? Ongoing Trip Journal: Driving Mach-E From Bakersfield, California to Houston, Texas

[digdug52]

If you have not already done so, download a wind conditions app like Windy on your phone. You can use it while charging to have an idea if you will have any head or cross winds that will affect your battery consumption. This will be especially important on your return trip as west, northwest and southwest winds can be strong in West Texas and southern New Mexico, Arizona along I-10.

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[eastern refugee]

If you have not already done so, download a wind conditions app like Windy on your phone. You can use it while charging to have an idea if you will have any head or cross winds that will affect your battery consumption. This will be especially important on your return trip as west, northwest and southwest winds can be strong in West Texas and southern New Mexico, Arizona along I-10.

Thanks. I will do that.

 

[Electric Fusion]

It states on the navigation about 32 hours. I think that includes charging. Our average charging has been 15-20 minutes. This last one was from 17% to 80%. It took 38 minutes. From 17-70% it was 100-111 speed. At 70% it started to drop like a cliff. By 79% it was at 74

your speed is much higher .. I map it to be 90mph max .. and 75mph most of the way . and I know you already know this going above 80% SoC is crazy slow and will add time .. so stay below that and you should be golden..

in my area and on all the routes I normally travel I only use EA .. 150+kw chargers ..I only use EVgo or CP if EA is not available and I can’t make the next EA stop.

 

[Electric Fusion]

So a question. I don't really foresee needing to use a public charger, is it possible to just stop at a charger, put your credit card in and charge or do you HAVE to be registered with EA?

no but ...it will cost allot more if you are not a member

 

[sjtwxman]

I am curious what the sites along I-10 at Ozona and Junction are like. I live about 60 miles north and those are the locations I will hit back and forth to San Antonio.

 

[eastern refugee]

your speed is much higher .. I map it to be 90mph max .. and 75mph most of the way . and I know you already know this going above 80% SoC is crazy slow and will add time .. so stay below that and you should be golden..

in my area and on all the routes I normally travel I only use EA .. 150+kw chargers ..I only use EVgo or CP if EA is not available and I can’t make the next EA stop.

EA is a god send. We had no choice but to use ChargePoint in Blyth Ca and that is a hell hole.

EA has nothing but 350 at everyone that we have been to. Tuscan had 11 CCS Chargers. I have never seen that many. I love EACH as the bright green neon can be seen in bright sunlight. The navigation on the MME is so precise. It directs you DIRECTLY to the charger.

However on the navigation it is TOTALLY unforgiving. If you change the route it will NOT change. You have to delete the trip and reprogram it again. I also do NOT like that I cannot delete trips. If you send it to the car through Ford Pass it is there until you store #11. Saved routes on navigation I do not think can be deleted either but I have to check that out when I get back home.

 

[eastern refugee]

More temperature info. In Benson Arizona which is north of Tombstone temperature is 39 degrees and charging at 127

 

[eastern refugee]

I am curious what the sites along I-10 at Ozona and Junction are like. I live about 60 miles north and those are the locations I will hit back and forth to San Antonio.

I will let you know. From what I can tell Texas is like California, chargers regularly. We are going I-10 due to bad weather on the I-40. However I would not recommend this route out of California.

 

[VegStang]

Yea, that's the route we only take when the weather is bad, but I've driven through the worst tumbleweed/wind storms just southeast of Tuscon. Better than getting stuck for hours on 40 between Tucumcari and Albuquerque due to ice/snow though.

I will let you know. From what I can tell Texas is like California, chargers regularly. We are going I-10 due to bad weather on the I-40. However I would not recommend this route out of California.

 

[eastern refugee]

The only bad part of the drive is between Palm Springs and Arizona. I may have screwed up on charging but if you can avoid Blythe then it would be fine.

Interesting is that gas prices in Arizona and New Mexico is not much different than California

$2.98 here and Cali is around $3.39

 

[JDRGolfer1]

EA is a god send. We had no choice but to use ChargePoint in Blyth Ca and that is a hell hole.

EA has nothing but 350 at everyone that we have been to. Tuscan had 11 CCS Chargers. I have never seen that many. I love EACH as the bright green neon can be seen in bright sunlight. The navigation on the MME is so precise. It directs you DIRECTLY to the charger.

However on the navigation it is TOTALLY unforgiving. If you change the route it will NOT change. You have to delete the trip and reprogram it again. I also do NOT like that I cannot delete trips. If you send it to the car through Ford Pass it is there until you store #11. Saved routes on navigation I do not think can be deleted either but I have to check that out when I get back home.

I can't stand the navigation when it comes to finding charging stations. It's not intuitive at all when you click the find chargers button, it only shows them near you and you have to use the list, you can't zoom out on the map to see them on your route, it's very frustrating. I like to look at where I'm going and check charging stations on the way but you really can't do this unless you use the Fordpass app in your phone.

 

[eastern refugee]

I can't stand the navigation when it comes to finding charging stations. It's not intuitive at all when you click the find chargers button, it only shows them near you and you have to use the list, you can't zoom out on the map to see them on your route, it's very frustrating. I like to look at where I'm going and check charging stations on the way but you really can't do this unless you use the Fordpass app in your phone.

I use the EA app. It is far easier. EA taught me. You pull up to the station and open the app. Before getting out of the car you click on the charger and it authorizes. Saves a few minutes. Also EA takes about 2-3 minutes to recognize car and process payment. Doing this saves several minutes.

 

[GoosePond08]

no but ...it will cost allot more if you are not a member

Its already more expensive than getting Gas... couldn't imagine having to rely on public chargers for electric top offs.

 

[JDRGolfer1]

I use the EA app. It is far easier. EA taught me. You pull up to the station and open the app. Before getting out of the car you click on the charger and it authorizes. Saves a few minutes. Also EA takes about 2-3 minutes to recognize car and process payment. Doing this saves several minutes.

I understand but ideally I'd be able to just hit the charging stations button on the navigation and I'd be able to move the map to show charging stations in the area I'm looking, not just see charging stations near where I'm currently at.

 

[timbop]

Its already more expensive than getting Gas... couldn't imagine having to rely on public chargers for electric top offs.

Gas is creeping back up to $3/gal, so let's assume by the time everyone starts really road tripping that's where it will be. So the cost per mile for ICE comes to:
@ 25mpg: $.12 per mile
@ 30 mpg: $.10 per mile
@ 40 mpg: $.075 per mile

Assuming you road trip with the EA pass+ rate (either ford fixes P&C or you manually initiate with EA pass app), the MME will cost the following per mile (depending on what the warm weather efficiency turns out to be):
@ 2.7 mi/kwh: $.115 per mile
@ 3 mi/kwh: $.103 per mile
@ 3.5 mi/kwh: $.09 per mile

That seems close enough to parity for the road tripping cost to be even; the cost difference on a thousand mile trip would at worst be $15.

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