Has anyone LEAF'ed over the Grapevine?

[MaryC]

Sounds good, Nissan of Visailia to Nissan of Bakersfield it is.

Now I need to find a charging location in Lebec or Wheeler Ridge area to get over the hill.

Randy

Maybe the trucks stops at Wheeler Ridge could help you out.

 

[KeiJidosha]

Saw this today and thought about your trip;

“FRESNO, Calif. (AP) -- Pleas to drivers to reduce pollution by limiting car trlps failed to keep smog at acceptable levels in the San Joaquin Valley, meaning the first region in the nation to be fined under federal clean air laws will face penalties until at least 2013.”

Fresno hit with smog penalty

I remember seeing that air quality issues had resulted in local incentives to buy EVs in the San Joaquin Valley, When looking for EV charging in the SJV, I was not surprised at it’s rarity. But, I was surprised at the lack of shore power hook-ups at truck stops. I wonder if this might now change.

 

[smkettner]

Trip on a cord :lol: What joke. As if an RV does not have a heavy electric cable, water hose, cable connection, even a sewer hose to trip over :roll:

 

[Randy3]

Trip Report (traveled with my sister):

Friday, 10/14/11, 8:00am left Fresno, arrived Nissan of Visalia (52 miles), taking highway 99 at 53 mph, had 3 bars remaining. Charged at Visalia for 3.5 hours. While there, shopped at nearby shopping center, ate breakfast a a waffle shop and had a great foot massage at the same strip mall.

Friday, 10/14/11, 1:00pm left Visalia, arrived Nissan of Bakersfield (85 miles), again taking highway 99 at 53 mph. Arrived with one bar remaining. Charged for 3 hours. While there, walked to the Crest Bar and Grill at the Crest RV Park (more on the RV park later). Had a great meal, walked back to Nissan Dealership and watched TV in their service waiting area (this was after service was closed).

Friday, 10/14/11, 6:00pm left Nissan of Bakersfield, arrived Ramada Inn at Lebec (Grapevine exit, 30 miles), taking highway 99 and I-5 at 53 mph. Rented a ground-floor room and ran my 120v cable out the door to the car in the lot right next to the room. Charged to 100% this way, taking several hours. Kind of funky set up, but it worked.

Saturday, 10/15/11, 8:00am left Ramada Inn of Lebec/Grapevine, arrived Nissan of Valencia (47 miles), taking I-5 at "slow truck" speeds, often 40 mph. (I could have done this at 65 without problems, but didn't want to spend too much time charging at Nissan of Valencia.) Charged for 2.5 hours. While there, had a great meal at Mimi's and shopped at that strip mall (Pier 1, Sprouts, etc.).

Saturday, 10/15/11, 1:00pm, left Nissan of Valencia, arrived Holiday Inn, Santa Monica. Parked at G-2 level where I plugged in 120v (note the hotel charged $26 to park overnight for guests). Had a great afternoon and evening in pedestrian friendly Santa Monica.

Sunday 10/16/11; 7:30am, left Holiday Inn and joined the Plug In America EV Parade. Had a great time at the parade, enjoyed Santa Monica a little more and then a "non-highway" Nav route back to Nissan of Valencia.

Did the reverse back to Fresno. Went slow, shopped (didn't buy much, though), ate, saw the movie Moneyball while charging. Arrived back hom at 5:00pm Monday.

It was a great trip. Never felt range anxiety. Always knew where my next planned charge was. Both hotels worked with me to make sure the car would be charged. Met a lot of people and spoke up the LEAF everywhere.

Total 498 miles.

 

[TonyWilliams]

Trip Report (traveled with my sister).... Total 498 miles

Sounds like a great trip. What were the mileages between the fuel stops, and what was the total fuel cost? (I guess $26 in SM doesn't count, since an ICE would pay the same)

 

[TangoKilo]

Congrats on having the balls to travel beyond the range of your garage EVSE. It seems we are a minority. Most of the 9,500 miles in my LEAF were charged away from home. I always charge to 100%... To make this trip you did too...right?

 

[Randy3]

Congrats on having the balls to travel beyond the range of your garage EVSE. It seems we are a minority. Most of the 9,500 miles in my LEAF were charged away from home. I always charge to 100%... To make this trip you did too...right?

