Last week, our MD was making some calls to customers on new inquiries. It's something he does from time to time, as it's a great way to understand what people are actually wanting in the market, and what they actually expect out of solar. And out of that, one question kept on coming up. How fast does a Telsa (electric in general) car charge? Well, we've attached a snapshot from another website below to break it down:
The NEMA 14-50 charger for Tesla electric cars plugs into a 240-volt wall outlet, similar to the type used by your clothes dryer or other appliances. A standard Tesla charger with a NEMA 14-50 connector will be able to charge your Tesla battery completely in 10 hours (for the Model S) to 10 ½ hours (for the Model X).19 Mar 2019
So, this now leads to the next question, what size system do I need for it? Well, this is not a one size fits all situation, it all depends on how much you drive! Let's say you do 500km per week. You're not going to empty the battery every day, so a 6.6kw system may be more than sufficient. However, if you do 1500kms per week, then you'll need a much larger system. We really have to advise on a case-by-case basis here! We will go into this further in another article, but in answer to your question, if you charge a 75kw Model S Tesla from empty, you'll need 7.5kws of Sun for roughly 10 hours. In the real world, taking into account weather and sunlight hours, you'll need more like a 12.5 to 15kw system. But, that's only if you drive it to empty every day. Hope this helps and wasn't too confusing. Stay dry and sunny in all this weather!