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  1. E

    Long Term Battery Costs, Fears, and Serviceability

    I either charge at work upon plug-in to be charged from the grid while it is at low demand and high solar output or at home, set for scheduled departure in the morning. My daily max charge is generally at 80%. I'll sometimes bump it up to 90% or higher if I'm going to be driving immediately...
  2. E

    Long Term Battery Costs, Fears, and Serviceability

    Definitely do not worry. I live where temperatures in summer regularly exceeds +40C in the summer and I've parked my Model 3 with NMC batteries outside nearly every day for the past 6 years and there is no unexpected loss of range (still charges to ~287 miles). The key point is to keep the car...
  3. E

    Just kill it off already

    I'm sorry, you're right. /sarcasm We'd all be sitting in long lines at the Costco gas station grousing about how expensive gasoline is . . . Why did he have to come along and invest his fortune into EVs to get them off the ground. /sarcasm /seriously: Don't get me wrong. I don't particularly...
  4. E

    Just kill it off already

    Who knows? One of Musk's good points is that he has the guts to try and see if they can come up with a design that will make regulators comfortable instead of just saying it is hard and not trying. Like him or not: He fails, he succeeds. He make friends, he makes enemies. We're actually...
  5. E

    Around The World in 80 Days With a Tesla Roadster

    I would recommend the Enphase/Clipper Creek CS-100: https://enphase.com/store/ev-chargers/ev-chargers-business/cs-100-ev-charger You may be able to get them to swap out the connector with a Roadster-specific one if they still have them available. Otherwise you'll need a J-1772 -to- Roadster...
  6. E

    Long Term Battery Costs, Fears, and Serviceability

    With an EV, there's no need to hobble them so they can't have high output, you can simply choose not to drive them at max output by not hammering the accelerator. The won't stress the powertrain as much and you may see a bit longer longevity although, today, there is little evidence that it...
  7. E

    Trains that carry cars instead of autopilot?

    The Amtrak auto train on the east coast is the only such thing I know of anywhere in the world. It, apparently, is a complete money loser and many wonder why Amtrak keeps plowing money into it. I agree that the idea sounds great. I don't know whether the complete concept is economically bad...
  8. E

    Politics - Quarantine Thread

    Generally, they are tweakers (Meth addicts). Most likely mindlessly conservative leaning themselves but probably encouraged by naive liberal policies.
  9. E

    Where to report that a destination charger has been removed?

    Good point. If it is a ChargePoint station you've found to be a good candidate through plugshare, it can be beneficial to check their app to verify whether it is in use as well as this information on who has used last. For that matter, checking with EVgo, Blink, etc can be a help. I just find...
  10. E

    Where to report that a destination charger has been removed?

    Unfortunately, in my experience, the only really useful information on public charging is on Plugshare and Tesla (for Superchargers). They aren't perfect but the other sources (primarily charging network and EV manufacturer websites/apps) are so inaccurate or incomplete that they are...
  11. E

    Just kill it off already

    Hmm, so choice between dead in a microsecond or burn for a while first. Not much of a set of choices. I do agree about the issue with 10kpsi tanks. Back in the 1990's and early 2000's, folks were always coming up with the air car that could be fueled with a tire compressor. In addition to...
  12. E

    Just kill it off already

    good point. However, I that a lot of people still drive around with gasoline bombs under their seats. Racers often also have tanks of N2O as well. I guess, like so many things: This could be done. Whether it should be done is different.
  13. E

    Just kill it off already

    oops. here you go: I didn't check your math or parameters, however, I do question your initial assumption that the thrusters would be used for 1st order acceleration. Is there enough electrical thrust - f(motor torque and wheel traction)? I'm guessing that wheel traction is the limiting...
  14. E

    Just kill it off already

    . I didn't check your math or parameters, however, I do question your initial assumption that the thrusters would be used for 1st order acceleration. Is there enough electrical thrust - f(motor torque and wheel traction)? I'm guessing that wheel traction is the limiting factor and, just...
  15. E

    Just kill it off already

    Perhaps you missed my original supposition: Like with many Tesla things, you start with a technology that the rich will pay a lot for (like high-performance electric acceleration) to develop the technology. Then, once proven, you wrap economies of scale into it so it is affordable for all. I'm...
  16. E

    Long Term Battery Costs, Fears, and Serviceability

    Do we know that they replace everything? Or just the failed cells or sheets? I'm sure Tesla has done the analysis for the best economical and, probably, environmental option as they design the packs.
  17. E

    Just kill it off already

    Yep, if the plan is to just to provide semi-static downthrust when launching or entering a curve then the thrusters might not respond fast enough to control slipping on ice. He also said it might be able to fly - that implies there may be upforce that exceeds the car's weight, somewhere but I...
  18. E

