What's your realistic "worst case scenario" for CT range/efficiency concerns?

[Scot Braley]

My worst cases would all be pretty survivable, generally. Nothing like yours. Most of my concerns would be around driving 100 miles to an airport, leaving the vehicle in Sentry mode for 4-5 days, and then needing to drive home (in freezing temps half the year, but nothing like the northern US).

Since I've ordered the Dual CT, I would wonder how close I was cutting it if there are no available/working charging stalls. The cities I would go to have only one Supercharger each.

I have found more charging options using PlugShare, though, so in a pinch it could supply the necessary range boost to get home.

you could order the solar panels for the tonneau cover, that way your CT is charging while it sits.

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[Ehninger1212]

you could order the solar panels for the tonneau cover, that way your CT is charging while it sits.

Hopefully this will be an option from the factory!!

 

[lancethibault]

My worse case hunting scenario...Using ABR I arrive at hunting trailer site after 3.5 hr drive with 85% charge. Weather is 0. So I assume I have about 200 miles left on charge. In the predawn morning I drive 45 miles of mostly uphill dirt, snow, ice, slush roads. I don't see any sign of animal movement recently, so sometime in the early afternoon I drive back down some of those same roads and total another 50 miles to my plan B location. Now the problem lies in the fact that the closest charger is about 50 miles away. I arrive at that charger with about 5% left. It would take me about an hr to charge back up to 93% (using ABR) so that I could drive the 28 miles back to hunting trailer arriving with 85%. Rinse repeat similar scenarios day of after day for a week.

My worse case cross country trip scenario. My 20-21 hr road trip from Colorado to Michigan now takes 25 hrs due to charging times (using ABR) vs driving my ICE vehicle. This effectively makes what was a 1 day trip, between my wife and I driving, into a two day trip because we would overnight. Because we would commit to two days, we'd probably overnight with her step sister (you asked for worse case, kidding; we like them), which is a little out of the way. Because we'd overnight there, opposed to a hotel on the the ideal route, this now makes the trip 28hrs with 6+ hrs of charging.

My worse case cross country trip from CO to TN. Trip goes from 19hrs to 23 hrs due to charging time vs ICE vehicle. And now again we overnight at sister in law house which is almost directly along the way and pretty much at the 1/2 way point, so 19hr 1 day trip now turns into 23hr 2 day trip.

The upside is that I'd be spending about 1/3 in fuel costs. I may never fly again.

 

[Crissa]

Unlike an ICE vehicle, your mountain roads you're creeping around will consume city mileage instead of highway. Slush and hills will lower your efficiency, but slow mountains speed is very efficient.

-Crissa

(No, the Model X doing rock climbing isn't a good example here; it isn't designed for rough terrain.)

 

[alan auerbach]

My worse case hunting scenario...Using ABR I arrive at hunting trailer site after 3.5 hr drive with 85% charge. Weather is 0. So I assume I have about 200 miles left on charge. In the predawn morning I drive 45 miles of mostly uphill dirt, snow, ice, slush roads. I don't see any sign of animal movement recently, so sometime in the early afternoon I drive back down some of those same roads and total another 50 miles to my plan B location. Now the problem lies in the fact that the closest charger is about 50 miles away. I arrive at that charger with about 5% left. It would take me about an hr to charge back up to 93% (using ABR) so that I could drive the 28 miles back to hunting trailer arriving with 85%. Rinse repeat similar scenarios day of after day for a week.

My worse case cross country trip scenario. My 20-21 hr road trip from Colorado to Michigan now takes 25 hrs due to charging times (using ABR) vs driving my ICE vehicle. This effectively makes what was a 1 day trip, between my wife and I driving, into a two day trip because we would overnight. Because we would commit to two days, we'd probably overnight with her step sister (you asked for worse case, kidding; we like them), which is a little out of the way. Because we'd overnight there, opposed to a hotel on the the ideal route, this now makes the trip 28hrs with 6+ hrs of charging.

My worse case cross country trip from CO to TN. Trip goes from 19hrs to 23 hrs due to charging time vs ICE vehicle. And now again we overnight at sister in law house which is almost directly along the way and pretty much at the 1/2 way point, so 19hr 1 day trip now turns into 23hr 2 day trip.

The upside is that I'd be spending about 1/3 in fuel costs. I may never fly again.

Worst case"?

"Dear Tesla Owner,

This is a courtesy notification to congratulate you on your Cybertruck purchase, and to inform you that your order record indicates you rejected option 18, 'MPR, $865.' As this option stands for 'Maximum Power and Range,' we are forced to limit your acceleration to 0.20 g, and your range to 100 miles. You may still order this option for the after-delivery price of $1865."

 

[egandalf]

you could order the solar panels for the tonneau cover, that way your CT is charging while it sits.

Believe me, it’s been surreal to consider how much I would actually want to park on the top floor of the garage. ?

