Camping in the SE?

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F14Scott

F14Scott

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In the Tesla community, there are people who camp in the Model 3; they fold down the rear seats and place a mattress in the tunnel formed between the trunk and the aft cabin. Running the AC, they then have a comfy, waterproof place to sleep with a giant, panoramic roof. An hour's AC use, even in the heat of a Texas day, burns only about 3-4 miles of range per hour, so camping overnight, even without an AC hookup, is entirely possible; our Model 3's giant battery could run the AC for two+ days.

A downside of the Tesla is that the seats don't fold perfectly flat. Some people remove the aft seat cushions to overcome this, but that begins to get into the range of "not worth it," to me.

So, my questions for the SE owners are:

1. With the aft seats down and the front seats run all the way forward, what is the length of the bed (no pun intended). And the width for a mattress? Any protrusions that would squeeze the mattress, unless one did some mattress surgery?

2. Is it flat? Flat-ish?

3. What is the summer AC draw, measured in miles range lost per hour, when parked? (I guess we'll have to wait until winter for the heater numbers...)

4. Is there any reason the climate control wouldn't run for hours, continuously? Tesla added a "camping mode," but it appears their user interface is more automated than MINI's, turning things on and off. Can one just set the climate on the SE and let her run? For that matter, can the SE mimic Tesla's "Dog Mode"?

Cheers!
 
In looking at the published dimensions online, unless you like folding yourself up in the fetal position and can find a 5' matress... probably not the most practical to camp 'in' - but you could hook a tow bar on and tow one of those micro-trailers I suppose.
 
Toi said:
In looking at the published dimensions online, unless you like folding yourself up in the fetal position and can find a 5' matress... probably not the most practical to camp 'in' - but you could hook a tow bar on and tow one of those micro-trailers I suppose.
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Yeah, I see the outer dimensions and know it would be very tight, best case. Maybe my pillow would fit on the driver armrest... :D The SE is 151 inches long; my 72" body would be half the car's length.

Towing the trailer loses the AC, so then we're back to regular camping. It's the ability of BEVs to be tiny hotel rooms that makes that idea attractive, for me.
 
F14Scott said:
Yeah, I see the outer dimensions and know it would be very tight, best case. Maybe my pillow would fit on the driver armrest... :D The SE is 151 inches long; my 72" body would be half the car's length.

Towing the trailer loses the AC, so then we're back to regular camping. It's the ability of BEVs to be tiny hotel rooms that makes that idea attractive, for me.
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yeah, I'm, 6'4" (76"/193cm/3.86cubits/insert your favourite unit of measurement here) and I would just seek out a hotel with AC and free level 2 charging out front :D
 
insightman said:
Isn't an essential window-protection feature of Dog Mode the giant LCD screen displaying the car's interior temperature for people peering in at your dog?
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Yes, that's Tesla's very cool idea. Scott's low tech solution is setting one of these $8 thermometers on the steering wheel. :D
Screenshot_20200823-161626_Lowe's.webp
I just need to know if the climate control will run indefinitely, whether I am in or out of the car.
 
For some reason, I keep misreading this thread title as "Competing in the SE", which not only sounds more doable, but also a lot more fun!
 
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