cyeung
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Oct 28, 2024
- Threads
- 9
- Messages
- 128
- Reaction score
- 243
- Location
- Atlanta, GA
- Vehicles
- 2025 Mustang Mach-E Premium
- Thread starter
- #1
About 20 years ago, I started college and immediately joined a solar car team because I thought it was pretty cool. It ended up being my only extracurricular activity as I poured my heart, soul, and blood into designing, building, and testing a solar car. I worked around some very smart people; and I earned their respect by doing the stuff they did not want to do, but had to get done. At the end of those four years, the car hit the track; and we finished a race. I spent about 13 years away from solar car; but have recently reengaged to serve as event staff and do media.
This year's Electrek Formula Sun Grand Prix was at the National Corvette Museum Motorsports Park in Bowling Green, KY. It was attended by over 700 students from 34 schools scattered around the US, Canada, and even Puerto Rico! Here's a recap I made for those interested.
Anyways, back to the car. Bottom line up front is that this trip made me feel great about my decision to choose the Mach-E.
Navigation: I let the car's built-in navigation system do the routing and add my charging stops. Overall, it worked reasonably well, but here are a few tips and areas of improvement:
Connectivity: I was one of those willing suckers that paid $795 for the one-time connectivity package with the in-car hotspot. That got used for livestreaming various parts of the event. [EDIT: Additional info] The car's auto-power off setting must be checked at every ignition cycle!
Charging: The only station that I encountered difficulty with was the Flying J/EVGo station. Half the dispensers were inoperative; and I had to use a bit more oomph to unplug. Otherwise, everything worked phenomenally!
I already look forward to next year's biannual American Solar Challenge, where the solar cars go for a one-week road trip!
This year's Electrek Formula Sun Grand Prix was at the National Corvette Museum Motorsports Park in Bowling Green, KY. It was attended by over 700 students from 34 schools scattered around the US, Canada, and even Puerto Rico! Here's a recap I made for those interested.
Anyways, back to the car. Bottom line up front is that this trip made me feel great about my decision to choose the Mach-E.
Navigation: I let the car's built-in navigation system do the routing and add my charging stops. Overall, it worked reasonably well, but here are a few tips and areas of improvement:
- When doing a multi-segment trip, enter the destination first, then enter your stops in reverse order.
- [EDIT: Additional info] Yes, the built-in navigation system does add stops for Tesla charging stations.
- When a route is programmed and the user does a subsequent search for charging stations, only show charging stations that are ahead on the route ... avoid backtracking!
- It would be great if the navigation system allowed you to set up rest stops at approximate time intervals (e.g., I like to stop approximately every two hours for a potty break).
- Directions should show up [EDIT: Clarification] on the instrument panel cluster at least one minute before the maneuver.
Connectivity: I was one of those willing suckers that paid $795 for the one-time connectivity package with the in-car hotspot. That got used for livestreaming various parts of the event. [EDIT: Additional info] The car's auto-power off setting must be checked at every ignition cycle!
Charging: The only station that I encountered difficulty with was the Flying J/EVGo station. Half the dispensers were inoperative; and I had to use a bit more oomph to unplug. Otherwise, everything worked phenomenally!
I already look forward to next year's biannual American Solar Challenge, where the solar cars go for a one-week road trip!
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