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Ok, let's compare experiences: Gas: I'm driving West across the state of Colorado, I'm on I-70 in the mountains, with 2 other vehicles, they get dramatically l

Ok, let's compare experiences: Gas: I'm driving West across the state of Colorado, I'm on I-70 in the mountains, with 2 other vehicles, they get dramatically longer range than I do. I can see 1-2 miles most of the time. My car tells me it's range, but I have no idea where the upcoming petro stations are, I just know that they're going to be "pretty frequent". So at 50 miles I start looking for a station. I pull off, I might have to wait, but usually no more than a few minutes, usually not. I have to mess around with the credit card reader. It's the better part of $100. Tesla: I tell the car my destination and it tells me where I'm going to stop to charge and for how long. I pull up, I might have to wait but usually not. I plug in. It's free. Which one is the ordeal?

brnt 3y ago
Nav systems have been able to get you to gas stations for ages?
- linsomniac 3y ago
  If you say so, seems plausible but I haven't seen one. But, back to the point, where's the ordeal in the Tesla experience?
  - brnt 3y ago
    I've been driving across Europe for decades now, and I have not even once worried about not finding a fuel station on time. Even without nav each most highway stations have a sign stating the distance to the next one, so if you like the excitement of nearly running out you can, but otherwise you just fill up pretty much whenever. The term 'range anxiety' hasn't come into our vocabulary until electric cars for a reason I think: it just wasn't there. In a very distant past the only worry might've been if I had enough cash currency of the country I was currently in.
    - linsomniac 3y ago
      It's a bit different in the US, there are areas where they have signs up saying "X miles to next services" because of 50+ mile stretches without stations. I distinctly remember years ago trying to figure out how fast I could go across a section of Montana without running out of fuel between stations, so it's not entirely unheard of hear to have "range anxiety".
      - brnt 3y ago
        There are some stretches of 100+ km sans fuel stations in Europe too. It still isn't a problem, since you simply don't need to drive as much near the end of your projected range as you will in an electric car.
stonogo 3y ago
The one where the Tesla's battery system is miscalibrated and you run out of power three miles from the charging station it was routing you to. I'm a happy EV owner, but I'll never rent one again. Meanwhile, to be fair, you don't need satnav to get to a gas station -- I-70 has signs a mile or two before every exit telling you which gas stations there are, just like the rest of the interstate system. I'd like to see another blue sign with charging stations, and which businesses you can relax in while you charge!
- linsomniac 3y ago
  While the number of miles it shows for range is wildly inaccurate on the highway, the navigation does not seem to be impacted by that. When I've been unable to make the next charger, it has warned me a good hour ahead of time, and slowing down by 10-20 MPH has given me the range I needed. I've never run out before hitting a charging station. I'm in agreement that I think they are terrible for most rental car needs.
treflop 3y ago
Gas: I enter my destination into Google/Apple Maps, see my range, and pick a station along the way, preferably before I run out of gas. Excluding Costco, I’ve waited at a gas station maybe 5 times in 15 years of driving across the US and in the world.

brnt 3y ago

Nav systems have been able to get you to gas stations for ages?

linsomniac 3y ago
If you say so, seems plausible but I haven't seen one. But, back to the point, where's the ordeal in the Tesla experience?
- brnt 3y ago
  I've been driving across Europe for decades now, and I have not even once worried about not finding a fuel station on time. Even without nav each most highway stations have a sign stating the distance to the next one, so if you like the excitement of nearly running out you can, but otherwise you just fill up pretty much whenever. The term 'range anxiety' hasn't come into our vocabulary until electric cars for a reason I think: it just wasn't there. In a very distant past the only worry might've been if I had enough cash currency of the country I was currently in.
  - linsomniac 3y ago
    It's a bit different in the US, there are areas where they have signs up saying "X miles to next services" because of 50+ mile stretches without stations. I distinctly remember years ago trying to figure out how fast I could go across a section of Montana without running out of fuel between stations, so it's not entirely unheard of hear to have "range anxiety".
    - brnt 3y ago
      There are some stretches of 100+ km sans fuel stations in Europe too. It still isn't a problem, since you simply don't need to drive as much near the end of your projected range as you will in an electric car.

stonogo 3y ago

The one where the Tesla's battery system is miscalibrated and you run out of power three miles from the charging station it was routing you to. I'm a happy EV owner, but I'll never rent one again. Meanwhile, to be fair, you don't need satnav to get to a gas station -- I-70 has signs a mile or two before every exit telling you which gas stations there are, just like the rest of the interstate system. I'd like to see another blue sign with charging stations, and which businesses you can relax in while you charge!

linsomniac 3y ago
While the number of miles it shows for range is wildly inaccurate on the highway, the navigation does not seem to be impacted by that. When I've been unable to make the next charger, it has warned me a good hour ahead of time, and slowing down by 10-20 MPH has given me the range I needed. I've never run out before hitting a charging station. I'm in agreement that I think they are terrible for most rental car needs.

treflop 3y ago

Gas: I enter my destination into Google/Apple Maps, see my range, and pick a station along the way, preferably before I run out of gas. Excluding Costco, I’ve waited at a gas station maybe 5 times in 15 years of driving across the US and in the world.