Chevy Bolt EV Road Trip Vlog: San Francisco to Los Angeles
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- Опубліковано 5 лип 2024
- I recently took my first proper road trip in my Chevy Bolt EV! I drove from the San Francisco Bay Area to Los Angeles--or, to be more specific, Walnut Creek to Van Nuys. How did an EV with an estimated range of 259 miles handle the 354-mile drive in the summer heat? How many stops did I make? Did the charging stations work?! And how much did I spend on charging? All of these topics are covered in my first-ever EV road trip vlog!
00:00-06:01 Introduction
06:02-07:24 First charging stop to LA
07:25-08:44 Second charging stop to LA
08:45-11:08 Things I did in LA
11:09-12:48 First charging stop to SF
12:49-13:27 Second charging stop to SF
13:28-15:07 Charging expenses
15:08-15:30 Conclusion
Thanks so much for this video. I've had lower range EV's and recently got the Bolt EUV and after watching your video, my family and I are planning a long trip from Scal to the Bay area for my daughter's bball tourney. I'm going to most likely use the same chargers you did. Thanks for the vid!
Watching in April of 24, as I'm considering purchasing a Bolt this summer. Thanks for taking the time to share your experience !
FYI the Grapevine sign warning about turning off A/C is for ICE vehicles so that they don't overheat during the summer months. This should not affect any Electric vehicles, the only thing to worry about is running high regen braking on the down hill, that might cause some heat issues.
I wonder if turning off one pedal driving going downhill would alleviate the regen heating issue. Not sure though.
Thanks for the video.
We have a Bolt too and haven't eaten meat in over 50 years. We take all our food with us when we travel.
I'll have to do that for my next road trip!
Just got a Bolt and ran across your video. Must confess I am worried about range so your trip was of particular interest. I am not sure I am quite ready to make a long trip but feel better after watching you. you are very articulate! I also appreciate that you kept the video to the essentials. No long boarding road footage. I subscribed so hope to see more of your perspective on the Bolt as a new owner.
Thank you for watching & your kind words! Glad the video is helpful. Enjoy your Bolt!
Hi I did a road trip from Las Vegas to San Diego about 700 miles my car was 2 days old 2022 Bolt EUV same color . It cost me about $65. One thing I found out if you stop at Caltrans rest stop charging is freeeee. So next time u go on a road trip check out Caltrans rest stop Shhs it's our little secret
Hi, thank you for watching! Yes, a friend with a Bolt told me about free fast-chargers at certain Caltrans rest stops. There is actually one near Los Banos but the entire facility is closed until June 2023 for reconstruction.
Funny how no one ever does a 1200 mile or more trip in an EV in winter.
Otherwise it's optimal conditions that doesn't highlight the real difficulty traveling on long trips.
@@byrnc927I wouldn’t want to drive 1200+ miles in a regular car. Over 500 miles and I’m flying.
I will definitely take this secret and keep it with me!! Lol
@@byrnc927 who the hell does 1200 miles!?! That's airplane length!! But you are a trooper if you do it.
Miss Kats, love your video. Merry Christmas!
Excellent video about road tripping in a Chevrolet Bolt EV. Now I have some idea of what to expect when road tripping in my Chevrolet Bolt EV.
Thank you for watching, and happy road-tripping!
I'm about to do after hopefully purchasing a Bolt this so thanks so much for putting this together.
Love your videos Kat, so calm and relaxed! I just picked up my '23 Bolt EV in Summit White (not as sexy as your orangey colour) about 3 months ago here in Canada. My son, who now lives in the high desert area above yucca Valley, used to live in West Hollywood so I was familiar with a lot of the area that you shot. I love my Bolt, I feel very blessed to have even gotten one in this crazy time of uncertainty. My son will, seemingly, to have to wait forever for his Cybertruck - he lives off grid and can fill that vehicle with the copious amounts of free electricity in the desert!!!! - once he gets it. Cheers
Thanks for watching, and I’m glad you’re loving your Bolt! It’s a fun little car.
