Tesla Model 3

We chose to attend Teslacon in Florida and make the trip by road in our 2018 Tesla Model 3. This was our first 1000+ mile road trip. Previously we had attended a Tesla event in Asheville which was a 600 mile round trip. With a modest road trip under our belt we felt more confident in making the trip from Middle Tennessee to the East coast in Central Florida.

Trip plan

We planned the trip with A Better Route Planner. It estimated it would take 13 1/2 hours to drive plus an hour of charging for 14 1/2 total drive one way.

A better route planner was set to assume an average of 65 mile/hr in making its estimates. Due to the length of travel one way we chose to stop off at a Hotel along the way. Our Hotel reservation at our destination in Port Canaveral was already made. To provide as much flexibility as possible we chose to select a Hotel while on the road, stopping when the time felt right. I took my laptop with me so that we could book a Hotel easily from a parking lot or restaurant.

Before the trip I had Tesla Mobile service do some maintenance. I had them replace the cabin air filter and 12v battery. I have these done every two years as part of my maintenance plan.

Outbound leg

We set off at about 9:15 am Thursday October 20th. Late enough to avoid rush hour traffic in Nashville. We stuck to the plan we had prepared stopping at Kimballl, TN, Atalnta GA and Fort Valley GA to supercharge. I was getting tired after 6 1/2 hours of driving so we chose to pick a Hotel. We saw we could book at Cordele GA or Tifton GA. Tifton is a little bit further and has a better choice of Hotels with overnight charging. Using Plugshare I could see Hotels that had a good reputation for charging success and used Hotels.com to see which Hotels had good reviews. We chose the Radisson in Tifton and reserved a room online using the Hotels website.

According to Plugshare the Radisson at Tifton has four Tesla destination stations and two J1772 stations. When we arrived I discovered that the Hotel had expanded to six Tesla destination stations and four J1772 stations for a total of ten plugs!! Three of Tesla units were broken and several other stations blocked with ICE vehicles. I was able to park next to a working Tesla unit that was next to the rear entrance to the Hotel. All of the stations are free to hotel guests. I updated Plugshare with the new plugs. I charged to 85% overnight and set the charge limit to 100% when we woke up using the Tesla app. The car reached 98% state of charge when we left.

Since we got a full charge overnight the plan to stop at Jasper FL was no longer appropriate. We used the cars navigation and stopped at Ocala FL. The supercharger at Ocala is an older one that opened in 2014 and it charges at just 120 kW. The plugs were all beaten up from many drops to the ground over te years, they did still work. I left the charge limit set to 100% and we sat down for a meal at Mimi’s. The slower charge was welcome, it gave us enough time to eat our meal and unplug the vehicle at 96%, this charge took 54 minutes, the time it took to eat lunch. The charge was more than enough to get to our final destination.

In Tennessee and Georgia, Superchargers are charged by the minutes on multiple charging tiers. In Florida Supercharging is billed by the kWh. When billed by the minute one needs to ensure one arrives at a relatively low state of charge and leave when the charge rate drops below 100 kW. This minimizes time charging and therefore total cost. In Florida charging speed is not relevant, you pay for what you use, so a leisurely charge over lunch was perfect. The cost of supercharging in Florida is at least twice as expensive as Tennessee or Georgia. The single charge in Ocala cost as much as the three charges on the previous day combined! While billing by the kWh is fairer than by the minute, by the minute supercharging does encourage drivers to move on rather than let their cars reach 100%. On balance I prefer by the minute supercharging.

Charging while at Teslacon

This article is about the road trip, not the event, so I won’t cover Teslacon here. We stayed at the same Hotel as the event, the Radisson Resort at the port. The Hotel does have two charging stations, one Tesla one J1772. However with 276 registered Tesla owners the stations were at a premium. We arrived early on Friday and I was able to get a charge to 90%. I moved the vehicle as soon as I saw the charge had completed. As I was unplugging a Tesla backed into the adjacent parking space and I handed the owner the charging cable.

We toured the local area visiting a beach, restaurants and took an Airboat ride. Airboats need to be electric to make them quieter. Later we visited the Manatee Sanctuary Park which did have two J1772 charging stations. I plugged in next to a Mach-e while we explored the park.

The night before leaving both charging stations were in use, actively charging vehicles. At check in I was informed that the Hotel next door which opened that month had six charging stations, but I did not feel comfortable using stations that are designated for guest use. When I woke at 6:30 am the day of departure I was able to plug in. We got a hearty breakfast at the Hotel which would sustain us until dinner time.

