Tips and best practices for a first time EV owner?!

[CyberTW]

Congratulations! You're going to love the Cybertruck!

My advice, kick back, relax and enjoy. You will have a better experience if you stop thinking in terms of gas vehicles in terms of how "full" your tank is. On trips that exceed its range, get comfortable learning how to drive it down below 20% before charging so your charge sessions are quick affairs, just long enough to stretch your legs and find something to eat or drink. 20 minutes instead of 35 minutes. It's amazing how much faster the trip SEEMS to go by when you are actually enjoying it. Trust the trip planner. Charge to 90-100% before departing, depending upon whether that last 10% will get you to your favorite Supercharger stop or not.

Avoid the temptation to stay seated inside the vehicle when charging, even if you brought your own food and drink. You have been on the road for hours, get outside and stretch your legs, take a short walk. If it's hot and sunny, leave the climate control on "Keep" during your stop so it's comfy when you return.

On the road, don't have "get there itis", it's amazing how little time you save by cruising at higher speeds, slow down, select an interesting play list on the stereo, look around, converse and enjoy the trip. People mostly speed on long straight, boring highways because they are discontent or they left too late. By enjoying the trip you will want to leave 15 minutes sooner so you can relax in the comfort of the cabin, listening to your music or having good conversation. It's not a race, the journey is part of the trip.

For local driving, charge to 65-80%, depending upon your needs. Obviously, if you only drive 50 miles per day there is no need to keep it topped up to 80% all the time.

Don't make the mistake of thinking your tire pressure is good because the center display reads 50 or 51 psi in the middle of the day. 50 psi is the COLD tire pressure, the display should normally read around 53-55 psi to achieve that. I've found the AT tires on the Cybertruck drive best on pavement a little above 50 psi COLD, even when unladen. They corner better and I can feel them roll easier. The only reason to ever go lower is you drive on a lot of broken pavement or concrete highways with abrubt expansion joints and you want a slightly smoother ride. Flat tires are more likely with lower pressures, not higher pressures. Tires are not balloons, they have reinforcements inside and work best when not working the sidewalls too hard. And by filling a bit above the standard pressure of 50 psi COLD you have more time before you need to top them up again. If you tow things, know that the recommended tire pressure for towing is 65 psi COLD.

For public roads drive in the "Lower" ride height preference. It will reduce the amount of work the compressor needs to do by reducing raising and lowering (the "Higher" ride height cycles up and down depending upon speed).

Don't dismiss the importance of efficiency, even if you don't care about the cost to charge. Home electricity is amazingly cheap in many areas of the country, but Superchargers typically are not. By keeping your vehicle's efficiency high, you will reduce the number of miles powered by Superchargers. As another benefit, battery longevity is very proportionate to the amount of electricity used. A Cybertruck that is 10% less efficient, will have a battery that lasts 10% fewer miles. Tire selection alone can vary your efficiency by 10% or more. Know that all hits to efficiency are cumulative, so a bunch of inconsequential inefficiencies add up to something of consequence. Avoid leaving a bunch of dead weight in your truck simply due to laziness. Weight only has a small hit to highway efficiency; it matters more around town.

Learn how not to constantly go from acceleration to regen when trying to maintain a steady speed. Some drivers get notoriously poor efficiency simply because they have undetected erratic throttle inputs. This is generally not a problem above 60 mph because you are pushing a wall of air and the throttle is not near the breakpoint between acceleration and regen, but at speeds between 30 and 50 mph many people ruin their efficiency by not being able to maintain a steady throttle. Chill Mode can help those people a little bit, the real fix is to adjust your throttle technique such that you are no longer giving erratic throttle commands.

Know that electricity is the most American form of energy because we make it all ourselves. Even electricity made with coal or natural gas is cleaner than buring gasoline or diesel in your tank because large powerplants can be more efficient than small engines. So you are doing your part to make America more energy independent and clean up the air on our highways and in our cities. Powerplants are not located in high population density areas but where there are a lot of cars, there are also a lot of people that are breathing the air.

Congrats on your first electric vehicle and enjoy!

??

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[igs]

Quick question...

I though the CTs battery tech were more robust and were designed to go to 100% (I intend to keep 80% local, 100% long trips) with no issues lime all other EVs who really need to stay in that 20%-80% range.