    Just kill it off already

    My half-baked idea is also that lateral thrust would be a problem. You'd survive the ice but blow the poor guy beside you completely off the road. However, down thrust, possibly at ~45 degree angle would increase road traction while still having a lateral component that might help with yaw...
  19. E

    Just kill it off already

    When you hit ice, the most important thing and initial challenge is to keep the vehicle pointed forward. Today, counter-steering is the only means available. It has worked for me all times but one (car flipped ends and I jumped a ditch - backward. Then drove back to road). You don't actually...
  20. E

    Just kill it off already

    inertial sensors, of course. Do I really have to answer this? Toward the front of the car, aligned with the road, on the vector before yaw began, of course. How do you think they know to activate lane-departure warnings, active yaw control, etc? Yep, but now there are smart people (and...
  21. E

    Just kill it off already

    My background is sufficient in education and experience. Thrusters can provide thrust vectors that are independent of or increasing traction with the road depending on what direction they point. Ice and hydroplaning are a problem because the car loses traction with the road, hence you lose...
  22. E

    The current strength decreases when I use an extension cord.

    There's no doubt that a 12 gauge wire will work in all cases. Its just bulkier, more expensive, and harder to find that 14 gauge ones that will work just fine. One cannot plug a 5-20 adapter into a 5-15 outlet anyway. The 5-20 adapter has one blade vertical and the other horizontal so it...
  23. E

    The current strength decreases when I use an extension cord.

    I understand and appreciate this prudence, however, 14 gauge is rated for 15 amps (NFPA ratings). The Model 3, Y, and Roadster (all I can quickly verify right now) default to 12 amps when charging on 120v. Therefore, 14 gauge it is technically sufficient (it even has 20% extra margin) to...
  24. E

    Just kill it off already

    That all depends on what the Roadster is in the way of. Robotaxi folks are definitely a different skillset than most who are needed to build a new automobile. Tesla compact folks probably would overlap a bit with the same ones as needed to build the Roadster. However, I suspect that the folks...
  25. E

    Just kill it off already

    I'm going to go against all of the arm-chair athletes here by saying that I think Tesla should continue with the Roadster and that they've been right about lowering its priority compared with the rest of their developments but it should be simmering on the back burner. - it will be important as...
  26. E

    Precondition battery for supercharging before leaving hotel

    We generally navigate to the hotel, then cancel navigation and route to the nearby Supercharger. That triggers pre-conditioning. Once we arrive at the Supercharger, we navigate to the hotel. It is in the 'recently found' list so that is very quick to do.
  27. E

    No Garage / No driveway.... Charging?

    Nearly everyone parks their car somewhere overnight. Parking lots can be upgraded although it may cost a bit of money. It will be needed eventually though. As far as people who park on the street: I'm probably going to be unpopular by saying that they're already externalizing some of their...
  28. E

    The current strength decreases when I use an extension cord.

    Clearly, 10 gauge or 12 gauge are best, however, for shorter runs and convenient carry, I carry one of these in my frunk for those rare times it's needed: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Woods-25-ft-14-3-Multi-Outlet-3-Garden-Outdoor-Medium-Duty-Extension-Cord-Green-3030/301132621 or...
  29. E

    Long Term Battery Costs, Fears, and Serviceability

    Good to know. Except for our Y, we're still making good use of our original, early Teslas so I haven't paid much attention to the details of the refreshes.
  30. E

    Long Term Battery Costs, Fears, and Serviceability

    If the heat pump goes out, you'll be told to get it in to service ASAP. I'll go with @AAKEE assessment that you probably have the new good stuff.
  31. E

    Long Term Battery Costs, Fears, and Serviceability

    It doesn't get that hot in Sweden where our friend resides. I've charged many times throughout the USA at temperatures well in excess of +100F (+38C) and can assure you that the AC comes on strong. The joke about EVs is that (because of the AC running hard) they sometimes make more noise when...
  32. E

    Long Term Battery Costs, Fears, and Serviceability

    The car has its own AC that cools the battery in summer and warms it in winter.
  33. E

    Cybertrucks are WIDE!

    Yep, Its one of the reasons I'm not jumping on an EV pickup yet. My last pickup was a Ford Ranger which I found to be about the right compromise between utility and convenience. There are a lot of places you just can't drive or park a full size pickup (or do so without being obnoxious)...
  34. E

    Hertz charger $277 for *gasoline* to fill-up a Model 3

    I've been getting 'incorrect' charges for rental car damage recently as well. Both times I questioned it and they quickly apologized for the mistake. I think they're trying everything they can in hopes folks won't notice and just pay.
  35. E

    Time to change a basic Supercharging design?

    enjoy the koolaid. Business case: get a bunch of suckers to invest a lot of $$$ in supporting your snake oil. Hope they'll protect you so they won't look bad for making the bad investment.
  36. E

    Time to change a basic Supercharging design?

