Sometimes You Need To Go To Plan C To Charge

[KBabione]

There is a Sheetz on the north side of town, about 5 -7 minutes from the stadium, with CCS chargers. Been there, done that. Yes, it's the opposite direction from where you were headed, but only a few minutes.

We've charged there 5-6 times when we're not parked in the Nittany Deck (which has L2 chargers) for the day, but I was sure I didn't need to go to the EA chargers and by the time we realized that we should have I was already 20 miles away in the opposite direction. Traffic on game day in State College is not fun and I was trying to avoid as much of it as possible.

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[KBabione]

Could have done this without charging if you were at the speed limit.

Yes - and on the way home I was at the speed limit when it was 55 and set the cruise to 62 when I was in a 65 zone. I did a test back in April for the drive up there, traveling the speed limit the whole way and using conserve mode on all 4-lane highways and we arrived on campus with just over 50% (we had started at 100%). We felt it was too tight to head home without charging so we did. It still surprises me how much more it costs me to do 74 than 65. I'm hoping to have one of my daughters start at Penn State in the fall so I'll get good at doing this trip! The other one (I have twins) will probably be at Ohio State! Interesting times ahead...

 

[Zoidz]

I'm hoping to have one of my daughters start at Penn State in the fall so I'll get good at doing this trip! The other one (I have twins) will probably be at Ohio State! Interesting times ahead...

That will make for some interesting Thanksgiving Day conversations! Years ago, when PSU and Univ of Maryland was a big rivalry, I was at PSU and my sister was at Maryland. Fun times!

 

[SDH]

Just wait till the temps drop significantly. You might then need a Plan D.

 

[KBabione]

Just wait till the temps drop significantly. You might then need a Plan D.

Seriously! I need my R2 to have a range of at least 350, but 400 would be (as one of my kids used to say) "more better." We're heading up again the first weekend in December and will stop at the Tesla chargers in Mifflintown to try them for 10 minutes. We'll be parking for the day in a campus garage with L2 chargers so we'll be fine, but I need to know if Mifflintown will work for us.

 

[docwhiz]

Yesterday we went to the Penn State - Ohio State game. It's 124 miles away from home so, with my 273 mile max range, charging is a requirement. We charged to 96% before heading out and arrived with 42%. When we parked I turned on the outlets and made good use of them to cook breakfast on my electric Blackstone and boiled water in an electric kettle for hot chocolate. After the game we tailgated for a couple of hours (including patty melts for 12 people) and my battery was down to 37% (91 miles) when we left. All good - After all...I had a plan!

• Plan A was to drive 45 miles to the Tesla chargers at the Sheetz in Mifflintown and charge what I needed there to do the 80 miles home. No matter what my wife did, she couldn't get the chargers there to come up as available to Rivians. Finally she got the dreaded "Tesla Only" notification so we knew it wasn't an option. The Rivian kept wanting to route us to a L2 charger where we'd only need to charge for 90 minutes...Not desirable. We did stop at the Sheetz anyway for a bio break and all of the chargers were full with Teslas and a Cybertruck was waiting - legitimately Tesla only. I was pretty sure I had seen that these chargers were open to folks with adapters...Perhaps I missed something.
• Plan B was to push it a bit and drive 90 miles to another Tesla station in Harrisburg, which also turned out to be Tesla only. Not good.
• Plan C (come on - who REALLY needs a Plan C?) was to drive 97 miles to a CCS charging station near the Harrisburg Airport

The first 15 miles after leaving the stadium are on a 2-lane (one lane in each direction) highway and by the time we got to the 4-lane I knew things were going to be tight, so I put it in conserve mode and set the cruise at the speed limit (I'm normally a 10-MPH over driver). We put the airport charger (the beloved Plan C) in as our destination and the Rivian calculated that we'd have 4 miles left on the battery when we arrived! My wife was decidedly uncomfortable and, had we been alone, I would have gotten it with both barrels, but there were six of us in the car so it was just quiet stress.

The good news is that we made it. In conserve mode the miles remaining at our destination slowly crept up to 13 by the time we got there. We quickly charged up to 23% and drove home without further stress. There are chargers in State College (EA and Tesla with Adapters) but they were 15 minutes in the wrong direction so I didn't want to do that. My wife, several times, reminded me that we could have.

The moral of this story is to always have a Plan C AND to do your homework to ensure Plans A & B are viable. Hopefully this may help someone who runs into a similar situation in the future.

It was probably the slow driving speed that saved your bacon.
I've noticed there is a large penalty for speed. Even down to 25 mph you'll get great range.
(Plan D)

 

[R1Thor]

Seriously! I need my R2 to have a range of at least 350, but 400 would be (as one of my kids used to say) "more better." We're heading up again the first weekend in December and will stop at the Tesla chargers in Mifflintown to try them for 10 minutes. We'll be parking for the day in a campus garage with L2 chargers so we'll be fine, but I need to know if Mifflintown will work for us.

Let us know how things go; keep us updated!

