Not going to be using the R1S as a roadtrip vehicle again

[darren1f]

I just completed a roadtrip from NYC to DC, and lemme tell ya, it was not stress free. The R1S is an absolute pleasure to drive. But the charging process was infuriating and time consuming for no good reason. The in-car trip planning nav software is not good, and I drove miles out of my way only to encounter non-functioning DC chargers or chargers that didn't deliver the amounts of power that they displayed. The mythical 350KW EA chargers only delivered 125KW during two different attempts. Even though they were slow, they were successful attempts. However, most EVGo and EA chargers were broken or too low-power to be of any use at all. On what planet does it make any sense to have two 50kWh chargers at a rest stop? That's practically worthless because no one is going to wait for two hours at some scuzzy rest stop in Jersey. At the Vince Lombardi service stop, one was broken and the other was positioned so that anyone using it would have to partially block the exit to the facility. They clearly don't give a damn, and it's obvious that they need to be run out of business. This isn't anything I have to worry about when taking a road trip in my Model X, and I always assumed that the problems with public chargers were overstated. They aren't. While there were cars lined-up to use the two working EA chargers at Newark airport, out of the eight stations, seven Teslas were effortlessly and quickly supercharging their cars without having to wait at all. CSS-to-NACS capability cannot come soon enough.

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[stynes]

I'm sorry you had a really poor experience. I've had my R1S nearly a year now and have just shy of 17K miles on it. I've done 3 multi-day (1800 -2800mi) road trips. With a little pre-planning I've managed to avoid any serious missteps. This has been my process, if it's helpful to you:
https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/road-trip-planning.16838/

 

[Craigins]

My geometry teacher / football coach in high school had a great poster on his wall.

Fail to plan, plan to fail.

 

[WorldComposting]

I just completed a roadtrip from NYC to DC, and lemme tell ya, it was not stress free. The R1S is an absolute pleasure to drive. But the charging process was infuriating and time consuming for no good reason. The in-car trip planning nav software is not good, and I drove miles out of my way only to encounter non-functioning DC chargers or chargers that didn't deliver the amounts of power that they displayed. The mythical 350KW EA chargers only delivered 125KW during two different attempts. Even though they were slow, they were successful attempts. However, most EVGo and EA chargers were broken or too low-power to be of any use at all. On what planet does it make any sense to have two 50kWh chargers at a rest stop? That's practically worthless because no one is going to wait for two hours at some scuzzy rest stop in Jersey. At the Vince Lombardi service stop, one was broken and the other was positioned so that anyone using it would have to partially block the exit to the facility. They clearly don't give a damn, and it's obvious that they need to be run out of business. This isn't anything I have to worry about when taking a road trip in my Model X, and I always assumed that the problems with public chargers were overstated. They aren't. While there were cars lined-up to use the two working EA chargers at Newark airport, out of the eight stations, seven Teslas were effortlessly and quickly supercharging their cars without having to wait at all. CSS-to-NACS capability cannot come soon enough.

Sounds like you are in luck people are saying the Rivian charger at the Cristiana mall in Delaware just opened up. That should be able to get you to DC and back and is currently Rivian only.

They have another location in Belcamp, MD that will hopefully be opening up soon.

Saying that I really can't wait till the Tesla chargers at nearly every rest stop on the Turnpike have adapters as they would be very convenient when driving between MD and NYC. Without this you really need to plan trips in advance by checking the charging stations on plugshare.

 

[Sevn86]

I had a similar experience with my trip. I’d rather take my ICE vehicle the next time I go on a trip. Too much time wasted and I didn’t even save much with all the charging I did.

 

[mikehmb]

I used to road-trip through areas with such limited infrastructure as to have to sleep in my truck waiting for a gas station to open. And it was shockingly recent (last 20 years).

Plan for your trips and you’ll be fine. The NYC-DC corridor is not a charging desert.

 

[Kenmecca]

I'm in your camp. To those that say I failed to plan hasn't tried traveling in areas like eastern WA where EV is almost nil and chargers are few and many broken. I won't take a long road trip unless I know there is RANs or possibly 350EAs until we can get on NACs. This will truly save this and every non tesla from demise. Even a crummy low powered charger in my city parking garages are all broken as long as I've had my R1S. I love my S, it's the beat vehicle I've driven but the range stress I went thru I would not do again and luckily my wife wasn't with me lol

 

[BeanEW]

Many people had asked me... "How do you like your electric vehicle?" My answer always was... "It's great if you are not in hurry!". I have taken about 5 R1S trips between northern Cal and AZ; I still think my R1S is great as long as I'm not in hurry.