    Assuming you're referring to the induction coils in the ground under the car, that will give 50% transfer efficiency at best. That's fine for charging a phone where you may waste 20 watts of power but when we're talking KW, the cost starts adding up quickly. That's also a very strong magnetic...
  37. E

    Long Term Battery Costs, Fears, and Serviceability

    Then I wouldn't worry about it unless you hear there really is a problem in your area. You might ask at the local hardware store if they know of a lot of damaged caused by lightning. Most power companies are fairly good at protecting from lightning these days, unlike days of old when I used to...
  38. E

    Long Term Battery Costs, Fears, and Serviceability

    Remember there was enough voltage to jump from the clouds to the ground. Nothing will block it. The only hope is to route it somewhere else and hope not too much spills into sensitive things that are plugged in. If you haven't had appliances destroyed already at your home, your power company...
  39. E

    Local Electric Company wants EV owners to pay for upgrading neighborhood infrastructure.

    Because the pool isn't replacing something else, putting a lot of people out of work, or killing/reducing existing huge revenue sources. ie, it has no enemies.
  40. E

    Show Off Your Roadster at Tesla Takeover - Aug 2024

    I appreciate the suggestions. But this is tourist-central, high-rent CA, not New England or Europe. You weren't competing with ~1,000's of Models S3XYs who all wanted the cheap charging [most Level 2 chargers in SLO are free :-( ]. I'm sure that if someone took the a couple of days surveying...
  41. E

    Depressing trend in EV's..

    Thanks for the judgement. Pretty much wrong on all counts. I, who have been on a crusade to wean us off of oil since the '70's and I learned about the viability of EVs in grad school (oops, I guess that shot the 9-5 worker bee slave idea to bits), appreciate you posers who have unwittingly...
  42. E

    Depressing trend in EV's..

    That's definitely true. However, IMHO, folks should work to get home or workplace charging (wherever their car spends a lot of time parked). It's worth spending real money to do so, if nothing else, for the convenience. Personally, I've lived in about 7 permanent and temporary places over the...
  43. E

    Depressing trend in EV's..

    Sorry, this it total nonsense either from a troll, someone with no experience with a Tesla, or a moron who isn't smart enough make a Tesla work. I go everywhere with our Tesla and other than having to stop at places near Superchargers instead of just wherever I happen to run low on gas, it is...
  44. E

    Local Electric Company wants EV owners to pay for upgrading neighborhood infrastructure.

    Knowing the politics of Eugene, you can be fairly sure it isn't a Fox news issue. They tend to have a tax-and-spend socialist leanings that are undoubtedly seeing EVs as a new way to tax the middle class and the rich to buy more votes. I actually have heard of public electric companies banning...
  45. E

    Why the extremely large Supecharger sites?

    I was joking. This isn't Musk's first shenanigan and I'm sure it won't be his last. There are plenty of folks who can do the job, should/if they ramp it back up - heck, I might even retire from my current job and throw my hat in the ring. A positive is that there are now a lot of good...
  46. E

    Why the extremely large Supecharger sites?

    Oh great. Someone complains about Supercharger sites being too large; Musk decides there must be enough and fires the whole team.
  47. E

    Thoughts on Superchargers After a 2300 mile trip

    I don't believe that Tesla wants to refer folks to flaky 3rd party charging stations over which they have no control. If you do get stranded due to a Tesla charging station being down, they will most likely send a tow truck to get you to one that works. They don't want to incur this obligation...
  48. E

    Show Off Your Roadster at Tesla Takeover - Aug 2024

    I don't know how reliable that would be. Please announce it here if you hear something. Looking at the EVent webpage, I don't know that the organizers are particularly interested in old guys like me driving old cars. There aren't enough merchandising opportunities around them.
  49. E

    Show Off Your Roadster at Tesla Takeover - Aug 2024

    Reserving the Madonna chargers would handle a few cars: Assuming ~25 mph charging speed, that's 6 - 8 hours of charging per car. With 2 chargers, that could handle about 12 - 16 cars over the 48 hours (6 pm Fri to 6 pm Sun). Beyond that, it will take a plan-B. The only other problem I see is...
  50. E

    Show Off Your Roadster at Tesla Takeover - Aug 2024

    There are a lot of free J1772 charging stations in SLO. This is great when one is the only EV driver but I figure with all of the S3XY drivers, most of whom have to pay for Supercharging, the J1772s will be practically impossible to get the necessary hours on one even to get started heading...