 

[WildhavenMI]

Believe me, it’s been surreal to consider how much I would actually want to park on the top floor of the garage. ?

Had the same thought! Although I like to park just below the roof, parking atop would be nice. The three Chargepoint spots on the lower decks are in no way compatible with any truck-sized vehicle as my Pacifica Hybrid doesn't even fit and leave enough space for the doors to open.

 

[Iacemoe]

I really don't need a tri-motor setup, but the largest battery is the only one that makes sense. I would already own a Tesla if they offered larger batteries.

Why they haven't released a 100kwh Model 3/Y is beyond me. 400+ mile range is definitely not what the majority of people need on a daily basis, but for some it is absolutely necessary.

Maybe once the 4680s start hitting mass production / consistent high yield they will make the option available.

 

[Crissa]

They're still supply constrained on the 3/Y. And I don't know that a battery that large will fit in it until the larger cells.

-Crissa

 

[Newton]

I might do the fold out solar thing, but realistically ehen going on potentially dubious trips I'll just keep a small generator and can of gas in the back for emergencies.

 

[Gvardaman]

My worst case scenario would be...
I drive South for about two hours, arriving in San Diego for the annual gathering ”Comic Con”. At this point I should have about 70% of my charge remaining.
Then, I drive around for approximately four more days looking for a parking space large enough for the CT until I run so low on charge that I have to abandon my search and go to a charging station. Now, having missed the event, I have to drive home. Also temperatures could be as low as 65 degrees Fahrenheit!
If I can get the solar tonneau cover option, that might help.

 

[MEDICALJMP]

My worst case scenario would be...
I drive South for about two hours, arriving in San Diego for the annual gathering ”Comic Con”. At this point I should have about 70% of my charge remaining.
Then, I drive around for approximately four more days looking for a parking space large enough for the CT until I run so low on charge that I have to abandon my search and go to a charging station. Now, having missed the event, I have to drive home. Also temperatures could be as low as 65 degrees Fahrenheit!
If I can get the solar tonneau cover option, that might help.

Quoting Marlon Brando,”The horror. The horror.”

 

[shocker]

Here's a real life scenario: A drive from Oshkosh WI to Mackinaw City, MI (actually going South beyond that but that's the challenging segment).
Assume I charged to 100% the evening before.
Truck sits outside overnight at -12 F.
Depart NB on US 41, 70 mph highway. No snow that day and the highway is clear so the flow of traffic will be over 70.
At Green Bay WI top off to 100%, temp is still -12 F
Now the challenge, continue NB on 41 at 70+ mph to Menominee, Michigan, take Hwy 35 to Escanaba MI at 60 mph, then US-2 at 65 mph, over the bridge and arrive at the Mackinaw City supercharger. High temp on that segment, -8 F. Total distance between Green Bay and Mackinaw City is about 250 miles.
How much EPA range would take the pucker factor out of the equation? I insist on using enough heat to keep the cabin temps in the high 60s.
How anxious would you be if the nearest Tesla service center was always hundreds of miles away?

I better stop lest I head down to the Chevy dealer and get a Silverado with the very cool 3.0 turbo diesel. Performs very electric like with a wide, flat torque band and fast, smooth shifting 10 speed.

 

[Frankenblob]

Unless I bring a generator, no. It's not construction work, it's habitat work and there's rarely if ever outbuildings or electricity.

I did consider some sort of suitcase solar strictly for warm up, but IDK if it'd be robust enough to make a difference -and would the additional weight being carried offset that gain at all anyway.

If you did a blanket and sleeping bag type set-up which were tucked around the seat you, possibly, could get away with using only the heated seat which uses about 10-20 even 30x less power than the cabin eco-mode.

There are also small "desk heaters" that I have seen which use anywhere from 30 watts up to 200 watts. Even these with a blanket or two would be more energy efficient than the 1.4+ Kw the eco-mode uses.

 

[drscot]

So I've been going through the process of "worst case scenario" planning for my personal field work applications for my CT, and I've think I've figured out my not-exactly-uncommon "worst" scenario.

There are a few days a year where I'm in-the-field, ~100-120 miles from home in the bush, on COLD days (sub-zero Fahrenheit), with ~500-600lbs of stuff in the bed. Assuming I start from home on a full charge with a conditioned battery, drive the 100 flat miles to the site, then the truck sits outside in the subzero weather all day until I get done, and then I gotta drive the 100 miles back. I'm trying to figure out just how much range loss to expect not just in the cold driving, but in the super-cold start after a day in the open air.

IMO, these days are "cutting it close" on a 400 mile range CT. And charging en-route home is...well, in the part of MI I'm taking about travelling to there are no superchargers (Tesla or otherwise). While these are not common days for me, they do happen once or twice a year at a minimum.

What's your personal, realistic, "worst case scenario" range day?

That's easy! Worst case scenario is having to PUSH the beast until you find a tow!