There's a Flying J in the Mill Hall area that's supposed to go live with DCFC before the end of the year (they were a part of the grant money PA threw out there for charging infrastructure). It's not perfectly in line with your route home, but could be an easy off/on that *shouldn't* add any real time to your trip and will keep you headed in the right direction. [Listed here under 'active projects:' https://www.penndot.pa.gov/ProjectAndPrograms/Planning/EVs/Pages/NEVI.aspx]

 

[PeterSK]

Why don’t people just plan in the Rivian app? Make sure you set the right filters for charging networks and whether you have an adapter, how much buffer remaining you are comfortable with, and let it map the route. If you don’t like where it’s charging, pick a different one. Then send the route to your R1. If you use the route regularly, name and save it in the app.

This travel planning feature is one of the big advantages I’ve found for Rivian’s app vs my previous Tesla experience. It’s why Rivian bought A Better Route Planner a year or two ago. Give it a try - OP you would have been properly informed for your Plan A.

 

[diehlryan]

Okay, so a few things for your next trip.

1. There are 2 charging options in State College. Electrify America at Sheetz at other end of town. Tesla with adapter at a Sheetz near Wegmans. <- This one is really handy as its right off of 220.
2. There is an Electrify America in Carlisle.
3. There is a Tesla with adapter in Mechanicsburg.

 

[KBabione]

It was probably the slow driving speed that saved your bacon.
I've noticed there is a large penalty for speed. Even down to 25 mph you'll get great range.
(Plan D)

I think you're right - slowing down made the difference. I don't know how much the additional weight affected me, but we also had 6 adults in the car and a load of tailgating crap. It was dark outside and the two teenagers were sound asleep with the other two in the back seat chatting quietly so I don't think anyone but my wife knew I was driving significantly slower than I usually do (other than the cars in the left lane zipping by me).

This is also one of those areas in which my wife and I have different approaches. She grew up filling up the tank when it hit 1/4 and stressing if the needle dipped below 1/4. I was more of a "when the light turns on I know I can go another 30-40 miles so I'll get gas s00n" kind of guy. Coincidentally, she never ran out of gas and I did (only 3 times though) in my 44 years of driving. She was very uncomfortable when the nav said we'd be at 4 miles of range when we arrived at the charging location, but realized she didn't have much of a choice and stopped holding her breath as it went up to 6, then 9, and finally reached 15. We're still married

 

[Robin]

It was the stupid patty melts that screwed you. Rye bread should be illegal.

?

 

[docwhiz]

I think you're right - slowing down made the difference. I don't know how much the additional weight affected me, but we also had 6 adults in the car and a load of tailgating crap. It was dark outside and the two teenagers were sound asleep with the other two in the back seat chatting quietly so I don't think anyone but my wife knew I was driving significantly slower than I usually do (other than the cars in the left lane zipping by me).

This is also one of those areas in which my wife and I have different approaches. She grew up filling up the tank when it hit 1/4 and stressing if the needle dipped below 1/4. I was more of a "when the light turns on I know I can go another 30-40 miles so I'll get gas s00n" kind of guy. Coincidentally, she never ran out of gas and I did (only 3 times though) in my 44 years of driving. She was very uncomfortable when the nav said we'd be at 4 miles of range when we arrived at the charging location, but realized she didn't have much of a choice and stopped holding her breath as it went up to 6, then 9, and finally reached 15. We're still married

In the early days with my Tesla (2015) Superchargers were few and far between. I picked up the new car in Fremont and took my first trip that week from Lake Tahoe to Las Vegas. Only one supercharger on the route (in Lone Pine) but I made it by driving 55. My wife wondered why I was driving so slowly. We've done that route many times since (actually just did it a few weeks ago on a trip to Arizona) and the charging situation has greatly improved.

 

[wjhdrew]

I really love the story sharing and advice that happens here.
I'll be driving through the area during the Christmas week so maybe I'll see you PA folks out on the roads =D.

 

[KBabione]

I really love the story sharing and advice that happens here.
I'll be driving through the area during the Christmas week so maybe I'll see you PA folks out on the roads =D.

It would be awesome if you did - every Rivian I've passed here has either flashed their lights or waved. We're a friendly bunch. The only L3 charging option in the Lancaster area is the Sheetz on Greenfield Road next to Costco. It's a Tesla station so you'll need an adapter. If you don't have one yet, send me a PM and I can meet you there and loan you mine if you need to charge. The only gotcha with that plan might be timing...Depending on when you come through we may not be in town.

 

[wjhdrew]

It would be awesome if you did - every Rivian I've passed here has either flashed their lights or waved. We're a friendly bunch. The only L3 charging option in the Lancaster area is the Sheetz on Greenfield Road next to Costco. It's a Tesla station so you'll need an adapter. If you don't have one yet, send me a PM and I can meet you there and loan you mine if you need to charge. The only gotcha with that plan might be timing...Depending on when you come through we may not be in town.

Really appreciate the offer. I got an A2Z adapter earlier this year. It really is such a game changer on road trips.
I'll be stopping by Carlisle to visit a cousin, and then off to NY to spend the holidays this year with family there.
I'll definitely flash my lights or wave at every Rivian I see along the route.

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