Charging Anxiety Log

[mitch672]

I don't think many actually "need" the twin chargers, and the wall mounted HPC, it's more of a desire to have the capability if you run into a charging location that has a 70A J-1772 EVSE.. The wall mounted HPC is also more of a convenience so you can keep the UMC in the frunk/trunk and not pack it up with you each day. Many places don't have the massive J-1772 rollout that the West Coast has, we easterners are more likely to keep our UMC in the car, than many in the West, where J-1772 EVSEs are nearly on every other city block.

[Doug_G]

70A is wonderul to have on the road. It is totally unnecessary at home. I have an HPC and I normally run it at 40A.

[spleen]

I don't think many actually "need" the twin chargers, and the wall mounted HPC, it's more of a desire to have the capability if you run into a charging location that has a 70A J-1772 EVSE.. The wall mounted HPC is also more of a convenience so you can keep the UMC in the frunk/trunk and not pack it up with you each day. Many places don't have the massive J-1772 rollout that the West Coast has, we easterners are more likely to keep our UMC in the car, than many in the West, where J-1772 EVSEs are nearly on every other city block.

It'd be cheaper to buy a 2nd UMC to keep in the garage / carry with you for $500 though than to pay for the HPC. A 70 amp J1772 in the wild is really rare - I would imagine that it would be even rarer on the East Coast where you don't have as many J1772 chargers to start off with. In my case, going from a 3.3 kW charger in a Leaf to a single 10 kW charger in the Model S / X will feel like a luxury!

[Jack]

Okay. It's me. I think I may have succumbed to CA (charge anxiety, aka Chargitis). When the realities of car buying and my desire for audio and tech superceded by desire for range, I went 60kWh for my Model S. And then in set in. First as an idea a (CF) bulb in my head went on that said: "add a twin charger". I have a 70 amp line heading to the garage. So I can use it on this rare times I head from our llavce in new Hampshire to home near Boston and onwards the same day to cape cod to see family. Then someone noted that 70 amp charging stations do exist "out there". And the supercharge may have some odd extra fee. And it's a little abusive of the battery. So I added a twin charger to my configuration.

So I'd welcome being talked out of it and maybe even back into an 85kWh. Or I'd welcome reassurance that my thoughts make sens. The point is I really don't know enough to know what I really know. EV Rookie, consumed by Chargitis.

Hmm. So i get back from a Red Sox game at 11PM to midnight on a Thursday, head to work the next day at 6AM, and then down to the Cape at noon to 2PM to beat traffic (not uncommon for me). 150 miles of charge may be ok, but not if i head to friends for dinner on the outer Cape and back. With a ~300 mile range, not sure i'll have the 10 hours all the time. As with 1079, i'm also a rookie with no experience with EV's, and appreciate the experience-based advice above. But the math doesn't seem to work going forward for me, and the cost is less than 3% of vehicle value - a small price to relieve some anxiety (even considered a Volt or plug-in Prius for a bit, due to RA, much less CA - glad i didn't go down that path).

[brianman]

the HPC at home is never needed and charging on the road higher than 40 amps is almost never available.

Bonnie, tell him what we learned about words like "never".

[mitch672]

It'd be cheaper to buy a 2nd UMC to keep in the garage / carry with you for $500 though than to pay for the HPC. A 70 amp J1772 in the wild is really rare - I would imagine that it would be even rarer on the East Coast where you don't have as many J1772 chargers to start off with. In my case, going from a 3.3 kW charger in a Leaf to a single 10 kW charger in the Model S / X will feel like a luxury!

We don't actually know the cost or even if the UMC2 will be availble, it's entirely possible the UMC2 will be MORE than the $1,200 cost of the HPWC. Show me where Tesla has ever published/announced the price of the UMC2?

[Doug_G]

A 70 amp J1772 in the wild is really rare - I would imagine that it would be even rarer on the East Coast where you don't have as many J1772 chargers to start off with.

Very true. I'm currently only aware of one within driving range of where I live, and I was responsible for getting it installed!

[spleen]

We don't actually know the cost or even if the UMC2 will be availble, it's entirely possible the UMC2 will be MORE than the $1,200 cost of the HPWC. Show me where Tesla has ever published/announced the price of the UMC2?

TMC user reported Admittedly, it's not as good as it being on the Tesla website but given how slowly they update it for these details ...

[dhrivnak]

With more than 12,000 miles of EV driving there is only one time I have needed a fast charge, on a trip to EVCCON (Electric Vehicle Conversion Convention. There I did 500 miles in 24 hours and while I would have gladly paid for a 70 amp charger I have yet to find one in the wild. At home there is only one time I really needed more than 40 amps and that is when a fellow Tesla onwer stopped by for a charge. I hope 70 amp units do come but for now they are only a dream in Tennessee. So on a trip bring a jacket and a good book.

[efusco]

This sort of advice was given to me prior to configuring my car...and I very nearly followed it. Indeed, I will/would probably have been fine had I followed said advice. But 1)I don't live on the West Coast. 2)I don't live within 200 miles of a public charging station. 3)I travel 180-225 miles to major cities in my region of the country on a fairly regular basis.

Now, given that I'm getting the 85kWh pack that probably further supports the OPs contentions, even given my circumstances. But it is not that unusual for me to drive 120-180 miles in a given day, come home for a mere couple of hours before heading to work, then back home (another 30 miles RT). So, maybe with a top up I'd still have plenty of range, but yea, I've never had an EV before, have no other location to charge than my home, and yes, have some anxiety that I'll be forced to choose between driving my Model S or taking a gasser if I can't quickly top up.

Finally, because of my location, I hope/anticipate serving as a bit of an oasis/way-station for other Tesla owners who may want to commute through this rather remote part of the country and need a top up. It is $2700 and I think that for 95% of Model S buyers it's probably the wiser choice to not get the twin charger/HPC combo, but I definately would have had to either get a second UMC or pay for the HPC even w/o the twin charger, so for the price difference the beautiful and convenient HPC made sense and the extra $1500 for a second charger that may well help me accomodate a quick charge at another Model S owner's home sometime made sense.

One could certainly argue that it makes more sense to get the HPC/twin than it does to get the performance upgrade--that's purely for fun/bragging rights, there's no practical need for that sort of power.