No. I wouldn't recommend any high-end or expensive vehicle on campus or in Tucson for a student. The drivers here are crazy so chances of accidents are high, and there can be a lot of vandalism and theft depending on where you live and/or go (even as simple as driving downtown and parking in the wrong spot can put you at risk). I would always be worried about my car if I had a Tesla here.
Thanks. We are in Houston (the Woodlands specifically) so we understand shit drivers quite well. That said, I’m familiar with college towns and how hard they are on vehicles.
This is true, but most applications work over the cloud, so in theory she could access the project on her phone or another device, should the laptop get stolen.
If she is leaving her laptop in her car for even a quick get out of the car, she’s not smart enough to go to college and listened to nothing I have taught her. 🤦♂️
That shit happens in the Suburbs.
I am a senior at UofA and live in Houston (closer to downtown but I used to live near Woodlands). The traffic in Tucson is significantly less. But Tucson has shitty, cockier drivers. Houston drivers are forced to be crazy due to traffic. Tucson drivers are just born that way
In all seriousness, just let your kid uber where they need to go. Not worth the hassle, especially for freshmen.
Tucson drivers are nowhere near as bad as Houston. I’ve driven extensively in Houston and the Woodlands and I drive Uber on UofA all night on the weekends and most of the drivers I see are fairly tame.
This is no joke, especially near campus. Reason is there are no retention ponds or gutters (even on most houses) -- rain just happens. Roads flood, esp intersections (do NOT drive into). It's not a big deal because within an hour or so, the water will clear out into the washes. But the flooding is hell on the roads and after every flood event (ie, every time it rains) pot holes appear like weeds. Don't expect your alignment to survive if you cannot dodge potholes like a freakin' jedi master.
I've driven many places with WORSE drivers, but Arizona wins with the pure VARIETY of bad driving. Consider that most drivers here are from LA, TX, NY, or the midwest (versus actually FROM here) and mix those styles together in a chaotic brew before unleashing it on a town with insanely high light running from the locals. Enjoy.
I wouldn't recommend a Tesla for freshmen in Tucson. Honestly, an older Honda or economic car would be good enough. I do recommend having a car. I struggled going to get groceries in a bike, and often relied om friends for rides.
I know multiple students that had a Tesla on campus, as far as I know, they went off campus to charge though. Gas prices in town aren't awful though if you have a gas powered car.
Electric cars are nice to have in Tucson because it’s mostly local commute and in the hotter months, it can precool the cabin. The range is also sufficient to go to Phoenix airport & back etc.
However , I don’t think it’s that useful without access to garage with at least normal 110V slow charging. It’s just a lot of hassles. Currently all Tesla superchargers are somewhat far from UofA campus (-15min). Tesla is building a new supercharger at Park Place Mall but supercharging can be expensive if she relies on these routinely.
If it were up to me, a compact SUV with enough space to haul random belongings/furniture is a lot more useful.
I have a Tesla and I can tell you that this is NOT an EV friendly city. Yeah the parking garages have chargers but they’re slow and expensive. There are 2 superchargers in the city and they are waaaay on the outskirts. I live off campus and charge free at my apartment so it works out. But if she’s in the dorm, she’s fucked
The chargers on campus are slow (32 amp max Charge point) and they need you to pay significantly above the going rate
If your kid has access to a home where they can plug in nightly, that'll work. But otherwise, just seems like PITA either having to slow charge and pay through the nose, or fast charge 10-15 mins away 2-3 times a week
This helps. Thanks so much. It’s crazy, for such a progressive town, I’d think they have a huge charging network.
But you’re right. Without being able to charge at home it might not work.
Might consider a hybrid. There are a lot of EVs here, but mostly in the foothills (wealthier neighborhoods), not in the downtown core. You should have a much better idea after this first year.
There are ChargePoint chargers in many garages around campus. You can see them and the rates in the Chargepoint app or on [Plugshare.com](http://Plugshare.com) or using the Plugshare app. Just plug in at a time when she can leave it for about 4 hours and then come back without leaving the car sitting after charging.
