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2013 Tesla Model S Long-Term Road Test

Edmunds.comEdmunds.com Member, Administrator, Moderator Posts: 10,315
edited September 2014 in Tesla

image2013 Tesla Model S Long-Term Road Test

How quickly does a Tesla Supercharger add miles to a 2013 Tesla Model S battery? We made measurements the new Buellton Supercharger to find out.

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    kirkhilles_kirkhilles_ Member Posts: 151
    Good stuff, thanks for the info.
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    stoneymonsterstoneymonster Member Posts: 28
    From what folks are hearing, the 120kw chargers do indeed alter the ramp down and are more aggressive. So they should be a bit faster than just the change in peak power would suggest.
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    quadricyclequadricycle Member Posts: 827
    One rest hour for every three of driving is reasonable (and needed, really), but are you assuming that you won't have to share a charging point at any time in your journey? I don't think this has been a big problem yet, and may not be due to Tesla putting superchargers everywhere it can, but is it a least in the back of your mind? I think it would be for me. I'm also surprised that Tesla keeps upping the capacity of the chargers, I assumed that there were battery limitations that stopped them from starting out with that much charging speed.
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    gslippygslippy Member Posts: 514
    Let's remember that filling a lithium ion battery is NOT merely a matter of providing a bigger pipe. Tesla is really pushing it with their Superchargers; they haven't actually advanced the technology of the Panasonic 18650 cells they're buying. As much as I'm a fan of Tesla, I think they're trying to make their EVs look more viable via Supercharging.

    My Leaf charges at 18 mph on my Level 2 charger, and Nissan recommends filling to only 80% for maximum battery life, and rapid charging a maximum of once a day. I've never even seen a rapid charger for the Leaf, so it doesn't matter to me.

    It will be interesting to see how Model S cars weather a lot of Supercharger use over the years. I predict some problems.
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    mfennellmfennell Member Posts: 91
    Is it really such a high charge rate? The charging Dan captured peaked at just over 1C and only briefly. I do see (google "panasonic 18650 data sheet") that Panasonic quotes cycle life at 0.3C charge/1C discharge though. The good news is that this is pretty self-limiting. Anyone who would need to Supercharge every single day would never buy a Model S in the first place. FWIW, the DC fast charger for the Leaf (different chemistry, no thermal management, yadda yadda yadda) peaks at ~2C near as I can tell.
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    stoneymonsterstoneymonster Member Posts: 28
    Remember, there are lots of variants of the 18650 (that moniker is just the form factor). Anything you look up online (even from Panasonic) may be slightly different from what Tesla is using in capacity, chemistry and thermal characteristics.
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    allthingshondaallthingshonda Member Posts: 878
    Batteries and charging ports should be something all automakers get together and agree on. Electric power is definitely going to proliferate as time goes on but there is no universal system which makes it expensive. There needs to be a car version of AA, AAA, C and D batteries.
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    3ch03ch0 Member Posts: 4
    We may not have an answer for a few years on this one, but I wonder how all these different charging speeds will affect the longevity of the battery and it's performance in the long run. My initial reaction to supercharging is that it would wear down the battery, more-so than 120v.
    Is there any relevant data on this yet?
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    quadricyclequadricycle Member Posts: 827
    @allthingshonda: Good luck with that. Every company is going to say that the others should copy them. Its just like getting the US and EU to have the same safety and emissions testing so that automakers can bring more cars over and save money on testing.
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    ahightowerahightower Member Posts: 539
    How much charge can a supercharger charge? Is supercharger charging really super?
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    aschulzaschulz Member Posts: 1
    Really like this post. Analytical write-ups are hands down my favorite.
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