The return leg

We left the Hotel with a 96% charge at 9:30am, avoiding the rush hour in Orlando. I did not know until that morning if I would get a charge or not so did not plan the route back. We used the in car navigation to suggest charging locations. I set home as a destination and drove. Our first stop was at Alachua FL. The charging station looked brand new. I checked later on supercharge.info and saw it was opened just a few months previously on June 8th.

Next stop was Cordele GA, a relatively new station opened a year ago, charging was flawless. Next stop suggested was Marietta GA, we set off however as we were driving the car disengaged navigate on autopilot and rerouted to a less busy supercharger. The suggestion was the Acworth GA, arriving with less than 10% charge. I also noticed the estimated charge kept dropping. Rather than slow down to be sure to make the new Supercharger I queried Superchargers on the route and found that McDonough GA was closer. I’d arrive with 30%, not ideal but I preferred that since I could get well north of Atlanta before needing to stop and select a Hotel. In addition a charge boost would allow for the vehicle to reroute around the city center if traffic issues occurred, it was rush hour in Atlanta. Another reason not to chance it.

McDonough supercharger is just over a year old. Several of the outlets in the mall had not opened yet. There were limited options for food, I was able to find a bathroom in JC Penney. As we were travelling through downtown Atlanta traffic was OK and we made great time. I now faced the choice of finding a Hotel or simply driving on. I felt great so decided I would at least go as far as I could.

The plan was to stop at Kimball TN as our last charge. However as we were traveling up I-75 we noticed signs for Buc’ees ahead. Brisket sandwich vs Taco Bell was no contest. I did not navigate to the Supercharger as I prefered a slower charge to eat dinner. Buc’ees supercharger is in Adairville GA, well north of Atlanta. Another brand new location that had opened just three weeks prior. The Adiarville charger at Buc’ees was empty when we arrived, we got brisket sandwiches for dinner and ate while we charged. Two Teslas arrived as we ate dinner. I realized we could make it all the way home if we charged to 67% and would arrive at 9:40pm. I decided to just go for it and we did indeed get home by 9:40pm. A 13 hour drive. Autopilot makes driving less tiresome and at no time did I feel drowsy or in need of a nap.

Plan vs Actual.

On reflection the trip back from Florida was much faster than the trip down to Florida. This was in part due to incredible luck in not having traffic holdups returning home like we did on the way down. In addition we used 250 kW charging stations exclusively on the way home, most of which were new, empty or lightly used. Does that mean one should not plan? No, plans can change but planning is important so you know your options should you change your mind on the fly.

A better route planner estimated the charging cost would be $54 for the outward leg to Florida. The actual cost for the round trip was $107.82. ABRP got the cost right almost to the penny, just 12 cents difference at $108 for the round trip!! The estimates per charging station were not the accurate, but overall it nailed it.

The travel time was very conservative with ABRP, since I had it set to use 65 mph as an average. I averaged more than that, saving over an hour compared to the plan for the return leg. Not having any holdups at all on the way home helped boost the average speed significantly. I would still plan with an average of 65 mph to account for traffic holdups.

Trip Stats and the value of Hotel charging.

The journey was a round trip of 1583 miles with 450 kWh of energy used. I averaged 284 Wh/mile.

Supercharging was totally flawless, every plug I tried worked and charged as fast as expected. Stopping every 2 1/2 hours is very reasonable for a long road trip, giving you the ability to stretch your legs and visit the facilities while charging. I got 4,500 steps according to my fitbit, so I did get a reasonable amount of exercise finding restrooms etc. I think this helped me stay alert the whole way.

I have always charged an EV at a Hotel and sought Hotels with charging stations when staying away. Running the numbers for this trip showed the value of doing so. Leaving the Hotel with a full charge means the first leg of the journey takes you to lunchtime before you need to stop to charge, up to three hours. It’s a great time saver over using supercharging the night before. In addition it saves quite a lot of money. More than I realized.

Hotel charging represented 25% of the total energy used on this trip and saved $50 (at Florida supercharger rates). Hotels provided 116 kW of free fuel. Thanks Radisson.

I noticed on my trip that nearly all the J1772 public charging stations were free and did not require membership to a network. All the stations were clipper creek brand and all seemed to be in good working order. I used several with no problems, no RFID cards required, plug and charge, the way it should be.

The state of charging infrastructure has improved dramatically in the last twelve months. 75% of the superchargers visited were opened in 2021 or later. The same journey just a year ago would have been slower and require meticulous planning and execution. Tesla have done a great job ‘filling the gaps’ on the charging map. The trip was anxiety free and very enjoyable. Road tripping a Tesla is the way to go.

What’s next

Now I know I can make a long trip with no issues, next up is a really long trip out west. Hopefully in the summer of 2023.

