Photo: Ryan Negri on Instagram
We probably all arrived at a gas station with our buttocks firmly clenched and just a few vapors of fuel left in the tank at least once in our lives, so we're no strangers to the concept of range anxiety, even if only occasionally.
For an electric vehicle, though, that's believed to be the norm. Tesla was the first to change that by offering cars with significantly longer range, plus a proprietary charging network that covered the country (and soon, the world) pretty well.
Still, it definitely didn't put any stalls in the desert, right? No, it didn't (for the most part, at least), but it made sure the driver knew at all times whether he had enough juice to make it to the nearest Supercharger or whether they needed to look for alternative charging solutions.
Running out of battery power in a modern EV is only your fault and should never happen. And if you thought that was the reason why a certain Model S owner from Nevada got stranded in the desert, you were wrong.
No, Ryan Negri was very close to becoming the subject of a rescue operation after he decided to take his wife and two dogs on a trip through the desert in their Model S and left his key fob at home.
The car is perfectly capable of opening up and starting up using only the app on the owner's smartphone, so Ryan wasn't as crazy as one might think. However, the car does require something for that to happen, something we take for granted but is thoroughly absent from most parts of the desert: cell phone connection.
After driving six miles into the desert, Ryan got out to adjust the dog bed, but once he had gotten out of the driver's seat, the car needed to be restarted again for them to continue their journey. Which, in the absence of both a key fob and cell phone connection, was impossible. As was calling for help.
Luckily, his wife wandered around for about two miles - which was a third of the distance to their house - until she could find a strong enough signal on top of a hill and call a friend to have them picked up. Ryan returned with the key and vowed never to leave without it again.
Still, it definitely didn't put any stalls in the desert, right? No, it didn't (for the most part, at least), but it made sure the driver knew at all times whether he had enough juice to make it to the nearest Supercharger or whether they needed to look for alternative charging solutions.
Running out of battery power in a modern EV is only your fault and should never happen. And if you thought that was the reason why a certain Model S owner from Nevada got stranded in the desert, you were wrong.
No, Ryan Negri was very close to becoming the subject of a rescue operation after he decided to take his wife and two dogs on a trip through the desert in their Model S and left his key fob at home.
The car is perfectly capable of opening up and starting up using only the app on the owner's smartphone, so Ryan wasn't as crazy as one might think. However, the car does require something for that to happen, something we take for granted but is thoroughly absent from most parts of the desert: cell phone connection.
After driving six miles into the desert, Ryan got out to adjust the dog bed, but once he had gotten out of the driver's seat, the car needed to be restarted again for them to continue their journey. Which, in the absence of both a key fob and cell phone connection, was impossible. As was calling for help.
Luckily, his wife wandered around for about two miles - which was a third of the distance to their house - until she could find a strong enough signal on top of a hill and call a friend to have them picked up. Ryan returned with the key and vowed never to leave without it again.
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