Tesla’s supercharger advantage highlighted on CNBC’s long-haul road trip
CNBC News anchor Brian Sullivan took a long road trip in an all-electric Polestar 2 through California and realized the advantage of Tesla Supercharger stations in the process.
“Electric cars are great. They are fast, fun to drive, quiet, very technical and have interesting features. But on a road trip of more than 200 miles, you are going to have to stop. You may need to stop in an area where you don’t want to stop, where there isn’t much to do, where some of the loads aren’t as fast as advertised, ”Sullivan said.
At the end of their journey, Sullivan and his team began to understand some of the challenges of charging non-Tesla electric vehicles. Sullivan and his team pulled up to a Shell station with charging stations and stood outside as their car charged.
“We just stood there literally baking in the sun,” the news anchor noted. Across from the Shell station was a Tesla Supercharger with solar panels that provided shade for customers. The shade provided by the solar panels was a simple convenience, but on long journeys even the little things matter.
Sullivan realized that Tesla Supercharger stations offered more than charging points for electric vehicle owners. “It’s actually a bigger real estate game. Give people a place to stop, a place to shop, something to do. And on our trip, we would have killed for the air conditioning, ”he said.
While Sullivan’s observations were valid, they only applied to the Polestar 2. Different EVs would likely give different results. However, in terms of recharging, Tesla cars may also have an advantage.
As Sullivan pointed out, Tesla’s supercharger stations seemed a bit more comfortable. Elon Musk has talked about making supercharging stations more fun, including building a restaurant in one of them. As Tesla builds more and more supercharger stations, the company is also turning them into ideal destinations or stopovers, where EV owners can relax and have fun on long journeys.
Tesla plans to open the Supercharger network to non-Tesla owners later this year. Sullivan’s journey reveals the benefits non-Tesla owners would gain from having access to the Supercharger network. There are approximately 25,000 Tesla supercharger stations around the world, many of which are strategically located in the United States, China, and Europe. Tesla has also already partially conceptualized what an EV charging station would look like based on the needs of its customers over the years.
Of course, there are some unique advantages to owning a Tesla vehicle when switching to a supercharger station. For example, Sullivan could have been relaxing inside a Tesla with the AC on while he was charging. He also might have enjoyed watching movies or shows and even playing games during the charging session. On top of that, the wait wouldn’t be as long as Tesla’s V3 superchargers could charge much faster than most charging stations.
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