I watched the whole report! You did an extraordinary job with video quality, sound clarity and most of all your perfect English and clarity. Very easy to watch. Technically one of the best I have seen on UA-cam. I think it could be shorter in length but because it was so easy to watch and listen to your voice I watched it's entirety. Thank you!
Thank you for watching the whole video! I try to keep the editing clean and simple. Shorter videos and more frequent uploads are definitely something I want to work on. Stay tuned!
I made a similar trip fe San Diego to Tracy and back. in preparation I downloaded ABRP and installed the OBD2 ready. it provides some very helpful information along the way and guidance for charging options along the way. keep it the great videos!!
Thank you for watching! I'll definitely have to try ABRP soon.
Yay Los Baños finally has a DCFC. And it's nice to see Buttonwillow has been upgraded to the new ChargePoint units.
Thanks for sharing your experience. I’m in Minnesota and would love to go on road trips in an EV. I’ve got time to stop and charge so I wouldn’t mind taking a break.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Good to know the non Tesla chargers work well! Range anxiety is an issue when I don’t know where the chargers are or if they’ll work when I get there.
Great insight thank you!
Thanks for sharing. I read where the bolt is a great value but its one weakness is "charging speed". Which makes it a great around town car with only a occasional road trip.
true but as she showed, if you take a lunch and a bathroom break on the way down it’s not an issue. the next generation 2025 Bolt will have faster DC fast charging.
Great video! Thank you for your honest review. You think hot! Never come to Palm Springs!
What a timely video for me. I was on the fence about buying a Bolt EV. Looks like I'm a beliver now. Also, thanks for showing what apps you used during your trip. Drive safe!
Oh I'm so pleased! Yes, I set up accounts with the major charging networks and downloaded their apps in the days leading up to my purchase so I could be ready to charge once I started driving the Bolt! Best wishes for your future Bolt EV! ⚡️
I’m hoping to have my first EV at the end of the month I appreciate you Taking the time to help new EV drivers make sound decisions.
Thank you for your kind words and best wishes on your upcoming EV purchase! Glad to provide helpful information. 😄
Interesting / informative / entertaining - A Trifecta - KUDOS
We also have a 2021 Bolt, same color and we've taken 5 trips from the East Bay (Castro Valley) to San Diego so far. I recognize some of the same stops along I5. When it's hot out turn on your ignition and AC while charging. It doesn't use that much power to do so.
Nice to see another East Bay Bolt driver here! 👋🏼 I honestly never considered turning on the AC while charging but I'll try it out the next time I charge during a trip and there's isn't a place nearby to relax.
@@theelectrickats5694 That's an advantage of an EV, so make yourself comfortable. A friend conditions her car this way in LV during summer and the car is parked/charging.
In fact, EV cars suggest preconditioning the car for cold or hot weather Climent, before leaving the charging station so you save a bit on the most intensive part of air conditioning, say a saving of 7 to 9 percent on total run mileage. Tesla drivers not only do that all the time but you see front wheels turning right and left, as they play the car driving game (That uses cars' real sterling wheels for tuning in the game!!!!)! As if you're not enough sick to drive!
Just got a Bolt. I live in SF and am thinking of taking a road trip to LA. So this video was very helpful and timely!
Happy Bolt driving and thanks for watching! Some of the comments on the video share tips about charging on California road trips too, so be sure to check those out!
Hi Nancy,
Do you mind telling mr where around SF you bought your Bolt, price and all that good stuff. I am going to get one soon.
Thanks,
Paul
@@paulh4699 I got it from Stewart Chevrolet in Colma. I got the "premium" model, and I'm very happy with it. I was on the waiting list for about 6 months before one became available. It was between this and the Prius Prime, but the Bolt became available first. I'm very happy with it. I'd rather not mention the price in a public forum - best to ask the dealer. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we get a tax rebate.
Excellent video. Very professional. I have the 2023Bolt EUV. There is nothing better for kicking around town. Not sure I would take a road trip in Texas, though.
Thanks for watching and for your kind words! I’m glad you’re enjoying the EUV!
