rzia

Hello!,

I am seriously considering purchasing a Roadster but I have some reservations about its driving range. I have a commute that is 115 miles one way two times a week. I will have the opportunity to charge the roadster when I reach the destination for a minimum of 5 hours using a 220 outlet. My concern is regarding how fast I can drive. The speed limit on the highway I use is 75mph and is loosley enforced. One can drive 85mph without any problems. In fact this section of four lane highway is known as the autobahn around here as people drive over 100mph. I have read on this forum that driving over 70mph can reduce to range to as little as 100 miles (in standard mode), which is less than my commute . The dilemma is that driving at 60mph would turn my hour and twenty minute commute to a two hour commute Has anyone tried driving the car at 85+mph to see how far they can get?

thanks in advance!

johnr

The graphs in here - Tesla Motors - Engineering - will give you an idea of what the range should be at any given speed ... but of course in the real world, quite literally, YMMV.

Tdave

5 hours is enough time to go from Standard mode empty to Standard mode full at 40 amps. Do you know if you'll be able to plug into a 50 amp RV outlet allowing you to draw 40 amps?

You should get 130 miles or so at that speed. Where you may run into trouble (or need the reserve mileage) is if you need to have the A/C or heat on, or worse both for defogging in the cold. That will cost you 10 miles of range during your trip. On those day, slow down to 80 mph and you should be good.

Those are my best estimates.

rzia

Thanks JohnR and Tdave! So is the range graph based standard mode charging rates? The graph basically says 130 miles at 85mph which cuts it pretty close. 80mph at 150miles seems more realistic. I am assuming I can fairly easily have a 40amp 220V hookup installed at the facility I will be going too but I will look into that. They only other worry is when the battery starts to loose capacity because of use. How many trips can I make (charge/recharge before the battery capacity drops by 10%?

Bradleybang

Please tell us more about this 115 one way.
Hills? Headwinds? temperatures? Is it 85mph for 95% of the trip?

You are very close to hitting need for more than standard range if its 100% 85mph. Add headwinds, hills and high or low temps with the top off and it would be over standard. IMO

Tdave

You're right that the battery will lose range over the years. For example, you might find yourself having to do the trip at 80 mph after 3 years, at 75 mph after 5 years, and 70 mph after 7 years, at which time you'll be wanting a new battery anway. I have no idea if those numbers are accurate. It's just an off the top of my head guess to give you an idea of what you may be in for.

Tdave

Realize also that you'll be trying to complete your trip all in Standard Mode. But you ALWAYS have that last 10% of battery in reserve available simply by pulling over and switching into Range mode, to give you another 25 miles of range at 55 mph, if you should need it one day. That will impact your battery life somewhat if you use that reserve. But the point here is that most days you'll be practiced in making it to your destination in Standard mode, but will always have that buffer if you really need it.

vfx

Pull over?

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doug

I seem to remember a firmware upgrade that allowed you to access that bottom 10% without pulling over. I could be mistaken, though.

Tdave

Well, if I'm the only one in the car, I'd certainly pull over in order to switch into Range Mode. That's a lot of taps on the touchscreen. I wouldn't attempt that while driving, and definitely not at 85 mph.