Hi Jamey. I have been driving all matter of EVs since the year 2000 when I "owned" a GM EV1. Last summer, my wife and I drove an 11,000-mile round road trip in her 2023 Tesla Model X from Scottsdale to St. John's Newfoundland with nary an instance of range anxiety. Driving long distance in an EV is not like driving an ICE vehicle. Back in the day when I owned such a dinosaur, I would drive well above the speed limit, worrying more about the gendarmes than running out of petrol, yet I had done just that multiple times. The way we drive an EV road trip is to relax, drive the speed limit and charge every 1-1/2 to 2 hours. The range of the vehicle is of no concern. Range is a state of mind. I own a 2018 Tesla Model 3 Performance that, with 60k miles in from its estimated 301-mile EPA range when I got it to the Recurrent Auto estimate today of 275 miles. No matter. I still take it on road trips. All I care about is getting to the next charger or to my destination hotel, most of which have free charging. Thing is, if you charge more often, you don't have to worry about range and the charge stops are shorter and more enjoyable. We like chatting with other EV owners, grabbing a cup of Joe and using the facilities. I am co-founder and President of Valley of the Sun Electric Vehicle Association and DRIVE Electric Arizona. Please join us.
Thanks for this great note John. I'm incredibly impressed by your Newfoundland trip. I once drove there from Chicago and it was the longest drive I've ever done. Your trip was at least 2K miles longer! And I like your attitude about range. I think one of the things I'm learning - and hoping to convey in the blog - is that new technologies don't magically replace old technologies. We reorder our world in order to take advantage of what they can offer. Thus far I think I've been doing as you suggest - charging when it is convenient and before I have any worries. And I will certainly have more options when I get a level 2 charger at home and download more than one public charger app! I've just signed up for your newsletter and look forward to learning more. At some point I would love to talk to you about your EV1. In the mid 90s I was on an electric vehicle racing team and we used the drive train from the Impact.
Great! We have 9 DEEM (Drive Electric Earth Month) events coming up April 6 through May 5. Head to our website at valleyofthesuneva.org and select “WATTS HAPPENING” for our calendar. Let’s meet up soon.
Driven an EV since 2013, but bought a Tesla Model Y Long Range in April 2023. Wow! 18,000 miles with zero range anxiety. Of course the Tesla Supercharger network is very reliable and ubiquitous. We almost never go below twenty percent. If going on a trip we charge to 99 percent, if normal operations we keep the charge between 50 and 80 at home.
Hi Jamey. I have been driving all matter of EVs since the year 2000 when I "owned" a GM EV1. Last summer, my wife and I drove an 11,000-mile round road trip in her 2023 Tesla Model X from Scottsdale to St. John's Newfoundland with nary an instance of range anxiety. Driving long distance in an EV is not like driving an ICE vehicle. Back in the day when I owned such a dinosaur, I would drive well above the speed limit, worrying more about the gendarmes than running out of petrol, yet I had done just that multiple times. The way we drive an EV road trip is to relax, drive the speed limit and charge every 1-1/2 to 2 hours. The range of the vehicle is of no concern. Range is a state of mind. I own a 2018 Tesla Model 3 Performance that, with 60k miles in from its estimated 301-mile EPA range when I got it to the Recurrent Auto estimate today of 275 miles. No matter. I still take it on road trips. All I care about is getting to the next charger or to my destination hotel, most of which have free charging. Thing is, if you charge more often, you don't have to worry about range and the charge stops are shorter and more enjoyable. We like chatting with other EV owners, grabbing a cup of Joe and using the facilities. I am co-founder and President of Valley of the Sun Electric Vehicle Association and DRIVE Electric Arizona. Please join us.
Thanks for this great note John. I'm incredibly impressed by your Newfoundland trip. I once drove there from Chicago and it was the longest drive I've ever done. Your trip was at least 2K miles longer! And I like your attitude about range. I think one of the things I'm learning - and hoping to convey in the blog - is that new technologies don't magically replace old technologies. We reorder our world in order to take advantage of what they can offer. Thus far I think I've been doing as you suggest - charging when it is convenient and before I have any worries. And I will certainly have more options when I get a level 2 charger at home and download more than one public charger app! I've just signed up for your newsletter and look forward to learning more. At some point I would love to talk to you about your EV1. In the mid 90s I was on an electric vehicle racing team and we used the drive train from the Impact.
Great! We have 9 DEEM (Drive Electric Earth Month) events coming up April 6 through May 5. Head to our website at valleyofthesuneva.org and select “WATTS HAPPENING” for our calendar. Let’s meet up soon.
Now if I can persuade my neighbors French and Mary Lu to drive electric!
Driven an EV since 2013, but bought a Tesla Model Y Long Range in April 2023. Wow! 18,000 miles with zero range anxiety. Of course the Tesla Supercharger network is very reliable and ubiquitous. We almost never go below twenty percent. If going on a trip we charge to 99 percent, if normal operations we keep the charge between 50 and 80 at home.
After reading your absorbing tale about "charge anxiety" on your trip to Prescott, I re-watched the Seinfeld's episode "Kramer Takes a Test Drive."
It's funny, George, I thought I knew most of the Seinfeld episodes, but I don't think I've ever seen that one. I may have to queue it up!