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I rented a Model 3 from Hertz in Europe when I was in Amsterdam visiting my daughter for her study abroad - I had to get from Amsterdam to Nurburgring. Tesla's excellent in car navigation estimated 42% from AMS airport to the Hotel at Nurburgring - and there are Tesla Supercharger's across the street from the hotel - so easy peasy. However there were some unrestricted speed sections along the way - well I took full advantage of the unrestricted segments and drove as fast as I felt comfortable - I'd occasions check the destination estimate and it was going down, but not in a way that would cause any extra charging stops - as I got the part of the trip where there were no more unrestricted segments in front of me I had the Model 3 down to 28% actual battery - but the navigation estimate showed that in the remaining distance I'd arrive with a healthy 18% battery at my destination - I actually arrived with 21% battery and the supercharger had me back to 85% in less than 20 min - then then finished the Model 3 off with the hotel's slow chargers in the garage back to 100%…
start of the trip navigation said: 42% @ destination estimated
middle of the trip I drove as fast as I could and/or was comfortable - speeds were awesome and not for the faint of heart
by the time I was out of unrestricted autobahn segments the navigation's adjusted destination estimates gave me the confidence that I was still going to reach my destination
arrive with extra battery even though I had just used all the torques the model 3 had to give for long segments of glorious autobahn
fast charging made it all better lickedy split when I arrived
I at no time felt constrained on my speed (other than strict speed enforcement typical of Europe when not on an unrestricted segment)
the continuously real time updates of destination battery % let me drive how I wanted, when I wanted and know that I was going to be just fine…
it was a super fun trip…and the way back was equally "fun" and stress free given excellent navigation software estimates for battery usage.
the Macan in Europe is going to be a road tripping beast - and Porsche's Navigation PCM software in the Taycan in the 4 years I drove it was really really very very good and the estimates were an excellent and highly accurate tool for road tripping…
1 day in a Model 3 on unrestricted autobahn from AMS
2 days in a GT4 RS on the Nurmburgring (and 1 lap in a 992.1 GT3 on day 2)
1 day in a Model 3 on unrestricted autobahn back to AMS
road tripping with EV's is NO problem, can be fun - and only minor changes in behavior and you'll be fine, and maybe even come to like it…
Thank you for all of the time you've put in explaining the intricacies of EV charging. I have a Macan EV on order.
Although I realize that this post is meant to decrease range anxiety, it's done the exact opposite for me. So much to think about, plan and absorb. I'd rather just get in my car, drive, then fill up when the tank is low. I hope I don't regret my EV decision.
Thank you for all of the time you've put in explaining the intricacies of EV charging. I have a Macan EV on order.
Although I realize that this post is meant to decrease range anxiety, it's done the exact opposite for me. So much to think about, plan and absorb. I'd rather just get in my car, drive, then fill up when the tank is low. I hope I don't regret my EV decision.
It may look daunting to someone who is new to EV. But the process of knowing when to charge and where is pretty straight forward.
Most of the time you would be charging at home, presumably, as it's the cheapest way to charge. Whenever, you are on long trips (which are not often, I guess), the percentage of battery and the range left is shown constantly also.
So, you can charge at any point, wherever you are. As an example, whenever you stop at services on a highway for a toilet or snack break, and say, you still got 30% charge left, you can top it up to any level or even up to 100% and continue your journey.
I'm not sure where people live but trying to see what it would be like to go 357 miles from central NJ to Pittsburgh through the Tesla app ( just to get a notion of it) I was told that in a car with 296 miles of range I have to make TWO stops and I CANNOT take my preffered route on the PennTwp which has rest areas but have to go through a busy vacation corridor via Rt 80 with no rest stops on road. Crazy. Not ready for Prime Time IMO.
I have a Macan 4 on order. I have Level 2 charging at home. I have a Volvo PHEV for most road tripping. I do expect to want to do 300 mile trips in the Macan on occasion. I already have a little range anxiety:
Are there level 3 chargers on your preferred route?
Are they in reasonably convenient locations?
Are they functional?
Are they available ( not already in use)?
These are not questions you need to ask when driving an ICE vehicle.
