900 mile Christmas Marathon

[ksnogas2112]

Tony, it ain't flat. The entire trip will be rolling hills. You're thinking southern and western Kansas. Iowa, Missouri, and eastern Kansas are filled with highway cuts, gulley washouts and bridges. IIRC each leg of the trip will also include a steep but short climb out of the river valleys and back into rolling hills.

@OP - watch out for the highway patrol speed trap on the outskirts of Columbia or the Leawood trap on I-435 and State Line (KS side). They'll be busy this time of the year there.

http://www.improb.com/airchives/paperair/volume9/v9i3/kansas.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

While starting and ending elevation might be the same or similar it's the in between that gets you. Check the elevation graph I made for my trip to Manhattan. The graph shows Lenexa to Abilene. I didn't quite make it that far. Only 1050 meters starting and 1150 ending.

http://ksnogas.blogspot.com/2012/11/over-hill-over-dale-and-it-was-dusty_11.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[IraqiInvaderGnr]

This trip is more accurately a marathon consisting on 3 trips. First is about 350 miles then another for ~ 350 miles then final trip ~150 miles

Where you're driving is flat as a pancake, so your only real enemies on this trip are cold and maybe wind. I've broken down your trip into three separate Google maps trips. Any leg that pushes past 60 miles in the cold, I would find an alternate. You need buffers, but more importantly, for best time management during the trip, you want to start at 100% at the beginning of each trip and that should be your longest leg. Then, you'll only charge to 80-90% for the subsequent legs.

NOTE: Most public charging is 208 volts, and will slow your charge rate. Campgrounds with NEMA 14-50R "50 amp service" will be 240 volts, but it's not uncommon to have much lower voltage. Measure the voltage under load every time to ensure you have a good plug. Never walk away from a campground charge sessions until you've ensured that the breaker won't pop after 5-10 minutes.

http://goo.gl/maps/rrjJe" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Time - Start —— - Treynor, IA
4+30 - 55 miles - Nebraska City, NE, 3.2 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
2+20 - 32 miles - Rock Port, 1.5 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
4+50 - 66 miles - St. Joseph, MO, 3.5 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
4+30 - 54 miles - Kansas City, MO, 3.2 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
6+40 - 86 miles - Sedalia, MO, 4.5 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
1+20 - 61 miles - Jefferson City, MO, charge overnight

24.2 hours, 355 miles Total

*****************************

http://goo.gl/maps/uXan8" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Time - Start —— - Jefferson City, MO
2+20 - 32 miles - Columbia, MO, 1.5 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
4+50 - 65 miles - Bevier, MO, 3.5 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
2+10 - 26 miles - La Plata, MO, 1.5 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
0+50 - 13 miles - Kirksville, MO, 0.5 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
3+40 - 45 miles - Bloomfield, Iowa, 2.75 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
3+40 - 41 miles - Eddyville, Iowa, 2.75 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
2+10 - 27 miles - Pella, Iowa, 1.5 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
3+40 - 43 miles - Des Moines, Iowa, 2.75 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
3+50 - 49 miles - Ogden, Iowa, 3 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
1+10 - 57 miles - Humboldt, Iowa, charge overnight

30.3 hours, 396 miles Total

**************************

http://goo.gl/maps/tfisd" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Time - Start —— - Humboldt, Iowa
4+30 - 55 miles - Jefferson, Iowa, 3.2 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
4+50 - 65 miles - Elk Horn, Iowa, 3.5 hours charging 240 volts 27.5 amps (6.6kW)
1+10 - 53 miles - Treynor, Iowa, end


10.5 hours, 172 miles

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************************

The new 2013 LEAF with optional 27.5 amp charger will be about 6.6kW at 240 volts. I don't know if its been measured at 200 or 208 volts yet to see if it increases to 30 amps. You can't pull 27.5 - 30 amps continuous from a typical NEMA 10-30 or 14-30 dryer plug, or you will likely pop the breaker.

You need an EVSE that can be set to 24 amps for dryers.

