ABRP was better for my trip than Porsche Navigation

[SteveInKirkland]

I'm dribbling out notes about my highway trips in the Macan EV, but one note is that I ran ABRP Pro with real-time data integration, Porsche Navigation, and Waze at the same time. ABRP was just much better for directions and route planning than Porsche navigation. Because Porsche navigation just isn't up to date about road construction, new charging stations, etc.

ABRP is not as up-to-date about charging stations as Plugshare. And watching TNAC on Youtube was more useful for finding new charging stations than looking at other apps. It seems like a data integration opportunity.

ABRP is owned by Rivian which has a joint development deal with Volkswagen. It runs well in CarPlay. Porsche's Navigation system in the Macan EV works better than the vast majority of EVs (including a Gen1 Rivian R1S quad motor that my brother owns and I drove while on vacation). But, long term, I would rather use ABRP instead of built-in navigation because of the up-to-date problem that Porsche seems to have.

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[daveo4EV]

this tracks

for road tripping I use - and plan ahead:

• apple/google maps
• ABRP to "rough out a plan"
• plug-share to validate the approximate stops and alternatives

I then use PCM navigation for each approximate segment to get the battery % @ destination estimate…

so I put each charging stop into the PCM navigation as I go - both to precondition the battery and get the car's estimate as to how much battery I'll have when I arrive…

but with only one/two charging stops a day it's easy peasy...

 

[SteveInKirkland]

this tracks

for road tripping I use - and plan ahead:

• apple/google maps
• ABRP to "rough out a plan"
• plug-share to validate the approximate stops and alternatives

I then use PCM navigation for each approximate segment to get the battery % @ destination estimate…

so I put each charging stop into the PCM navigation as I go - both to precondition the battery and get the car's estimate as to how much battery I'll have when I arrive…

but with only one/two charging stops a day it's easy peasy...

I think an observation that was not obvious to me from previous information presented here is that ABRP Pro with real time data integration actually did a better job at estimating battery % at destination than the PCM. This may be related to my location running around the eastern shore and route 95.

Our belief in the Macan's reliance on predictive analytics from navigation to precondition/cool the battery pack may turn out to be less useful in the hot summer. We should organize a test with 2 Macans running with and without PCM navigation to see what the differences really are ... because PCM navigation is an extra burden that isn't necessary for navigation.

 

[daveo4EV]

I think an observation that was not obvious to me from previous information presented here is that ABRP Pro with real time data integration actually did a better job at estimating battery % at destination than the PCM. This may be related to my location running around the eastern shore and route 95.

Our belief in the Macan's reliance on predictive analytics from navigation to precondition/cool the battery pack may turn out to be less useful in the hot summer. We should organize a test with 2 Macans running with and without PCM navigation to see what the differences really are ... because PCM navigation is an extra burden that isn't necessary for navigation.

ahhh yes - I've never "tested" ABRP in that regard…I find the PCM navigation "close enough" - I use PCM navigation to keep tabs on "will I actually get there" for any given segment - especially for segments where the plan calls for arrival at charging with single digit % battery capacity upon arrival - with PCM/ABRP "real time" battery estimates I can see if I'm gaining or losing on the whole "will I make it?" question for any given segment…

my personal experience with 2020 Taycan and 2024 Macan is that typically I "gain" range during any given segment and arrive +2-3% from PCM estimate when I'm standing on the actual destination terra-firma spot…

there have been two occassions where I was "losing" range for a segment - and the PCM range estimator helped me decide to engage a sub-optimal "early stop" that ended up being completely necessary due to weather/road conditions (cold, rainy, and head wind) - as I noted the PCM arrival % estimate melting away before my very eyes while driving the segment I opt'd for an early charging stop given limited reliably options on that particular segment…

I'm taking a road trip this week SF Bay area to Seattle area and back - plan is to take the Macan - will try ABRP and see how it works and report back...

 

[USMA81]

Data on chargers is not great. I’m planning a drive into an “EV charging wasteland,” southwestern Colorado. The Tesla app shows magicdock (non-Tesla) Tesla chargers in Cortez, CO, but none in Telluride. Yet PlugShare shows both these Cortez Tesla chargers AND magicdock stations in Telluride (with pictures and reviews of the Telluride stations - so they exist). So the Tesla app doesn’t show its own stations in Telluride.

ChargePoint showed 9.6 chargers in a different Telluride location, but ABRP doesn‘t. This might be due to a maintenance issue at the site, but still there is a discrepancy.

I have not checked to see what PCM route planning would show.

 

[SteveInKirkland]

Data on chargers is not great. I’m planning a drive into an “EV charging wasteland,” southwestern Colorado. The Tesla app shows magicdock (non-Tesla) Tesla chargers in Cortez, CO, but none in Telluride. Yet PlugShare shows both these Cortez Tesla chargers AND magicdock stations in Telluride (with pictures and reviews of the Telluride stations - so they exist). So the Tesla app doesn’t show its own stations in Telluride.

ChargePoint showed 9.6 chargers in a different Telluride location, but ABRP doesn‘t. This might be due to a maintenance issue at the site, but still there is a discrepancy.

I have not checked to see what PCM route planning would show.

Yes, I agree that charging station updates can be improved. I personally try to update plugshare but it's a chore.

 

[Gordon87]

If you don’t use the Porsche navigation app for route planning to a charging stop, do you lose battery pre-conditioning before arriving at the charging station?

 

[SteveInKirkland]

If you don’t use the Porsche navigation app for route planning to a charging stop, do you lose battery pre-conditioning before arriving at the charging station?

We think the answer is 'yes'. But, it is unclear whether pre-conditioning does anything of value during summer months when the battery is already at optimal charging temperature.

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