One thing to remember when road tripping in an EV is that you are never actually captive to whatever food options happen to exist by the charging stations. It is always your right as a driver to pick up food somewhere else, stash it in the car, and eat it later at the next charging stop. Yes, this means a slightly longer trip time, but an extra 10-15 minutes for a better quality and more nutritious meal is well worth it.
Yes!! I'm vegan and I often find that the options close to highway exits don't provide many appealing options. Perhaps I'll just pack a cooler in the back next time!
Hey, fellow vegan? I made the NorCal-SoCal trip just after Thanksgiving in my Mitsubishi Eclipse. I lost track of how much money I spent on fuel. Hoping to order my Bolt EUV this week!
Hope more people do this drive also with the Euv . Not a lot of videos of the Euv bay area to LA or San Diego.
Monty’s in Echo Park by Dodger Stadium. Good Choice!!!
An outstanding video, as usual. ⚡️ 🐱
Thank you for continuing to watch. I appreciate you!
Thanks for putting this video out- I've got a Bolt EV on order (Probably won't get it until late October :( ) And this is a trip I definitely will be taking a few times a year. It was very informative in a real world sense other than the usual "well you can see by these charts and numbers why you should get a different EV that costs at least $25000 more". Great vid! Thanks again!
Also- feel free to actually show your cats sometime. It's always a bonus.
Thank YOU for watching and this thoughtful feedback. I'm happy to provide snapshots of real-world EV driving. Best wishes for your Bolt EV later in October! When I bought mine in April 2021, they were going really quickly from dealerships.
I've been meaning to make a fun & short video about taking my cat to the vet in my Bolt! 😺
Great job on your first trip. We use A Better Route Planner for our trips. And at least once a month we drive from Jacksonville FL to Miami Florida to see family and get some great Cuban food. For our 2021 Bolt we do 2 stops. And since it's always very hot outside. We stay inside the car with the A/C on. You can charge with the car on. But we leave with 100% and the max time we have to charge is 30 minutes. The first one is 20 minutes. Coming back it's 2 20 minute stops. Each way is about 356 miles. With the local driving when we are in Miami it's a total of 800 plus miles. Our normal speed is 70 mph. But we have no hills it's fairly flat.
Thank you for watching! I didn't know about A Better Route Planner, but I've just downloaded it. Looking forward to trying it for my next longer trip. I used to drive up and down Florida regularly when I went to college in Tallahassee and visited my family near Fort Lauderdale. I'd love to do the drive in my Bolt someday!
Enjoyed your video
Thank you for watching!
Great video, very informative, thanks for posting. I have a 2017 Bolt that I have only taken only on fairly short trips because eastern Ohio doesn't have a very good charging infrastructure in place yet though it is gradually getting better. I did receive the replacement high voltage battery recently so I am able to charge to 100% again. I guess if I started to get concerned about my remaining charge on a longer trip I'll be making soon I can always leave the climate control (mainly heat) turned off. Thank goodness for heated seats!
Thank you for watching and your kind words! I'm glad you have the battery replacement and can enjoy a full charge without worrying. I love the heated seat feature! ♨️
Nice review. I hope to get my first electric car this year and I know there's going to be some concern about range, where to charge etc. So this is a good video to watch.
Thanks for watching! My upcoming videos will share some of the stresses of driving an EV. 😅 Stay tuned!
im driving my bolt next week from san diego to los angeles. i think it should make it to woodland hills before needing to charge i hope!
Not sure if you mentioned the cost of each charge. Nice vid btw and new subscriber here. 👍 ..... edited.. few minutes after... lol the price is at the end of the video! 😄 thanks for sharing your experience. 👍
Good report! I hope you were able to use max regen coming back from LA, between Fort Tejon and Grapevine. Your story should encourage more people to jump on the EV bandwagon.
Thanks for watching! I love regen and plan to make a video about it in the future!
When fast charging the ac turns on automatically to cool the battery so sitting in the car with ac on is not going to affect your charge session or your range at all if any maybe a very very small amount. Hope this info helps.
I recognize those stations! I also like the rest area at the top of the Grapevine. It's just a nice spot to stop, even if the free charger isn't available.
