DAY 158: He's Never Been In an Electric Car Before

It's been almost 3 weeks since coming back from my epic road trip. I decided to take the first weekend back to stay at home and rest, clean up (ahem, kind of), and recuperate. The second weekend was pouring rain and not enough time to plan anything.

So this third Saturday, I decided I missed spending time with Sparky on the road... rain or shine. Turns out the weather was in-between -- which means it was nice and cool, and perfect for outdoor walking!

But I had one stop to make first. I had lost my headphones on my road trip, and the best deal was through Facebook Marketplace at a location pretty far from me, but on route to Othello Tunnels, where I was headed today.

When the seller came out, he saw my Tesla.

Him: Is that an electric car?

Me: Yes, it's a Tesla.

Him: I don't think I've ever seen one before. It is really no gas?

Me: Yes! In fact, I just finished a 34 day road trip across the country in it.

Him: But how do you keep in charged?

Me: Tesla has a network of Superchargers that charge really fast.

Him: That must take a lot of planning to figure out where you are going to charge.

Me: Well, once you are a Tesla owner, the car tells you where all the chargers are, and does all the planning for you.

Him: Weren't you scare you were going to run out of energy and get stuck?

Me: It's like a gas tank. You would never run your gas tank to empty. The car has so many warnings and planning tools, the only way you run out of energy is if you intentionally ignore everything the car tells you.

Of course by this time, he was so intrigued that I had to let him sit in the car! When I saw the long driveway he had, I let him drive it up. Being a stranger to me (but a super friendly guy), I wasn't sure I was comfortable taking it for a test drive. But already he was so impressed by the single screen, and how quiet and responsive the driving was, it was enough.

"This really is the future!" he said, and was already convinced that he wanted one.

Always a pleasure introducing my Tesla to someone new, and witnessing their minds opening up and to realize how "normal" an electric vehicle is. It never gets old!!

*****

I had randomly found the Othello Tunnels on Google Maps and was intrigued. This definitely has to make it onto Tesla's "favorites" tool as a place to go! The hike is barely a hike... it's a 30 minute walk all the way through the tunnels. Then you can keep going, or just turn around and go back.

The tunnels were magnificent and the scenery reminds me of just how beautiful British Columbia is. After having travelled across the US and back, and witnessing the changing landscape in each state, BC really does have a special place in my heart.

Video and Picture time:

*****

The Surrey Supercharger is getting just completely ridiculously busy!

The Hope Supercharger, on the other hand, I was one of only 2 Teslas there at a 10 charger station! Woohoo!

I also got to go back to my favorite coffee place in Hope. Love the Blue Moose Cafe!

*****

Today's Odometre Reading: 30,893

My referral code: somi22310

DAY 150: Charging Limits at Work

My workplace has instituted a 4-hour time limit on charging spots in the paid parking lot. For someone who works full time, this a most inconvenient change.

But it caused me to reflect a bit.

A co-worker of mine found it upsetting at the unfairness that while everyone pays their own fuel for their car, the employer provides fuel for free to those with electric cars. Well, that's his perspective, still owning a gas car.

My perspective, is that this is part of the employer's desire to participate in the move towards more sustainable transport, and providing this encourages their massive population of staff and students to get electric cars. And for me, one of the major reasons I could even get a Tesla is that my work provides these chargers. While others will charge at home, I charge at work.

But back to my co-worker... my response is that I don't anticipate that this "free fuel" perk is going to continue. All of these complimentary chargers are incentives. If all of the cars on the road were electric, there is NO way people would just give away free fuel everywhere. All of the defunct gas stations will switch over to charging (which at that time will likely take about the same time as gassing up a car). In fact, Petro Canada has already anticipated this, installing 50 fast chargers across Canada, and Shell talked about it even earlier than that... and is apparently still just talking. (shame)

But back to my current situation... how I am I going to live with this "4-hour charging limit" rule?

