Is the Supercharger option worth $2,000?

[jerry33]

I respectfully disagree - I think putting it in those terms makes $2,000 very expensive. Compared to a gasoline vehicle, or a flight, you'd still have to do quite a bit of traveling to get close to $2,000. For the last 15 years my wife and I have done lots of long weekend trips all over the country (far too far to drive from Denver in a weekend) and I'd guesstimate we average about $189 per flight. So that's $378 in travel expenses (2 of us).

But flying and then renting a car is so inconvenient--and this was true years ago before all the current "security" measures when I flew frequently and had all the perks that made it easier. These days there has to be a significant body of water between myself and my destination to get me to fly.

 

[gavine]

But flying and then renting a car is so inconvenient--and this was true years ago before all the current "security" measures when I flew frequently and had all the perks that made it easier. These days there has to be a significant body of water between myself and my destination to get me to fly.

++1

 

[eco5280]

Just as a point of reference-- Our Model S is not two years old yet. By the time it is (only) two years old, it will have your 50,000-miles-to-breakeven. Two years-- supercharger option paid for-- on your terms! Now the next two years, and the ones after that (for me or the next owner), are totally free fuel..

You've done 50,000 miles on Supercharger or total? I'm talking about 50,000 Supercharged (free) miles, not total miles on the car that you charged on your own dime.

 

[JohnQ]

You've done 50,000 miles on Supercharger or total? I'm talking about 50,000 Supercharged (free) miles, not total miles on the car that you charged on your own dime.

So, let's assume it's strictly a fuel cost decision. I disagree with looking at it so simply but let's do so anyway. Other assumptions: Gas is $3.50/gallon for premium. I'm driving a car that gets 25 mpg. No diesels, hybrids, etc, compare a standard engine 5-series or A7. And I'm probably a little generous with both the mileage and fuel cost.

$3.50/gallon at 25 miles per gallon is $0.14 per mile. That's 14,285 miles to break even. Call it 15,000. I've driven 6,000 supercharged miles in 18 months. So, another 27 months and I'm break even on fuel costs. Plus the enormous convenience of driving my vehicle.

If you start comparing with a Prius the equation is completely different. But so is the driving experience.

 

[N4HHE]

In 8800 miles I have Supercharged once. :frown:
Then again there is only one Supercharger within range and it has only been operational for a month.

 

[kendallpb]

[/I]My rational brain is telling me that it'll never be a good use of money, that it's throwing money out the window. Thoughts?

Huh? How much is your time worth? Mine's worth supercharging. ;-)

 

[theheff]

Definitely get the Supercharger upgrade. Denver has lots of routes already to the west coast and north and east, with a new route to the south coming soon. It's also priceless when traveling through the mountains... altitude really eats away at the "tank". The Denver metro area is also getting a second supercharger that's almost finished. If you can stomach it any way, the additional 8k to get the S85 is worth it IMO.

 

[Sousaphil]

I have an S60, and am one of the owners who was "grandfathered" into the free supercharging. Even if I hadn't been, I would've absolutely paid $2K. I moved from Scottsdale to Denver back in March. Without supercharger access, I would've had to ship the car, or rented a truck and trailer and moved it myself. Even more, I would've denied myself the awesome drive through northern Arizona and New Mexico, stopping at 4 Corners, driving through beautiful parts of Utah, and of course, the Colorado mountains. Without the supercharger, driving through the mountains would be a pain in the ass, even with a 85kWh.

As for the bigger battery, I've never needed it. It probably would've allowed me to do the move a bit faster, but certainly not worth $8k-$10k to me.

 

[eco5280]

I have an S60 ... As for the bigger battery, I've never needed it. It probably would've allowed me to do the move a bit faster, but certainly not worth $8k-$10k to me.

Yeah the 60 will be plenty for me too, especially with the Supercharger. Like I said in the original post I've been mostly satisfied with my 24kWh Leaf so a 60kWh Tesla is going to blow me away. The only trips that are out of the question that we do often are down to the springs and up to Boulder. Now that's all in play with the 60. Now if the P85 were only $8k more I'd buy that. I test drove it yesterday to check out the textile interior and it was obscenely fast. Like, rename your retirement account your speeding ticket fund.