SF-LA is a pretty smooth trip in the Bolt, and the technology has gotten even better since the Bolt was first delivered six years ago! I do run the AC while I charge. The battery usually can't use the whole 55 kW the CCS connector can handle, so it usually doesn't slow the charging down. Instead of just 50 kW for the battery, the charger will provide 50 kW for the battery plus 2 to 3 kW for the AC.
Steve! Thanks for watching and for the tip about the AC. Seeing the range plummet whenever I turn on the AC while driving has made me timid with climate control. But I'll definitely keep myself cool the next time I'm stationary and charging in the heat of inland California!
For sure they should build shade or covered parking. Thanks
Nice video
Next time you travel down to Los Angeles and back, take the 101. Even though it’s a longer route, I’m curious where the charging stations are along there.
Very nice video..I’ve traveled Interstate 5 numerous times. You had to drive into the city limits of Los Banos? That’s aways from the freeway. Not sure if Santa Nella was an option for you but it’s a little north of Los Banos and it’s right on the freeway. Again great video..
Thanks for watching! Yes, the Los Banos stop was several minutes away from I-5. As a solo young woman driver, I wanted someplace that felt like more than a rest stop. Then I ended up stopping at Los Banos again on the way back because my friend and I wanted to get in a Target run so we could avoid evening commute traffic in the Bay Area.
EVs charge fastest up to 50%, so you can save a lot of time charging to 50 or 60% and running down to 10%. You will stop more often, but total time spent charging will be less. Tesla app calculates where to stop and what to charge to (for Tesla owners) and I think the other apps have this capability as well
When you are charging, you can also leave the car on with the AC running and sit inside if you have a book or tablet or even your phone.
We just drove from Riverside to Sacramento on hwy 99 for a grand total of $3, spent at a fast charger in a Denny's parking lot while eating lunch. The rest of our stops were at free Caltrans chargers (Madera, Lodi, and top of grapevine on the way back).
$3 total on fast-charging sounds amazing. I'll have to try different routes in the future to take advantage of those free Caltrans chargers! Thank you for watching!
R those Caltrans chargers is the dc fast charging?
Yes, there are free fast chargers provided by Caltrans! More information here: dot.ca.gov/news-releases/news-release-2021-001
unbelievable!
Lovely video. What model year is your Bolt and which trim?
Thanks for watching! It's a 2021 Bolt in the LT trim. I talk about the specific features more in this video: ua-cam.com/video/K11mNZ741d0/v-deo.html
Good trip!! Can you share total minutes you spent at the chargers? I wasn’t sure if you said that! Amazingly I’ve never used the fast charging on mine but my husband has a BMW 5 series we use for long trips.
Sure! I spent 164 minutes (2 hours and 44 minutes) plugged in. Average of 41 minutes across the 4 stops. Thanks for watching!
Hello 👋🏼from Colorado I've done several road trips in my 150 mile Nissan Leaf, come on over and see the videos, I also do car shows, and talk about my road trips and car shows. I love going on EV road trips! My mom first started out with a 2017 Chevy Bolt! She loved it so much she bought the 2020! and I've had my leaf since 2019!!
Rock on, thanks for this vid, more road trip experience the better. My first trip (video is cringe, but good documation) was to the sand dunes here in Colorado! My second trip was from Golden Colorado to Yellowstone National Park. I've been at Zero Miles Zero Range so many times, it hardly even phases me!! Stay Tuned, a road trip w my mom's car soon!! 👋🏼💜have you head or National Drive Electric Week? there are events all over the USA if you are available to sign up for them and talk about your EV experiences !
Liked, Commented, and Subbed!
Hi Caroline! Thank you for watching! I've subscribed to your channel and look forward to seeing the road trip in your mom's car. I might be driving to the west side of Glacier National Park next summer, which would be my longest trip yet. I've heard about National Drive Electric Week but haven't engaged with their programming--thanks for reminding me of them! Happy EV driving and thanks again for watching!
Hi there! Super interesting video.