Blink have notified its customers for several weeks now they are planning a major update to their portal and mobile apps the weekend of Oct 8th/9th 2022.

I got an email early Sunday morning informing me the mobile app updates are ready. I updated all my apps and the Blink app was not updated. I tried the Blink app and it failed. It turns out you need to search for and download a new app with a new name, the old app will not automatically update, the old app should be removed from your phone.

The old app is called “Blink Mobile”. The New app is called “Blink Charging Mobile App”. Why Blink chose to update the app in this counter intuitive way is unknown.

The new app has a green bar across the top of its icon. When I launched it I had to login in for the first time and I also had to add my EV’s to the app. My account balance and blink cards are retained which is encouraging. Favorite stations are not retained and need to be “hearted” again. Charging history has been erased.

Each time a natural disaster occurs people who oppose electric vehicles ask us to imagine how much worse it would be if all vehicles were electric. It’s a powerful argument, without electricity how are electric vehicles going to recharge, especially if the power is out for a prolonged period? Electric vehicle proponents do not mention such things but if we are honest with ourselves at times like this a sneaking doubt does creep in that maybe we made a mistake going all electric for our transportation.

During natural disasters stories often circulate about how electric vehicles fared much better than imagined and maybe even thrived when compared to gasoline vehicles. It’s counter intuitive, I mean how is that even possible? Hurricane Ian left millions without power in central Florida, and tragically many lost their lives or properties during the disaster.

I examined plug-share to see if rapid charge stations were operational or just dark and useless. I was surprised to see that fairly close to landfall many rapid charging stations were working and drivers were able to charge their cars.

Sarasota Superchargers operational

Not only was a driver able to charge he noted that lines for an adjacent gas station were very long. So long they blocked access to the supercharger it was necessary to take a diversion.

Port Charlotte – Closer to landfall. Electrify America station working.

Closer still to landfall than Sarasota, Port Charlotte had an operational Walmart rapid charger provided by Electrify America. Service was intermittent but a driver was able to get a partial charge. As is the norm with natural disasters both Tesla and Electrify America provide free charging sessions. The opposite is true for gasoline drivers when gasoline goes up in price. Florida had to pass anti price gouging laws that apply during hurricanes.

Tampa has free charging for all

Further North in Tampa stations are all operating normally. All on free vend.

Despite what people tell you, electric vehicles are not a problem during natural disasters and maybe be better off than their gasoline counterparts. Gas stations will run out of gas until supplies can be re-established, panic buying will be rife. Once electricity service is restored rapid charging stations come online, one doesn’t have to wait for a new delivery to come by truck, it’s instantaneous.

Newton Nissan have replaced their previous CHAdeMO rapid charger with a new unit from ABB that has both CHAdeMO and CCS ports. This is in preparation for the Nissan Ariya EV which will have a CCS port instead of CHAdeMO. So far so good, ABB units are solid.

However… Newton Nissan have chosen a 50kW rapid charger that is essentially the same as the one it replaces that was installed almost ten years ago. Many charging stations being installed today charge at 150kW or 350 kW. I presume the dealer are trying to minimize the cost of installation as much as possible, The transformer is the same one the previous charger was attached to. In addition the charging station has a payment terminal which the dealer representative told me will be activated in the future. Right now the charging station can be used for free.

I used my Tesla CHAdeMO adapter to test the unit and got 40kW charge rate, which isn’t unusual with Tesla and the CHAdeMO adapter. The adapter is limited to 50kW. Interestingly when the CHAdeMO adapter is attached to the Model 3 it now pops up a Supercharger Tips screen, many of the tips also apply to third party rapid chargers. I haven’t rapid charged my Model 3 since before Covid-19 so I’m not sure when the tips screen was introduced.

Range Inflation

I’ve noticed as the range of EV’s has increased in the last ten years, the expectations of what range is adequate has also increased outpacing EV development.

When EV’s could go 100 miles, folks desired 200 miles. When 200 mile EV’s came on the market expectations increased to 250 or 300 miles. With the introduction of 300 mile EV like the Tesla Model 3, people still desire more. Tesla now sell a 400 mile Model S.

As with many things in life you can never get enough of what is desirable. It’s the human condition.

So how do you determine what range you actually need? More sounds great until you realize more range adds a lot to the cost of a EV. Spending wisely should be the goal in selecting an EV.

JP’s EV Range “Rule of Thumb”

Daily driving distance X 3.

That’s it in a nutshell.

When calculating your daily driving range consider your daily commute and add extra miles for a lunchtime trip for and running the family to the ballpark or a run to the store when you arrive home.

