it shows driving based on the style of the previous 30 miles. After 30 miles you want the estimated miles to be higher than the no of miles you have left.

Personally I only use range mode when I need to unlock the last 25 mile or so reserve, but it might also be worth driving in range mode as it limits the power - no bad thing if you are not used to the car.

Once you get closer to home and you hopefully have plenty of spare miles you can have a bit of fun.
 
Gee, when I saw the title of this thread, I thought the question was going to be whether the Roadster Sport ends up having less range because it is so much faster. So, I'll just ask: Can the Roadster Sport achieve the same maximum range as the base model when driven the same?
 
I am picking up my new(used) roadster 2.0 sport tomorrow and i am thinking about driving it home. It is a total of 184 miles to get her back. Driving 70 miles per hour is this a reasonable trip or is it unlikely to make it?

I have looked for charging stations on the route and have not found any.

Thank you in advance

There's a good thread here by Eberhard on getting 400km in Europe.

I suggest you charge in range mode overnight, before you pickup. Then, give it a final top-up range mode charge just before you go. Use gps to track miles to go, reset trip counter and average consumption to ensure you are driving within expectations. If you can, find a backup charging station somewhere along the way that you can use if things don't seem to be working out as expected.

Let us know how you get on, and congratulations.
 
And if you stop for any reason ... restroom, stretch legs, coffee ... PLUG IN, even if only at 110. You can always find an outlet. If you get an extra 8 miles that way, it may be the 8 miles you need to get you home.

Plus, you'll draw curious onlookers, wanting to know more about the car. That's fun. :)
 
I am picking up my new(used) roadster 2.0 sport tomorrow and i am thinking about driving it home. It is a total of 184 miles to get her back. Driving 70 miles per hour is this a reasonable trip or is it unlikely to make it?

I have looked for charging stations on the route and have not found any.

Thank you in advance
Let's quit frightening "ysrman".
Charge in Range mode, drive in Range mode. Don't exceed 70 mph. And you should arrive with 40-50 miles range left.
This is not hard to achieve if you can keep your right foot in check.

There's a good thread here by Eberhard on getting 400km in Europe.

I suggest you charge in range mode overnight, before you pickup. Then, give it a final top-up range mode charge just before you go. Use gps to track miles to go, reset trip counter and average consumption to ensure you are driving within expectations. If you can, find a backup charging station somewhere along the way that you can use if things don't seem to be working out as expected.

Let us know how you get on, and congratulations.
 
Let's quit frightening "ysrman".
Charge in Range mode, drive in Range mode. Don't exceed 70 mph. And you should arrive with 40-50 miles range left.

??? I'm not trying to frighten him (and I don't see anybody else doing that either); I am trying to give him realistic expectations.

I posted Tesla's data, which matches my experience with scary accuracy. According to Telsa, if he is lucky and hits NO mitigating factors, at 70 he will arrive with zero miles left. How do you calculate that he will have 40-50 miles left?
 
??? I'm not trying to frighten him (and I don't see anybody else doing that either); I am trying to give him realistic expectations.

I posted Tesla's data, which matches my experience with scary accuracy. According to Telsa, if he is lucky and hits NO mitigating factors, at 70 he will arrive with zero miles left. How do you calculate that he will have 40-50 miles left?
I didn't calculate, I make this statement from experience, I have made a dozen or more trips of 180-190 miles. Starting with 235 miles and driving in Range mode. As I said "don't exceed 70 mph". I usually drive 60-65 with cruise control. Don't accelerate too hard and look down the road so you can minimize slowing down and accelerating again. I can generally match or exceed "Ideal" miles. (235-185 = 50)
Perhaps "frightening" was a bad choice of descriptors. It just seemed as though everyone was painting a dismal picture, and IMO making too much of a 186 mile trip.
And ChadS don't be so defensive, I am not trying to counter-dict anyone just relating my experience.
 
This is the message we should be conveying: if you drive 65 instead of 70, use cruise control and charge in range mode, you'll be fine. If you drive 75, you probably won't make it.
Yes, this is the main thing. The power used to overcome aero drag goes as the velocity cubed (the energy used to cover the same distance goes as the velocity squared). So going 70 mph instead of 65 will use about 25% more power while only saving you say 12 minutes over 185 miles.
 
So going 70 mph instead of 65 will use about 25% more power while only saving you say 12 minutes over 185 miles.
Very true and the thing must non-pilots never think about is that a barely perceptible 5 mph breeze coming from the direction you are headed causes the car to consume power at the 70 mph rate while only driving 65.
 
back in the hangar safely

Thank you to all that responded. I did manage to get it home today with the help of AAA for the last 30 miles. I drove 58 mph the entire way drafted large trucks etc and the car showed that I should arrive with 10 extra miles of range. However with 35 miles to go i got a message that the battery was almost depleted and the range calculation was inaccurate. The 35 miles remaining of charge indication went to zero and the car shut down 4 miles later. not a big deal. AAA brought a flat bed in 15 minutes and finished the journey. The car had not been used much the prior few months and the Tesla rep said that you need to ballance the cels to get accurate range by cycling them a couple of times. All that aside it is an amazng car and I am really looking forward to driving it daily.