If I park to charge in the morning, the chances of finding an alternate parking spot by noon will be difficult... or a long climb up and down the stairs of the parkade. If I move my car in the afternoon, I risk coming out to the parkade only to find that no chargers are available. And if I actually NEED a charge, that could be a problem. This is not to mention that absolute PITA to having go move my car twice as often in a week (since I can only get half the charge amount that I used to).

I've tried it for a week, and yesterday (the actual Day 150 of ownership) I've come up with a plan:

1. Never wait to charge when I NEED it. Always charge way ahead of time. If I arrive at work needing a charge, then I will go ahead and charge in the morning, and deal with parking at noon. But it seems the best to find a good parking spot in the morning, and then look to see if there's a charging spot by noon... which is more likely than the other way around.

2. Get up out of my desk... and actually stretch my legs and walk! Yes, this is actually a positive move. It's much harder to walk when I can do it whenever I want. Because often work gets in the way, and walking never happens. But now that I HAVE to get up... I do it! PTL! :)

3. Charge elsewhere. I did have the awkwardness today of trying out what it would be like to charge at home. It's raining, and my charging cord to my 120V outlet would be sitting on the road where my car is parked on the street. I just feel like it's inviting someone to wreak havoc. But if I was super desperate, I could do it. I have plenty of local shopping centres where they allow for charging (4 hours usually, but sometimes even more). Spending time at Ikea or a massive mall is dangerous though... as I do end up "paying for charging" through my patronage. *sigh*  It may be time to try and find a rental that has charging included... that's going to be tough!

When I "signed on" to become a fully electric vehicle owner, I knew I was coming in at a time when the charging infrastructure was way behind in development. But even in the last couple of years, there was been a real surge of charging options developing. Businesses are realizing the revenue potential and investing early, and new competitors are showing up on a regular basis. I expect the locations and options to continue to grow.

Bring it on! Buying a Tesla is still one of my very best decisions of my life.

*****

Yesterday's Odometre Reading: 30,211 kms

My referral code: somi22310

DAY 146: This Amazing Road Trip With My Tesla

It has been 7 days since I returned from my road trip across the continent and back. I don't have a lot of numbers, as I really just wanted to focus on enjoying the journey. But here are a few:

34 days
140+ hours of driving time
16,369 kms (10,171 miles)
15 States and 3 Provinces
77 Supercharging stops (75 different supercharger locations)
$5 USD in charging costs (dammit Disneyland! You wrecked my zero record!)
8 Bucket Items checked off the list (share in a separate post)
Temperature highs of 47 and lows of 12 degrees Celsius (117 to 54 degrees Fahrenheit)

I say with utmost confidence that road tripping in a Tesla cannot compare to any other mode of transport. I am betting that only those who have genuinely driven a Tesla on a long haul road trip will understand where I'm coming from. Because it's not something you can experience in any other car. Even when I was waiting to buy my Tesla, fully endorsed and excited, I didn't get it until I took my first road trip. It's just nothing you've experienced before.

I was writing a post listing all of qualities in the Tesla that are uniquely relevant to long road trips. But as I did, the list just kept growing. I want to do it justice, so I'm going to try and capture my thoughts as they come to me throughout the day, and try to consolidate it into one post at a later date.

*****

My busy life has started this week. Rehearsals 3 evenings a week on top of a full time job. But I still find something wonderful every day about my Tesla, and the topics to write about are piling up. So fasten your seatbelts. I may keep them short and to the point from this point on.

*****

Still no Version 10. I don't believe anyone has it.

Confirmed is Cuphead, Car-aoke, Smart Summon, YouTube and Netflix while parked... this is going to be one epic update! Love it!

Let me think... what other vehicle gains new features for free after you purchase it?
C'mon... think, think, think...

*****

Today's Odometre Reading: 30,012 (broke a new milestone!)

My referral code: somi22310

DAY 145: Falling In Love With My Tesla All Over Again

For the second time since I took delivery of my Tesla, I added zero kms on the day yesterday. My first Saturday back since the road trip, I decided to rest my body to my heart's content.

