5000 km road trip - Vancouver (BC) to San Diego round trip

[drdumont]

Wow! The FUDI creators are on the loose again!

Problem is, prospective Tesla users see something like this, then play Whisper Down The Lane, and we get inundated with all kinds of these See-ment in the Car stories, which every teller swears is true, because it was told to him by his uncle's buddy's brother in law who says his sister's kid saw it happen. Swearta God! It was rat thurr on Main Street!

There is a device squarely between your ears, mostly pink with some gray. The good old Mk I Mod I Human Brain, with accessories. When used properly, issues such as the OP's purported problems just don't seem to be a reality.

The In Car computer works quite well. ABRP can be frustrating, but it works quite well. Chargemap - well, that I guess is a YMMV matter.

And IMHO, it works better than certain $12000 add ons for Tesla. Certainly cheaper.

 

[drdumont]

Yep, me too. I did also put some time into planning before departure.

"Not me, ol' buddy! I just gets in my truck, fire her up and point her where I want to go! I ain't no sissyboy who checks his fuel gauge before leavin' for El Paso! Just get in and go, that's my motto, it is!"

I actually heard this paraphrased comment when a gentleman sitting next to me at The Broken Spoke in Austin expressed his disdain for EVs in general...

Sigh...

 

[2putt4]

Funny. I was nervous on my first tesla roadtrip from SF to Palm Springs but there were plenty of chargers along the way. This was also during Thanksgiving travel weekend and the superchargers were full but I never had to wait. I saw others who did, but not more than 10 minutes. The only annoyance is if the car routes you to a 72 or 150kw charger and not a level 3. You will need to plan for more time but if planned correctly then it’s a non issue.

 

[Wol747]

Funny. I was nervous on my first tesla roadtrip from SF to Palm Springs but there were plenty of chargers along the way. This was also during Thanksgiving travel weekend and the superchargers were full but I never had to wait. I saw others who did, but not more than 10 minutes. The only annoyance is if the car routes you to a 72 or 150kw charger and not a level 3. You will need to plan for more time but if planned correctly then it’s a non issue.

(Excuse me, from Australia)
How does the system work when there are multiple chargers, all in use and several cars waiting? Do they all form in one line, or is there a scrap when a charger at the other end becomes free?
AFAIK the biggest site here is six chargers and with Teslas coming onto the roads in droves waiting looks like being more of a problem - which it isn't up to now.

 

[SoCal Buzz]

(Excuse me, from Australia)
How does the system work when there are multiple chargers, all in use and several cars waiting? Do they all form in one line, or is there a scrap when a charger at the other end becomes free?
AFAIK the biggest site here is six chargers and with Teslas coming onto the roads in droves waiting looks like being more of a problem - which it isn't up to now.

Most superchargers have enough space in parking lot enabling cars to line up and wait their turn. A few don’t have much room and sometimes it’s unclear where to form line (e.g., outside supercharger area, along curb). But I’ve found charging etiquette to be very good over the years with drivers making best effort to line up or ask others if necessary.

 

[Wol747]

Most superchargers have enough space in parking lot enabling cars to line up and wait their turn. A few don’t have much room and sometimes it’s unclear where to form line (e.g., outside supercharger area, along curb). But I’ve found charging etiquette to be very good over the years with drivers making best effort to line up or ask others if necessary.

Thanks. I’ve never had to wait - yet - and have been curious as to how the queueing system works!

 

[QUBO]

Thanks. I’ve never had to wait - yet - and have been curious as to how the queueing system works!

I'm also curious how the queue works. None of the superchargers I've visited have any kind of obvious waiting line. They are in parking lots (like HyVee, or by a restaurant or hotel) and any line would be blocking other cars or otherwise causing congestion.

 

[paulchou]

I'm also curious how the queue works. None of the superchargers I've visited have any kind of obvious waiting line. They are in parking lots (like HyVee, or by a restaurant or hotel) and any line would be blocking other cars or otherwise causing congestion.

I've only been to one Supercharger that had a queue so far. It seems like it's by honor system. Ppl just park in the adjacent parking lot, waiting for their turn. And as one Tesla pull out, the one who's been waiting the longest pulls in.

I would also like to know all the etiquettes of charging system... for example, I know that the forward-parking charging spots are for ppl w/ trailer, etc...

In any case, I believe the waiting system could be implemented in the app to avoid any confusion/conflict whatsoever. The reservation system can be incorporated into the Trip app, perhaps? There should be guardrails against gaming the system, and some type of penalty for not showing up within a window of when you suppose to.

 

[roblab]

How many other trips have you taken in the S before this one?

