Driving LA to San Francisco

[Nagorak]

Going up the I-5 through the Grapevine and then Hiway-46 to Paso Robles and then the 101, instead of using the 101 directly from Los Angeles, takes 40 miles off of the trip.

That's a good tip about cutting over from the 5 to Paso Robles. However there's still only one quick charger there and if it's out of order it could be a big problem. You'd then have to hope you have the range to make it to King City, or you'd be forced to backtrack to SLO, if you could make that.

It's only about 15 minutes faster than taking the 99 (measuring from LA city to SF city), but the 99 has more reliably placed chargers. Until they get the 5 fully electrified I think the 99 is the safer route. There's simply less risk of something going wrong.

 

[dandrewk]

FWIW, 101 is still far more scenic and pleasurable to drive.

 

[Anonymous]

I'd be reluctant to drive between two 18 wheelers...

How often do you drive the two lane stretch of Interstate 5 between the Grapevine and parts north, say Interstate 580 or Sacramento?

Not very much, but I don't know what that has to do with anything...

Well, it has to do with the driving patterns of Interstate 5 north of the Grapevine. There are two lanes: the right lane is inhabited by trucks that drive about 5 MPH faster than the 55 MPH truck speed limit and cars that do not want to drive in the "fast" lane. The left lane is inhabited by trucks that are passing trucks that are going too slow, cars that are going faster than 60 MPH and cars that want to go as fast as they can and often zig-zag between the lanes if the car in front of them does not move to the right when a high speed car approaches from behind (which is the unofficial "rule" in California).

So my point is you will be driving among trucks no matter which lane you drive on Interstate 5 and any attempt to avoid them by going fast put you among those drivers I consider driving unsafe. So it is a Hobson's choice as to which is more unsafe: driving between two trucks or driving greatly in excess of the speed limit.

But I appreciate your concerns and thank you for your advice.

 

[Anonymous]

Going up the I-5 through the Grapevine and then Hiway-46 to Paso Robles and then the 101, instead of using the 101 directly from Los Angeles, takes 40 miles off of the trip.

That's a good tip about cutting over from the 5 to Paso Robles. However there's still only one quick charger there and if it's out of order it could be a big problem. You'd then have to hope you have the range to make it to King City, or you'd be forced to backtrack to SLO, if you could make that.

It's only about 15 minutes faster than taking the 99 (measuring from LA city to SF city), but the 99 has more reliably placed chargers. Until they get the 5 fully electrified I think the 99 is the safer route. There's simply less risk of something going wrong.

Yes, I have considered the problem of only one charger at Paso Robles. My backup plan is to backtrack south the 30 miles to the Marigold Center in San Luis Obispo, where there are 2 DC Fast Chargers available. Not optimum, but doable. I would not have the mileage available to make it north to King City.

As to the 99, it seems that route would add much more than 15 minutes to the drive. As I have not made that drive in 40 years, I cannot attest to it for sure, but for now, I must agree with you that until DC Fast Chargers are installed on I-5, it is the more appealing route if San Francisco is the destination.

Since Santa Cruz is my destination, going through Paso Robles is the better option for me.

 

[Anonymous]

FWIW, 101 is still far more scenic and pleasurable to drive.

If Los Angeles is the starting point, Interstate 5 to Paso Robles and then via Hiway 46 to the 101 still saves 40 miles (and perhaps one charging cycle) than if you start on the 101 in Los Angeles.

But you must determine your mileage from your starting point to Paso Robles, plan ahead and drive cautiously to conserve energy. Otherwise, saving the 40 miles is not worth running out of energy on Hiway 46!

 

[Nagorak]

How often do you drive the two lane stretch of Interstate 5 between the Grapevine and parts north, say Interstate 580 or Sacramento?

Not very much, but I don't know what that has to do with anything...

Well, it has to do with the driving patterns of Interstate 5 north of the Grapevine. There are two lanes: the right lane is inhabited by trucks that drive about 5 MPH faster than the 55 MPH truck speed limit and cars that do not want to drive in the "fast" lane. The left lane is inhabited by trucks that are passing trucks that are going too slow, cars that are going faster than 60 MPH and cars that want to go as fast as they can and often zig-zag between the lanes if the car in front of them does not move to the right when a high speed car approaches from behind (which is the unofficial "rule" in California).

