Traveling by electric car is not always a headache. With a Tesla, this can be easy thanks to the Superchargers and the on-board route planner. And if the latest announcements are to be believed, Teslas are well on their way to remaining the best electric cars for a road trip.
We have already explained in detail the importance of a route planner in an electric car. Without it, drivers are on their own, having to rely on third-party solutions to know where and when to charge their vehicle.
On a Tesla, many advantages are present over the competition to make them vehicles with which it is easy to travel hundreds of kilometers. At the head of the advantages, we find of course the network of Tesla Superchargers (which are, for the most part, open to other manufacturers), but also the efficiency of the cars of the firm of Elon Musk at high speed.
Proving that a big battery isn’t always necessary, the Tesla Model 3 or Model Y Propulsion show that when the on-board planner, charging network and consumption work together, travel couldn’t be simpler.
We are going to come back in more depth on what makes that currently, traveling electric is more practical in a Tesla than in another connected carand following the latest announcements from the firm, we will see why this will probably continue in the future.
Comfortable autonomy
The sinews of war in the world of electromobility is undoubtedly autonomy. This is perfectly fine for Tesla, since its vehicles are among the most autonomous on the market. Indeed, in the current range, the WLTP range varies between 430 kilometers for the Tesla Model Y Propulsion on 20-inch rims and up to 723 kilometers for the Tesla Model S on 19-inch rims.
Of course, the actual range in practice is less, but as we often highlight in our series on long journeys, journeys in Tesla are often faster than in directly competing cars.
With a real autonomy in difficult conditions (cold and high cruising speed) allowing to make between 250 and 450 kilometers of motorway, a Tesla is a car adapted to the big rollers, in particular thanks to their efficiency.
Indeed, to travel one kilometer, the energy required in Tesla Model 3 or Model Y is approximately 15% less than in Hyundai Ioniq 5, and up to 22% less than in Volkswagen ID.4 in particular.
All of this optimization allows Teslas with the same battery size as a competing car to go more miles before needing to recharge. What’s more, a charging network dedicated to Tesla exists: these are the famous Superchargers.
A dedicated charging network
The opening of Tesla Superchargers to other brands has caused some to fear the loss of an advantage for owners of vehicles from Elon Musk’s firm. Although many stations in France are available for all electric cars with a CCS combo socket, there are still many advantages unique to Tesla.
First, the advantage of ease: for a third-party vehicle, you have to authenticate on the Tesla mobile application, then start a charge. For a Tesla, all you have to do is plug in for the charge to start automatically.
Two Tesla Model Y in Supercharge // Source: Bob JOUY for Aroged
In addition, some stations remain exclusive to Teslas, and more than 140 Supercharge stations in France are available throughout the metropolitan territory for Teslas, compared to less than half for other brands.
If necessary, the other fast charging networks remain accessible to Teslas, which can therefore benefit from the best of both worlds. But for many owners, the integration of Superchargers into the Tesla ecosystem is a considerable advantageand they will not necessarily venture elsewhere.
An excellent on-board planner
At the heart of the Tesla ecosystem facilitating great trips, we find the route planner. In practice, all you have to do is enter the final destination for the vehicle to automatically suggest the locations and duration of the charging stops needed to reach your destination.
For the moment, the on-board planner only offers recharging on Tesla Superchargers, but it is possible to indicate other third-party terminals to it as an intermediate destination if necessary. In its optimal operation however, it should only rely on stops at a Supercharger.
Route planning with automatic charging stop additions at Tesla remains unmatched to this day. pic.twitter.com/Shcf4Fba5H
— Bob Jouy (@bobjouy) September 26, 2022
For someone who only takes a few big trips a year, it’s clear that the experience offered by Tesla is unmatched. The number of terminals available live is visible live from the vehicle screen, as is the maximum charging power, the price or the amenities available nearby.
What’s more, the vehicle automatically pre-conditions the battery for optimized charging, when the destination is a Tesla Supercharger. Of course, there is still work to be done to make this route planner perfect.however as it stands it is not perfect.
Among the improvements to be made that we would like to see happen, there is in particular the choice of battery level remaining on arrivalor the consideration of third-party charging stations in the automatic calculation. Currently, Tesla “forces” you to arrive at your destination with around 20% battery when calculating travel time. It is of course possible to stay longer or shorter at the terminal, but the route will not be calculated in advance with this variable. It’s a shame, because it would optimize travel times even further.
If it is not yet confirmed, the manufacturer has still recently announced other useful features arriving in the near future.
Tesla says its cars are the best for travel
Currently, displaying the occupancy rate of Superchargers is simplified as much as possible. Indeed, if you look at the number of terminals used live on your vehicle, you will see a state that is not always relevant: the present state. If your arrival is expected in several hours, knowing the occupation of a Supercharger live is of little interest.
What is interesting would be to know how many terminals will be available when you arrive, and that’s what Tesla is working on. In the near future, the forecast occupancy status of your destination Supercharger will then be visible, allowing you to be reassured about the status of the fast charging station at the time of your arrival. This is thanks to all the real-time data from Tesla heading to the same stations.
Superchargers are used more and more, but the waiting times are less important // Source: Tesla
Plus, in the event of congestion at a Supercharger, you and other Teslas en route are automatically redirected to a less-used station, ensuring the best possible experience. Of course, this benefit remains exclusive to Teslasince vehicles of other brands do not benefit from the integration of the Supercharger network in their on-board planner.
Finally, to allow everyone to benefit from electric mobility in the best conditions, the charging stations of other networks could eventually be automatically integrated into a route, probably only according to the preferences of the user. In this way, for trips of several hundred kilometers, using Ionity, Totalenergies, Fastned or Tesla Superchargers will be just as easy. But it is not yet certain and the situation is unclear on this issue.
Faced with Tesla, some manufacturers are organizing themselves so as not to lag behind in terms of trip planning. But this is not the case for everyone, quite the contrary.
The competition is organized… or not?
If Teslas are considered excellent electric cars, it is also for their software part. These computers on wheels that update remotely try to stay one step ahead of the competition, which is still organizing to compete with the American manufacturer.
Among the good students, we find for example Mercedes, which integrates in its on-board planner more options than what Tesla offers. We retain in particular the possibility to indicate its ideal battery level at each stagebut also the display of the battery level when leaving a charging station.
Stops at a fast charger are taken into account when calculating routes, and if that’s not enough, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are of course available. This is not the case with Tesla, which is an exception.
Indeed, the other manufacturers sometimes offer a planner that is not very useful (MG, Peugeot), sometimes difficult to understand (Hyundai, Kia in particular), when it is not simply absent (DS Automobiles for example). And their workaround amounts to forcing the driver to use a third-party app via Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, like A Better Route Planner.
In 2023, however, this is an unacceptable situation, as vehicles are filled with on-board technologies to largely take care of the task of route planning. And we’re not even talking about the charging experience which is globally incomparable with what Tesla offers, except for a few exceptions like Fastned and Electra with their AutoCharge.
Hyundai Ioniq 6 // Source: Clément Choulot for Aroged
The future will tell if some manufacturers want to be more serious about electromobility, trying to offer a long-distance experience that rivals Tesla. Some are on the right track with Android Automotive (Renault, Volvo), which is quite capable of providing the expected service. But if we look at the present and Tesla’s promises for the future, it’s not won for the competition.
Want to join a community of enthusiasts? Our Discord welcomes you, it’s a place of mutual aid and passion around tech.
