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So the e-Tron is an in-town car for us, and that might be OK, but range is definitely, absolutely, without question a factor in driving it.
Not to belabor this point .. again., however, this car might be very suitable as a second car, for suburban people that do not drive in a city but mostly in suburban areas, with roundtrips of no more than 100 or 150 miles. The assumption is that you plug it when you sleep and no worries about running out of electrons.
This used to be the drum beat of EV critics, claiming that EV's could only be "in-town" vehicles. Tesla has almost single handedly proven this wrong. Audi is on their way to this, too. They aren't there yet but getting there fast with Electrify America network. Chargers must be above 100kw and spaced at 75-125 miles apart to make these vehicles accepted as long range capable in my opinion.
I have a second vehicle but it's a tough sell to the average person to say you just need to buy a second car to make this one viable.
I agree that if you check Plugshare you can find chargers all over the place. Unfortunately, in my area, the kW is not listed on most, or is 50 kW max. This would mean spending an hour or more, depending upon how much charge you need. For a long trip this is not practical. I have access to free charging where I park at work, but it is 6.6 kW, and there are only 2 spots for the whole garage. That's fine for parking all day. The charging infrastructure is not there yet, like it is for Tesla. Even charging on the Tesla Supercharger network can be <100 kW. If and when the EA charging network gets built up with 150 kW chargers, long distance travel in the e-Tron gets manageable. To be conservative, I'd argue that if you were traveling on a highway like I95, I80, I90 in the winter, temp 15degF, snowing, getting more than 100 miles/full charge is unlikely. I think you need rapid charging every 100 miles to eliminate range anxiety. I know, that's a lot of chargers. I'm not trying to be negative, just realistic. If the e-Tron was your only car, I could foresee plenty of situations were you'd need to rent an ICE car.
To be honest I don't think the charging structure is there for Tesla either. Even Tesla's are really only meant for City and close in town travel. Most Tesla drivers discover this fairly soon. I wish the company would be more careful with its claims. Most of the technology needed for a full EV transition is not here yet. It will get here, just need to be a little patient. In the meant time buy your EV as somewhere on the transition curve, not the final product.
This guy has a good delivery. Nice review for those in need of a boost. Posted on this thread since he comes at things from a direction I appreciate; quality, dynamics, design. Wish he could have avoided the Tesla-bait title, but that's how they make money.
Beyond the title, the guy loses credibility by demonstrating a marked ignorance of EVs in general (and Teslas in particular). It's nice to be enthusiastic, but a little context goes a long way. Not to mention, he drives on the wrong side of the road :-)
To be honest I don't think the charging structure is there for Tesla either. Even Tesla's are really only meant for City and close in town travel. Most Tesla drivers discover this fairly soon
I suppose that depends on where you live. I purchased my first EV (a 75KWh Model S) in 2016 by flying to Houston, buying it, and immediately road-tripping it all the way back to the west coast. The charging network made long distance road trips on primary routes a non-issue 3 years ago. Since then, there are literally several times more chargers now than there were then, with many of them filling in the gaps far from an interstate highway. Today on my long drives, I typically have several routes to choose from, making the decision more about the scenery and speed of arrival rather than charger density.
I suppose that depends on where you live. I purchased my first EV (a 75KWh Model S) in 2016 by flying to Houston, buying it, and immediately road-tripping it all the way back to the west coast. The charging network made long distance road trips on primary routes a non-issue 3 years ago. Since then, there are literally several times more chargers now than there were then, with many of them filling in the gaps far from an interstate highway. Today on my long drives, I typically have several routes to choose from, making the decision more about the scenery and speed of arrival rather than charger density.
This is what I'm talking about. I understand the supercharger network isn't perfect, but it didn't happen overnight. In my area, the EA network is sparse, and I'm talking about Boston. There are a lot of "destination" chargers around, but you'll need to spend hours charging. I'd argue that for the next couple of years, every bit of range you can get helps.
This is what I'm talking about. I understand the supercharger network isn't perfect, but it didn't happen overnight. In my area, the EA network is sparse, and I'm talking about Boston. There are a lot of "destination" chargers around, but you'll need to spend hours charging. I'd argue that for the next couple of years, every bit of range you can get helps.
Between Nebraska and Idaho, looks like over half the "stations" are RV parks with 240v wall plugs - about 9 hours for a full charge and another 150-200 miles on your way. Not quite as slow as a wagon train, but not quite 21st century yet....
Perhaps others have had a different experience. In my experience, the Tesla Supercharger network has been fast, reliable, and has almost perfect coverage. You really can go almost anywhere and you just plug in; no apps, connection payments, or compatibility issues. See for yourself using the routing tool:
As big of a fan as I am of the e-tron, it simply doesn't have this convenient of long distance travel yet. It will probably never happen but it would be great if the e-tron could charge at Tesla Superchargers. Here's some corner-to-corner cross country examples:
04-18-2019, 01:02 PM