I created this rule of thumb after driving 160,000 EV miles over ten years.

This rule of thumb means you will not need to charge away from home. Charge overnight and wake up to full “tank” everyday.

How I arrived at my rule of thumb

If your daily driving needs are say 60 miles, clearly the EV must be able to travel 60 miles. That’s one times the daily driving needs.

EV’s can lose 30-50% of their stated range in frigid winter temperatures thanks to the need to heat the cabin and the loss of efficiency of a cold battery. So a 60 mile EV may only be able to achieve 30 miles in the darkest and coldest night. So 120 miles, or twice the daily needs is essential to be sure you can travel the 60 miles you need.

The next thing to consider is EV’s may lose up to 30% of their range as the battery ages naturally through battery degradation. You will also want to leave a 20% buffer for unexpected needs and to avoid range anxiety as the distance to empty decreases through the day. That’s another 50% you might lose to degeneration and a reasonable safety net. So another 60 miles is needed to compensate for these losses.

So if your daily driving needs are 60 miles, then you need an EV that can go 180 miles at the very least. More is always better, if you can afford more then there is no harm in buying more. If mone is tight, then be sure you do not buy less than three times your daily needs and you will be fine.

Workplace Charging can reduce the rule of thumb.

If you are fortunate enough to have workplace charging you can calculate your need as 2 1/2 times your daily needs. So the 60 mile example used above would suggest a range of 150 miles.

Our 2011 Nissan LEAF is still going strong, however its time to shop around for a replacement EV before it needs replacement. Most EV’s can’t be bought on the spot at a dealer you have to order and wait, sometimes many months.

2021 sees the introduction of both the VW ID.4 and Ford Mustang Mach-e so we decided to take a test drive of these vehicles to help decide which vehicle to order.

I’ve seen a grey Mach-e at Miracle Ford so contacted them via their website to try and arrange a test drive. The individual I worked with wasn’t sure if they had a Mach-e or not. I pointed out I had seen one out the front of the dealership parked in the charging spot. After 24 hours I had not been able to get an answer from the dealership. they went radio silent on me. Weird.

I had made several drive bys of the local VW dealer but had not seen an ID.4 at the dealership. I reached out to them via their website and got a test drive for 11am Saturday without much fuss. I asked them to be sure it was charged before we arrived which they confirmed they would.

VW Test Drive Experience

I was rather skeptical the VW dealership even had a vehicle to drive but we went anyway. We were greeted upon arrival and the staff said that Matt would be with us shortly and to go ahead and take a look at the vehicle. It was inside the dealership showroom, that’s why I hadn’t seen it on drive bys. We took a quick look and Matt arrived and opened a large door to the dealership and drove the car outside ready to drive. As we talked to Matt we found out that he had owned an early Nissan LEAF much like ours in the past and was clearly familiar with EV’s. He soon found out we owned two EV’s and were replacing the LEAF. After taking copies of our driving licenses and insurance he handed us the keys and asked if we needed to know anything before driving. We asked if we could drive it for 30 minutes and he said no problem and off we went.

Karen drove the car initially. One of the rear windows was open and we pulled over in a parking lot to figure out how to close it. Having watched videos online we knew there were just two window buttons and you had to press a certain spot to activate the rear windows in order to close them. We got the window closed. It was a beautiful day and the car was getting warm inside. Before pulling off we decided to put the A/C on. After about two minutes we were still struggling to find the setting on the center screen, the A/C controls were all grayed out and unresponsive. Eventually I spotted a button on the screen which turned the AC on and all the controls lit up and could be adjusted. Finally we had A/C.

We drove on both side streets and the highway. The car was smooth and quiet, the interior was slightly bigger than the LEAF by a few inches in width and length. I had expected a bigger car. The perforated seats were comfortable enough, although the seat cushion was fairly short and didn’t support your leg all the way to the knee which I suspect could get uncomfortable on long journeys. The drivers seat seemed much more comfortable than the passenger seat for some reason. Maybe it had been adjusted.

We parked at an empty parking lot and toured the car inside and out. Taking our time as we did so. It was great to be able to look the car over without someone hovering close by asking if you had any questions.

I drove the car on the return leg to the dealership. Acceleration was OK, much like a LEAF, but a far cry from Tesla like rocket-ship acceleration. I came to the conclusion the ID.4 cross-shops favorably with a LEAF or similar vehicle. Stopped at a red light I looked at the vehicle controls. The car had exactly 90 miles on the odometer, 20 of which we had driven. The car had not been charged for 90 miles according to the stats. Most likely it was charged on arrival at the dealership and test driven a few times without being recharged since.