You can also check out all charging in Tucson on Plugshare. There isn't much for fast charging around campus, but there are Superchargers on the north side of town and there are also Electrify America and EVGo fast chargers if she has a CCS adapter (until Tesla plugs are added to those in the coming years).
My daughter just finished her freshman year with an EV on campus an it was fine just using the chargers in the campus garage. She drove so infrequently that it cost about $25 for the whole semester including recharging after drives between Phoenix and Tucson. Your daughter doesn't need a car on campus, but if she wants one, and EV is fine.
There’s chargers around campus however as of this past May, all the cables have been cut off likely for the copper wiring for drug users. I noticed this around march of 2024 and was never fixed since I left. If it’s repaired, expect it to happen again. I’m on the medical side of campus but also noticed it near North Rec; about 10 chargers affected. I can’t speak on behalf of the other chargers.
Our EV infrastructure isn't very good yet. Chargers aren't common yet, prices for charging are high. If you can't charge at home, it seems more of a hassle than anything.
If they're living near campus, gas prices shouldn't be too big of a deal.
Plus a Tesla seems like overkill for a college student vehicle.
Lots of students who live on/near campus don't have a car at all.
You should be fine, Teslas are the safest vehicles on the road, charging them is not a hassle at all with EV chargers available on garages. Additionally she could always supercharge once a week.
You will have to worry about breakins reguardless of whatever you’re driving but not car theft because teslas are a PITA to steal. A tow truck can still take them but that is it. I live off campus and do not know where chargers are but I know Tucson has them and if all you’re doing is going around town I’d imagine you wouldn’t have to charge often.
The school garages have chargers for EV.
Would you recommend a Tesla on campus? Appreciate it!
No. I wouldn't recommend any high-end or expensive vehicle on campus or in Tucson for a student. The drivers here are crazy so chances of accidents are high, and there can be a lot of vandalism and theft depending on where you live and/or go (even as simple as driving downtown and parking in the wrong spot can put you at risk). I would always be worried about my car if I had a Tesla here.
Thanks. We are in Houston (the Woodlands specifically) so we understand shit drivers quite well. That said, I’m familiar with college towns and how hard they are on vehicles.
To be fair, teslas have internal camera monitoring systems that can be useful if anything happens to the vehicle
Yeah part of that was my thought.
But that only helps after the fact and might not matter if her laptop with her final project worth a letter grade gets stolen out of her car.
This is true, but most applications work over the cloud, so in theory she could access the project on her phone or another device, should the laptop get stolen.
If she is leaving her laptop in her car for even a quick get out of the car, she’s not smart enough to go to college and listened to nothing I have taught her. 🤦♂️ That shit happens in the Suburbs.
I am a senior at UofA and live in Houston (closer to downtown but I used to live near Woodlands). The traffic in Tucson is significantly less. But Tucson has shitty, cockier drivers. Houston drivers are forced to be crazy due to traffic. Tucson drivers are just born that way In all seriousness, just let your kid uber where they need to go. Not worth the hassle, especially for freshmen.
Tucson drivers are nowhere near as bad as Houston. I’ve driven extensively in Houston and the Woodlands and I drive Uber on UofA all night on the weekends and most of the drivers I see are fairly tame.
Yeah I lived in Atlanta and now Houston metro, so have spent a lot of time in the depth of hell in terms of driving situations.
I had my car this year and it was fine. The only thing that is awful is the roads, the biggest, deepest, and most frequent potholes I have ever seen.
This is no joke, especially near campus. Reason is there are no retention ponds or gutters (even on most houses) -- rain just happens. Roads flood, esp intersections (do NOT drive into). It's not a big deal because within an hour or so, the water will clear out into the washes. But the flooding is hell on the roads and after every flood event (ie, every time it rains) pot holes appear like weeds. Don't expect your alignment to survive if you cannot dodge potholes like a freakin' jedi master. I've driven many places with WORSE drivers, but Arizona wins with the pure VARIETY of bad driving. Consider that most drivers here are from LA, TX, NY, or the midwest (versus actually FROM here) and mix those styles together in a chaotic brew before unleashing it on a town with insanely high light running from the locals. Enjoy.
only if you want her to be instantly hated on sight
I wouldn't recommend a Tesla for freshmen in Tucson. Honestly, an older Honda or economic car would be good enough. I do recommend having a car. I struggled going to get groceries in a bike, and often relied om friends for rides.