**********************************************************************

Miles Gained per Hour Charging
Room temperature battery or warmer, new condition (no degradation)

Amps/Volts -- Where ---- 4 miles per kWh

12 / 120 ------- Any ------ 4.0 miles (supplied cable with car in USA/Canada)
12 / 208 ------ Public ----- 8.4 miles
12 / 240 ------ Home ----- 9.6 miles
16 / 208 ------ Public ----- 11.1 miles ****
16 / 240 ------ Home ----- 12.9 miles
20 / 208 ------ Public ----- 14.1 miles
20 / 240 ------ Home ----- 16.3 miles
25 / 208 ------ Public ----- 17.8 miles
25 / 240 ------ Home ----- 20.6 miles
30 / 208 ------ Public ----- 21.4 miles (**unverified at 30 amps**)
30 / 240 ------ Home ----- 22.7 miles (limited to 27.5 amps)

**** will likely pull 18 amps at 208 volts****
**I don't know if its been measured at 200 or 208 volts yet to see if it increases to 30 amps.**


**********************************************************************


Hours to charge LEAF with warm new condition battery
From Turtle mode ("dead") to 100%, Room temperature battery or warmer, new condition (no degradation)


Amps/Volts -- Where ---- Time

12 / 120 ------- Any ------ 22.8 hours (supplied cable with car in USA/Canada)
12 / 208 ------ Public ----- 11.4 hours
12 / 240 ------ Home ------ 9.9 hours
16 / 208 ------ Public ------ 8.6 hours
16 / 240 ------ Home ------ 7.4 hours
20 / 208 ------ Public ------ 6.7 hours
20 / 240 ------ Home ------ 5.9 hours
25 / 208 ------ Public ------ 5.4 hours
25 / 240 ------ Home ------ 4.7 hours
30 / 208 ------ Public ------ 4.5 hours (unverified at 30 amps**)
30 / 240 ------ Home ------ 4.2 hours (limited to 27.5 amps)


**** will likely pull 18 amps at 208 volts****
**I don't know if its been measured at 200 or 208 volts yet to see if it increases to 30 amps.**

Excellent job Tony! Minor Adjustments to Marathon. Finally heard back from the last few campgrounds and this is how my the Marathon will go

Treynor, Iowa to Nebraska City, NE 57 miles
Nebraska City, NE to Indian Cave State Park 45 miles
Indian Cave State Park to St. Joseph, MO 74 miles
St. Joseph, MO to Independence, MO 64 miles
Independence, MO to Lee's Summit,MO 15 miles
Lee's Summit, MO to Sedalia, MO 64 miles
Sedalia, MO to Jefferson City, MO 60 miles

Leg 2
Jefferson City, MO to Columbia, MO 36 miles
Columbia, MO to Bevier, MO 63 miles
Bevier, MO to Kirksville, MO 32 miles
Kirksville, MO to Ottumwa, IA 74 miles
Ottumwa, IA to Knoxville, IA 52 miles
Knoxville, IA to Clive, IA (Des Moines) 45 miles
Clive, IA to Ogden, IA 46 miles
Ogden, IA to Humboldt, IA 50 miles

Leg 3
Humboldt, IA to Jefferson, IA 51 miles
Jefferson, IA to Elk Horn, IA 73 miles
Elk Horn, IA to Treynor, IA 52 miles

Best Route Possible. 3 different spots where it's 70+ miles. I'm confident I'll be able to do it though. 970 miles total per Google Maps. Lately I've been doing better and better with efficient driving. I had 40 miles with 50% soc left 2 of the past 3 days and that's holding top speed to no more than 55mph (other than coasting). Lowering speeds further in the trouble spots will allow me to complete this with minimal worry I believe. Others here may believe 80 miles on a charge in winter time is unobtainable but I disagree. Will look forward to prove that with this marathon (pro-rating of course).

Highway Patrol ksnogas2112? I'm originally from Missouri and know how bad they can be. I won't be speeding so I won't be worried bout that. Pulled over for going 5 under? Highly likely I believe due to hours I'll be driving plus the number of times my family members have been stopped for driving "too" slow (which in Missouri is anything under the speed limit it seems).

On a side note I just added my home as a public charging station on Plugshare. I don't know if many people do this on here but this could help with charging outside of cities.

 

[abasile]

On a side note I just added my home as a public charging station on Plugshare. I don't know if many people do this on here but this could help with charging outside of cities.

I'm in PlugShare, and multiple EV drivers have stopped by my home to charge. Thank you for supporting this grass-roots charging network!

