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Tesla Motors, the California-based maker of the popular high-end Model S electric sedan, opened its first Supercharger location in Georgia on Tuesday at the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport.
The Savannah Supercharger represents Tesla’s continued network expansion along the Interstate 95 corridor and brings Model S owners one step closer to free travel between Boston and Miami.
Superchargers are located between city centers to enable free long-distance travel with Model S. Drivers can travel for about three hours, charge for as little as 20 to 30 minutes while they grab a quick bite to eat, and get back on the road with almost a full charge.
Tesla Superchargers have powered Model S vehicles with nearly 8 million miles of driving range, saving nearly 300,000 gallons of fuel, Tesla spokesman Patrick Jones said.
Late last year, the Savannah Airport Authority approved a contract with Tesla to lease six parking spaces in the airport’s economy parking deck to install and operate the an electric vehicle “supercharging” station specifically for its Model S sedan.
Tesla, an American company founded in 2003 by a group of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, designs, manufactures and sells luxury electric vehicles. Listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange under the symbol TSLA, the company first produced the Tesla Roadster, the first fully electric sports car.The Tesla Model S is the company’s first fully electric luxury sedan.
Tesla associate project manager Raza Uddin brought a Model S to the airport commission’s meeting last month to show it off and answer questions about the charging station.
“The concept behind the strategically placed superchargers is to allow Model S owners to travel free between cities along major highways in North America,” Tesla associate project manager Raza Uddin said.
In a 30-minute hookup, the Superchargers provide power to go about 200 miles, he said.
Tesla has concentrated first on the West and East coasts, locating free supercharging stations that allow owners to drive from one to the next with minimal stops.
Tesla owners can now travel from Vancouver, British Columbia, to San Diego using only Tesla’s supercharger stations, he said. The company is doing the same on the East Coast, working its way down to south Florida.
The goal, Uddin said, is to have 98 percent of the U.S. population — and parts of Canada — covered by the end of 2015.
In Savannah, Tesla has a five-year lease followed by a five-year renewal option. The company will pay the airport $600 a month and will be responsible for its own utility expenses.
Last year, Model S owners gave the electric car a rating of 99 out of 100 in Consumer Reports’ annual survey of new car buyers. The near-perfect score is the highest a vehicle has received in several years, the magazine reported.
The Model S starts at around $70,000.