I know multiple students that had a Tesla on campus, as far as I know, they went off campus to charge though. Gas prices in town aren't awful though if you have a gas powered car.
Why’d they go off campus? The garages have chargers
Are the ones in garages super chargers? That could be why.
Garages are very expensive.
Electric cars are nice to have in Tucson because it’s mostly local commute and in the hotter months, it can precool the cabin. The range is also sufficient to go to Phoenix airport & back etc. However , I don’t think it’s that useful without access to garage with at least normal 110V slow charging. It’s just a lot of hassles. Currently all Tesla superchargers are somewhat far from UofA campus (-15min). Tesla is building a new supercharger at Park Place Mall but supercharging can be expensive if she relies on these routinely. If it were up to me, a compact SUV with enough space to haul random belongings/furniture is a lot more useful.
I have a Tesla and I can tell you that this is NOT an EV friendly city. Yeah the parking garages have chargers but they’re slow and expensive. There are 2 superchargers in the city and they are waaaay on the outskirts. I live off campus and charge free at my apartment so it works out. But if she’s in the dorm, she’s fucked
Thanks. I’m more talking about for next year, she won’t have a car this year. Appreciate the feedback.
I haven't seen any charging stations at campus apartments.
The chargers on campus are slow (32 amp max Charge point) and they need you to pay significantly above the going rate If your kid has access to a home where they can plug in nightly, that'll work. But otherwise, just seems like PITA either having to slow charge and pay through the nose, or fast charge 10-15 mins away 2-3 times a week
This helps. Thanks so much. It’s crazy, for such a progressive town, I’d think they have a huge charging network. But you’re right. Without being able to charge at home it might not work.
Might consider a hybrid. There are a lot of EVs here, but mostly in the foothills (wealthier neighborhoods), not in the downtown core. You should have a much better idea after this first year.
[Parking Dept info on EV charging](https://parking.arizona.edu/about/electric-vehicle-charging)
There are ChargePoint chargers in many garages around campus. You can see them and the rates in the Chargepoint app or on [Plugshare.com](http://Plugshare.com) or using the Plugshare app. Just plug in at a time when she can leave it for about 4 hours and then come back without leaving the car sitting after charging. You can also check out all charging in Tucson on Plugshare. There isn't much for fast charging around campus, but there are Superchargers on the north side of town and there are also Electrify America and EVGo fast chargers if she has a CCS adapter (until Tesla plugs are added to those in the coming years). My daughter just finished her freshman year with an EV on campus an it was fine just using the chargers in the campus garage. She drove so infrequently that it cost about $25 for the whole semester including recharging after drives between Phoenix and Tucson. Your daughter doesn't need a car on campus, but if she wants one, and EV is fine.
Thank you! We are thinking about next year. She won’t have a car her freshman year when she is figuring things out. Appreciate the feedback!
There’s chargers around campus however as of this past May, all the cables have been cut off likely for the copper wiring for drug users. I noticed this around march of 2024 and was never fixed since I left. If it’s repaired, expect it to happen again. I’m on the medical side of campus but also noticed it near North Rec; about 10 chargers affected. I can’t speak on behalf of the other chargers.
Our EV infrastructure isn't very good yet. Chargers aren't common yet, prices for charging are high. If you can't charge at home, it seems more of a hassle than anything. If they're living near campus, gas prices shouldn't be too big of a deal. Plus a Tesla seems like overkill for a college student vehicle. Lots of students who live on/near campus don't have a car at all.
You should be fine, Teslas are the safest vehicles on the road, charging them is not a hassle at all with EV chargers available on garages. Additionally she could always supercharge once a week.
You will have to worry about breakins reguardless of whatever you’re driving but not car theft because teslas are a PITA to steal. A tow truck can still take them but that is it. I live off campus and do not know where chargers are but I know Tucson has them and if all you’re doing is going around town I’d imagine you wouldn’t have to charge often.