BTW, driving the Volvo PHEV is a little bit like having training wheels. Zero range anxiety. It's no Macan, but it is a great road tripper, and uses little or no gasoline when driven as a daily driver.
I'm not sure where people live but trying to see what it would be like to go 357 miles from central NJ to Pittsburgh through the Tesla app ( just to get a notion of it) I was told that in a car with 296 miles of range I have to make TWO stops and I CANNOT take my preffered route on the PennTwp which has rest areas but have to go through a busy vacation corridor via Rt 80 with no rest stops on road. Crazy. Not ready for Prime Time IMO.
“CANNOT” seems surprisingly definitive given that some turnpike service stations do have EV fast chargers. Not many of them, but probably enough. And worst case you can probably leave the turnpike for a fast charge in a town nearby.
It probably recommends two charging stops because these planning tools often assume you want significant charge left when you arrive at your destination. Which, if your destination has charging around, I don’t really count as a “stop” unless it’s really out of the way.
These are the 125+ kW chargers, including both CCS1 and Tesla.
Road tripping in an EV is just going to be different than an ICE car.
This is no different than, say, road tripping in a two door sports car (like a 911) versus an RV. There will be places and roads that you can go and take that you could not in the RV, and vice versa.
To think that there would be complete parity between an EV and ICE for road tripping is like expecting parity between road tripping in a 911 versus an RV.
For people that expect an EV to be in complete parity with an ICE are simply justifying their own preconceived biases. Which is ok, but lets just be honest about it up front.
Last edited by ipse dixit; 06-04-2024 at 12:10 PM.
Road tripping in an EV is just going to be different than an ICE car.
This is no different than, say, road tripping in a two door sports car (like a 911) versus an RV. There will be places and roads that you can go and take that you could not in the RV, and vice versa.
To think that there would be complete parity between an EV and ICE for road tripping is like expecting parity between road tripping in a 911 versus an RV.
For people that expect an EV to be in complete parity with an ICE are simply justifying their own preconceived biases. Which is ok, but lets just be honest about it up front.
one 30 min or less stop a day to drive 600 miles isn’t the most terrible thing in the world IMHO - but if that harshes your buzz then an EV is not for you - got it!
but I’ve been doing it for 12+ years and it’s not that much impact in all honesty - and the rest of the year no gas stations or fast charging cause car is full over night in the garage
honestly i prefer the EV with instant torque when ever i need it - my 2021 Cayenne TurboS eHybrid in 8th gear at 75 mph feels sluggish when i want to accelerate to pass vs any EV i’ve ever driven
Last edited by daveo4porsche; 06-04-2024 at 02:25 PM.
I'm not sure where people live but trying to see what it would be like to go 357 miles from central NJ to Pittsburgh through the Tesla app ( just to get a notion of it) I was told that in a car with 296 miles of range I have to make TWO stops and I CANNOT take my preffered route on the PennTwp which has rest areas but have to go through a busy vacation corridor via Rt 80 with no rest stops on road. Crazy. Not ready for Prime Time IMO.
If I were driving across the country once a month, I might think about a PHEV… maybe. But the reality is that I only take 1 or 2 road trips a year over 150 miles and the rest of the (99%) time I get to skip those long gas lines at Costco and save thousands in fueling costs. Plain and simple, that makes me happier, plus the added benefit is it’s better for the environment too.
And none of that mentions the fact that I like how they drive. The power delivery is like magic. It’s fun, fast, luxurious.
My two cents, drive one, if you like it, buy it. This stuff isn’t much to worry about.
Daily = EV
Fun / track car = ICE
Road tripping (longer than 200 miles roundtrip) = PHEV or ICE
That's my preference, which just means for me an EV is the most suitable vehicle about 90% of the time.
For those that say an EV "does not work for them" they either mean (1) it does not work for them when they take long road trips or (2) their living situation prevents them charging at home (i.e. because they live in an apartment or condo) or (3) they just refuse to want to drive an EV.
Only 1 of the 3 makes rational sense. I'll leave it to the peanut gallery to guess which one.
@daveo4porsche doing a public service here. Good information peppered throughout and as someone with EV road tripping experience, I agree with all of it.
06-02-2024, 02:52 AM
