Blue State or Red State - There is an Electric Car in Your Future - If You Live Long Enough

Two battery cars

Paul and Evelyn are on their maiden voyage

We were a 2 Tesla family for 3 days. Paul and Evelyn were here. They drove down from St James Bay NC on their way to visit family in Naples FL. This is their first trip in their 2023 Tesla Model 3 SR. They only have 3000 miles on it - and they are enjoying the quiet and luxurious ride. The blue car spent 2 nights in our garage next door to its red cousin. They left all charged up to 272 miles. 

Our red car is a 2021 Tesla Model 3 LR that will be 2 years old in July. We have 11,000 miles on it - along with long trips to Sarasota - Tampa - Orlando - Daytona - Jacksonville - and Pennsylvania. Our next long trip is to Miami in March. 

There are a few mechanical differences in the cars - but the bodies are identical. The blue one has one motor powering the rear wheels. It has a 58 kWh LFP battery. It can be charged to 100% every night. The red one has two motors - one on each axle - the computer decides which ones to use. They combine to give you 450 horsepower - so it can go from 0-60 in 4 seconds. It has a 78 kWh battery that goes 358 miles on a charge. 

At 12 cents per kWh - what we pay at home - it costs $9.36 to fill my battery to go 358 miles. Paul has a solar system on his home - so basically he can drive for free - when filling at home - but to fill is 58 kWh battery costs about $6.96 to go 272 miles. 

The blue one has white seats and the red one has black seats. We washed the cars - and I could not find any obvious differences in the bodies. 

Both cars have an MPGe of over 100 miles as compared to a gasoline car - example - our Honda van gets 28 MPG on a trip. Note - some figures are rounded off - no need for decimal points. 

Paul is the grandfather of our grandkids - Max and Helen - Liz's Dad. They are avid travelers. Evelyn was an opera singer by profession - and the step-grandmother of the kids.