EVGo really sucks... I canceled my membership right after my first trip.

 

[ads75]

NYC to DC shouldn't be that hard. Its a heavily travelled route. On the few trips I've taken from Pennsylvania to NY or NJ, I have had good luck. But it does require me looking a plugshare and/or EA's sites to check the status of the chargers before I leave. Some that worked great around Christmas didn't work during the summer (when I looked). I don't trust the Rivian mapping software, I think its functional, but I haven't been too happy with it compared to google maps or waze. And it doesn't seem like it has "real time" information on the major charging networks, on whats available (or functionally available). Maybe the updates over the last six month have improved things.

I know alot of people strongly suggest checking plugshare or other similar sites prior to a roadtrip to see the status of the chargers prior to leaving. They aren't wrong, it is a tremendous help. But should someone have to? After growing up on ICE, it was rare to have to plan to find a gas station (a couple spots in Utah, and rare power outages caused ICE range anxiety).

For the most part, when traveling for road trips, my current choices are my R1T, which is great to drive, but the charging network needs to be vetted online before I leave, or a 2 door soft top Wrangler, which is fun to drive for short distances, but can be maddening for hours. I do think the charging infrastructure will improve, but its hard make concrete plans believing in that. It doesn't help that some manufacturers give away "free charging" at certain networks, and some of those customers will charge to 100% each time, because thats what they are used to with gas, and its "free", which can cause lines.

 

[WSea]

I had a similar experience with my trip. I’d rather take my ICE vehicle the next time I go on a trip. Too much time wasted and I didn’t even save much with all the charging I did.

You bought the wrong vehicle if you hoped to save lots of $$$. Enjoy your fossil fueled vehicle

 

[Count Orlok]

Your biggest mistake was not driving exclusively in Michigan because then the RAN would have you covered.

 

[popoga]

I'm in your camp. To those that say I failed to plan hasn't tried traveling in areas like eastern WA where EV is almost nil and chargers are few and many broken. I won't take a long road trip unless I know there is RANs or possibly 350EAs until we can get on NACs. This will truly save this and every non tesla from demise. Even a crummy low powered charger in my city parking garages are all broken as long as I've had my R1S. I love my S, it's the beat vehicle I've driven but the range stress I went thru I would not do again and luckily my wife wasn't with me lol

Good news, Quincy and Moses Lake superchargers are open to everyone now.

 

[Electrified Outdoors]

Hey i feel your pain... don't drive in the southeast though! I would have been happy with 125 or even 50 kw. Walterboro SC has been broken for over a year. Thr fastest charger puts out 30kw and the 150 only puts out 15kw. Its the only non tesla charger in the area! What a nightmare that was.

Things will improve with time. Until then planning ahead and looking at plugshare is a must for road tripping.

 

[Fmc]

Coming from a model 3 to an R1S, the R1S is a bit tougher for long distances. Bigger battery and less efficient. But EVgo makes all of that even worse. Their chargers are slow and expensive. I found electrify America to be acceptable.

 

[darren1f]

I'm sorry you had a really poor experience. I've had my R1S nearly a year now and have just shy of 17K miles on it. I've done 3 multi-day (1800 -2800mi) road trips. With a little pre-planning I've managed to avoid any serious missteps. This has been my process, if it's helpful to you:
https://www.rivianforums.com/forum/threads/road-trip-planning.16838/

During my trip, I used a combination of ABRP, Plugshare and the Rivian trip planner. With these apps, you should kinda sorta get an accurate picture of what is available. The real issue was that the first charging stop in Delaware was a total flop. It should have been a quick 20 minute charge, but it wasted over an hour. That put me at the start of NJ/NYC rush hour which is exactly what I attempted to avoid. I ended up sitting for an hour at a 50KW station that had a sticky charging handle. Oh, and the icing on the cake was that it cost $.69 per kWh. The only redeeming part of that experience was the Shake Shack at Vince Lombardi. If these charging companies are going to be permitted to operate, they need to be required to offer a minimum level of service. I hate to keep comparing the Tesla vs. non-Tesla driving experience, but it is like night and day. So we know that it's possible to do it right.

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