Which hotel in West Hollywood had the free charging ?
And why did you end up with no cost to charge at the target on your return trip
The hotel with the free Level 2 charging was the Andaz West Hollywood. There were two chargers if recall correctly. And I don't know why that charging session at Target came out to $0! I've heard that sometimes Electrify America stations can be buggy in a way that leads to no payment. That was the first time it happened to me. Thank you for watching and asking questions!
I'm wondering how well this car handles extreme heat - like Phoenix 110-115F heat? Does the AC keep up even if you are willing to run it at full power?
Great question! Running the AC definitely decreases range. Keeping the vehicle in the shade when charging will be important. I’ve noticed that my Bolt takes longer to charge during the winter. You might want to read this short article for more on extreme temperatures: www.science.org/content/article/best-and-worst-places-drive-your-electric-car
You my friend don't get out much from the bay area, Los Banos is quite a bit from Fresno, Fresno is off the 99. I thought you said you came down the 5. Anyway good video.
😆 Haha you're right about my Bay Area limits but I'm gradually working on that by getting out more in the Bolt. Thanks for watching!
Great job and welcome to EV ownership. Glad your charging experience went well. We have found stops every 3-3.5 hours work out about right for charging time and bathroom breaks/food and exercise. Try not to plan travel on a holiday weekend as the chargers do fill up.
Thanks for the welcome and for watching! I can only imagine that charging stations fill up for holiday travel. Thanks for the tip!
do you ever do a 100% full charge? people usually say to charge up to 80%. i wonder if it's different for longer trips.
sheeeesh. those tesla lines are long!!
The battery charge actually slows down at 80% for conditioning purposes. You can charge to 100%, but it will take longer on a fast-charger to prevent the battery from overheating. More info available here: motorandwheels.com/electric-cars-charge-slower/
@@theelectrickats5694 good to know! i think i'll be satisfied just charging it to 80% since most of my commutes are short anyways
you should be fine doing 100% charge occasionally for long trips. the next generation 2025 Bolt will change to LFP batteries which can constantly charge to 100% without battery degradation. of course the final 80 to 100% charge is slower than adding the prior 20%
I am getting ready to place an order for a Bolt Euv. When you are charging, does the charger know when to stop ? Like when it gets to 100% is there a possibility of it over charging the battery or does it auto shut off?
You can set a target charge level using the menu on the infotainment screen in the car, but I believe that is mostly for at-home Level 2 charging. The public fast-chargers definitely slow the charge down when the state of charge reaches 80%. This is to prevent the battery from overheating and the rate of charge just drops off around 80% too. You can stop the charge on many charging apps too but you want to make sure to move your car in a timely manner to avoid idle fees and allow other EVs to charge. I hope this is helpful, and thanks for watching!
Great video,I'm thinking of the Bolt(and the new tax credit in 2023)only wish GM increases the charge rates to a minimum of 100Kw. We travel from Oakland to Anaheim often and recognize all the stops. We make the same stops in an ICE auto, hope to end that soon.
Thanks for watching! Yes, it would be amazing if the Bolt could charge faster. I'm glad you're considering a Bolt! They're so fun to drive!
the next generation 2025 Bolt should have 100kW or higher DC fast charging and a Tesla NACS plug
Stay away from the free CalTrans chargers in Kettleman. Used a charger that would initiate a few seconds then shut down. Gave my a warning light on dash. Chevy app said I had to service my lithium ion battery.Also OnStar texted me and said my lithium ion needed service immediately..... Fault cleared itself by the time iI got back to Vegas.
Thanks for the tip! I saw reviews for that station on PlugShare and they worried me. Hopefully the free CalTrans charging stations can be maintained better as more EVs hit the roads!
What were the kw rates you got while fast charging? Were the charging rate limited to 50 kws and lower.
For the three Electrify America chargers I used, the max speed was 67 kW, according to my EA app charging history.