Charges at hotels were to 100%, but charges where we knew we were going that far, I estimated. I used the cheat sheet and a simple calculation of 7 miles per bar, plus 1 bar required for each 1,000 feet additional elevation. As long as I stayed slow (below 55 mph), this seemed to be a conservative way to estimate.

 

[TangoKilo]

I fill her up as much as I can, when I can. I have not seen any battery issues in either range or temp. The LEAFs battery has proven to be very robust (so far)...

 

[smkettner]

How many bars did you pick up on the long down slope? What speed going down? Eco or D?
What an amazing trip, you are a brave pair.

 

[KeiJidosha]

Trip Report ... Total 498 miles.

Great story! Thanks for sharing the details. In aviation, the saying is "Plan the flight. Fly the plan”. Success from preparation, not luck. Nicely done

 

[Randy3]

How many bars did you pick up on the long down slope? What speed going down? Eco or D?
What an amazing trip, you are a brave pair.

I only saw one additional bar coming downhill on the Grapevine, but I believe that additional bar held more than the 7 miles one bar normally represents. I kept the speed at 53-55 going down and kept it in ECO.

 

[Caracalover]

It was great to see you at the parade! Thanks for the report.

 

[johnr]

Thanks for the report, and it's great you made it there to be a part of the parade! I was wondering how it went.

It seems that careful planning made it an enjoyable trip too, with things to do while the car is charging.

 

[GoingGreener]

Nice!! Thanks for sharing your experience! You LEAF'ed over the Grapevine!!

Longer EV journeys/adventures do take more planning of segments for charging vs. taking an ICE car. But for our few experiences so far, when we did that, allowing leisurely time to explore and enjoy restaurants, the trips were more memorable than barreling down the faster lanes to get to "Point B". It was quite liberating to realize how relaxing it can be driving in the slow lane.

Yes, definitely call RV parks before planning to stop at one. We had only one experience where we thought we might stay/charge up. They don't all take EVs, tent/car campers. And they can be expensive.

 

[FairwoodRed]

I just saw this thread.

Isn't there an IKEA in grapevine? Aren't they putting level2 chargers in a lot of them? I know they put some in my Seattle IKEA. Is anyone near Grapevine that could check for chargers at IKEA? I have dreams of a road trip to Disneyland next summer, so I'm kinda curious.

 

[planet4ever]

Isn't there an IKEA in grapevine?

:lol: Grapevine is just a freeway exit with a couple of restaurants and gas stations and a motel. The only town of any size around is Lebec, and its population is under 1500. Not exactly IKEA territory!

Ray

 

[Caracalover]

I just saw this thread.

Isn't there an IKEA in grapevine? Aren't they putting level2 chargers in a lot of them? I know they put some in my Seattle IKEA. Is anyone near Grapevine that could check for chargers at IKEA? I have dreams of a road trip to Disneyland next summer, so I'm kinda curious.

I think they have a truck depot there, but not a retail outlet. They might be talked into putting in chargers though, worth a try. It would be a great place for a fast charge.

 

[FairwoodRed]

Isn't there an IKEA in grapevine?

:lol: Grapevine is just a freeway exit with a couple of restaurants and gas stations and a motel. The only town of any size around is Lebec, and its population is under 1500. Not exactly IKEA territory!

Ray

Boy do I feel foolish!

 

[Randy3]

Isn't there an IKEA in grapevine?

:lol: Grapevine is just a freeway exit with a couple of restaurants and gas stations and a motel. The only town of any size around is Lebec, and its population is under 1500. Not exactly IKEA territory!

Ray

Boy do I feel foolish!

Don't feel foolish - there's also a HUGH Famous Footwear store there - or maybe a Famous Footwear distribution center!

 

[tbleakne]

Trip Report
Friday, 10/14/11, arrived Ramada Inn at Lebec (Grapevine exit, 30 miles), . . . Rented a ground-floor room and ran my 120v cable out the door to the car in the lot right next to the room. Charged to 100% this way, taking several hours. Kind of funky set up, but it worked.

Since you only needed a few hours of L1 charge, it sounds like you didn't have to risk leaving the door unlocked while you slept. I would not want to risk that either. Running a cable through a window would be better, but often there are screens difficult to remove.

Did the motel have an A/C with 240V outlet? I am hoping to find such to hook up my upgraded EVSE. Quick220 might work, but the room's outlets might all be on the same phase.