Northern IL to Florida Panhandle 1,000 mile Trip Report

[TheBigBezo]

@MJDore Thanks for the post. I live in Birmingham, AL and vacation down around the 30A area. Charging infrastructure is less than desirable down there. Seaside has some destination chargers that I've used in the past. Hoping charging options change soon.

I reached out to FPL and some local chambers of commerce regarding installing DC fast chargers in the panhandle now that FPL owns the area. They seemed receptive and I know the Fort Walton area said they're pushing to have some installed.

Edit: Wanted to add, for those in the area or Florida in general. Reach out to your city leadership, FPL has a program to install chargers. It's worth pushing them to open dialogue.

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[TheBigBezo]

I'm surprised your mi/kWh is so low. I wonder if it's an issue with the ERs? I have a standard range, and since just before Christmas until now, I'm averaging 2.0 mi/kWh during the winter (I live in MA). Most of the time it's actually higher than that, save for the really cold days and short trips that bring down the average. And as it gets warmer, I'm getting into the mid-2s and sometimes pushing into the 3s!

Anybody else seeing a difference between SR/ER range performance? Is it the extra weight of the ER battery eating up the performance?

I have averaged 2.4 since I bought my truck, and recently many of my trips are as high as 3.1. No hypermiling required, it's just calm winds most days and Temps are mid 70s. I do mostly suburban driving since I don't live near an interstate. So far, the Lightning has been killing it efficiency wise.

 

[MJDore]

I have averaged 2.4 since I bought my truck, and recently many of my trips are as high as 3.1. No hypermiling required, it's just calm winds most days and Temps are mid 70s. I do mostly suburban driving since I don't live near an interstate. So far, the Lightning has been killing it efficiency wise.

The efficiency numbers I quoted were for interstate driving speeds in cold weather. My daily commute through back roads 7 miles to and from work are higher than this. We're comparing apples and oranges.

 

[TheBigBezo]

The efficiency numbers I quoted were for interstate driving speeds in cold weather. My daily commute through back roads 7 miles to and from work are higher than this. We're comparing apples and oranges.

I wasn't responding to you, I was responding to the other user asking about SR VS ER performance.

 

[G-Zeus]

That's the answer to your question. Not a unicorn, it's the aerodynamics of rapidly pushing through cold air.
I think most people are observing that weight has much less effect on efficiency than speed.

When I travel on the freeway, whether it's 30 degrees, 40 degrees or 50 degrees, and I'm traveling 50 mph, 60 mph, or 70mph... I'm always getting 2 mi/kWh. I verified that again today. So overall, regardless of freeway, city, country driving; regardless of average speed; regardless of cold temp (save for cold below 20 degrees), I seem to be getting 2.0 mi/kWh.

I had a trip today, very similar to yours:

Effingham, IL to Mt. Vernon, IL
Probably could have planned to skip this spot. 47 degrees now so cruised at around 70-72 mph.
Distance: 66 miles
Time: 1 hour
State of Charge: 77% to 48%
Temp: 47
Mi/KwH: 1.72
Avg Speed: 66

I drove between 65 and 75 mph on the freeway, but let's say the average was about the same as yours, in about the same temperature, about the same distance. Same cabin temp. And mi/kWh was around 2.0, maybe 2.1. And it was fairly flat, so I wouldn't say it was all downhill. So it's not just about "pushing air" and makes me wonder if the ER battery is somehow not as efficient as the SR battery, or how to otherwise explain all of the ER drivers complaining about poor range. I suppose in the end, it doesn't matter, maybe 10-15% difference... what matters is how awesome the truck is to drive no matter the conditions!!

 

[MRButtler]

Sure would be nice to have a DCFC option in Champaign that isn't Tesla/Tesla-only.

EA is installing DCFC in the Champaign Meijer. Hooray!

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