SpiceWare's Blog

Autopilot? Does it mean this car drives by itself?

No - it's just like autopilot in an airplane:

 

 

Autopilots do not replace human operators, but instead they assist them in controlling the aircraft.

in the Tesla autopilot helps you by doing things like these:

• maintains vehicle speed
• adjusts vehicle speed in relation to traffic - if car ahead of you slows/stops, the Tesla does as well; when that car resumes moving, the Tesla does as well (this is awesome during rush hour traffic)
• keeps you in your lane
• changes lanes, provided it can do so safely, when you signal it to do so.

We've found that when using autopilot we can go twice as far before needing to swap drivers.

 

Full Self Driving is when the car drives itself. Tesla is working on this, but it's not out yet.

Looks like you have to stop up about every 120 miles or say about 2 hours of driving to top up your charge. That doesn't seem too bad to me; basically have a cup of coffee and stretch your legs every couple of hours.

The stops are pretty much dictated by the location of the chargers, which in most of the country are spaced to support the shortest range Model S, as well as the locations of the destination chargers. Checking this Tesla Range chart that'd be the 2014 Model S (Superchargers don't work with the Roadster).

 

 

Mine is a 2018 Model 3 LR 18" + Aero which is rated for 310 miles per charge, but speed plays a big factor in how far you can go. With the speed limit in Texas and Louisiana at 75 for the most part you end up doing at least 80 to keep up with traffic. At that speed the range chart shows I can go 270 miles (which falls in line with what I've seen). From my house to Baton Rouge is 288 miles, which means I need to stop at the charger before Baton Rouge, which is in Lake Charles. Since you don't arrive in Lake Charles near empty, you don't get the fastest charge rate.

 

As Tesla expands their network they've been infilling. Since I leave home with a full charge I expect the trip would be like this in the future:

• drive 3 hours, 235 miles to Lafayette, 40 minute charge to 80% (range 248 miles, really 216 due to speed)
• drive 2.5 hours, 186 miles to Gulfport - 5-10 minute (only need to add ~40 miles to make it to the hotel)
• drive 1 hour, 76 miles to Mobile and stay the night.

That car is OK, but I'd rather have a Fluxliner.

On 2/9/2019 at 2:25 PM, SpiceWare said:

As Tesla expands their network they've been infilling. Since I leave home with a full charge I expect the trip would be like this in the future:

• drive 3 hours, 235 miles to Lafayette, 40 minute charge to 80% (range 248 miles, really 216 due to speed)
• drive 2.5 hours, 186 miles to Gulfport - 5-10 minute (only need to add ~40 miles to make it to the hotel)
• drive 1 hour, 76 miles to Mobile and stay the night.

 

Yep, Tesla's broken ground fora Supercharger in Lafayette - I-10/LA Ave. Tesla Supercharger Station Construction