Tesla’s Fast-Charge Network Links NYC, LA

Tesla Motor Inc. says it has opened 37 high-power charging stations along a route between Los Angeles and New York City that will enable its customers to drive their Model S electric sedans coast to coast without paying for electricity.

A Model S has a driving range of about 240 miles at 70 miles per hour, according to the company. Tesla says its direct-current Supercharger stations, which dispense free power to Tesla customers, need only about 20 minutes to give the car's 85-kWh battery another 170 miles of range. The stations cannot be used to charge other EVs.

Model S owners also can charge their cars with a conventional 120- or 240-volt connector. Those options take an hour to add 22 miles and 31 miles of range, respectively.

A second string of 16 Supercharger stations allows free-electricity trips along the West Coast between Seattle and San Diego. On the East Coast, Tesla's chain of 12 stations is about one facility short of linking New York City and Miami.

Tesla claims the 71 Supercharger facilities operating in the U.S. are within range of 80% of the U.S. population. The company predicts the ratio will climb to 98% next year.