My first 650 miles with a BEV

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EbS-P

Minister of Fire
Jan 19, 2019
5,861
SE North Carolina
My trip odometer on my new to me BEV (2016 Model X P100d) clicked over 500 650 miles this this week and I thought I would share some of my thoughts. So far I have resisted the urge to leverage this to catapult me to YouTube fame. (I’m so over I have a Tesla I’m a wannabe YouTube star but I’d be lying if I told you the thought never crossed my mind).

It’s been a busy 6 weeks. the car arrived two weeks early after a significant delay but none of that matter except we we’re expecting another baby and she arrived two weeks after the the car. We weren’t prepared… for the car (she’s our fifth we thought we had that routine all down…. she was born on the bedroom floor totally not intentional.). We didn’t have a home charger yet.

So serval trips and nights nights in the hospital were spent Thinking the baby was coming but wasn’t. That meant I had to plan trips to the supercharging station. It’s only 2.5 miles from the house, less than 10 minutes. This should have been fine. Free supercharging transferred with the car. And it worked 4/6 times I went to charge. Twice I got a charge error that google hadn’t even heard of. Tesla customer service over the phone was helpful in so far yep that’s an error can you get to the service center 180 miles away. Each time I was able to plug into an AC charger and able to charge fine. After the first error I placed an order the a wall charger and after the second, made time to install it. (Remember that whole new baby thing, time is tight).

So you have the back story.


Since installing my home chargers I have not felt any range anxiety. At most I drive 60 miles a day with 30 being average. Once I was able to plug in at home it felt like a regular car. (The model X is the least regular car I’ve ever driven. Previous drivers ranged from MG midgets to wheat trucks but you get my point). The 2011 Odyssey Has 100 miles on its current tank of gas that was fueled before X arrived. We still need it. There are 7 of us. Tesla seats 6, not much room for stuff.

After reading up on the EV production landscape I’m sold that Tesla has and will have the best overall product available for at least the next 2-5 years. Ford will be their only competition until a new foreign automaker gains traction in the US. I don’t think anyone can touch their self driving software.


Teslas First gen infotainment computer is slow. The driving computer is equally slow to boot but runs FSD. (Who is still using a five year old laptop or computer every day). Rated mileages are smoke an mirrors. If it’s cold or hot or you leave it parked it drains the battery and cuts your range. my best guess is the consumption Wh/mile is about 1.5x larger than stated. 617 miles driven and the display is stating I used 220 KWhr. 350ish kw hr per mile. Nope more like 500 kwhr per miles. I’m sure newer BEV will be or are doing better but think how many used BEVs will be sold in the future. Heavy Tesla’s eat tires. 20-25k miles on a set seems normal. I just put on a new set of Michelin Crossclimate SUV. Tires. I like the regular version on my van. So yeah let’s put them on a super car. Oh and they are directional and the X has different sized front and rear tires. So you never need to rotate them. We’ll see how that works out. But if it ever snows down here I have an all wheel drive SUV with triple peak snowflake tires. (It’s the winter tire rating but they have really good wet traction and that was all that was buying on).

My advice. Plan now for home charging. Takes only time to give it some thought. Where will you charge how much range do you need for your daily driving? I don’t think the BEV can ever replace a ICE vehicle for us. We now have 3 Registered and insured autos. Seems excessive but they are paid for and the SO doesn’t have to drive a minivan, ever. Sure I could replace the RAV4 with a BEV but it won’t save money. And it sees less than 4K miles a year.

The BEV market is going to see unpressurized growth in the next 24 months. Brands we’ve never heard of will start making strong plays for market share. google Vinfast. I’m betting that you have a 50/50 chance that if buy a car over 30K in 2 years it will be a BEV.


Well that’s enough. I like the Battery Car. It’s got it’s quarks. I have probably ruined every other car purchase I will ever make. But for now driving is easy. I’ll let know what my service experience is.

Evan
 
We now have 3 Registered and insured autos. Seems excessive but they are paid for and the SO doesn’t have to drive a minivan, ever. Sure I could replace the RAV4 with a BEV but it won’t save money. And it sees less than 4K miles a year.
It's funny you should mention this. With 2 drivers and 3 cars at our house, we're looking to downsize. Our experience with our 2015 Leaf has convinced us that an EV with a range of about 40 miles handles about 95% of our trips. Enter the Toyota RAV4 Prime PHEV with an advertised EV range of about 40 miles - perfect since we need to take occasional trips on routes without good charging coverage. We thought we'd buy the RAV4 PHEV and get rid of the Leaf and our aging Highlander hybrid (the other vehicle is a Tacoma). Trouble is, the RAV4 PHEV is apparently made of semi-unobtanium and Toyota will soon hit its limit on federal EV tax credits.