*Just two weeks ago I road tripped my Bolt from Orlando FL to Atlanta GA. I took the night route and made it by the morning. I utilized nothing but Electricity America stations both going and coming back. No issues in terms of charging connectivity which was nice, but obviously nowhere near the speed / ease of use as Tesla’s network and charging capabilities.*
It's always great when charging goes smoothly! Here in California, I've noticed that the popularity of Teslas means there's sometimes a wait at their chargers. I briefly showed such a scene in the video. There's also a big outlet mall near me with a cluster of both Electrify America chargers and Tesla chargers and it's kind of amusing to see the Teslas line up to wait for an available charger. Charging infrastructure definitely needs to grow all around.
How long did that take you? I’m in Orlando also and it’s like a 6 to 6.5 hours on a ICE vehicle
Does it charge to 100 percent when using the fast charger?
Thanks for watching and asking this great question. I wondered about this too when I was initially looking into buying an EV. The fast-charger itself actually slows down the charge to protect the battery from overheating. It helps the overall life of the battery. When you plug into a fast-charger and the battery is already near 80%, it actually won't charge that fast at all. Fast-chargers work most efficiently when the battery is low, which is why they are the kind of public chargers often available near highways.
How u get the map in your screen? Do u have to pay on star?
I plug in my iPhone (I have the 12 mini) for Apple Car Play. This allows me to easily use apps like Google Maps and Spotify. I love the large screen and ease of use! You do have to play for select OnStar services after the trial subscription that comes with the Bolt purchase ends. I don't have an OnStar subscription right now.
Might be a silly question but do you have to pay for charging stations?
Yes, the charging stations I used in the video require payment. I use the apps for ChargePoint and Electrify America, and the cost is deducted from the funds I load onto each account. If you skip to the 13:30 mark in the video, I talk about charging costs. Free public charging stations do exist! Check out this video I made a few months ago: ua-cam.com/video/eJ_llNE7VSs/v-deo.html
Bro I was pumped about getting an EV but that Tesla line scared me 😱imagine 30-45 min charge on top of waiting in line
I could be wrong but I think the Tesla network can deliver a good charge in less than 30-45 minutes. But I totally agree--that line was daunting!
I was looking at this or another more expensive electric vehicle, but seeing how easy it is to use and the reasonable price of it, I think I might get this. Anyone buying a new car should buy a electric car because it's way more convenient. My friend has one and the stress free of charging it at home, no need to go to the gas station, the cheap cost of having to charge it, how quiet it is without the loud noise, and knowing that all combustion engines break down at some point, electric cars save money in the long term.
as you imply, if you can charge at home or work, besides saving money on fuel also saves time from having to drive to the gas station or wait in long gas lines at Costco, etc. Reduces local and global pollution too, for example my utility uses only wind and solar power to generate electricity for charging.
@@Damon_Mah it seems less like lower emissions and more of a convenience. There is no more getting gas every day at the random cost of the local gas station’s, changing the oil every few months, and so much. The battery is never an issue till years down the line and that’s everyone’s main complaint but it doesn’t compute
@@lucky1206 exactly, I have a similar Chevy Bolt to Kat & it’s great driving by those California $6/gallon gas stations and never stopping except to get a car wash or lottery ticket! and I drove to the city and back yesterday with the Bolt one-pedal driving regenerative braking and only had to tap the brake pedal 3 times the whole trip, at stop lights to to keep the car from sliding on inclines, so many drivers report their brakes last 100,000 miles another hidden EV low maintenance advantage. plus with Bolt purchase GM pays for a free 240V garage outlet electrician installation if you don’t already have one.
255 miles 22$ cost whoa I need a bolt asap
you do!
How much for the full charge of battery
Hello, and thank you for watching! I talk about that in this section of the video: ua-cam.com/video/eBpbgpsrmLA/v-deo.html. The average amount I spent at each charging station was $12.50.
Am I correct in assuming you can use Tesla charging stations with your chevy bolt
Tesla fast-charging stations use their proprietary Supercharger connector, but that could be changing soon: electrek.co/2022/05/10/tesla-add-ccs-connectors-supercharger-stations-us-elon-musk/
Chevy Bolt can currently use Tesla Supercharger 4 with Magic Dock with the Tesla app and no adapter. in a month or two, GM EVs can use some older Tesla Superchargers with an adapter (Ford & Rivian EVs currently can)
Did you purchase this car recently?
