How Does Tesla Build a Supercharger Charging Site? 190
cartechboy writes Tesla's Superchargers are the talk of the electric car community. These charging stations can take a Model S battery pack from nearly empty to about 150 miles of range in around 30 minutes. That's crazy fast, and it's nothing short of impressive. But what does it take to actually build a Tesla Supercharger site? Apparently a lot of digging. A massive trench is created to run high-capacity electric cables before the charging stations themselves are even installed. A diagram and photos of the Electric Conduit Construction build out have surfaced on the Internet. The conduits connect the charging stations to a power distribution center, which in turn is connected to a transformer that provides the power for charging cars. It took 11 days to install the six charging stalls in Goodland, Kansas. If you thought it was a quick process to build a Supercharger station, you were clearly wrong.
Re:And how long does it take... (Score:5, Interesting)
Thirty minutes is ridiculous. Swap out the packs. (Score:3, Interesting)
Thirty minutes is ridiculous. That is not "rapid" ANYTHING.
The only real solution is to streamline the process of swapping out battery packs, or, ideally, hydrogen fuel cells.
This is where hydrogen fuel cells really make sense. They are the ultimate battery pack. They are interchangeable modules. You stop at a filling station and replace your depleted fuel cell with a full one in fewer than five minutes.
I know Tesla has a battery pack replacement service, but it really needs to be affordable and streamlined and not require expensive robotics.
NOBODY wants to wait thirty minutes for "rapid recharge." The money spent on this infrastructure should, instead, be spent on optimizing the use of hydrogen fuel cells. They are the ultimate battery and they don't wear out.
Re:That's not quick? (Score:5, Interesting)