I guess we'll probably be looking for a used one later on.
 
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Congratulations on the newborn Evan. It sounds like you have your hands full. Hope the oldest can pitch in and help mom.

True that foreign mfgs. are moving along, but I have to disagree with the assessment of the US car market. GM is definitely not snoozing. The Bolt is back in production and the new generation of trucks and vehicles are looking good so far. More vehicles built on the Ulitium platform coming next year and following. Rivian would double production if it weren't for supply issues. FCA has an EV Jeep. Honda and GM are also partnering to make under $30k EVs.
 
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Congratulations on the newborn Evan. It sounds like you have your hands full. Hope the oldest can pitch in and help mom.

True that foreign mfgs. are moving along, but I have to disagree with the assessment of the US car market. GM is definitely not snoozing. The Bolt is back in production and the new generation of trucks and vehicles are looking good so far. More vehicles built on the Ulitium platform coming next year and following. Rivian would double production if it weren't for supply issues. FCA has an EV Jeep. Honda and GM are also partnering to make under $30k EVs.
Thanks! Its been a busy spring. The oldest turned 11 two weeks ago. Told me last week he wanted to split some firewood. A baby girl couldn’t ever find 4 more loving big brothers.

I’m excited to see what happens. I hope trucks don’t dominate the US market. I wondering what choices the the big three will make if faced with scare supplies. I hope the Bolt comes back strong.
 
The 2023 Blazer EV is coming out next. Next will be the Equinox EV in fall 2023. I suspect it will replace the Bolt, but not sure.
 

This might interest a family of 7?
We are definitely sized for a 9k+ GVWR van when we vacation;) I do find it interesting that neither ford or bright drop are offering passenger versions of their battery vans.
 
I think that's a scale issue; see.if it works well in a larger frame like this - but supplying (many) fleet vehicles. If that works well, convert the frame to passenger van and add to the line.
 
I think that's a scale issue; see.if it works well in a larger frame like this - but supplying (many) fleet vehicles. If that works well, convert the frame to passenger van and add to the line.
I agree. I think I read that Fords EV lines will be built in different places than the ICE. Makes sense not to build the tooling that you don’t know if you need yet.
 
It's funny you should mention this. With 2 drivers and 3 cars at our house, we're looking to downsize. Our experience with our 2015 Leaf has convinced us that an EV with a range of about 40 miles handles about 95% of our trips. Enter the Toyota RAV4 Prime PHEV with an advertised EV range of about 40 miles - perfect since we need to take occasional trips on routes without good charging coverage. We thought we'd buy the RAV4 PHEV and get rid of the Leaf and our aging Highlander hybrid (the other vehicle is a Tacoma). Trouble is, the RAV4 PHEV is apparently made of semi-unobtanium and Toyota will soon hit its limit on federal EV tax credits.

I guess we'll probably be looking for a used one later on.
There has been a lot of demand for the RAV4 prime. I think it’s a great concept. I have to question why they didn’t do a prime Sienna or Highlander? Moot point if you can’t actually buy one. I think the limited number manufacturer EV tax credits worked to speed up innovation but it’s now going to hinder wide scale adoption. We need something else. I argue switching to a used BEV should be encouraged too. At this point it probably needs to include electrical grid improvements to power companies who could could intern incentive home charging with rebates.

I’ve often taken the Swiss Army knife approach to vehicles. Get the that does the the most things but isn’t the very best at a single thing. Having a large family used to mean a big full sized SUV was the answer. I don’t want to drive one everyday. So we got a minivan. Issue is now we can’t even pull a pop up tent trailer that would fit our family for say a 2-3 week vacation. We want to travel. Probably not camp every night but we enjoy the outdoors. I just don’t see a BEV being able to accomplish this. We aren’t like most families. Meet the Sequoia hybrid. Two kids ago sure. Not big enough for 7 and a dog when you have to evacuate. B4AB38FE-3A3A-470D-A200-338C717A4BAD.jpeg

So I’m wondering if I have to rethink my Swiss Army knife approach? BEV around town that just barely has enough room, and a big ICE power van (or SUV). The whole battery powered keep concept with a manual transmission and what a silly idea that is to me got me thinking about what compromises I have made and will be willing to make on a very purpose built vehicle.
 
IMO, Toyota needed a PR vehicle, Rav 4s are popular and already configured as a hybrid. My belief is Toyota was planning to lose money on everyone they sold and priced it to take maximum advantage of the EV credit (soon to be no longer for Toyotas). The first shipments tended to be lower profit SEs and once they thought they had a hit, they shifted more production to the XSE and more deluxe models with lots of more profitable options on each one. The SE pricing was intended to make them competitive with other brands once the $7,500 credit was deducted. They are only built in Japan and shipped around the world. Japan is no longer a low cost production country so that adds cost.

