BK2EV

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Over the Thanksgiving holiday we decided to go for our first EV road trip in the Mach-e. The following represents a quick overview and thoughts along with some humor.

Itinerary - Northern VA to Charleston SC and back (1,000+ miles)

Prelim - We still had our free KWs on Fordpass to use so we figured the 95 corridor was a great route with lots of charging avail. We could be monogamous with Electrify America and use our free charging. Hey, then EA had free charging over the holiday weekend anyway, so we saved some free KWs for another trip.

A few days prior to departure I looked at the Electrify America and plotted out our route and charging stops. Cross-checked that with google maps for mileage accuracy. NoVA - Emporia VA - Lumberton NC - Charleston SC.


Day before (Thanksgiving) - brisket and turkey sitting on the table. All the trimmings looking good...... I decided the strategic thing to do was to minimize quantity of intake to minimize Fridays trip stops (planned or other)....

The trip - Charged to 100% at home and hit the road early AM Friday and I'm behind the wheel. Cruising a few above the speed limit no issues to report. First stop Emporia VA where EA is located at the Walmart shopping center. Arrived, plugged-in, P&C worked as advertised and charging began. We decided to visit Walmart for a bio break. Great for me. When I exited the facilities the wife said "lets get the h$ll outta here". On our way out of Walmart she detailed how someone in the stall next to her began selling buicks in restroom and other stuff. Good thing a Starbucks is right there too. 80% charge achieved, unplug and we drive over to Starbucks. Super clean, super nice.... took 15 mins to get a coffee or 2 and we were off. Wife is driving the 2nd leg to Lumberton. Trip computer showed 50 miles to spare between total range and miles to Lumberton charger.

Did I mention the wife likes to drive fast.... and keep extra warm. Yes, she scored a 2.4 efficiency rating. Range anxiety is real. After an uneventful drive we squeaked into Lumberton NC to our second stop. About 15 miles to spare. Again, Walmart shopping center with a Chic fil a within easy walk. Plugged in, P&C worked as advertised and charging began. We were off to Chic Fil A. Bio break, got some biscuits (some mustard too.... thank you). Walked back from Chic Fil A to find another car charging next to us.... Another Mach-E. Cool!! Anyone here?? 80% charge achieved and we unplug and hit the road.

I get us through the third leg and we arrive at our hotel destination. Which by design has some L2 charging avail to guests. Plug in and let the recharge begin.

Enjoyed the weekend with friends in the Charleston area. Things we enjoyed: Acme Lowcountry Kitchen @ Isle of Palm - Great food, Twisted Sugar - for cookies one night, Bad Daddys Burger bar - had some great food including buffalo burger, Bahama Breeze - Some great island themed food and drinks. Downtown Charleston and Isle of Pam were nice.

Early AM Monday we boarded the Mach-E and headed for home. 100% charge at departure - first stop Lumberton. Chic Fil A, P&C to 80% and we were outta there. Wife driving again, and her desire for a "hot" cabin we decided to add a stop in Rocky Mount NC at the Sheetz for a quick 10-20% charge, coffe and a slim jim. It was off to Emporia from there. P&C success again, charge to 80. And this is where we realized that the Emporia Starbucks has to be the slowest Starbucks in VA. I mean we sat in the drive thru not moving for at least 15-20 minutes with only 1 car in front of us.

Final leg of the trip was uneventful and we landed at home base NoVA with about 25 miles range left on the ticker.


Notes & Observations:

We really weren't impacted by charge time. EA stations were delivering about 120ish peak and on the way back we saw 150+ peak at the Rocky Mount sheetz. As long as there is someplace to make your bladder gladder and grab a quick snack the charge time is mostly transparent.

The Mach-E was a great ride over the course of 1,000+ miles. Got some great seat time. Too bad blue cruise was delayed....

Zero issues with P&C - 5 uses, 5 successes.

Road Tripping is easily doable along the 95 corridor. Dont wait.... go for it.

If only we had gotten the customer satisfaction update done before the trip.... that fast charging to 90% would have relieved the range anxiety.

We enjoyed our trip and may even plan a spring or summer trip.

Later

BK2EV
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MME_Adventurist

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Awesome story! I’ll be driving similar route when my Mach E arrives! Are you in an AWD or RWD and ER or SR?
 

mkhuffman

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Wife driving again, and her desire for a "hot" cabin we decided to add a stop in Rocky Mount NC at the Sheetz for a quick 10-20% charge, coffe and a slim jim.
I used that one on my trip to Jacksonville, NC. It was a great experience. Clean, good counter food, easy place to spend 35 minutes charging up.

