With the Mini Cooper SE from Las Vegas to Los Angeles: From the loneliness of the shop

We didn’t make it easy for ourselves in our plan to drive purely electrically from Las Vegas to Los Angeles. Instead of a range monster with a 100 kilowatt plus battery, we opted for a Mini Cooper SE. As a reminder: The Lifestyle Stromer has a 32.6 kWh power storage of which 28.9 kWh can be used and thus a standard range of a maximum of 234 kilometers. This means that while the thumbs-up hearts of other motorists and passers-by fly to the British on the famous Las Vegas Strip, a distance of over 450 kilometers is a different house number. Especially since on the way to the west coast metropolis there are still around 1,100 meters of altitude to overcome and the real range mostly does not reach the paper value.

In order to master this task, the tour must be well planned. We use the PlugShare app to track down charging stations along our route and so maneuver us all the way to Los Angeles. Everything looks very simple on the (virtual) paper: After 144.82 kilometers the first charging stop is due and after 166.72 kilometers the second, which should be enough to get the remaining 135.81 kilometers to Los Angeles. In reality it should turn out differently. Especially since the 1,365 kilogram Mini Cooper SE with luggage and two adults had to carry a few extra kilos with it.

The first kilometers run smoothly and relaxed. The suspension of the E-Mini is doing pretty well despite the not always board-level US motorway. The 1.8 centimeters higher ground clearance and the resulting longer suspension travel help. We switch to the energy-saving “Green” driving mode and swim along the Interstate 15 highway heading west. Although the speed limit doesn’t really bother anyone, the majority of tin caravans aim to travel at more than 80 mph / 129 km / h. Tesla does the honors at Primm on the California border. There is a lot of hustle and bustle in the parking lot, and two directors are trying to control it. The charging station is so popular that Tesla has installed additional mobile columns that get their juice from the distribution station, which is surrounded by a wooden fence. That seems to have little effect on the charging performance. “Most load between 30 and 45 minutes until they have reached 80 percent,” says one of the two referrers. The Teslaners are not young hipsters, rather a cross-section of society. One resembles Doc Brown from the classic film “Back to the Future.” In the adjoining fast food restaurant, the most e-mobiles can fortify themselves.

After 145 kilometers we make the first refueling stop at Baker (California) near Death Valley. In the shadow of the largest thermometer in the world (41 meters high) we want to recharge our batteries and discover that electromobility in the land of unlimited possibilities has to contend with the same shortcomings as on the other side of the Atlantic. Only two of the charging points work with a normal credit card. The others require an EVGo charging card, but not all of them have the card reader in operation. We are alone on a wide hallway. After all, the charging station is covered, but the charging speed of the column is moderate. We wait 55 minutes until the batteries are full.

Go on. But when climbing the highway, we quickly realize that two charging stops are not enough. After all, around 1,100 meters of altitude have to be overcome. So after 800 meters of altitude and 111 kilometers back out and get to the electric fuel pump. On arrival the power would last 37 miles / 60 kilometers. The ChargePoint charging stations are located at an outlet mall and not only look modern, they are too. We hold the charging card from the Apple Wallet at the gas station and the electricity starts flowing. The energy stores are full again after 1:02 hours. It should be noted that the Mini Cooper SE can charge the battery cells with a maximum of 50 kW. The next charging stop is around 58 kilometers away. Better safe than sorry. A pleasant surprise awaits us in a supermarket parking lot. Refueling is free on Black Friday weekend. We go shopping during the charging time and realize that we are the only energy-seeking electric vehicle enthusiasts again. The loneliness of the store only ends when a Ford Mustang Mach-E joins us.

We want to go on to Los Angeles. But unfortunately we are not alone this time. A traffic jam that causes a delay of over an hour is on our route. The navigation system suggests a time-saving alternative route. Everything is wonderful. However, according to the PlugShare community, the one charging station that is on the detour does not work reliably. We don’t take any chances and head for LA. The juice is definitely enough. “Yes, if you want to see something like that, then you mustn’t save, then you have to drive on Saturday when everyone is driving”, Mike Krüger sang in his 70s comedian hit “Stau once again”. We’ll be there live in 2021.

But in the Mini SE you can endure the jerking. The seats are so comfortable that you can cover long distances in a relaxed manner. In general, the Stromer does significantly better than expected despite its small battery. In every sense. Only the partly terrible streets of Los Angeles ?? the springs and dampers are quite demanding. At 8.09 p.m. we arrive at our destination after 9 hours and 56 minutes driving time and 466.13 kilometers covered. At an average speed of 66.6 km / h (41.4 mph), the Mini Cooper SE only needed 13.9 kWh / 100 km on average. And we weren’t on the move with slowed-down foam. In addition, we have always fully charged the power storage, which has made the charging times longer, since the battery capacity is 80 percent and the speed at which the power storage noticeably decreases.