So my point is you will be driving among trucks no matter which lane you drive on Interstate 5 and any attempt to avoid them by going fast put you among those drivers I consider driving unsafe. So it is a Hobson's choice as to which is more unsafe: driving between two trucks or driving greatly in excess of the speed limit.

But I appreciate your concerns and thank you for your advice.

You know, I just realized that I haven't ever driven north on the 5 from LA to SF. My memory was playing tricks on me, because I felt like I'd driven that way before, but when I actually thought about it I realized I hadn't. I have driven south on that route before, but it was only after driving north on the 15 and circling back through Reno. :lol:

Anyway, thanks for the info on the route, as I will be driving that way later this year for a friend's wedding. It remains to be seen whether I'll be going by EV or not (I want to, for the novelty if nothing else), but either way at least now I'll have some idea of what to expect. Who knows, maybe a few more chargers will have popped up before then (we can always hope).

 

[Anonymous]

The trucks drive south, too! :lol:

Hopefully ChargePoint will have one or more of their DC Fast Chargers up and running by then!

 

[Zoomit]

I did another sample drive tonight:

Valley Village to Moorpark; reasonably flat except for summit to and from Rocky Peak
Hiway 170 to I-5 to Hiway 118 to Hiway 23 and return
Cruise Control 65 MPH
"L" Mode
Seat warmer and headlights, which I am informed uses negligible energy
Cabin heat for 10 miles to warm the car, then OFF (3% of total energy)

Energy used: 20.0KWh (I overshot my destination slightly to achieve this round number)
Distance Traveled: 75 miles

Hence, if the trip were tripled, utilizing the complete 60KWh of the Bolt EV's battery, I would have traveled 225 miles. Not exactly the flat portion of the Hayward - San Mateo Bridge, but an interesting drive nonetheless!

In the photo below, I hit 20KWh at a point where I was unable to exit the freeway and take a photo. The next exit was 2 miles, so as the energy increased to 20.3KWh, I then slowed the Bolt EV to regen back down to 20.0 as I exited at the next available stop to take the photo by coincidence.

Thank you for the additional trip data. Given the ~950' elevation and 60F temperature, my model matches your results very closely. (Demonstrated average power of 16.88 kW vs a model prediction of 16.83 kW.)

I'm glad you provided the temperature, route, and the 77.0 mi stopped distance, which is the more accurate number to use in this case. I have to assume you unplugged pretty close to the highway and get up to a steady 65mph relatively soon after you started the trip.

For bonus points, you could rerun the route at a steady 75 mph and try to replicate the efficiency of the Car&Driver full battery run of 190 miles at 75 mph. Depending on the ambient temperature, it should take a little under 25kWh to complete the same 77 miles.

 

[SparkEVPilot]

Friday I drove my full-sized pickup truck down Hwy 99 from my home in Manteca [Central California] to Fullerton without any problems. This was my 5th time in the last year. There was one slight delay where some work was being done along the side of the road and everything funneled down into one lane for about a mile. Otherwise, the traffic flowed freely. I returned on Sunday and traffic flowed freely all the way home - 70 mph in some spots.

If quick charge stations were located at Wheeler Ridge, Frasier Park and / or Gorman, I could easily drive my Spark EV to Los Angeles without going the longer route down the coast. The Hwy 99 route I took from Manteca to Fullerton would be no problem for a Bolt EV. There are a number of CCS quick charge stations along Hwy 99 all the way to Sacramento.

When driving my Spark EV long distances, I always have a plan B and C in case I run into "dead" quick chargers or other charger access problems. I also prefer Hwy 99 over I-5 because of the many places along Hwy 99 where one can stop to eat and / or freshen up. Within the range of my Spark EV, places to eat and freshen up are few and far between along I-5. The fact that no CCS quick chargers exist along I-5 makes in impossible for me to use that route.

My wife and I did drive our 2015 Spark EV 2LT up to South Lake Tahoe and back. Range got tight in a couple of spots but we made it without any problems. Coming back down was an definitely an "E" ticket ride. If CCS quick chargers pop up over the "Grapevine", I will have to try that trip too.

 

[Anonymous]

If CCS quick chargers pop up over the "Grapevine", I will have to try that trip too.

