Fast Charging at Electrify America: Lessons learned

[BadgerGreg]

I really hope that EA is able to keep up with their charging infrastructure and add stations soon. It's the only type of charger I seek out when traveling because of the fast charging capabilities. I'm a bit worried that they aren't putting in the required O&M to keep them functional and charging at desired rates. Although I've had positive experiences with EA chargers so far, the stations are too few and far between to make me truly comfortable while on a road trip.

I also wonder what will happen during summer months when electrical demand is high in the afternoon; will electric utilities have to limit/throttle electrical draw at these stations to keep the grid stable? If so, that could mean slow charging speeds and long waits.

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[Carsinmyblood]

Still emerging technology. By 2050 they'll be able to make everybody happy. Then, we'll complain about the first Mr. Nuclear systems.

 

[ChasingCoral]

I really hope that EA is able to keep up with their charging infrastructure and add stations soon. It's the only type of charger I seek out when traveling because of the fast charging capabilities. I'm a bit worried that they aren't putting in the required O&M to keep them functional and charging at desired rates. Although I've had positive experiences with EA chargers so far, the stations are too few and far between to make me truly comfortable while on a road trip.

I also wonder what will happen during summer months when electrical demand is high in the afternoon; will electric utilities have to limit/throttle electrical draw at these stations to keep the grid stable? If so, that could mean slow charging speeds and long waits.

I road tripped about 4,000 miles back in March and never left an EA station without charging.

 

[gnaark]

I disagree, every serious tech company out there will value feedback and act on it (It’s VW behind let’s not forget).
The worst thing to do is not sending feedback and expecting things to change.

 

[dliunatic]

Hey guys, I just completed a mini road trip from Dallas to Austin (483 miles at 3.3 mi/kWh) and I did run into some issues at EA while fast charging.

We did lose a lot of time with avoidable mistakes so I figured I'd share those and maybe that could help someone.

• Don't trust the sticker on the EA charger, the "up to xxx kW" isn't accurate at all.
  
  
  
  To get your maximum number check on the EA app and it will tell you which chargers are fast
  
  
  
  
  All the chargers at that location were marked 150kW (on the charging station sticker) however only one of them shows up for that speed in the app: use this one.
  We lost a ton of time "slow" charging at 30-50kW because we didn't check the app (we figured that out later).
  
  
• Charger hop if you can
  We stopped at a station in Round Rock, TX where we started to charge at 126kW but it dropped to 30kW.
  Instead of waiting forever we charged just enough to make it to the other EA station in Waco, TX on the way to Dallas.
  However it didn't end up paying up because all the 150kW chargers were down
  
  
• Don't stop the car until you found the charger that works
  I made that mistake so many times and it makes me feel so dumb. I pull up at a charger, stop the car, get out only to see that the EA charger is down so I have to get back in and move the car: I did that 3 times at one station.
  If you can, have your copilot scout the chargers on foot.
  
  
• Park really close to the station
  The charging cables are SO SHORT. Like what were they thinking? Sometimes if I park in the lines I can't plug because the cable is so short.
  
  
• Send feedback to EA!
  When browsing the page for a station, scroll all the way down and click on the "Report Issue" button and send in your feedback. If we don't tell them they won't be aware of the problems.

All and all I was able to charge my car and wasn't left stranded, I just lost a ton of time slow charging and getting frustrated because I kept picking a broken charger. For my next trip I'll be more careful and hopefully I should have a better experience.
Plug and Charge worked perfectly though so that's a win.

Was planning on doing that trip from Dallas to Austin too! Thanks for sharing.

 

[silverelan]

My Mach E pulls 43-44kW at 50kW chargers, 130-140kW (before tapering) at 150kW chargers, and 155kW (before tapering) at 350kW chargers.

But I am in warm California weather. Early post in this forum suggest that cold weather affect Mach E charging rate pretty significantly.

You might know the answer to this. Does the MME regain 60% SoC faster starting from 10% or 20%?

10% -> 70%
20% -> 80%

Which takes less time or is it the same either way?

 

[ChasingCoral]

You might know the answer to this. Does the MME regain 60% SoC faster starting from 10% or 20%?

10% -> 70%
20% -> 80%

Which takes less time or is it the same either way?

10-70% will be marginally faster as there is a ramp down at around 40%, so more charging below 40% will typically result in a shooter charge time. However, there won’t be a lot of difference.

 

[Mirak]

Should we call Ford’s Mach E helpline or the Ford charging helpline?

 

[quitepossibly]

I noticed the same. All charger at Harris Ranch (between SF and LA) are 50kW, even though one of them is marked as 150kW. The 150/350kW charger at Firebaugh has been down for maintenance for 6.5 weeks, making Harris Ranch a required stop for SF LA trip. Luckily Mach E range is great compared to its EPA rating, so 15-20% charge is all one needs there.

At all other EA locations I've used, the label seem accurate.

From what I heard, Electrify America couldn't get the electrical capacity necessary to run this station at 150 kW. I assume the Tesla Supercharger station at this location took all of the available electrical capacity already.

 

[silverelan]

10-70% will be marginally faster as there is a ramp down at around 40%, so more charging below 40% will typically result in a shooter charge time. However, there won’t be a lot of difference.

Thanks. I remember someone on YouTube speculating that 20% might be faster since the timing could potentially be maximized.

 

[krafty81]

Thanks for the great info. I have found the Ford App updates my status accurately. I charge at work and track throughout the day.

 

[dbsb3233]

Yes but here I was away from home with 80 miles of range left and a 200 miles trip in front of me. I had to top off the car somewhere.

Yeah, if taking it on a long road trip, there's no choice but to use retail chargers.

I was a little fuzzy on his point at first too, but I think what he meant was that Ford (and EVs in general) could do a better job of explaining the advantages of home charging. Which for those that can do it, is typically going to be 95%+ of all their charging. We hear way more about the "how long does it take to charge?", which focuses on DCFC charging. That's important too, but they should really be pushing the "It usually doesn't matter since you just plug in when you get home each evening!" answer.

 

[Carsinmyblood]

From what I heard, Electrify America couldn't get the electrical capacity necessary to run this station at 150 kW. I assume the Tesla Supercharger station at this location took all of the available electrical capacity already.

I see lawsuits in the future.... BUT, we can get an adapter to use their stations. Tesla owners will soon have to get used to sharing. THAT will be an up hill struggle.

Next on the news: VW-installed Superchargers found to be throttling non-VW made cars and Tesla stations refusing non-Tesla cars in an ever growing terf war for power. More at 11.

 

[SteveJo]

Still emerging technology. By 2050 they'll be able to make everybody happy. Then, we'll complain about the first Mr. Nuclear systems.

By 2050 a lot or our complaining days will be over.

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