First Long Trip, NY to VA 421 Miles

[Computermedic78]

Last night I drove from Kingston NY to Richmond VA. I stopped to charge 3 times. For the entire duration of the trip the heat was set to 65 auto level 1, heated seat on 1, tires set to 45 psi.

Leg 1: Kingston to East Brunswick NJ, 2:11 hrs 122 miles. Average speed 56 mph. Efficiency 1.9 m/kW
The first hour was uneventful. All highway, bluecruise set to 70. Once I hit NJ the snow started and I turned off the cruise control for the second hour. When I got to the EA station 3 were dead, and there was a 30 minute wait before I could charge. I arrived at 52% and spent 31 minutes charging to reach 86%. 84% of the energy was spent on driving, 9% for climate use, 5% on exterior temperature, and 2% on accessories.

Leg 2: East Brunswick to New Castle DE, 1:30 hrs 87.6 miles. Average speed 58 mph. Efficiency 1.9 m/kW
The first half was spent in the snow, so no cruise control. The second half was rain. The cruise control and lane assist worked, but blue cruise did not activate. There was no wait at the charger. I arrived at 52% and spent 24 minutes charging to reach 85%. 89% of usage went to driving, 7% to climate, 2% to exterior temp, and 2% for accessories.

Leg 3: New Castle to Alexandria VA. 2 hrs 111.9 miles. Average speed 56 mph. Efficiency 2.0 m/kW
Very light rain. Bluecruise wouldnt activate at all until after I passed Baltimore. Once it did, it turned on and off randomly for the rest of the trip. No apparent reason for it, as it was not near any kind of exit or merge. I arrived at 38% and spent 33 minutes charging to reach 85%. 88% went to driving, 7% for climate use, 3% for exterior temperature, and 2% for accessories.

Leg 4: Alexandria to Richmond. 1:40 hrs 100.1 miles. Average speed 62.5. Efficiency 1.7 m/kW
Finally got Blucruise back once I got on the highway. I'm not sure what brought my average speed down, I had the cruise set to 70 for the majority of the trip. I arrived at the hotel at 43%. The hotel has a 16 kw charger that costs $2.50/hr to use which will end up being 15c/kW. Much better than the 48c I spent at the DCFC.

Overall:
Time driving: 7:21
Time Charging: 1:28
Total time: 8:49
Total cost: $78.45

Taking numbers from a 2024 Ram with a 5.7 hemi, combined fuel efficiency is 21mpg. At $3/gal this would have cost $60.23. Gas would have saved me $18 and would have been 1:28 minutes faster. That doesnt include the charging I need to do today.

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[TaxmanHog]

I would try using more of the available capacity, plan to arrive at a DCFC at a lower SOC {15-20%} and only spend time charging to 80%, this will save you time, go higher if you need the energy to get to the next charging location.

 

[Computermedic78]

I was messing with ABRP before the trip adding and removing stops. I still have range anxiety so I charged longer than I needed to. The drive back north will have fewer stops.

 

[Ffxdude]

Last night I drove from Kingston NY to Richmond VA. I stopped to charge 3 times. For the entire duration of the trip the heat was set to 65 auto level 1, heated seat on 1, tires set to 45 psi.

Leg 1: Kingston to East Brunswick NJ, 2:11 hrs 122 miles. Average speed 56 mph. Efficiency 1.9 m/kW
The first hour was uneventful. All highway, bluecruise set to 70. Once I hit NJ the snow started and I turned off the cruise control for the second hour. When I got to the EA station 3 were dead, and there was a 30 minute wait before I could charge. I arrived at 52% and spent 31 minutes charging to reach 86%. 84% of the energy was spent on driving, 9% for climate use, 5% on exterior temperature, and 2% on accessories.