Upon return the dealership Matt showed us the massage seat control we missed on our test drive. It was gentle, but I can see how it would prevent a stiff back on a long journey. Matt didn’t push us to buy, he gave as a glossy brochure and answered questions about the various models, colors and availability. He confirmed the dealership was certified and trained to service the car, a requirement before they could begin sales and deliveries.

Ford test drive ‘experience’

We drove to Miracle Ford after driving the ID.4 to see if they would let us drive the Mach-e without an appointment to do so. The car wasn’t out front so I went inside to enquire. I was greeted on entering and asked about the Mach-e. I was informed they only had one Mach-e which was being used as a courtesy vehicle for customers to use while their car was being serviced. I couldn’t test drive it in case a customer might need a loaner vehicle. An unlikely scenario at 2pm on a Saturday.

That was weird. I asked if we could at least sit in it. The salesman looked around and saw it in the service bay entrance. he said we were lucky it had been returned to service for cleaning. We sat in the vehicle (it was very dirty, the customer who borrowed it had trashed it). There was no key and we couldn’t turn the car on. We took a look around the vehicle. It seems nice enough and sits a little bit higher than the ID.4.

We never got to drive the car, or even switch it on. I expect it will cross-shop with the Tesla Model Y which we test drove last year. I asked the salesman if the dealership was certified to service the vehicle. He assured me they were and but they hadn’t sent techs on Mach-e specific training ‘yet’. He could see I was skeptical and assured me they know electric car technology because of the hybrids they serviced. It became clear why we couldn’t drive the Mach-e, Miracle Ford are not certified to sell or service the Mach-e. Why Ford have provided the dealer with a car they can’t sell or service is puzzling.

I couldn’t get the trunk to open using the “kick sensor”. I presumed it was because it was turned off. The salesman informed me the Mach-e doesn’t have a kick sensor. The sales staff have not been trained either.

Summary

VW dealers are geared up and ready to sell the ID.4 here in the US. Their dealers are trained, they have knowledgeable sales staff who know EV’s well. They are open for EV business. Come on in the temperature is fine.

Ford by comparison don’t have the local dealers trained or certified to sell the Mach-e. Yes the car is on the streets, you just can’t drive one yet unless you take your gas guzzler in for service. Ford are closed for EV business until such time they can get their dealers on board and willing to sell the car. If I do find a dealer able to sell one to me, where would I take it for service? I wouldn’t take it to Miracle Ford.

Update: Ford’s national website allows one to search for dealers based upon their capability. I filtered looking for EV Certified Repair Locations. Miracle Ford is not one of them, the salesman at Miracle Ford told me ‘an alternative truth’. Shocker! I know. The only dealers with listed Mach-e inventory that are also certified to work on the vehicles are in Franklin or Clarksville. The Franklin dealer are applying market price markups over MSRP. It looks like Clarksville is my only hope for a test drive.

FleetCarma and SmartCharge Nashville have partnered to offer program participants the opportunity to earn up to $20 per month to avoid charging their EV’s during peak periods. That may not sound like a lot of money, but for most EV owners $20 per month in electricity is enough to make their electric motoring totally free for the entire month. $20 will buy approximately 200 kWh. A typical modern EV can travel 4 miles per kWh, so that’s up to 1,000 miles of free driving!!

SmartCharge Nashville works with Nashville Electric Service (NES) and Middle Tennessee Electric (MTE) and they offer to pay EV owners enrolled in the program to NOT charge their EV’s during specific periods when the utilities anticipate high electricity demand. This pilot program is in effect from May 1st 2020 to September 3oth 2020.

Today I got my first request to NOT charge my car on May 7th 2020 from 5-8 pm. If I comply I will be paid $5 which will be paid to me via Paypal at the end of the pilot. How do FleetCarma know if I charged my car or not? As a program participant I agreed to install a device plugged into the OBDII port of our LEAF. This device sends data back via cell signal to FleetCarma who operate commercial fleet tracking for their customers. There is no report or information to submit manually, the data is collected automatically making it very easy for the program participant. This gives FleetCarma and SmartCharge Nashville a lot of data about driving and charging habits. So far we have been paid $100 for this data. The data collection program is over, so a new pilot program has begun to see if it is possible to influence electric car owners charging habits with a simple incentive. To read more about SmartCharge Nashville visit their website.

In all of April the LEAF consumed just 50 kWh of energy due to Shelter in Place, so mileage was below average last month. This $5 payment tomorrow will pay for all of Aprils’ electricity used by our LEAF. As you can see from the screen shot to the right, FleetCarma give us a lot of data in return for being program participants. We also get battery health and other information about the car.