Am I off here??

Watch the video I posted. You want to stay in the 15%-50% range.

 

[igs]

It’s not about “robustness” but the properties of specific chemistries. The LFP cells in the Model 3 do very well at 100% SoC, but have a much lower energy density than the nickel-based cells of the Cybertruck. These cells will suffer lower degradation when stored at lower SoC, ideally in the 50-80% range.

That's not correct at all. In terms of SOC they are no different than Li batteries and want to stay at 30%. The only reason you charge to 100% is because you cannot tell the difference between 50% and 100%.

 

[JollyRoger]

Quick question...

I though the CTs battery tech were more robust and were designed to go to 100% (I intend to keep 80% local, 100% long trips) with no issues lime all other EVs who really need to stay in that 20%-80% range.

Am I off here??

I'ts about the state of charge (SoC). If you let it sit at a high SoC then the battery is degraded. Think of it as a baloon. If you inflate the baloon and let it sit, it will become limp and lose some tension that cannot be regained. I keep my MYP charge at 50%, and always plugged in when home. When going on longer trips I just use the app to change to 80 or 100%.

A Lithtium Iron Phosphate (LFP) battery has no degradation due to SoC.

The cybertruck has a Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC) battery and lasts longer with a low SoC.

 

[CTSoFL]

I'ts about the state of charge (SoC). If you let it sit at a high SoC then the battery is degraded. Think of it as a baloon. If you inflate the baloon and let it sit, it will become limp and lose some tension that cannot be regained. I keep my MYP charge at 50%, and always plugged in when home. When going on longer trips I just use the app to change to 80 or 100%.

A Lithtium Iron Phosphate (LFP) battery has no degradation due to SoC.

The cybertruck has a Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC) battery and lasts longer with a low SoC.

I'm 100% EV newbie so really appreciate the context and perspective on best practices.

 

[CTSoFL]

Congratulations! You're going to love the Cybertruck!

My advice, kick back, relax and enjoy. You will have a better experience if you stop thinking in terms of gas vehicles in terms of how "full" your tank is. On trips that exceed its range, get comfortable learning how to drive it down below 20% before charging so your charge sessions are quick affairs, just long enough to stretch your legs and find something to eat or drink. 20 minutes instead of 35 minutes. It's amazing how much faster the trip SEEMS to go by when you are actually enjoying it. Trust the trip planner. Charge to 90-100% before departing, depending upon whether that last 10% will get you to your favorite Supercharger stop or not.

Avoid the temptation to stay seated inside the vehicle when charging, even if you brought your own food and drink. You have been on the road for hours, get outside and stretch your legs, take a short walk. If it's hot and sunny, leave the climate control on "Keep" during your stop so it's comfy when you return.

On the road, don't have "get there itis", it's amazing how little time you save by cruising at higher speeds, slow down, select an interesting play list on the stereo, look around, converse and enjoy the trip. People mostly speed on long straight, boring highways because they are discontent or they left too late. By enjoying the trip you will want to leave 15 minutes sooner so you can relax in the comfort of the cabin, listening to your music or having good conversation. It's not a race, the journey is part of the trip.

For local driving, charge to 65-80%, depending upon your needs. Obviously, if you only drive 50 miles per day there is no need to keep it topped up to 80% all the time.

Don't make the mistake of thinking your tire pressure is good because the center display reads 50 or 51 psi in the middle of the day. 50 psi is the COLD tire pressure, the display should normally read around 53-55 psi to achieve that. I've found the AT tires on the Cybertruck drive best on pavement a little above 50 psi COLD, even when unladen. They corner better and I can feel them roll easier. The only reason to ever go lower is you drive on a lot of broken pavement or concrete highways with abrubt expansion joints and you want a slightly smoother ride. Flat tires are more likely with lower pressures, not higher pressures. Tires are not balloons, they have reinforcements inside and work best when not working the sidewalls too hard. And by filling a bit above the standard pressure of 50 psi COLD you have more time before you need to top them up again. If you tow things, know that the recommended tire pressure for towing is 65 psi COLD.

For public roads drive in the "Lower" ride height preference. It will reduce the amount of work the compressor needs to do by reducing raising and lowering (the "Higher" ride height cycles up and down depending upon speed).