Have a safe trip, and a very merry Christmas. And thank you for your service to the country!

 

[IraqiInvaderGnr]

Left at 07:30 this morning with 100%. Drove 54 miles to Nebraska City and I'm currently here charging. Had 36% left in battery prior to charging. I have a good feeling about this marathon. Boss man allowed me to take off Friday so I have plenty of time now.

 

[TonyWilliams]

Left at 07:30 this morning with 100%. Drove 54 miles to Nebraska City and I'm currently here charging. Had 36% left in battery prior to charging. I have a good feeling about this marathon. Boss man allowed me to take off Friday so I have plenty of time now.

I hope you'll post a log of your proposed route, miles, driving time, charging time, and the actual data.

Safe travels.

 

[vrwl]

Good luck, we're rooting for your safe and successful journey!

 

[Becky50]

I, too, am enjoying following along vicariously on your adventure. Good luck and safe travels.

 

[ksnogas2112]

I know you won't see this soon but be careful. The roads are starting to ice up around here now.

 

[RegGuheert]

Best wishes for a safe and enjoyable voyage!

 

[IraqiInvaderGnr]

71 miles from falls city, Nebraska took 3 hours to fully charged and got to Nissan dealership in St. Joseph on sparks due to freezing rain and defrost heat use. Had 46 miles on first 50% of battery then 25 on last 50%. Charged to 100% from there to Nissan dealership here in Kansas City. Took 4 hours to charge. Battery heat is sustaining around 60°F. Driving very slow due to conditions but range surprisingly is not seriously affected by the snow covered roads. Heat is used only as a last resort. I arrived at the Nissan dealership in Kansas City with 50% charge and will be charging to 100% again. 39 miles took 50% doing ~40 miles on the interstate snow covered. Debating about weither or not to go past lees summit tonight. I can make it.....If I don't use heat but that's a BIG IF.

 

[vrwl]

71 miles from falls city, Nebraska took 3 hours to fully charged and got to Nissan dealership in St. Joseph on sparks due to freezing rain and defrost heat use. Had 46 miles on first 50% of battery then 25 on last 50%. Charged to 100% from there to Nissan dealership here in Kansas City. Took 4 hours to charge. Battery heat is sustaining around 60°F. Driving very slow due to conditions but range surprisingly is not seriously affected by the snow covered roads. Heat is used only as a last resort. I arrived at the Nissan dealership in Kansas City with 50% charge and will be charging to 100% again. 39 miles took 50% doing ~40 miles on the interstate snow covered. Debating about weither or not to go past lees summit tonight. I can make it.....If I don't use heat but that's a BIG IF.

Safety first, since you got extra time off from work, maybe wait till daylight so if you have trouble, you can be seen by other drivers on the road.

 

[ksnogas2112]

and got to Nissan dealership in St. Joseph on sparks due to freezing rain and defrost heat use.

on sparks...i like that. no fumes but sparks...hope you made it ok. if it weren't for the bad drivers the roads weren't really that bad but something about slick roads makes every suv and pick up driver around here think they're immune to lack of traction and Newton's laws of motion so they don't slow down.

 

[IraqiInvaderGnr]

and got to Nissan dealership in St. Joseph on sparks due to freezing rain and defrost heat use.

on sparks...i like that. no fumes but sparks...hope you made it ok. if it weren't for the bad drivers the roads weren't really that bad but something about slick roads makes every suv and pick up driver around here think they're immune to lack of traction and Newton's laws of motion so they don't slow down.

Thanks...I kinda stole it from someone else on here. Can't remember who but read it one day on here. Yea most of the drivers were alright but every 5-10 minutes you get that idiot like you say in a suv, pickup truck, or (even 18-wheeler) doing near the speed limit when most everyone else is doing 30-40mph.

Here's some raw data.
Left Treynor, Iowa at 07:30 and started charging in Nebraska City, NE at 08:40 (hour of drive time and 54 miles) 36% left in battery. Took 2 hours to charge to 80%.

Left Nebraska City, NE at 10:45 and started charging in Falls City, NE at 12:00 (hour of drive time
54 miles) Cannot recall exact amount left in battery but took 3 hours to charge to 100%.

