{"id":24309,"date":"2019-10-23T15:38:30","date_gmt":"2019-10-23T19:38:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=24309"},"modified":"2019-10-23T15:38:30","modified_gmt":"2019-10-23T19:38:30","slug":"payne-tesla-road-trips-and-the-challenge-of-ev-ownership","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2019\/10\/payne-tesla-road-trips-and-the-challenge-of-ev-ownership","title":{"rendered":"Payne: Tesla road trips and the challenge of EV ownership"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/10\/23\/PDTN\/cfec0082-1635-4c59-9111-5e6d4ec01b4d-tesla_charge_gaylord.jpg?width=540&amp;height=&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Detroit News auto critic Henry Payne made a long stop at the Gaylord supercharger on the way to Charlevoix in his Tesla Model 3.\" \/><\/p>\n<\/div><p>Detroit News auto critic Henry Payne made a long stop at the Gaylord supercharger on the way to Charlevoix in his Tesla Model 3.\u00a0<span class=\"credit\">(Photo: Henry Payne, The Detroit News)<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-1 p-text\">In just a decade, Tesla has established itself as America\u2019s premier luxury electric vehicle brand with sleek chariots that accelerate like lightning, wow with ginormous touchscreens, and upgrade over-the-air like smartphones.<\/p>\n<p class=\"speakable-p-2 p-text\">But the key to the Silicon Valley company\u2019s success may be that it boasts the most robust EV charging network in the country.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Yet, a summer of traveling in a Model 3 around\u00a0the Midwest provides a cautionary tale on the challenges facing EVs as more Tesla competitors come to market. Extensive as Tesla Inc.&#8217;s network is, it still has major blind spots. Combined with battery-powered vehicles\u2019 sensitivity to weather swings and higher speeds makes them a risky purchase to most people looking to buy a car today.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">I bought a Tesla Model 3 a year ago both because of the Silicon Valley company\u2019s daring re-imagining of the automobile \u2014\u00a0but also because I wanted to report on an electric car that is the first serious alternative to gas power in my lifetime.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">I have given dozens of drives to friends interested in the car. All of them have been blown away by its speed and innovation, from its intuitive voice commands to its self-driving capabilities. Yet nearly all of them have also balked at the idea of owning an EV because of the limitations on long distance driving.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">For good reason. EVs today are for first adopters \u2014\u00a0not folks who take America\u2019s gasoline infrastructure for granted. As Ford, Audi, Volvo, and other manufacturers come into the EV space \u2014\u00a0brands that do not have the EV brand strength of Tesla \u2014\u00a0they face a difficult market where busy Americans demand immediate re-charging infrastructure whether for their phones \u2014 or cars.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">I set out in August on a 310-mile charge\u00a0to visit family in Charleston, West Virginia.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">With cutting-edge electronics, my Model 3 is deeply integrated into Tesla\u2019s proprietary charging network. \u201cNavigate to Charleston, West Virginia,\u201d I said to the car. Moments later the Tesla had mapped my route around Tesla\u2019s Midwest charging network.<\/p>\n<div id=\"module-position-SMaIy731b7I\" class=\"story-asset image-asset\">\n<aside class=\"wide single-photo\"><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/10\/22\/PDTN\/6f2aba16-19cf-457e-9a8c-8d26bd6fbfdf-tesla_warning-recharge.jpg?width=540&amp;height=&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"With the Tesla Model 3's range degrading rapidly in pouring rain, the car tells Payne he has to find a charger if he is to make it home.\" width=\"540\" data-mycapture-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/10\/22\/PDTN\/6f2aba16-19cf-457e-9a8c-8d26bd6fbfdf-tesla_warning-recharge.jpg\" data-mycapture-sm-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/10\/22\/PDTN\/6f2aba16-19cf-457e-9a8c-8d26bd6fbfdf-tesla_warning-recharge.jpg?width=500&amp;height=281\" \/>With the Tesla Model 3&#8217;s range degrading rapidly in pouring rain, the car tells Payne he has to find a charger if he is to make it home.\u00a0<span class=\"credit\">(Photo: Henry Payne, The Detroit News)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/aside>\n<div class=\"clearfix\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The big, 15-inch screen indicated a detailed itinerary where I would only need to recharge south of Columbus in Grove City (for 25 minutes) to make it\u00a0to\u00a0Charleston with 16% of charge left. The stations have multiple stalls, are conveniently located in shopping centers, offer fast, 150kw charging, and are maintained by the company.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">It\u2019s like going to a Chick-fil-A\u00a0chain to eat: The service is always uniform, the product always good.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Try that in\u00a0 any other car and you\u2019re at the mercy of a hodge-podge network of chargers operated by a variety of providers from auto dealers to EVGo. My experience with these networks in a Jaguar I-Pace, Nissan Leaf and Chevy Bolt has been inconsistent.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Electrify America \u2014\u00a0funded by Volkswagen AG\u00a0as penance for its Dieselgate\u00a0sins\u00a0\u2014\u00a0promises an extensive, nation-wide network to compete with Tesla. But for now it lags. For example, it only has one charging center in the Columbus area, while Tesla has four.<\/p>\n<p><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/10\/22\/PDTN\/d2acc923-7707-44b1-8049-d5e0975ba06b-Tesla-26.JPG?width=540&amp;height=&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"To make its destination charge, the Tesla Model 3 will manage car speed. \" \/><\/p>\n<\/div><p>To make its destination charge, the Tesla Model 3 will manage car speed.\u00a0\u00a0<span class=\"credit\">(Photo: Henry Payne, The Detroit News)<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Turns out that would be crucial to my journey. As I traveled south down I-75, the temperature rose from 75 degrees to 95 in Buckeye country. Nothing degrades a battery like temperature.