Don't dismiss the importance of efficiency, even if you don't care about the cost to charge. Home electricity is amazingly cheap in many areas of the country, but Superchargers typically are not. By keeping your vehicle's efficiency high, you will reduce the number of miles powered by Superchargers. As another benefit, battery longevity is very proportionate to the amount of electricity used. A Cybertruck that is 10% less efficient, will have a battery that lasts 10% fewer miles. Tire selection alone can vary your efficiency by 10% or more. Know that all hits to efficiency are cumulative, so a bunch of inconsequential inefficiencies add up to something of consequence. Avoid leaving a bunch of dead weight in your truck simply due to laziness. Weight only has a small hit to highway efficiency; it matters more around town.

Learn how not to constantly go from acceleration to regen when trying to maintain a steady speed. Some drivers get notoriously poor efficiency simply because they have undetected erratic throttle inputs. This is generally not a problem above 60 mph because you are pushing a wall of air and the throttle is not near the breakpoint between acceleration and regen, but at speeds between 30 and 50 mph many people ruin their efficiency by not being able to maintain a steady throttle. Chill Mode can help those people a little bit, the real fix is to adjust your throttle technique such that you are no longer giving erratic throttle commands.

Know that electricity is the most American form of energy because we make it all ourselves. Even electricity made with coal or natural gas is cleaner than buring gasoline or diesel in your tank because large powerplants can be more efficient than small engines. So you are doing your part to make America more energy independent and clean up the air on our highways and in our cities. Powerplants are not located in high population density areas but where there are a lot of cars, there are also a lot of people that are breathing the air.

Congrats on your first electric vehicle and enjoy!

Well said.

 

[wtibbit]

Congratulations! You're going to love the Cybertruck!

My advice, kick back, relax and enjoy. You will have a better experience if you stop thinking in terms of gas vehicles in terms of how "full" your tank is. On trips that exceed its range, get comfortable learning how to drive it down below 20% before charging so your charge sessions are quick affairs, just long enough to stretch your legs and find something to eat or drink. 20 minutes instead of 35 minutes. It's amazing how much faster the trip SEEMS to go by when you are actually enjoying it. Trust the trip planner. Charge to 90-100% before departing, depending upon whether that last 10% will get you to your favorite Supercharger stop or not.

Avoid the temptation to stay seated inside the vehicle when charging, even if you brought your own food and drink. You have been on the road for hours, get outside and stretch your legs, take a short walk. If it's hot and sunny, leave the climate control on "Keep" during your stop so it's comfy when you return.

On the road, don't have "get there itis", it's amazing how little time you save by cruising at higher speeds, slow down, select an interesting play list on the stereo, look around, converse and enjoy the trip. People mostly speed on long straight, boring highways because they are discontent or they left too late. By enjoying the trip you will want to leave 15 minutes sooner so you can relax in the comfort of the cabin, listening to your music or having good conversation. It's not a race, the journey is part of the trip.

For local driving, charge to 65-80%, depending upon your needs. Obviously, if you only drive 50 miles per day there is no need to keep it topped up to 80% all the time.

Don't make the mistake of thinking your tire pressure is good because the center display reads 50 or 51 psi in the middle of the day. 50 psi is the COLD tire pressure, the display should normally read around 53-55 psi to achieve that. I've found the AT tires on the Cybertruck drive best on pavement a little above 50 psi COLD, even when unladen. They corner better and I can feel them roll easier. The only reason to ever go lower is you drive on a lot of broken pavement or concrete highways with abrubt expansion joints and you want a slightly smoother ride. Flat tires are more likely with lower pressures, not higher pressures. Tires are not balloons, they have reinforcements inside and work best when not working the sidewalls too hard. And by filling a bit above the standard pressure of 50 psi COLD you have more time before you need to top them up again. If you tow things, know that the recommended tire pressure for towing is 65 psi COLD.

For public roads drive in the "Lower" ride height preference. It will reduce the amount of work the compressor needs to do by reducing raising and lowering (the "Higher" ride height cycles up and down depending upon speed).

