# Long Distance Road Trip Tips



## ChargePoint (Jul 12, 2017)

Summer is here, the season of road trips! *Do you have tips for long distance road trips in an EV?*

A few suggestions from our Facebook & Twitter communities to kick it off...

Ben: Bring an adapter for RV Parks if you plan to travel through the central or mountain time zones.
Sunil: Use regenerative braking [and] switch to eco mode at high speed
Ed: Instead of the interstate, take the secondary roads [for] better scenery and better ev range.









_Pictured: Van Schmus family! The family stopped by ChargePoint headquarters in Campbell, CA, to recharge before heading back south on their road trip_


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## garsh (Apr 4, 2016)

Don't attempt it in anything but a Tesla. Unless you feel masochistic.


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## NEO (Jun 28, 2017)

Just drove from Tucson to Sun Valley, ID. Easy peasy using the superchargers. We are seeing quite a few Model 3's in Idaho. Meet someone today in Sun Valley that has 2.


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## 3V Pilot (Sep 15, 2017)

I just did a 12 hour road trip yesterday and I have 2 major complaints about this car.

1. The range is WAY more than I can stand, even driving at 80+ MPH this car goes forever!
2. The charge times at WAY too fast and the car is ready to go before I am!

I thought taking a road trip in any EV, even a Tesla, would be an excersice in range anxiety and waiting for the charge to complete so I could get back on my way. Just the opposite on both counts. The trip planning is so precise and the range/charge times are a total non-issue. Plus with the use of Autopilot this car is a road-trip MONSTER!! Keep in mind this is coming from a guy who would do 24 hour plus straight through road tirps in my youth. Too old for that now but this car can still outlast me and I love every minute of it.


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## Brokedoc (May 28, 2017)

Not to sound like a ChargePoint commercial, I also highly recommend signing up for ChargePoint which is free (chargers are free or paid depending on the arrangement with the installing property). On my phone, I also have the PlugShare app.

As great as the Tesla nav is with plotting your route and SC stops, it doesn't show other available charging options. Many of these other options are free which can be a benefit to Model 3 owners that don't get free SC. 

With PlugShare, you can easily see municipality, university, hotel or shopping center chargers that wouldn't appear on Tesla's map. Using these destination chargers is critical especially when doing road trips in cold weather where SC rates can be dramatically slower with a cold battery.


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## garsh (Apr 4, 2016)

Brokedoc said:


> Not to sound like a ChargePoint commercial, I also highly recommend signing up for ChargePoint which is free (chargers are free or paid depending on the arrangement with the installing property).


I second this recommendation.

In addition, Chargepoint (either the website or the phone app) can usually show you the current state of the stations in their network, which you don't get with PlugShare. Now, I say "usually" for two reasons. First, you never know if a station is going to be ICEd. But second, I find that their stations go offline ~20% of the time. They won't appear on ChargePoint's maps when this happens, but the stations themselves continue to work just fine.


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## ChargePoint (Jul 12, 2017)

3V Pilot said:


> I just did a 12 hour road trip yesterday and I have 2 major complaints about this car.
> 
> 1. The range is WAY more than I can stand, even driving at 80+ MPH this car goes forever!
> 2. The charge times at WAY too fast and the car is ready to go before I am!


OK, you got me. I did a doubletake the first time I read this.  Very funny!


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## Tony_YYZ (Nov 1, 2016)

ChargePoint said:


> OK, you got me. I did a doubletake the first time I read this.  Very funny!


Any comments regarding the previous post about the chargers going offline and disappearing from the map even though they are still functional?


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## ChargePoint (Jul 12, 2017)

Tony_YYZ said:


> Any comments regarding the previous post about the chargers going offline and disappearing from the map even though they are still functional?


Station owners determine whether a station is shown on the ChargePoint map and they're able to change that at any time.


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## Tony_YYZ (Nov 1, 2016)

ChargePoint said:


> Station owners determine whether a station is shown on the ChargePoint map and they're able to change that at any time.


That's interesting to know...


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## garsh (Apr 4, 2016)

ChargePoint said:


> Station owners determine whether a station is shown on the ChargePoint map and they're able to change that at any time.


In my case (talking about the stations I know in the Pittsburgh area), it's not due to owners removing stations. The stations sometimes fail to communicate with ChargePoint, and they disappear from the map until communication is restored.


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