Driving a Model S from Ireland through Spain

mickotoole

Evening all, I'm taking my 2015 model S to Spain this coming summer. I've a few questions to ask annoying that has already done this trip.

1. Did you use your granny charger to charge when you're there? I read that it's not safe to use an adapter and that is better to get a schuko charger. Has anyone purchased one and if so was there any issues charging?

2. I've heard that using the car in extreme weather negatively affects the battery range. I have seen this during an Irish winter but I was wondering how the battery is affected in extreme heat

3. Does a tesla need the lights to be adjusted when you drive at night (RHD on roads that have mainly LHD cars)

4. How did you find the supercharging network in Spain? Was it busy? Did all the chargers work etc?

I've read through some forums and watched a few YouTube videos of Irish and English EV drivers bringing their car to mainland Europe but I was hoping to hear from anyone here that has done the trip. Thanks in advance.

mickotoole

Ok, just ordered a schuko from the Tesla shop for €49. That's one thing ticked off the list.

zg3409

Do you have ChaDeMo and or ccs as options?

Tesla's battery can heat/cool to overcome extreme temperatures but that takes energy to do.

Beware shuko has no fuse in the plug and older wall sockets may be well worn and may not be earthed well. Typically I would slow charge rate as much as you can and I would check for a warm plug every 30 minutes and only charge while awake if possible. I have seen too many melted plugs on ordinary household items.

I assume lights need at least tape added to prevent blinding, but some cars don't need it.

rocky

For the first model 3s, before the fancy matrix lights, I read that the lights don't need adjustment since the beam is symmetrical.

And for newer ones, they detect automatically and adjust.

mickotoole

I've got CCS on my car so should be fine. Good to know about ground on the plugs. Will keep a close eye on the charger when it's plugged in to make sure it doesn't overheat.

listermint

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119111280#Comment_119111280

Your 3pin before the adaptor is fused though ...