 

[cpa]

Besides, when you use the Superchargers, you get to meet a lot of the real cool cats who also drive Teslas, and can exchange war stories and the latest scuttlebutt. We are a motley and convivial bunch, and you cannot put a price tag on an intangible benefit such as this!

 

[Whom]

I can confirm you will want it.

I purchased Supercharging after delivery (paying the $500 penalty), after incredible vacillation and spreadsheets. In the end, it's not about electricity break even as it is about how much more often I use the car for long distances, and have almost completely freed myself from worry about planning trips around charging. I have never regretted it (only regretting not getting it at delivery).

 

[seanmccutchan]

I'm also a 60KWh owner who opted to enable after the supercharger network started to look more promising here in the Northeast. I had similar spreadsheets and the ICE back-up plan. Kindly Tesla ran a special at the end of 2013 for 60KWh owners to retro upgrade for the original $2000. Who knows, but they might do the same this year because its an easy boost to revenues with little out of pocket cost to them. I sprung for the upgrade and now I can waste even more precious time watching the supercharger map grow =) You won't regret taking part in more of the driving revolution!

 

[mitch672]

I can only compare not getting the SuperCharging enabled to going to a strip club for the atmosphere, and never getting a table dance.. while you get most of the experience just by going, you are missing out on the best part (no offense to female Tesla drivers intended) Also, every time you go back to the club, there are more and more dancers (SuperChargers)

 

[JohnQ]

Besides, when you use the Superchargers, you get to meet a lot of the real cool cats who also drive Teslas, and can exchange war stories and the latest scuttlebutt. We are a motley and convivial bunch, and you cannot put a price tag on an intangible benefit such as this!

Was yesterday talk like a (movie) pirate day? :tongue:

 

[stevezzzz]

Definitely get the Supercharger upgrade. Denver has lots of routes already to the west coast and north and east, with a new route to the south coming soon. It's also priceless when traveling through the mountains... altitude really eats away at the "tank". The Denver metro area is also getting a second supercharger that's almost finished. If you can stomach it any way, the additional 8k to get the S85 is worth it IMO.

Not to be pedantic, but it's not altitude per se that diminishes range, but altitude increases. My experience in driving the Colorado mountains is that it costs you very little range, overall, going over the big mountain passes: most of the range you lose climbing to the top is returned in the form of regen on the way back down. In fact, with the decrease in air density at higher altitudes and the resultant reduction in aero drag, you may actually use fewer Wh/mi overall than you're used to. This is not just one man's opinion. Look up Cottonwood's excellent posts concerning his commutes between Boulder and Pagosa Springs.

Also, one of the little-discussed benefits of an EV is the fact that while ICE cars lose power as altitude increases, EVs do not: just one of the reasons I think Model S is the best mountain-driving car ever conceived.

 

[Cottonwood]

Not to be pedantic, but it's not altitude per se that diminishes range, but altitude increases. My experience in driving the Colorado mountains is that it costs you very little range, overall, going over the big mountain passes: most of the range you lose climbing to the top is returned in the form of regen on the way back down. In fact, with the decrease in air density at higher altitudes and the resultant reduction in aero drag, you may actually use fewer Wh/mi overall than you're used to. This is not just one man's opinion. Look up Cottonwood's excellent posts concerning his commutes between Boulder and Pagosa Springs.

Also, one of the little-discussed benefits of an EV is the fact that while ICE cars lose power as altitude increases, EVs do not: just one of the reasons I think Model S is the best mountain-driving car ever conceived.

Hear, hear!

Very well stated SteveZzzz! It costs battery energy to go up in altitude, but in the vast majority of cases, you get it back going down hill. The conversion is 6 rated miles per 1,000 feet. It costs 6 rated miles to up 1,000 feet, but you use 6 rated miles less going down 1,000 feet.

The joy of Supercharger road trip is so wonderful, that I could not imagine buying a Tesla without the option use Superchargers!

