Supercharger Station With Pull-Through Spots For Cybertruck & EV Trucks (or Towing / Bike Racks! - Spotted at Santa Nella

[SwampNut]

Puns are life.

Me right now...

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[Bill906]

I love dad jokes, but I don't have any kids...
I guess that makes me a faux pas.

 

[SwampNut]

 

[HaulingAss]

Driving through Idaho and Montana I was pleasantly surprised that the Superchargers were only about 20% occupied. Both days were Saturday.

The mainstream media has made sure that anyone who has never travelled long distances in a Tesla just assumes that full Superchargers are a real problem, including cars ICEing Superchargers. In five years I don't recall seeing a single ICE car in a Supercharger stall and, if there was one, it wouldn't matter anyway, because there were always plenty of other unused stalls. I'm sure the lines shown in the media are real in some areas and and certain points in the growth of the Supercharger Network, it's just that long lines don't happen as often as they make it seem. I still haven't seen a single Supercharger line.

If you listen to MSM, you will assume Supercharging probably involves a lot of long lines to get charged up and maybe even fisticuffs, LOL! Kind of like MSM makes it seem like Tesla's catch on fire more often than gasoline cars. The "news" has gone from informing people what was going on around them, to misinforming them by focusing on things that rarely happen and making them seem common.

 

[SwampNut]

We need signs at the pull through spots.

 

[Ogre]

I don’t see the pull through issue as a huge deal anymore. Gas stations have dealt with similar issues for years, they just have excess capacity. If you have a trailer, you are much more likely to have to wait more often. It’s the same with gas stations, vehicles with trailers often take up 2 spaces even when there is a line.

Teslas speed at putting up new stations is catching up with their sales. Lines at charging stations are less and less common. Stations with accommodations for trailers are more and more common. This trend will continue.

 

[SwampNut]

I’ve been towing things all my life, tens of thousands of miles. The number of times I’ve had to wait at all can be counted on one hand. The number of times I’ve had to wait more than 10 minutes? None.

 

[kbolt]

The mainstream media has made sure that anyone who has never travelled long distances in a Tesla just assumes that full Superchargers are a real problem, including cars ICEing Superchargers. In five years I don't recall seeing a single ICE car in a Supercharger stall and, if there was one, it wouldn't matter anyway, because there were always plenty of other unused stalls. I'm sure the lines shown in the media are real in some areas and and certain points in the growth of the Supercharger Network, it's just that long lines don't happen as often as they make it seem. I still haven't seen a single Supercharger line.

If you listen to MSM, you will assume Supercharging probably involves a lot of long lines to get charged up and maybe even fisticuffs, LOL! Kind of like MSM makes it seem like Tesla's catch on fire more often than gasoline cars. The "news" has gone from informing people what was going on around them, to misinforming them by focusing on things that rarely happen and making them seem common.

I've had to wait twice in south Las Vegas once for 30 minutes. I've had to wait once in southern California but only for a few minutes. I've had to wait twice in southern Utah but only for a few minutes as well. It does happen, bit I see a 45 minute wait at Costco for the gas pumps every day so I'm not too concerned.

 

[Ogre]

I’ve had many times where I’ve rolled up to gas stations and just kept driving because they were full and I didn’t want to wait. I’ve had the same experience with Supercharging, only I don’t have to stop because the car tells me how many spaces are open. Once, on a holiday weekend I drove past 2 Superchargers which were full or nearly full and wound up waiting at a third for about 10 minutes.

I’ve had gas stations that I saw on a map be closed down by the time I got there and had to divert 10+ minutes out of the way to fuel up. If you’ve ”Never” been delayed or inconvenienced due to issues with fueling up, I’d suggest you are not the normal case.

Super chargers have different issues than gas stations. Not more, but different.

 

[SwampNut]

I’ve skipped one to avoid a wait. You don’t get that choice with SCs right now. I just drove 400 miles with a trailer on my M3 today, I had few choices.

 

[Crissa]

I’ve been towing things all my life, tens of thousands of miles. The number of times I’ve had to wait at all can be counted on one hand. The number of times I’ve had to wait more than 10 minutes? None.

Really? Do you never travel during holidays?

On the routes that Superchargers got jammed are the same ones where I had to wait an hour once to get through the line to park at the rest stop somewhere between Needles and Barstow.

Then again, I once had to add a hundred miles to find a gas station with power after taking two detours to avoid an incoming bomb cyclone in the Trinities. Came out at Red Bluff an' the power was out and had to bypass Corning 'cause the same.

??‍

Just to say, it's not all the hard to find these to report on them - the grapevine over by Great America is the other big trap, as they had people who were stopping there on their way home instead of charging at home.

The guys on the e-moto forums are always wondering why there's so many chargers on 80, and I'm like, 'because storms and holidays'. Gotta build for the peak, not the average.

-Crissa

 

[Greshnab]

I don’t see the pull through issue as a huge deal anymore. Gas stations have dealt with similar issues for years, they just have excess capacity. If you have a trailer, you are much more likely to have to wait more often. It’s the same with gas stations, vehicles with trailers often take up 2 spaces even when there is a line.

Teslas speed at putting up new stations is catching up with their sales. Lines at charging stations are less and less common. Stations with accommodations for trailers are more and more common. This trend will continue.

gas stations are in a different type of area.. most super chargers are in parking lots for other venues stores malls restaurants etc.. they are a convenience to that places customers. Gas stations otoh are the primary draw for a C-Store... they are what bring people into the store to make sales.

Also remember when you compare things a gas pump hose is a hollow tube... it is fairly light.. electrical cable is NOT light.

 

[cvalue13]

Not sure I’m following the comparisons to gas stations.

Gas stations are designed, every one, for pull-through. Both at the pump and in the “driveway” design. And designed in lanes of pairs of pumps, so as to only ever block a single unused pump if a trailer or long vehicle is there.

Back-in supercharger stalls seem a different affair entirely?

 

[HaulingAss]

I’ve skipped one to avoid a wait. You don’t get that choice with SCs right now. I just drove 400 miles with a trailer on my M3 today, I had few choices.

When I drive my Model 3 Performance on Interstate 90 through the wide open spaces of Eastern Washington on my way through Idaho and into Montona, I skip a lot of Superchargers, not because they are full, but because I don't need to stop. Even when my cruising speed is north of 90! This is the advantage of the reliability (and density) of the Supercharger Network, you don't have to worry the next one might not be working. If one was broken, for any reason, you can see on your screen how many remaining working stalls there are (it treats broken stalls as a stall in use, I believe).

Now, if you are driving a short-range EV, or you turn your long-range EV into a short-range by loading it up with bikes and trailers and the like, then, yes, you are going to have to stop a *lot* more often. And some routes off the beaten paths will not be open to you without jumping through charging hoops. We are still in the very early days, I'm just glad Tesla has done such a good job of covering the country in only one decade in light of the failures of legacy auto and third-party charge networks to step up to the plate! And Supercharger coverage is still accelerating so fewer and fewer people find it an inconvenience as each year passes. I think by 2030, there will be very few special use cases where gasoline will still be at least a little more convenient for extensive rural roaming, the vast majority of people are covered right now.

 

[SwampNut]

Really? Do you never travel during holidays?

I do try to avoid it, but when I do it, I also make a strong effort to avoid peak times.

Not sure I’m following the comparisons to gas stations.

It's where we have to fuel our vehicles. That's the comparison. Right now, trailer compatibility with SCs is very low.

For my last stop in Buckeye, there was no option at all other than dropping the trailer.

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