Leg 2: East Brunswick to New Castle DE, 1:30 hrs 87.6 miles. Average speed 58 mph. Efficiency 1.9 m/kW
The first half was spent in the snow, so no cruise control. The second half was rain. The cruise control and lane assist worked, but blue cruise did not activate. There was no wait at the charger. I arrived at 52% and spent 24 minutes charging to reach 85%. 89% of usage went to driving, 7% to climate, 2% to exterior temp, and 2% for accessories.

Leg 3: New Castle to Alexandria VA. 2 hrs 111.9 miles. Average speed 56 mph. Efficiency 2.0 m/kW
Very light rain. Bluecruise wouldnt activate at all until after I passed Baltimore. Once it did, it turned on and off randomly for the rest of the trip. No apparent reason for it, as it was not near any kind of exit or merge. I arrived at 38% and spent 33 minutes charging to reach 85%. 88% went to driving, 7% for climate use, 3% for exterior temperature, and 2% for accessories.

Leg 4: Alexandria to Richmond. 1:40 hrs 100.1 miles. Average speed 62.5. Efficiency 1.7 m/kW
Finally got Blucruise back once I got on the highway. I'm not sure what brought my average speed down, I had the cruise set to 70 for the majority of the trip. I arrived at the hotel at 43%. The hotel has a 16 kw charger that costs $2.50/hr to use which will end up being 15c/kW. Much better than the 48c I spent at the DCFC.

Overall:
Time driving: 7:21
Time Charging: 1:28
Total time: 8:49
Total cost: $78.45

Taking numbers from a 2024 Ram with a 5.7 hemi, combined fuel efficiency is 21mpg. At $3/gal this would have cost $60.23. Gas would have saved me $18 and would have been 1:28 minutes faster. That doesnt include the charging I need to do today.

Those costs with the EA pass plus?

Stops 1&2 are my go to on trips to CT, historically they were good stops, but seems like the last couple of months folks have had same issues you experienced.

Congrats on getting over 60 mph on leg 4 that stretch of VA sucks…lol.

 

[Computermedic78]

Those costs with the EA pass plus?

Stops 1&2 are my go to on trips to CT, historically they were good stops, but seems like the last couple of months folks have had same issues you experienced.

Congrats on getting over 60 mph on leg 4 that stretch of VA sucks…lol.

It was just about midnight, so there werent many people on the road. I wasnt using EA pass plus, I just have the plug and charge. After seeing this I'll have to sign up. All three stops were $0.48/kW

 

[TaxmanHog]

Looks like ABRP projection is what you did, I came up with similar results assuming you left at 100%, input a projected MPK of 1.8 (you did better) and chose to get as low as 10% but stopping & charging where best situated to make the next leg and finishing the trip with a 15% reserve.

 

[TaxmanHog]

I was messing with ABRP before the trip adding and removing stops. I still have range anxiety so I charged longer than I needed to. The drive back north will have fewer stops.

You did great for being conservative, it's confidence inspiring to have the extra energy to make it to alternate sites.

 

[Computermedic78]

Looks like ABRP projection is what you did, I came up with similar results assuming you left at 100%, input a projected MPK of 1.8 (you did better) and chose to get as low as 10% but stopping & charging where best situated to make the next leg and finishing the trip with a 15% reserve.

That's exactly what I did. I told it 1.5 since that seems to be where I sit when I can actually do the speed limit. I also told it not to drop below 25% so that if I do need to pick a different spot I can.

 

[Ffxdude]

You did great for being conservative, it's confidence inspiring to have the extra energy to make it to alternate sites.

Exactly and after a couple of confidence boosting trips @Computermedic78 will reduce that buffer, coasting into his final destination and being pushed the last 50ft by coeds a la @Yellow Buddy...

 

[Yellow Buddy]

Exactly and after a couple of confidence boosting trips @Computermedic78 will reduce that buffer, coasting into his final destination and being pushed the last 50ft by coeds a la @Yellow Buddy...

What happens in the 7/11 thread, STAYS in the 7/11 thread!!

@Computermedic78 I do that stretch frequently, feel free to ping for tips if you ever need them. Sounds like you did alright though.

I go with 48psi, 68 Auto.