It sounds like there is something wrong with this story.....

Agreed. The whole trip should have been pre-planned. Then it would have been obvious that the Pacific Coast Highway is little used and therefore there are fewer superchargers that route, although they are common enough to make an easy trip for an S. As for maps, the Tesla map in my car is labeled as a Google map, so there's that plus the fact that you could have downloaded maps to your phone or other device. Either way, the onus IS upon you. The maps tell you where the superchargers are, and they are there. If a supercharger is under construction, it tells you that, too.

It's even possible to search motels "with 50-amp outlets" as are used by many RVers, so you can charge overnight, or plug in during the day and take a nice walk into town for coffee, which my wife and I have done. A stroller for the baby could be tossed into the car, as the trunk is huge. Sure, I'm a fanboi, but I take time to plan.

 

[roblab]

I'm also curious how the queue works. None of the superchargers I've visited have any kind of obvious waiting line. They are in parking lots (like HyVee, or by a restaurant or hotel) and any line would be blocking other cars or otherwise causing congestion.

Lines are usually unplanned. I have on one occasion gotten out of my car and directed traffic at a supercharger site, going around to find who will be leaving next, etc. Tesla is putting in more and more superchargers, so this doesn't happen often anymore. As for our OP, L2 slow chargers at motels and RV parks are often available for free, and you can search for "motels with 50-amp service" to easily find where you can charge overnight.

 

[ucmndd]

I'm also curious how the queue works. None of the superchargers I've visited have any kind of obvious waiting line. They are in parking lots (like HyVee, or by a restaurant or hotel) and any line would be blocking other cars or otherwise causing congestion.

In many cases there’s room for some sort of line down an empty aisle or other lightly used are of the lot. That makes the ordering pretty easy. I’ve been to one location as you describe where it’s a bit more chaotic, cars need to just sort of park where they can out of the way, and 30 seconds or so of chatting with the other owners waiting is enough to figure out who’s next and where your place is in line.

Very busy stations during very busy travel periods here in California have attendants present to help manage the queue.

 

[BooMan]

wow, this doesnt add up , now granted im on the east coast, and yes, if you had tried this on back roads ( and nice scenery) in 2017 ( with my MS 90D) you would have had to have the plug share ap and the internal super charger map at the ready. in the " early days" if you strayed from the major highways for long durations you really were running a risk and they might have to be level 2 chargers. I got a chademo adapter back then so I could use 3rd party level 3 fast chargers where tesla super chargers were not close. I had a friend with the 100D X had to switch cars to a rental in Iowa as heading to family could actually not be done ( even after creative planning on usage an timing). I had a couple of times in middle of Pennsylvania where I got range anxiety and had to really think about WH/mile and timing. but that was then.... This is now...... there are so many superchargers you can easily skip past them and time your stops to match when you eat lunch and dinner so it is no longer a hassle and the automated supercharger planning right in the car has been really accurate for me to the 1% mark . I would feel completely comfortable going cross country and even going back roads around cities as the super charger network has expanded so nicely. This post sounds like a post to get a rise out of people, it is soooo much easier now that we are out of the "early adopter" phase. now if you are anything but a tesla you may still need todo planning and be creative, but even that is getting better. Id like to see a US tesla CCS adapter then there isnt any level 3 charger I could not use.

Hard disagree on the early adopter phase comment. we are still before the “chasm” as it pertains to charging networks. I live in Michigan and driving to West Tennessee/northern Mississippi (~800mi) while doable still requires me to stop at times I wouldn’t normally do so with an ICE - thus nowhere near as convenient. And don’t event get me started about driving routes off major hwys that may be more scenic (e.g. hwy 23) vs interstate. We are nowhere near where I can comfortably recommend my 70yr old parents (who still road-trip all over) or even my non tech friendly wife to get an EV at this point. When we get to where you DONT HAVE TO plan and just get in and go (like you can in an ICE) is when we are really past early adopter phase and crossing into true mainstream capability (ie you don’t have to plan or think about it any more than with ICE car).

As far as the OP tho, I sense some “weirdness” in his post (e.g. never had the NAV route me to a non existent SC- sounds….suspect/BS) BUT having just visited SoCAL/LA for the first time last week I was shocked by the number of Teslas on the road (vs in Midwest) and 200% believe the SCs there would be congested at times. Just not a problem we have here (yet) in the Midwest but believable for Cali. IMO

 

[ohmman]

Moderator Note: OP posted once and disappeared which is not a good look on a post like this. Continued discussion is merely bumping this thread and creating more reports, so I've permanently locked it. Thanks for understanding.