Left Falls City, NE at 15:00 with 100% and started charging in St. Joseph, MO at 17:00 (1.75 hour drive and 71 miles) Arrived at dealership with 6 gids left on Leafspy (turtle mode). I had to use heat due to freezing rain over half way there. Went 46 miles on first 50% of battery but could barely make it 25 miles on last half with heat.

Weird thing here 2 miles from the exit the SOC on the dash stated 10% left. Within 10 seconds it dropped from 10% to 5%. Never seen this before. Could it be from unbalanced cells? Nonetheless due to weather I charged to 100% again and for the remainder of the trip. Took 3.5 hours to charge.

Left St. Joseph, MO at 20:30 and arrived at Fenton Nissan dealership in Kansas City at 2200 with 50% charge (39 miles doing ~40mph on snow covered roads took 1.5 hours) Very good drive in horrible conditions. Tires never spun out and car never lost traction the entire trip and this is with standard tires.

Left Fenton Nissan at 00:40 and arrived at Lee's Summit, MO at 01:15 (took about 40 minutes to drive 34 miles) with 58% charge. Took 2 hours to charge to 100%

Left Lee's Summit, MO at 03:30 and arrived at Sedalia, MO at 05:30 with 16% left (took about 2 hours to drive 67 miles). Charged to 91% and took 2.75 hours

Left Sedalia, MO at 08:15 and arrived at Jefferson City, MO at 09:30 with 19% left.

That's the end of Leg 1. Took significantly longer than estimated due to slow travel speeds and 100% charge instead of 80% charge.

Charge times are not that bad when able to charge to 80% and make it. One thing I was left confused with is the fact that I got a 100% charge in 3.5 hours from a dead battery. Not quite sure how that happened but no complaints here. Charge speeds did not seem to be any slower on public chargepoint stations vs my home evse.

I fully believe I am able to drive 80 miles on a charge after this first leg due to making it 46 miles on 50% of the battery in one of the parts. Temperature was between 10-25F

TonyWilliams I hope I provided everything needed. If there's more data you would like just let me know. I can provide more info for the last 2 legs. Thanks again for the safe wishes all.

 

[smkettner]

As long as the co-pilot is doing well you should have no issues.

 

[derkraut]

You are one dedicated/determined person. I salute you for that. Reminds me of Charles Lindberg's solo flight across the atlantic.

 

[ksnogas2112]

Dead to full 3.5 hr charge, remember the bottom charges faster than the top. So dead to 80% is the fastest, it's the top 20% that takes more time.

 

[Tomasz]

Dead to full 3.5 hr charge, remember the bottom charges faster than the top. So dead to 80% is the fastest, it's the top 20% that takes more time.

+1

0 to 80% should take about 2.5h on 6.6kW charger, then another hour for remaining 20%.

 

[marccbr]

Very interested to hear how the trip went. Post up when you complete it.

 

[IraqiInvaderGnr]

Marathon won't be completed till this Sunday. Not leaving for the second part till Wednesday night. Will post as more gets completed. Btw I think I left this out in my last post but battery temp started around 40°F and got up to 60°F. It hovered between 50-60°F pretty much the entire trip.

Btw Co-pilot is enjoying it just as much as I. Since we stop so much we rented 4 movies to watch. It's worked pretty great and helps pass time. It's just a good thing both of us can withstand the cold. Doubt that we will ever do this again but sure makes us remember our first long adventure in the leaf where we drove to Des Moines from Treynor stopping in Elk Horn to charge. 80 some odd miles in longest stretch doing 45mph we made it with 20% I remember. This was done in May just a month after we got the car. This car has performed exceptionally well!

 

[Tomasz]

Btw Co-pilot is enjoying it just as much as I. Since we stop so much we rented 4 movies to watch. It's worked pretty great and helps pass time. It's just a good thing both of us can withstand the cold. Doubt that we will ever do this again but sure makes us remember our first long adventure in the leaf where we drove to Des Moines from Treynor stopping in Elk Horn to charge. 80 some odd miles in longest stretch doing 45mph we made it with 20% I remember. This was done in May just a month after we got the car. This car has performed exceptionally well!

One can only dream of DCQC station at every rest area, can't they?

Don't see it happening any time soon here in Iowa though.