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">In winter, sub-30 degree temps have reduced my range by 25%. When the temps go over 90 degrees, range degrades by about 15. On I-75 south in Ohio, the Model 3 told me (talk about a smart car) I would have to slow down to 65 mph (from 70) if I was to make it to the\u00a0the South Columbus charger. OK. I watched the battery continue to hemorrhage range. Below 8%. Then 5%, Then 3, then &#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">The car told me I would have to slow down to 55 mph to make it. The heck with that. To quote Sammy Hagar, I can\u2019t drive 55 (and traffic would run over top of me).<\/p>\n<div id=\"module-position-SMaIy72K9q0\" class=\"story-asset image-asset\">\n<aside class=\"wide single-photo\"><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/10\/22\/PDTN\/83dadced-3d5f-420c-9ef3-7a6458f372c8-tesla_meijer-recharge.jpg?width=540&amp;height=&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Heavy rain degraded the Tesla Model 3 battery and forced a change in route.\" width=\"540\" data-mycapture-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/10\/22\/PDTN\/83dadced-3d5f-420c-9ef3-7a6458f372c8-tesla_meijer-recharge.jpg\" data-mycapture-sm-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/10\/22\/PDTN\/83dadced-3d5f-420c-9ef3-7a6458f372c8-tesla_meijer-recharge.jpg?width=500&amp;height=281\" \/>Heavy rain degraded the Tesla Model 3 battery and forced a change in route.\u00a0<span class=\"credit\">(Photo: Henry Payne, The Detroit News)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/aside>\n<div class=\"clearfix\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Happily, I knew (from my own checking) there was a closer, north Columbus (Dublin) charger so I stopped there instead. I ate\u00a0a pizza while I waited, and was back on the road in 40 minutes. Of course, I also knew that Charleston had a single Tesla supercharger that I could use for my weekend there.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Not so Charlevoix, Michigan.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">I made an\u00a0Up North trip (one of a few)\u00a0in September for a getaway weekend to meet my wife (who had gone ahead early with friends). Once again, the car mapped my trip and told me I could make it to the charming Lake Michigan burg\u00a0without recharging. Well, no.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Charlevoix doesn&#8217;t\u00a0have a Tesla Supercharger. Indeed, it doesn\u2019t have any chargers\u00a0at all. Not even a 240-volt charger. Try to charge on a 110-volt wall socket and I would be lucky to get 30 miles of range in 10 hours (a previous journey in a plug-in Caddy netted me 30 miles in 24 hours).<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">So I stopped in Gaylord \u2014\u00a0the last Tesla Supercharger in north Michigan \u2014\u00a0to top up for the weekend. It would have to last me for three days in Charlevoix. Good thing my wife\u00a0and I didn\u2019t plan to drive much. Keeping enough\u00a0range on the Model 3 to get back to Gaylord for the trip home meant no long adventures\u00a0to say, Sleeping Bear Dunes (160 mile round trip).<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Mother Nature would throw us another curve ball on the way home.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">After topping up to 312\u00a0miles in Gaylord for an easy trip home in 65-degree weather, the Model 3 mapped the 214 miles home to Oakland County with arrival by\u00a011.12 PM. Driving in downpour south on I-75, the Tesla began to drink electrons.<\/p>\n<div id=\"module-position-SMaIy73O21w\" class=\"story-asset image-asset\">\n<aside class=\"wide single-photo\"><div align=\"left\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/10\/22\/PDTN\/db7181a7-f552-4ab7-939b-aaeafccb0b3a-tesla_wv-fr3-4_bridge.jpg?width=540&amp;height=&amp;fit=bounds&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Detroit News auto critic traveled to West Virginia in his Tesla Mod3l 3 this summer.\" width=\"540\" data-mycapture-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/10\/22\/PDTN\/db7181a7-f552-4ab7-939b-aaeafccb0b3a-tesla_wv-fr3-4_bridge.jpg\" data-mycapture-sm-src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2019\/10\/22\/PDTN\/db7181a7-f552-4ab7-939b-aaeafccb0b3a-tesla_wv-fr3-4_bridge.jpg?width=500&amp;height=281\" \/>Detroit News auto critic traveled to West Virginia in his Tesla Mod3l 3 this summer.\u00a0<span class=\"credit\">(Photo: Henry Payne, The Detroit News)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/aside>\n<div class=\"clearfix\">After 44 miles, the battery had lost 72 miles of charge, a staggering 40% degradation of range. More range degradation than I had experienced even in sub-30 degree weather. Because the electric motor\u00a0was working hard to push rain out from the tires? Because of energy loss from windshield wipers and climate defrost? Engineers I&#8217;ve talked to have been mystified (Tesla couldn&#8217;t be reached for comment).<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"p-text\">&#8220;CHARGING NEEDED TO REACH DESTINATION,&#8221; the car screen warned.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Again, I knew there was a Supercharger in Bay City. We\u00a0stopped an recharged. And ultimately arrived home at 12.45 a.m., much later than planned.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p-text\">Fortunately, we did\u00a0have the luxury of not being on time. And fortunately, a reliable Tesla charger was within\u00a0reach. My friends roll their eyes at such tales. For them, the idea of planning trips around their car&#8217;s refueling uncertainties is an inconvenience they&#8217;re not willing to take.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Detroit News auto critic Henry Payne made a long stop at the Gaylord supercharger on the way to Charlevoix in his Tesla Model 3.\u00a0(Photo: Henry Payne, The Detroit News) In just a decade, Tesla has established itself as America\u2019s premier luxury electric vehicle brand with sleek chariots that accelerate like lightning, wow with ginormous touchscreens, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24309"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24309"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24309\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24309"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24309"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24309"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}