I won't lie... it felt weird. I almost looked for an excuse to drive. But my unattended home needed attention, not to mention my very tired body.

Getting back into my Tesla this morning, I was reminded all over again how amazing this car is. After 34 days of crazy long driving, much of what made Tesla unique became such commonplace that I practically took its special features for granted. But when I got back into my car in the morning afer being a day away, it hit me all over again. That absolute silence in the cabin on that initial movement from the parking spot, the incredible range of levels in the sound system, the comfortable seat, the ease of navigation, the whisper-quiet acceleration. It was like I was falling in love with Sparky all over again.

I can't believe I own a Tesla!

Here's another picture of Sparky in the Redwood forest:

*****

Today's Odometre Reading: 29,970

My referral code: somi22310

DAY 141: Sparky Gets an EV Parking Ticket

Today I returned back to work, excited to get back into my regular routine. This included charging my car for the day as I work at the office. It turns out the charging rules changed while I was gone. Four-hour limit.

So I got a ticket, not realizing this was the case -- despite the new sign on the wall that I did not notice. *sigh*

I am disputing the ticket on the grounds of ignorance, and hope they will let this go now that I know this is the case.

But now, I guess I'm going to be taking a walk at lunch to move my car... to park in a completely full parking lot by that time of the day. It also means parking to charge more often, now that I can only get in 4 hours worth of charging. This part, I'm not thrilled about. But this is what I pay for having complimentary charging. The inconvenience is what I will do in exchange for paying fuel costs. If this is all you had to do so that you would not pay gas, would you do it? With these gas prices, the answer for me is OF COURSE!

Am I upset that I have to do this? Not really when I consider the payoff. I'm more nervous that I will forget to move my car and then get a ticket. So I'll be using my phone alarm more often to remind me. That midday walk is now mandatory -- not such a bad thing.

*****

By the way, the software update last night was not Version 10. No one is getting that yet.

*****

Today's Odometre Reading: 29,790 kms

My referral code: somi22310

DAY 140: Sparky Got Cleaned Up Nice

I'm barely hanging on today having just arrived home yesterday. But I have this one day to take care of personal business before I head back to work tomorrow.

Number one errand today was to take care of my insurance claim and get my Tesla in for an appointment to get my panels repaired. I went to a Tesla-approved repair shop who specialize in exotic and high-end cars. I'm not used to having service like this, having owned a Honda most of my life. But they took care of me, took like a billion pictures of Sparky's "bad side" and then...

... oh I'm really happy about this! They had this special solution to clean up the scuff marks on my car! I mean, I have cleaned it off with my waterless wash I was carrying around with me, and then took it through the carwash yesterday on the way home. But the stuff they used... was magic!

Before and After Shots:

Now you can really see where the damage is.

It will be about 1.5 months before I will be able to bring the car in for servicing. I will likely have to drive a gas car around for a week (YUCK!). But it will get done.

I've sent all of the pictures and dashcam footage to ICBC. They will do all of the back and forth with the American rental company and figure out fault. It's likely not going to be my fault, but it's a waiting game at this point. The nice thing is, there's no waiting to get the repairs done. This is why we pay insurance!!

*****

There is so much that happened in the last 3 days of my road trip. Elephant seals, driving the coast of California and Oregon (which could not be done last year until the Supercharger network expanded there!). For now, pictures will have to do:

In a future post, I'll provide numbers for this trip. I'm sure it will be mind-blowing (for me, at least).

*****

The Tesla app was down for a few hours yesterday. It was a service interruption (which eventually the error message told us). I was absolutely amazed again at how functional the Tesla was without the app. I didn't even end up using my key card! The bluetooth connection, even with the app down and logged out, worked perfectly! Seriously, Tesla has thought through this and made sure their owners were not embarrassed by this technical glitch.

In the meantime.. I JUST got notice of a software update... could it be? Version 10? I'm accepting now! Stay tuned! *giddy*

*****

Today's Odometre Reading: 29,748

My referral code: somi22310