Toyota had been holding off on BEVs as a corporate decision, they prefer hybrids and were guessing that battery vehicles would be beaten out by hydrogen. Unfortunately that was a PR disaster and they made the decision to get a plug in hybrid out on the road to get back some good PR. Note the announced full battery Toyota is actually a Subaru. Toyota has now made a big investment in US battery manufacturing line so they will be increasing their offerings.
 
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We are definitely sized for a 9k+ GVWR van when we vacation;) I do find it interesting that neither ford or bright drop are offering passenger versions of their battery vans.
I think as the market matures that EV vans and minivans will start showing up.
 
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IMO, Toyota needed a PR vehicle, Rav 4s are popular and already configured as a hybrid. My belief is Toyota was planning to lose money on everyone they sold and priced it to take maximum advantage of the EV credit (soon to be no longer for Toyotas).
Toyota and Subaru have collaborated on an EV project. Look at the Subaru 2023 Solterra EV SUV and coming soon its doppelganger, the Toyota bZ4x.
 
Congrats on lil #5, and joining the lifestyle. I got EV#1 way back in 2014, as a second car with wife (#2) and two small kids. Now I'm a happily divorced empty nester, and on my 3rd EV. ;lol

Both kids learned to drive on EVs, and when they have to drive an ICE car say 'Why does it make that rumbling noise all the time?' :rolleyes:

Enjoy!
 
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Oh, and your car will give the rated Wh/mi or mi/kWh when it is warm out and not raining. Like SoCal weather. Just wait for it to warm up a little more.

Oh, and I tend to park in the sun in the winter and in the shade in the summer. :)
 
Preheating the car interior with remote start while it's still plugged into the charger helps quite a bit too.
 
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So I wanted to check how much electricity I’m using. Now that I’m charging at home. Heatpump hasn’t been on much in April so this represents our total family energy consumption plus a couples gallons of gas for the van. (Less than 5)

Roughly after all the fees we pay $0.134 per KWh on about 900 kWh bill. 7% tax is included and a 14$ service fee. So the whopping total to drive 150–180 miles a week is about 10 kWh a day or $1.34. I’m impressed. So one EV uses less electricity than our AC during the summer. And I probably supercharged for 80 kWh each month.

Charger was installed on March 12. I feel I could geek out about the numbers and get a system to monitor just how much electricity I’m using to charge but I never cared how much gas I used in a month. So this is as detailed as I think will get. What I save over gas might just pay for the tires;)

Evan

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Does the novelty of near silent propulsion ever wear off?
 
Does the novelty of near silent propulsion ever wear off?
Lol. With kids it’s never silent… but musk did figure out how to connect the right pedal to facial control muscles. The further is goes down the bigger you smile ;) and no it’s not getting old.
 
Lol. With kids it’s never silent… but musk did figure out how to connect the right pedal to facial control muscles. The further is goes down the bigger you smile ;) and no it’s not getting old.
I've never been in a fast EV, but I can only imagine it feels like my diesel truck, but silent and "geared" for acceleration.
 
It does not feel at all like a diesel truck...
(Only been in a Tesla once.)
 
I've never been in a fast EV, but I can only imagine it feels like my diesel truck, but silent and "geared" for acceleration.
That instant torque at any moment is like nothing I have ever felt. I drove the van this week. You got the gas nothing happened makes noise downshifts still no change in acceleration. It’s kinda weird to have to have a transmission shift. I do remember the first time got my grandfathers powerstroke on the highway all to myself. It’s kinda like that but…. In the time it takes get the turbo spooled you are already going 60.
 
It does not feel at all like a diesel truck...
(Only been in a Tesla once.)
Feeling your insides rearranged is a feeling I never had in a truck.
 
It does not feel at all like a diesel truck...
(Only been in a Tesla once.)
That instant torque at any moment is like nothing I have ever felt. I drove the van this week. You got the gas nothing happened makes noise downshifts still no change in acceleration. It’s kinda weird to have to have a transmission shift. I do remember the first time got my grandfathers powerstroke on the highway all to myself. It’s kinda like that but…. In the time it takes get the turbo spooled you are already going 60.
Apparently my turbo spools a lot faster than those 7.3's, because I hit the accelerator and my truck just goes. It's way too heavy, the gearing is too short, and the powerband is short to really accelerate quickly, but I've seen modded diesel trucks put down tesla numbers. I was really trying to get an idea of torque delivery. It must be weird not having any gear changes, ever. I wouldn't mind not having a manual transmission if there are no gear changes anyway.
 
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Feeling your insides rearranged is a feeling I never had in a truck.

Yeah. That was more like a jet engine for me.