real world 250kW charging from past weekend road trip to LA

[kwanyu]

Porsche weren't kidding when they said Taycan can charge fast.... I got to 80% ish in 20 mins before I could even find a restaurant we liked.

I noticed:

• the charging lightning icon turned green above a certain kW threshold.
• starting battery temp was controlled by the navigation system at ~35C while cruising for couple hours.
• ambient is ~25C.
• battery temp got up pretty high (42C ish) fairly quickly but stayed controlled thanks to cooling system on right passenger corner radiators.

Sponsored

 

[BayAreaJay]

Porsche weren't kidding when they said Taycan can charge fast.... I got to 80% ish in 20 mins before I could even find a restaurant we liked.

I noticed:

• the charging lightning icon turned green above a certain kW threshold.
• starting battery temp was controlled by the navigation system at ~35C while cruising for couple hours.
• ambient is ~25C.
• battery temp got up pretty high (42C ish) fairly quickly but stayed controlled thanks to cooling system on right passenger corner radiators.

I drove to LA over the long Weeknd and agree on the fast charging.

Although the EA chargers (not Porsche fault) are still un-reliable as on my way back, the chargers (all of them) in Firebaugh area were non-functional and had to drive to Gilroy for the charge with mere 5% remaining. Not fun driving in a 100+ degree heat wave throttling the a/c to conserve power.

On my way to LA, the Bakersfield chargers (350KWh) was only outputting 78KW max rate. I had enough charge and was too lazy to call them as I had to call EA 3 times for charging related issues.
PS: EA customer service people are very polite/well trained even when dealing another angry customers due to the infrastructure issues.

 

[submatrix]

Porsche weren't kidding when they said Taycan can charge fast.... I got to 80% ish in 20 mins before I could even find a restaurant we liked.

I noticed:

• the charging lightning icon turned green above a certain kW threshold.
• starting battery temp was controlled by the navigation system at ~35C while cruising for couple hours.
• ambient is ~25C.
• battery temp got up pretty high (42C ish) fairly quickly but stayed controlled thanks to cooling system on right passenger corner radiators.

Which charger was this that was outputting 250kW?

 

[kort]

Not fun driving in a 100+ degree heat wave throttling the a/c to conserve power.

fwiw: the AC consumes minimal kw, it's usage over that time period may have cost you a couple of miles of range

 

[kwanyu]

I drove to LA over the long Weeknd and agree on the fast charging.

Although the EA chargers (not Porsche fault) are still un-reliable as on my way back, the chargers (all of them) in Firebaugh area were non-functional and had to drive to Gilroy for the charge with mere 5% remaining. Not fun driving in a 100+ degree heat wave throttling the a/c to conserve power.

On my way to LA, the Bakersfield chargers (350KWh) was only outputting 78KW max rate. I had enough charge and was too lazy to call them as I had to call EA 3 times for charging related issues.
PS: EA customer service people are very polite/well trained even when dealing another angry customers due to the infrastructure issues.

@BayAreaJay
yes I agree and also confirm several of the EA chargers don't charge as fast as advertised in my experience. Sometimes it's because our batteries isn't in optimal temperature (30-35C) or SOC (<20%). I also stopped by the Panoche EA station -- the 350kW station only provided 30kW. I didn't bother with EA customer service and just repositioned to the next spot (within Panoche station) and got much higher rates.

The 250kW station I got was in Paso Robles.

 

[submatrix]

@BayAreaJay
yes I agree and also confirm several of the EA chargers don't charge as fast as advertised in my experience. Sometimes it's because our batteries isn't in optimal temperature (30-35C) or SOC (<20%). I also stopped by the Panoche EA station -- the 350kW station only provided 30kW. I didn't bother with EA customer service and just repositioned to the next spot (within Panoche station) and got much higher rates.

The 250kW station I got was in Paso Robles.

Ah, nice. I've yet to do the 101 drive yet, I always end up taking the 5 when going between the bay and LA for time savings sake. One of these days...

 

[B61]

May I join with a question why it’s recommended to charge up to 80% only?
Why not fully?
If 30-80% is usage range, doesn’t it mean, that we are using half of the battery capacity?

 

[submatrix]

May I join with a question why it’s recommended to charge up to 80% only?
Why not fully?
If 30-80% is usage range, doesn’t it mean, that we are using half of the battery capacity?

EVs slow down their rate of charge significantly past 80% in order to protect the battery. As a result, rather than wait to charge all the way to 100% when you're in the middle of a trip, it's more efficient to leave the station at 80% and drive until the next station.

Additionally, the maximum rate of charge is achieved when the battery is at a low state of charge. So it is more efficient to drive from 80%-30% and then plug in as opposed to 100%-50%.

Of course, if you are starting your trip, it is best to fully charge up to 100% so you start with the maximum amount of charge for the first leg of the trip.

Lastly, keep in mind that if you have charging at your destination, you want to arrive with as little charge as possible. Anything above that is extra time "wasted" sitting at a charging stop instead of getting to your destination faster.

 

[B61]

Thx for explanation.
So, starting with 100%, not leaving bellow 30 is the best for battery..

 

[Deleted member 1697]

250KW ! it's too fast for me. I'm only 40Miles (70Km) away from home... I don't have enough time to get a picture ! I only use it for 5 minutes
coffee machine is way too slow ! and coffee is too hot

 

[Deleted member 1697]

the point is to know your consumption and the trip to stop to charge when you're 10% soc. and not to fill up
I'm trying to not fill up arriving at home / office and to let it under 30% as I don't expect to go on the highway
I still can't resist

 

[kort]

Thx for explanation.
So, starting with 100%, not leaving bellow 30 is the best for battery..

it's called driving the bottom of the battery, plan out your charging stops prior to embarking on your trip, then aim to arrive at the chargers at a very low SOC and charge just enough to make it to the next charger + a small fudge factor. it makes the charging stops go much quicker.

 

[W1NGE]

Thx for explanation.
So, starting with 100%, not leaving bellow 30 is the best for battery..

Only 100% if you plan to use on the day.

Plenty of detailed commentary on this topic on this forum - search for it

Also check recommended charging profiles in the Porsche Good To Know App.

 

[B61]

Thx for all your tips, guys.

 

[BayAreaJay]

fwiw: the AC consumes minimal kw, it's usage over that time period may have cost you a couple of miles of range

When it was showing me range with and without the ac, the difference was about 3 miles (over 50 miles distance)

Sponsored