Don't dismiss the importance of efficiency, even if you don't care about the cost to charge. Home electricity is amazingly cheap in many areas of the country, but Superchargers typically are not. By keeping your vehicle's efficiency high, you will reduce the number of miles powered by Superchargers. As another benefit, battery longevity is very proportionate to the amount of electricity used. A Cybertruck that is 10% less efficient, will have a battery that lasts 10% fewer miles. Tire selection alone can vary your efficiency by 10% or more. Know that all hits to efficiency are cumulative, so a bunch of inconsequential inefficiencies add up to something of consequence. Avoid leaving a bunch of dead weight in your truck simply due to laziness. Weight only has a small hit to highway efficiency; it matters more around town.

Learn how not to constantly go from acceleration to regen when trying to maintain a steady speed. Some drivers get notoriously poor efficiency simply because they have undetected erratic throttle inputs. This is generally not a problem above 60 mph because you are pushing a wall of air and the throttle is not near the breakpoint between acceleration and regen, but at speeds between 30 and 50 mph many people ruin their efficiency by not being able to maintain a steady throttle. Chill Mode can help those people a little bit, the real fix is to adjust your throttle technique such that you are no longer giving erratic throttle commands.

Know that electricity is the most American form of energy because we make it all ourselves. Even electricity made with coal or natural gas is cleaner than buring gasoline or diesel in your tank because large powerplants can be more efficient than small engines. So you are doing your part to make America more energy independent and clean up the air on our highways and in our cities. Powerplants are not located in high population density areas but where there are a lot of cars, there are also a lot of people that are breathing the air.

Congrats on your first electric vehicle and enjoy!

Tesla should print this on good paper and put it in every vehicle they deliver. And credit the author.

 

[Woodrick]

Well I'll be getting my hands on a CT AWD FS this week.... I've been a Chevy Silverado guy with multiple variants since 2010 (great trucks, don't dislike them). The tech is really what drew me to the CT and I'm excited to play with a vehicle on the cutting edge! This will be my first EV so I'm nervous about getting accustomed to a shorter range and charging strategies.

Just as a note I'll be installing the UWC on a dedicated 60 amp circuit for home charging and my general commute is only 60 miles round trip.

I'm looking for general EV ownership advice as well as advice on handing larger trips. Things to do, things not to do, things that could harm the vehicle, optimal best practices, ect.

Common destinations for me can be upwards of 400 miles one way...

Cheers,
James

It's interesting how everyone brings up batteries and number and such. That's not what I think the newbie should be concerned with, not does Tesla.
When you get home, plug in, and of course unplug before you leave. (If you forget the second part, the vehicle will remind you.) Follow any recommendations that the app may give you.

You made the statement "shorter range" so that suggests that you have range anxiety. One of the better ways is to do those 400 mile trips.
I did a 500 mile trip one-way a month ago, I stopped twice for about 15 minutes each, mostly to fill the tummy and empty the bladder, but also charge. After driving only EVs for 8 years, from the Great Lakes to the Florida Keys, I've have my only charging preferences. You'll get there.

Just follow the Tesla nav, it will keep you safe. With that said, think a little about their recommendations an you may want to alter them slightly to fit your specific needs. For example, if you route from point A to B, the navigation will get you to B, but you won't necessarily arrive with much charge. You may want to stop for a few minutes at a Supercharger nearer your destination, so that you can have some "running around" charge when you get there.
Also, sometimes it makes sense to route from A to B and then add A as a new waypoint at the end. That helps make sure that you can get there and back.
When on the road, for things around Superchargers that fit your desires. If you see a restaurant at the next Supercharger that you like, just add that Supercharger and let the nav recalculate.

But around town, the best thing that I can say is know the specifics of the truck. What it the listed range, how much does it tow, lots of those types of things. Why? Because you are going to get asked those questions! Don't expect to get anywhere fast, people will stop and ask you questions.

As far as driving, it's a Tesla. Things are a little different, but they are generally much more intuitive, they may use different muscle memory, but they really make more sense.
Look through the settings, get familiar with them.

As far as driving, two things, don't press the accelerator hard and be ready for regen when you let off the accelerator. You get used to the one-pedal type driving really quick.

Most important, just get out and drive the truck! Get out and enjoy summer, get off the Interstate and see the country. The nav will still take care of you, you may have to add some waypoints, but it will do it's hardest from running out of power.

 

[Red Beard Ops]

Tesla should print this on good paper and put it in every vehicle they deliver. And credit the author.