 

[scaesare]

So, let's assume it's strictly a fuel cost decision. I disagree with looking at it so simply but let's do so anyway. Other assumptions: Gas is $3.50/gallon for premium. I'm driving a car that gets 25 mpg. No diesels, hybrids, etc, compare a standard engine 5-series or A7. And I'm probably a little generous with both the mileage and fuel cost.

$3.50/gallon at 25 miles per gallon is $0.14 per mile. That's 14,285 miles to break even. Call it 15,000. I've driven 6,000 supercharged miles in 18 months. So, another 27 months and I'm break even on fuel costs. Plus the enormous convenience of driving my vehicle.

If you start comparing with a Prius the equation is completely different. But so is the driving experience.

Agreed... I've made similar points in the past.

The additional thing I'd add is that not all of the miles driven even need to be supercharged, if the presence of a supercharger on the route enables the trip in the first place.

I've taken a number of trips where I started off with a range charge (or close to it), used a supercharger along the way, did several nights of destination charging and local travel, then hit the supercharger again on the way home.

Probably only half the miles were actual supercharger miles, but if it hadn't been for them I would have had to drive the entire trip in my ICE vehicle...

 

[kurk]

eco5280, have you researched how available those superchargers really are? Just my personal experience, I work very close to the Hawthorne supercharger here in Los Angeles and I can tell you that many of the times I drive by, it seems like all the charging stalls are occupied.
Just like you, I'm stretching to buy a 60 and even an additional 2000 bucks is a bit too much for my budget and I'm debating if it is worth it. If I'm spending that money, I certainly don't want to get there and then have to wait for other people to finish charging. I know they are adding more superchargers but, as more Teslas are being sold, I wonder if the supercharger network can keep up with the new users. I would be interested to see if others have had any problems using the superchargers.
Also, I personally don't like to take my own car on a long road trip, especially a very expensive car. Road trips put a lot of wear and tear on vehicles. I usually prefer to rent a car and if something goes wrong with the car or I get in an accident, I just call the car rental company and they take care of it.
Don't get me wrong, I love the Model S but I'm also a practical person, I commute 100 miles each day so driving my tesla would be perfect but I don't have to necessarily take it on road trips. Also, my wife will keep her car so we could use hers for long trips if need be. That is just my personal opinion but I totally understand where you are coming from. Anyway, you are going to love your Tesla with or without the supercharger option. Good luck with your decision!!

 

[Bighorn]

eco5280, have you researched how available those superchargers really are? Just my personal experience, I work very close to the Hawthorne supercharger here in Los Angeles and I can tell you that many of the times I drive by, it seems like all the charging stalls are occupied.
Just like you, I'm stretching to buy a 60 and even an additional 2000 bucks is a bit too much for my budget and I'm debating if it is worth it. If I'm spending that money, I certainly don't want to get there and then have to wait for other people to finish charging. I know they are adding more superchargers but, as more Teslas are being sold, I wonder if the supercharger network can keep up with the new users. I would be interested to see if others have had any problems using the superchargers.
Also, I personally don't like to take my own car on a long road trip, especially a very expensive car. Road trips put a lot of wear and tear on vehicles. I usually prefer to rent a car and if something goes wrong with the car or I get in an accident, I just call the car rental company and they take care of it.
Don't get me wrong, I love the Model S but I'm also a practical person, I commute 100 miles each day so driving my tesla would be perfect but I don't have to necessarily take it on road trips. Also, my wife will keep her car so we could use hers for long trips if need be. That is just my personal opinion but I totally understand where you are coming from. Anyway, you are going to love your Tesla with or without the supercharger option. Good luck with your decision!!

I've supercharged a couple hundred times at over 50 different stations and I can count on 3 fingers the number of times that I had to wait--Hawthorne, Fremont and Newark, DE. The Denver area is well appointed with superchargers. The Lone Tree Mall chargers could be partially occupied by the showroom cars, but that's being augmented by the new chargers by DIA. It's a phenomenal road trip car--many are rediscovering the lost art of road-tripping.

 

[Hawaii J]

It's definitely not worth $2000 in Hawaii