Put Abington MD on your map. Multiple 350kW, Walmart for snacks, multiple restaurants that are walkable - if you see an oversized dude on an e-scooter with a bucket of fried chicken heading back to a Lightning, that’s me.

The chargers at springfield mall are new but a pain to wait for. Same with Spotsylvania. If I need a stop in there it’ll be Stafford. Consistently adequate as the 350 is ALWAYS broken along with 1-3 of the 150kWs, luckily there’s a ton of them. Traffic that’s short stretch can easily add 10-15 minutes to that stop. Food options aren’t all that wonderful.

But I can usually make it to Richmond from Abington MD with 70-75% charge, and that’s going 80-90mph. I can make it to Emporia or Henderson if I slow down.

I’ve even found it to be quicker to stop early at Abington rather than going to Springfield Mall, Stafford or Spotsylvania. I wouldn’t sit and wait for 80-85% though, unless you truly need it to the next place. Oh…and avoid the charger in Richmond at all cost. It’s a consistently terrible charging experience. The terrible EA there sends people hunting and competing across the EVgo, Chargepoint, and the EAs. I question going EV everytime I need to charge there…

 

[TaxmanHog]

Exactly and after a couple of confidence boosting trips @Computermedic78 will reduce that buffer, coasting into his final destination and being pushed the last 50ft by coeds a la @Yellow Buddy...

Might even get pushed into the charging stall by a gaggle of inebriated nurses....

 

[Computermedic78]

What happens in the 7/11 thread, STAYS in the 7/11 thread!!

@Computermedic78 I do that stretch frequently, feel free to ping for tips if you ever need them. Sounds like you did alright though.

I go with 48psi, 68 Auto.

Put Abington MD on your map. Multiple 350kW, Walmart for snacks, multiple restaurants that are walkable - if you see an oversized dude on an e-scooter with a bucket of fried chicken heading back to a Lightning, that’s me.

The chargers at springfield mall are new but a pain to wait for. Same with Spotsylvania. If I need a stop in there it’ll be Stafford. Consistently adequate as the 350 is ALWAYS broken along with 1-3 of the 150kWs, luckily there’s a ton of them. Traffic that’s short stretch can easily add 10-15 minutes to that stop. Food options aren’t all that wonderful.

But I can usually make it to Richmond from Abington MD with 70-75% charge, and that’s going 80-90mph. I can make it to Emporia or Henderson if I slow down.

I’ve even found it to be quicker to stop early at Abington rather than going to Springfield Mall, Stafford or Spotsylvania. I wouldn’t sit and wait for 80-85% though, unless you truly need it to the next place. Oh…and avoid the charger in Richmond at all cost. It’s a consistently terrible charging experience. The terrible EA there sends people hunting and competing across the EVgo, Chargepoint, and the EAs. I question going EV everytime I need to charge there…

I regret going EV every day. I'll try making it to Abington on the way back as my first stop and go from there.

 

[wighty]

I regret going EV every day. I'll try making it to Abington on the way back as my first stop and go from there.

They are not without their issues... But I won't ever go back to an ICEV.

 

[Computermedic78]

They are not without their issues... But I won't ever go back to an ICEV.

I'm going back the first chance I get. Too many issues for me and the infrastructure just isn't ready

 

[PreservedSwine]

It was just about midnight, so there werent many people on the road. I wasnt using EA pass plus, I just have the plug and charge. After seeing this I'll have to sign up. All three stops were $0.48/kW

Be careful.
I signed up for EA and still paid the higher Fordpass price. It only added up to about $20 or $30 bucks, but it still really ticked me off that the truck just kept reverting FordPass prices for billing instead of the just paid for EA Membership that I’ll never use again. The EA app just wouldn’t initialize. Calls to EA and Ford finally told me to disable Fordpass connected services.

Make sure you disable fordpass connected services once you’re signed up with EA.

The retail electricity charges were stunning to me as well on my first (and last) road trip in the lightning.

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