1000%

It's interesting how everyone brings up batteries and number and such. That's not what I think the newbie should be concerned with, not does Tesla.
When you get home, plug in, and of course unplug before you leave. (If you forget the second part, the vehicle will remind you.) Follow any recommendations that the app may give you.

You made the statement "shorter range" so that suggests that you have range anxiety. One of the better ways is to do those 400 mile trips.
I did a 500 mile trip one-way a month ago, I stopped twice for about 15 minutes each, mostly to fill the tummy and empty the bladder, but also charge. After driving only EVs for 8 years, from the Great Lakes to the Florida Keys, I've have my only charging preferences. You'll get there.

Just follow the Tesla nav, it will keep you safe. With that said, think a little about their recommendations an you may want to alter them slightly to fit your specific needs. For example, if you route from point A to B, the navigation will get you to B, but you won't necessarily arrive with much charge. You may want to stop for a few minutes at a Supercharger nearer your destination, so that you can have some "running around" charge when you get there.
Also, sometimes it makes sense to route from A to B and then add A as a new waypoint at the end. That helps make sure that you can get there and back.
When on the road, for things around Superchargers that fit your desires. If you see a restaurant at the next Supercharger that you like, just add that Supercharger and let the nav recalculate.

But around town, the best thing that I can say is know the specifics of the truck. What it the listed range, how much does it tow, lots of those types of things. Why? Because you are going to get asked those questions! Don't expect to get anywhere fast, people will stop and ask you questions.

As far as driving, it's a Tesla. Things are a little different, but they are generally much more intuitive, they may use different muscle memory, but they really make more sense.
Look through the settings, get familiar with them.

As far as driving, two things, don't press the accelerator hard and be ready for regen when you let off the accelerator. You get used to the one-pedal type driving really quick.

Most important, just get out and drive the truck! Get out and enjoy summer, get off the Interstate and see the country. The nav will still take care of you, you may have to add some waypoints, but it will do it's hardest from running out of power.

Great tips!

 

[MetalBonsai]

After driving EV for a while, remember to do a manual reset on your brain if you need to drive an ICE vehicle. Remember that ICE vehicles want to propel you forward, they produce toxic fumes so don't leave them running in a garage, and you have to remember to turn them off. Oh, and they don't automatically lock when you walk away from them. And you can't refuel them at Superchargers.

 

[oisiaa]

This is a good point. I've learned to just drop the destination in even if I know the way because it does condition the battery for better charging prior to arriving. I've also been saved time when I wasn't aware of an accident, etc, many many times

People actually drive without navigation? I use nav 100% of the time.....100% because I use FSD 100% of the time and it needs to know where to go.

 

[oisiaa]

The built in charging recommendations are SUPER SUPER conservative. Once you learn the ropes, you can cut 10 minutes/hour off by manually determining charging stop locations and durations.

 

[tmeyer3]

The built in charging recommendations are SUPER SUPER conservative. Once you learn the ropes, you can cut 10 minutes/hour off by manually determining charging stop locations and durations.

True, I wish it was a little more aggressive about margins, or perhaps even made them adjustable, but following the provided schedule is a very safe bet to start off with.

 

[tmeyer3]

People actually drive without navigation? I use nav 100% of the time.....100% because I use FSD 100% of the time and it needs to know where to go.

As OP is a new EV owner and first EV being a CT with "eventually" getting FSD, I figured the recommendation was relevant. But I'm ? with you on that one ?

 

[Woodrick]

The built in charging recommendations are SUPER SUPER conservative. Once you learn the ropes, you can cut 10 minutes/hour off by manually determining charging stop locations and durations.

Amen to conservative.

It's perfect for the range anxious people! Tesla Nav will take care of you, it will get you there.

But it is not the fastest or even most desirable way.

For example from Atlanta to Orlando about 500 miles, 6 years ago, there were 3 Supercharger locations. That was more than was needed. Today, there's over a dozen. You get to pick and choose.

And for those who may not realize it yet, touch the map, basically anywhere. At the bottom a legend will pop up and there's a button with a lightning bolt, hit it, that shows all of the Superchargers. You can adjust to see 250kW, 150kW or lower but hitting the area above the current navigation (I think that is where it is now)

You can always choose one and add to your route. The route will recalculate.

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