At the various charging stops, did you only see one other car charging? I was wondering how the Thanksgiving weekend travel would be and if the chargers would fill up. Sounds like that didn't happen on your trip. Was the traffic bad on 95, or did you happen to travel when most people were not?
 

RickMachE

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Those stops get expensive with all the snacks you buy... ?
 

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Zero issues with P&C - 5 uses, 5 successes.
Sorry to burst your bubble, but during EA free weekends no initiating or P&C happened.

Your EA account should have logs of charge history/stats and you should get app + text notifications but during the free weekends... none of these sessions are recorded.
 


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Did I mention the wife likes to drive fast.... and keep extra warm. Yes, she scored a 2.4 efficiency rating. Range anxiety is real. After an uneventful drive we squeaked into Lumberton NC to our second stop. About 15 miles to spare. Again, Walmart shopping center with a Chic fil a within easy walk. Plugged in, P&C worked as advertised and charging began. We were off to Chic Fil A. Bio break, got some biscuits (some mustard too.... thank you). Walked back from Chic Fil A to find another car charging next to us.... Another Mach-E. Cool!! Anyone here?? 80% charge achieved and we unplug and hit the road.
Did she have the heated seats cranked up? That might save some of the heater usage.
 

macgyver60

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Two questions

1) What is the "customer satisfaction update" and is that an OTC update or something the dealer has to do?

2) Why are they selling Buicks in the ladies room at Walmart and especially to a MachE owner, yuck.
 

MrClean

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Two questions

1) What is the "customer satisfaction update" and is that an OTC update or something the dealer has to do?

2) Why are they selling Buicks in the ladies room at Walmart and especially to a MachE owner, yuck.
I believe that is a euphemism for getting sick. Trying to sell your cousin Earrrrrlllllll a buuuuuiiickkkkkk. ?
 

timbop

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As long as there is someplace to make your bladder gladder and grab a quick snack the charge time is mostly transparent.
Absolutely agree. It takes a little effort, but I used ABRP to plan out my long trip to coincide longer charging stops with food breaks and 2 shorter charging sessions in the afternoon instead of 1 longer one so that we had almost zero waiting time for the charging to finish. On several occasions we were chatting with other EV owners and charged longer than we needed to just because we were gabbing.

The Mach-E was a great ride over the course of 1,000+ miles. Got some great seat time.
That is my experience also

Road Tripping is easily doable along the 95 corridor. Dont wait.... go for it.
Absolutely
 

Maquis

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Those stops get expensive with all the snacks you buy... ?
Truth!
My fist “free charge” was EA in a Walmart lot. We went inside. I bought towels and glass cleaner since charge stations aren’t like gas stations - that “Ah-ha” moment! Wife got snacks & drinks. Free ended up being about $27. ?
 

RickMachE

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My point was that some travel differently than others. When we do a road trip, we buy almost nothing on the road. We pack a cooler with our lunch, sometimes dinner, and drinks and snacks. We may get a nice coffee if we feel like it, but in general we spend nothing on the road. It appears some people buy food every stop. Gets real expensive that way.
 

timbop

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My point was that some travel differently than others. When we do a road trip, we buy almost nothing on the road. We pack a cooler with our lunch, sometimes dinner, and drinks and snacks. We may get a nice coffee if we feel like it, but in general we spend nothing on the road. It appears some people buy food every stop. Gets real expensive that way.
That may be, but my guess is that most people won't change their habits with a BEV. They will stop for food at mealtimes regardless of whether they are driving a BEV or an ICE. I know that is true in my case, and I also would stop at least once in the afternoon for a bio break and to stretch my legs (and possibly get a drink or snack) whether driving my Mach E or the wife's Durango. Stopping a second time in the afternoon to charge doesn't compel me to buy anything.

Regardless, you're still going to forego buying something at the charging location, right?
 

dbsb3233

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Sorry to burst your bubble, but during EA free weekends no initiating or P&C happened.

Your EA account should have logs of charge history/stats and you should get app + text notifications but during the free weekends... none of these sessions are recorded.
Mine initiated perfectly on the free weekend. Just plug in and it starts. Did 5 EA charges between Denver and Las Vegas. But you're right that they don't show up in your EA app charge logs, because when it's free it doesn't even connect to your EA account. It does show up in the FordPass charge logs though.
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