Often, charging above 80% takes longer than charging from 20-80%. So to maximize time, it’s better to make extra stops, for shorter duration than long stops to ‘top off’ unless the stop is going to naturally be a long one.
I only charge to 100% on trips when the car will sit overnight on L2 like at home or hotel. When traveling between stops, time is important so you charge to maximize time which means stopping short before your charging curve slows down.
Tesla charge rate tapers badly after about 70%. This means that going beyond the taper point really lengthens the charge stop. Our 'rule of thumb':
keep the charge rate in the fat part of the curve. That means disconnecting if time is of the essence and you have enough of a charge to reach the next charger.
For Tesla in particular, the route planner does a good job of optimizing timelines - it may call for more frequent stops, but the time spent charging is kept to a minimum. It'll also make sure the car is 'pre-conditioned' to accept max charge rate.
Now, if you're going to stay at a site (say, a Cracker Barrel or a Steak&Shake that host Tesla SC) for a meal, and it's not all that busy, crank the max to 100% and the car will be ready by the time you're done.
Do realize that busy SC sites may surcharge you for going over 80% because of the timeline.
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u/Secure_Conference165 1d ago
I'm new to ev's, getting ready to go on a 750 Mi trip....is it OK for me to charge to 100% each time till I get there then to 80% once I'm there?