Three months ago, I went on a trip from California to Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Utah. I had to charge in Boise (this was before the Boise SpC went online) and Dillon Nissan was allowing any traveler to charge at their dealership for free. They have 2 charging stations, a J1772A and a CHAdeMO, but since I did not have a CHAdeMO adapter, I could only use the J1772A. I did look at the CHAdeMO station, but it showed a failed message on the screen, and the very helpful staff said it was down more than up, due to continual air filter problems and errors. I decided that having the CHAdeMO adapter would give me options I wouldn't have without it.
About a month ago, I traveled from Lodi, CA to Sarnia, North Bay and Peterborough, and back, and decided to purchase the CHAdeMO adapter so as to have more charging options.
My inclination was to use SpC's whenever possible, and I used the Canadian SpC's in Woodstock, Barrie and Comber. I stayed at the Best Western in North Bay, and used their J1772A charger for overnight charging (ironically, the charger was manufactured in Auburn, CA, not too far from my home base). BTW, the staff at the Best Western on Lakeshore Dr were Extremely accomodating, and is a definite + for Tesla owners traveling in the area. I was expecting to use J1772A charging if time wasn't a concern, and was surprised at the number of HPWC's that were on Plugshare for Ontario Tesla travelers. I was concerned about the Peterborough leg, but found that my range was better due to the lower speed limits (compared with midwestern and western states (70 - 80 mph posted) and as such, my energy consumption per km was low enough that SpC charging took care of the rest of the trip.
I was expecting to use the CHAdeMO adapter for quick charging in Peterborough if it became necessary, but that didn't materialize, even though my travel timetable was very tight.
My CHAdeMO adapter remains unused, but this thread does rekindle my concern about traveling in areas that are only served with single mode or single source chargers. If I limp to a charger, and it is inoperative, I hope there are other proximal solutions. There's several factors in determining preference, but my ultimate concern is the abilty to charge. SpC's, CHAdeMO, HPWC (80A), J1772A (70A), then other J1772A, HPWC's and Nema 14-50 plugs all come before the lowly 120 Volt plug. I also would be prioritizing the Tesla-only options since it would preclude non-Tesla vehicles from occupying that charging stall/location.
I think that this thread does highlight the expanding options of charging; driving across the border does bring a different reality to Tesla owners traveling.
Scotty
if it was 477+ tax I would have totally picked up one.