I have used the one at the Bridgeport Marketplace in Newhall Ranch just south of Castaic. There are two chargers located there in a major shopping center, with the chargers isolated in the parking area away from the buildings.

A problem that I encountered and has been reported previous, was that they would shut off after 30 minutes, requiring reactivation if you need more juice.

 

[Anonymous]

For bonus points, you could rerun the route at a steady 75 mph and try to replicate the efficiency of the Car&Driver full battery run of 190 miles at 75 mph. Depending on the ambient temperature, it should take a little under 25kWh to complete the same 77 miles.

I do not think the Los Angeles traffic flow will allow me to safely drive a consistent 75 MPH, unless it was much later in the evening; early in the morning, and then I think the CHP might have something to say about it! :shock:

75 MPH is something I do not look to achieve on a consistent basis as my vanity plates from my Volt were HYPRMLG! Think I will regain those plates...

PS: My run was 75 miles at 20.0 KWh; the extra two miles were to exit the freeway so I could safely take a photo, and I "regened" to get the 20.3 back down to 20.0 (as I noted), just so it would look good!

I drove about one mile on city streets before I got on the 170 and then up to 65MPH as fast as possible.

 

[SparkEVPilot]

Thanks for the info. Yes, I am aware these chargers are there but I have never visited them. Going South on Hwy 99, my last charging location before tackling the Tejon Pass [Grapevine] is in Bakersfield. These is one Spark EV driver who claims to have driven from Bakersfield over to Valencia and back many times in his Spark EV. I suspect he has to keep his speed down to make it. A DCFC at the Frasier Park rest stop or at Frasier Park would be perfect.

 

[Anonymous]

A DCFC at the Frasier Park rest stop or at Frasier Park would be perfect.

Flying J in Fraser Park has 480V by Shorepower Technologies, but for the cabs of the 18 Wheelers and I doubt they will install a DC Fast Charger. But maybe if enough interest is expressed there, since the infrastructure is already present...

 

[Anonymous]

Thank you for the additional trip data...

The 65MPH trip dropped my overnight charge from a fresh 254 available to today's 242:

 

[rmalzo]

I drove my new Bolt on Friday Feb 3 to Indian Wells Ca. 122 miles from my home in Newport Beach, Ca. I left with a full charge of 235 miles on the meter. I drove at 65mph on cruise control most of the way. When I arrived the meter still had 139 miles left. Pretty good for my first drive.

 

[SparkEVPilot]

A DCFC at the Frasier Park rest stop or at Frasier Park would be perfect.

Flying J in Fraser Park has 480V by Shorepower Technologies, but for the cabs of the 18 Wheelers and I doubt they will install a DC Fast Charger. But maybe if enough interest is expressed there, since the infrastructure is already present...

Yes, a CCS DCFC quad charger station at the Frazier Park Flying J service station would make the trip over the Tejon Pass easy to do in a Spark EV. I will be waiting.....

 

[Zoomit]

The only CCS charger that I know of that's planned to be installed at the Frazier Park exit is a single ChargePoint station at the Holiday Inn Espress & Suites (612 Wainright Court, Lebec, Ca). I don't know when it will be operational however. Hopefully this year.

https://goo.gl/maps/MTJZKHod7kP2

Per: http://energy.ca.gov/2016publications/CEC-600-2016-002/CEC-600-2016-002.pdf

 

[SparkE]

A DCFC at the Frasier Park rest stop or at Frasier Park would be perfect.

Flying J in Fraser Park has 480V by Shorepower Technologies, but for the cabs of the 18 Wheelers and I doubt they will install a DC Fast Charger. But maybe if enough interest is expressed there, since the infrastructure is already present...

Yes, a CCS DCFC quad charger station at the Frazier Park Flying J service station would make the trip over the Tejon Pass easy to do in a Spark EV. I will be waiting.....

According to the published CEC plan, a ChargePoint DCFC will be installed on I-5 close to the Frazier Park Flying J service station, as well as another a little further north near wheeler ridge (and one even further north, near Buttonwillow).

 

[SparkEVPilot]

Thanks for the info. I will monitor the ChargePoint website to see when the charger will be opened to the public. I already have a ChargePoint account.

 

[Nagorak]

I hope over time there's either some sort of consolidation, or the charging station companies get together to have some sort of universal pass. It's a bit irritating to have 3-4 different accounts just in case you encounter a certain company's charger.