No More Road Trips

[Mandretti]

After 3.5 years of ownership I’ve finally tossed in the towel with lengthy road trips. The poor mileage under freeway conditions, unpredictable charging infrastructure, wait lines for charging, and the Walmart parking lot ambiance makes for a longer and unpleasant experience. My wife has been putting up with this up to now, but has finally put her foot down. Not doing it ever again.

This is for trips 300 miles or more. Great car for around town and shorter trips.

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[silverelan]

For trips of 300 miles, I find that even my MME GT is basically the same as a gas car. I drive for 120-150 miles, stop for 15-18 mins to use the bathroom, get coffee + plug into a charger, then drive to destination.

Beyond 300 miles, it starts to be a drag but definitely not an infrastructure problem nowadays.

 

[JoanS]

It's only going to get worse, as the new administration is talking about pulling funding for increasing charging infrastructure. Really a shame.

 

[Mandretti]

I think at this point charging infrastructure must find its own way in the marketplace without much government involvement. The possible exception to that would be rural locations which might need some subsidies.

 

[Sikkun]

For trips of 300 miles, I find that even my MME GT is basically the same as a gas car. I drive for 120-150 miles, stop for 15-18 mins to use the bathroom, get coffee + plug into a charger, then drive to destination.

Beyond 300 miles, it starts to be a drag but definitely not an infrastructure problem nowadays.

On my ER anything under 800 miles (at least during summer/fall when I actually travel) doesn’t add much time for me vs ICE.

Between Tesla and EA I have not had any problems, waits, etc. But I do highly plan out my route to stop at well reviewed chargers with plenty of spots.

Over 800 miles, the time starts to add, but at that point I would rather be getting a hotel than keep driving anyway.

 

[Sillybibbles]

I generally agree, it's great for around town but not trips over 1 stop & charge. I would add that holidays are a no-go for road trip charging, but if I'm planning to charge weekdays it's usually OK even if 1-2 charges are broken in most locations (grrr...). On holidays It's always a long wait, uncertain charging situation. It makes a simple drive way more stressful.

 

[joebruin77]

Have you received your Tesla Supercharger adapter and started using NACS compatible Superchargers? Unless traveling on a crowded holiday weekend, I have found that with the addition of Supercharger access, road trips are much more doable and comfortable.

 

[67 Stang Convertible]

I would tend to disagree with OP. Does it take a little longer, Yes. But really it's negligable to me and my situation. If I am on my own, there is no big deal. The question comes with the Family. Well hell, usually the wife can't make it 3 hours striaight regardless if it is ICE or EV; so, we are stopping either way. With a little pre-planning (that I think I enjoy; reminds me of the old AAA map days) for chargers that are solid and have some amenities (food and restrooms) it is almost a wash.

OP, it you get in the mindset you don't have to charge much past your next stop; I bet it really won't cost you much time. I believe some of the issue is people are in a GAS mindset. They're are going to "Fill Up", even though their destination may have a charging station close or on property and you only need 40% charge to get there.

Just MO!!

 

[Mach-Lee]

After 3.5 years of ownership I’ve finally tossed in the towel with lengthy road trips. The poor mileage under freeway conditions, unpredictable charging infrastructure, wait lines for charging, and the Walmart parking lot ambiance makes for a longer and unpleasant experience. My wife has been putting up with this up to now, but has finally put her foot down. Not doing it ever again.

This is for trips 300 miles or more. Great car for around town and shorter trips.

Haven’t really had an issue with busy Superchargers yet. Also you can try to drive at night when the chargers are less busy.

 

[azerik]

I don’t think you’d like the Walmart parking lot at 11pm vs middle of the day I know I don’t.

 

[Dear_OP]

And hence I still keep an ICE SUV for road trips. I just don't have the patience for trips requiring more than 1 DCFC. However destination chargers (ie at hotels, b&b) will help quite a bit.

Whether you like it or not, the MME is not an efficient EV compared to its competition. Much has improved over the last few years since its inception.

 

[silverelan]

On my ER anything under 800 miles (at least during summer/fall when I actually travel) doesn’t add much time for me vs ICE.

Between Tesla and EA I have not had any problems, waits, etc. But I do highly plan out my route to stop at well reviewed chargers with plenty of spots.

Over 800 miles, the time starts to add, but at that point I would rather be getting a hotel than keep driving anyway.

There's a big efficiency difference between the GT/GTPE vs. the RWD or 4X. The 2022 MME GT was 70mph range tested by Out of Spec to 234 miles but the RWD and 4X easily get 40-50 miles more range.

 

[Mandretti]

Have you received your Tesla Supercharger adapter and started using NACS compatible Superchargers? Unless traveling on a crowded holiday weekend, I have found that with the addition of Supercharger access, road trips are much more doable and comfortable.

Mine was supposed to arrive in July. Maybe July next year is more realistic. I think one’s experience is going to vary dramatically by location. And it’s a moving target; so trying to plan out a trip with multiple options just in case, and then not have it work out anyway is not worth it. I don’t do that many lengthy road trips anyway so not a big deal. My main motivation for using it is to reduce our carbon footprint, which is pretty significant in other ways. When we get the Tesla charger I’ll take a trip and see how that goes.

 

[Sikkun]

There's a big efficiency difference between the GT/GTPE vs. the RWD or 4X. The 2022 MME GT was 70mph range tested by Out of Spec to 234 miles but the RWD and 4X easily get 40-50 miles more range.

Not surprising, that extra power gets he’s energy from somewhere. Same with ICE GT vs the other trim Mustangs.

 

[phil]

After 3.5 years of ownership I’ve finally tossed in the towel with lengthy road trips.

Welcome to the dark side. I gave up before I even started - have never once charged on the road. I agree that the electric car is great around town. Road trips are why God gave us gasoline.

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