I bought it just over a year ago in April 2021.
If you have a 3 cyl car 2CV you have to stop at least every 125 miles
Wow, that’s hella cheap to charge an ev. The only downside is the wait time to charge the ev.
really not a downside on this drive as it’s good to stop every couple hours for a lunch/snack or bathroom break
Every EV road trip video I see convinces me more that EVs aren’t ready to be someone’s only vehicle. Sure a trip like this is doable but looks like a major hassle. For a 350 mile trip I’d stop once in my truck for maybe 10mins max.
The 2022 n 23 bolt will be painfully slower then your current model... 5-80% will take 86 minutes
Really?! That's wild.
Have you had any problems when paying? In some stations (For J1772 these are third-party stations, not car brand dedicated), the machine won't start charging just nagging on my credit card/cards that are all otherwise fine or taping by the phone wallet!
Very frustrating if you are low on charge and have no more charging stations nearby.
Tesla doesn't have this problem as they supply the charge directly to an online account.
I will go with Tesla ONLY, for these important reasons. TESLA HAS THE BEST INFRA STRUCTURE like no one else. If you want full satisfaction, drive only Tesla.
Please share your opinion here and I love to be proven wrong! Rationally & correctly.
have never had an issue paying at 3rd party chargers, if there is an issue it’s more likely to be broken charging cables or plugs. In the USA the key is to organize the top 3 charging apps (ChargePoint, Electrify America, EVgo, and optionally Tesla) on your phone like Kat did, creating accounts and storing your credit card in each before your trip so you can just tap the phone to pay or initiate the charge via the app without tapping.
buying a Tesla is no longer necessary as Tesla has opened their charging network to non-Teslas. the Bolt can currently be charged at Tesla Supercharger 4 with Magic Dock without requiring an adapter and using the Tesla app to pay. Ford and Rivian EVs can now charge at many other older Tesla Superchargers using a free Tesla NACS to CCS1 plug adapter owners were provided. for the GM Chevy Bolt Kat has, GM is next in line to get the adapter in the next month or two.
it really depends on the chargers available where you live and where you are going. in California EV chargers are everywhere except very small towns or wilderness because there are so many EVs. on the highways, non-Tesla chargers are often available even on holidays and weekends with no wait vs the Tesla Superchargers with long lines, because the majority of EVs doing long road trips are Teslas. in fact for J1772 Level 2 public charging, half the cars I see are Teslas using J1772 adapters and not Superchargers present even in the same parking lot because the Level 2 charging is cheaper per kWh than the Superchargers, meaning many Tesla owners don’t even use the Supercharger network when they have a choice.
So you spent almost 3 hours waiting each way. 6 wasted hours of your life you'll never get back each time you make a similar trip. I don't get why anyone wants to go backward in life. EV's are fine for short trips but fall apart for long range travel. We used to fly supersonic and have cars that would go 400 miles on a tank of gas and a refill took 5 min.
Time is money
Totally agree. I used to burn my trash in the backyard instead of filling a trash can. I hate wasting time bringing the trash can down my 1/4 mile driveway. Shouldn’t I be able to burn my waste and create a bit of dioxins for the neighbors to enjoy (they won’t get too much cancer)?
I'll just use the money I save to go fly and rent a vehicle at my destination
If you're really in a hurry, you shouldn't be driving at all, but flying on an airplane. Minimizing travel time is never really the objective of a road trip.
@@ab-tf5fl What happens if you're afraid to fly?
Maybe the charging stations can build a structure with a roof/sun shade? Since cars will sit there for 45 minutes during charges. But the rest of the country is laughing at California for the stupidity of the politicians and the people whom voted in those idiots. Your charging costs are more than my Texas gasoline costs for same distance.
unfortunately California has a lot of wildfires so the utilities have to include fire restoration and prevention costs in the electric rates. and EV charging companies are for-profit so they will charge what the market will pay to make a profit.