EV life

This section is for first-hand posts by the site owner about living with a Tesla Model Y: winter driving in Niseko, home and solar charging, and the accessories that matter. Unlike the rest of the site, these will be personal experience posts.

Status: planned. None of these posts has been written yet, and nothing below describes an experience. Each idea lists what the owner needs to gather before it can be written. Specs and rules cited in these posts will still be linked to official sources.

Planned posts

1. A Niseko winter with a Model Y: range, preconditioning and charging in the cold

Planned. Real winter range and charging behaviour, with app screenshots. What I need from Adrian:

• ☐ Photos of the car in snow and of the charging setup
• ☐ App/screen screenshots of range, consumption (Wh/km) and outside temperature on 3+ cold days
• ☐ Notes on preconditioning habits and any charging slowdowns
• ☐ Car model year, trim, battery/wheel spec and software version

2. Home charging setup in Japan: what was installed and why

Planned. The wall connector or outlet, the installer process and costs. What I need from Adrian:

• ☐ Photos of the charger and installation (no address visible)
• ☐ Charger model, circuit amps and kW, and installer type (licensed electrician)
• ☐ Notes on permits, utility contract changes and total cost (only if happy to share)

3. Charging a Model Y from solar: what actually works

Planned. Whether and how solar charging is set up, with numbers. What I need from Adrian:

• ☐ Solar system size (kW), inverter model and any home battery
• ☐ Screenshots of solar production vs charging sessions on a few days
• ☐ Notes on scheduling (charging at midday, app settings)

4. Snow tyres, chains and winter accessories for a Model Y

Planned. What was bought for winter and how it was chosen. What I need from Adrian:

• ☐ List of tyre, wheel and accessory models (with sizes)
• ☐ Photos of each item fitted
• ☐ Notes on why each was chosen and anything that was returned

5. Supercharging and public charging around Hokkaido

Planned. Where charging is available on regular routes. What I need from Adrian:

• ☐ List of chargers used (name, type, kW) and routes
• ☐ Screenshots of session kW and time for a few sessions
• ☐ Notes on queues, cold-weather speed and payment

6. Model Y accessories I actually use (interior, storage, protection)

Planned. A short list of used accessories only. What I need from Adrian:

• ☐ Brand and model of each accessory, and where bought
• ☐ Photos in the car
• ☐ One or two sentences each on why it stays in the car

7. Using the Model Y during a power cut: what it can and cannot do

Planned. Only what Tesla officially supports in Japan, plus the owner's own experience if any. What I need from Adrian:

• ☐ Whether you have used the car or a power station during an outage (yes/no and notes)
• ☐ Any V2L/V2H adapter or equipment owned (model), or confirm none
• ☐ OK to cite Tesla Japan's official pages for supported features

8. Pairing a portable power station with EV life: camping and road trips

Planned. How a power station fits alongside the car, linked to our spec guides. What I need from Adrian:

• ☐ Which power station (if any) you own or have used, with model
• ☐ Photos at a campsite or trip (no people unless you approve)
• ☐ Notes on what was powered and for how long

9. Winter storage and parking: battery drain, Sentry Mode and settings

Planned. Settings used when the car is parked in deep cold. What I need from Adrian:

• ☐ Screenshots of overnight battery drop with Sentry on/off
• ☐ Notes on parking location type (garage/outdoor) and temperatures
• ☐ Settings you use, with software version

10. One year of ownership costs: charging, tyres and maintenance

Planned. A cost summary only from the owner's records. What I need from Adrian:

• ☐ Charging cost records (home vs public) for the period
• ☐ Maintenance and tyre receipts (amounts only)
• ☐ Decision on how much cost detail to publish

Note on referrals

Tesla's referral program pays credits only, is not redeemable for cash, and restricts paid promotion (per Tesla's refer-and-earn terms, checked 2026-10-25: https://www.tesla.com/support/refer-and-earn). It will not be used to monetise this section.