Treating your Tesla to TLC in Montreal, then taking a straight shot home to N.J.

DEBUGGED: My 2015 Tesla Model S after a mini detailing at Auto Bella, a hand car wash in the garage under the Hyatt Regency hotel and the Complexe Desjardins mall in Montreal, below.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

MONTREAL -- Chinatown, Old Montreal and other attractions are an easy walk from my hotel, and the city has a great subway and bus system to cover longer distances.

So, this year, as in the past, I parked my Tesla Model S in the garage under the Hyatt Regency, where I stayed for nine nights during the International Jazz Festival. 

That gave me a chance to have my car washed and waxed, and the interior deodorized at Auto Bella on level P3 of the parking garage (a mini detailing cost $65 Canadian or about $45.50 U.S., plus a gratuity).

Though employees speak English, the menu of services is in French.

Auto Bella is open Mondays to Fridays (1-514-889-6225).

CHARGE IT: On July 4, we shopped at two Costco Wholesale warehouses in Montreal and then drove over to the Tesla dealer to charge my Model S for the trip home last Thursday, below.

FRUIT SMOOTHIES AND MORE: You'll find a pleasant cafe called Java U across the street from Tesla Montreal, which is at 5350 Rue Ferrier (1-514-908-3827).

VIVE LA AMERICA: Traffic in Montreal was more horrendous than usual on July 4, when Americans are said to flood across the U.S.-Canadian border to visit the French-speaking city. 

Driving home

On the way to Montreal, we detoured into Vermont to use the free Tesla Superchargers in South Burlington, where we had something to eat at Healthy Living, an independently owned organic and natural foods market.

On the way home, we decided to try newly installed Superchargers in a Plattsburgh, N.Y., shopping center.

This is travel in the slow lane:

We spent about 1 hour and 15 minutes at each of the two stops to and from Montreal in order to get a full charge of about 200 miles.

A related benefit is that Tesla Superchargers often are located near slow food, such as you'd find in Whole Foods, Healthy Living and Starbucks.

PLATTSBURGH SUPERCHARGER: Eight Tesla Superchargers are behind the Target in the Champlain Centre mall in Plattsburgh, N.Y., photos below. For slow food, the only option is a Starbucks Cafe in the Target store. 

STORMY THURSDAY: The straight-shot drive to northern New Jersey from Montreal takes you through the scenic Adirondack Mountains in New York State. Last Thursday, we encountered thunderstorms, and saw an accident that ended with a new Honda sedan T-boned by a tractor-trailer.

FIVE TESLAS: Our second stop on the way home was a shopping center in Colonie, N.Y., outside Albany.

BIG DEAL ON WILD FISH: By the time I got to the Whole Foods Market in the Colonie Center mall late Thursday afternoon, the wild salmon at less than half the usual price had run out, and I was offered a rain check. In New Jersey on Friday, my wife found fresh wild sockeye fillets for $9.99 a pound at the Costco Wholesale in Teterboro.

SLOW FOOD: I was tempted by these Sweet Potato Quinoa Cranberry Cakes on the Whole Foods salad bar ($8.99 a pound), but had a 16-ounce container of Vegetarian Pea Soup ($5.99) and coffee instead.

GRASS-FED BEEF: My wife paid $11 for a grass-fed hamburger with a side of sweet potato fries at Whole Foods. 

Just how much does it cost to charge a Tesla Model S or other all-electric car?

In a garage in Englewood, N.J., the low-slung Tesla Model S seems small next to a midsize Mercedes-Benz SUV.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

The Tesla Model S is many things to many owners, and when you're retired and don't drive as much as you once did, it's likely the cleanest, most efficient luxury car around.

On Wednesday, I had errands in Englewood. N.J. -- a 12-mile round-trip from my home -- and according to my emissions-free Tesla Model S, used 4 kilowatt hours of energy.

On the instrument panel, "Since last charge" tells you how far you've traveled and how much energy that took.

I charged the car overnight with a 240-volt socket in my garage, paying Public Service Electric and Gas Co. about 12 cents per kilowatt hour, but the utility also exacts a delivery charge -- for a total of about $1 for my round-trip to Englewood.

Solar panel factor

I've had my Model S since mid-April, and the one long trip we took -- to Montreal for the International Jazz Festival -- benefited from free charging near Albany, N.Y.; in Vergennes, Vt., and at the Tesla dealer in the French Canadian city.

At home, more than 60 solar panels on the roof generate solar credits that I can sell to my utility through a middleman.

The solar credits once were worth a lot more than now, but I still receive about $1,000 to $1,200 a year from their sale to PSE&G.

Since 2009, when the first set of panels were installed, I've also been able to write off their cost on my federal taxes.

So, taking all of that into account, I may be paying nothing to charge my Model S.
 

At the Basin Harbor Club, a resort on Lake Champlain in Vergennes, Vt., I charged my Model S at no cost on June 27 for the final leg of our trip to the International Jazz Festival in Montreal.

At Tesla Montreal, I charged the Model S at a free Supercharger, and enjoyed an espresso in the lounge. That charge left me with enough range on July 6 to reach the Vermont resort where we stayed overnight as my car got another free charge, before completing the trip to New Jersey. I also bought a lined Tesla Men's New Corp jacket for $100.26 Canadian after a 20% owner discount, and charged it to a Visa card. I was billed for $81.49 U.S.

In the garage of the Complexe Desjardins, an enclosed shopping center under my hotel in Montreal. I drove the Model S to a lower parking level, where the nice people at Auto Bella charge $20 Canadian ($15.96 U.S.) for a hand wash and interior cleaning and vacuuming (closed on weekends).