Blue Oval Charge Network Electrify America Charging Membership

[macchiaz-o]

As @highland58 first discovered, FordPass app version 3.26 changes the name of FordPass Charging Network to Blue Oval Charge Network.

I did a little digging and have not found a press release from @Ford Motor Company yet. However, I did find one new page with relevant information on this "new" network:

https://www.ford.com/support/how-to...etwork-electrify-america-charging-membership/

We've been wondering when plug and charge would link up with Electrify America membership rates, and it looks like it is now or soon available as an optional add on.

For $50 as a non-refundable, non-recurring fee, you receive a 1 year EA membership package offering charge rates that are 25% lower than non-member pricing. This is roughly the same discount that an EA Pass+ member gets for a $4 monthly (recurring but cancelable) fee.

Would I enroll? Definitely not. But for someone who uses EA stations routinely and drives Ford vehicles, this may be a worthwhile convenience for gaining access to both plug and charge and discounted rates.

I'll be curious to see if Ford adds any additional charge network partnerships as connected services add-ons like this one.

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[TRP]

Interesting. My app is 3.26 and still calls it FordPass Charging ?‍

Anyway, I'm on the fence about whether I'd add a subscription after my free charge time is gone. We do plan to use the MME for trips but not sure it would be worth it to subscribe on a regular basis. A cancellable option would probably be better for us

 

[macchiaz-o]

Interesting. My app is 3.26 and still calls it FordPass Charging ?‍

Weird. Maybe it's one of those slow roll out changes or tied to an update in the vehicle itself. Mine has Power-Up 1.4.0.

 

[IB_NYC]

Weird. Maybe it's one of those slow roll out changes or tied to an update in the vehicle itself. Mine has Power-Up 1.4.0.

How were you able to add to your balance? I know we get the 250kwh free, but not sure how we can purchase additional kwh through the app? Tried through the connected services site as well. Thanks.

 

[macchiaz-o]

How were you able to add to your balance? I know we get the 250kwh free, but not sure how we can purchase additional kwh through the app? Tried through the connected services site as well. Thanks.

I don't think you can.

I waited 15.5 months for the vehicle (reserved on day 2). It was a thank you from Ford to some of the early reservationists.

 

[AZBill]

On this link, the instructions say there is an Upgrade option, but it doesn't show up for me.

https://www.ford.com/support/how-to...etwork-electrify-america-charging-membership/

Once I upgrade, I am thinking that with my other non-Ford EV, I could initiate the charge with Ford Pass App and get the discount on it as well.

 

[macchiaz-o]

Once I upgrade, I am thinking that with my other non-Ford EV, I could initiate the charge with Ford Pass App and get the discount on it as well.

Good point. That would make sense.

 

[HDer]

Why is everything with Ford an "introductory" subscription/trial? FordPass charging we get 2 years of supposedly. I forget how long we get the maps for. Mobile hotspot is a 3 month trial. Same with SiriusXM. Blue Cruise is going to be a $600 "introductory" 3 year offer. Now we have this as a $50 one year "introductory" subscription. How many in app purchases are they going to put into one car?

 

[macchiaz-o]

How many in app purchases are they going to put into one car?

Are there any value adds you are willing to pay for? What about everyone else? ?‍

An introductory offer seems like a great way to test consumer interest, drive future changes to products, and get some revenue to pay for maintenance and development.

 

[HDer]

Are there any value adds you are willing to pay for? What about everyone else? ?‍

An introductory offer seems like a great way to test consumer interest, drive future changes to products, and get some revenue to pay for maintenance and development.

Assuming they don't jack up the price TOO much and it actually works as advertised, Blue Cruise for sure. It's one of the main reasons we didn't go with the base Select model.

Everything else... maps is harder to use than Plugshare and Google/Apple. Hotspot I have on my phone. SiriusXM I'd rather listen to Spotify. FordPass charging? I mean plug and charge is nice, but I wouldn't be willing to pay even $5 a month just for that. And this new EA offer? I probably will only use EA on roadtrips so I'd rather just pay the $4 a month during the summer or whenever I'm roadtripping and turn it off after that. Sure once again, no plug and charge, but I can live without it.

But it'll feel really odd driving a "premium" automobile with like half the features disabled because I'm not paying the monthly fee.

 

[HDer]

The problem isn't just about paying. It's about paying for an inferior product. I'd probably most likely be willing to pay for Maps out of all of the rest, but it looks like they didn't use HERE maps and instead rolled their own off of OpenStreetMaps. So it doesn't have the hotel we're staying at in Santa Barbara (this is a major chain btw.) And its charge planner, the one thing an EV's mapping system really needs to be good at, is still much less easy to use than both PlugShare and ChargeHub, so not even in the same ballpark as what Tesla has.

 

[methorian]

How were you able to add to your balance? I know we get the 250kwh free, but not sure how we can purchase additional kwh through the app? Tried through the connected services site as well. Thanks.

I don't believe you can purchase additional kWh upfront. After using your free balance it'll just bill your CC on file each time you charge.

I'm assuming you were confused as to how this person shows more than 250kWh in their balance. Some early Mach-E deliveries had unexpected delays, and Ford gave those of us who were delayed an extra 250kWh of free EA charging.

 

[IB_NYC]

I don't believe you can purchase additional kWh upfront. After using your free balance it'll just bill your CC on file each time you charge.

I'm assuming you were confused as to how this person shows more than 250kWh in their balance. Some early Mach-E deliveries had unexpected delays, and Ford gave those of us who were delayed an extra 250kWh of free EA charging.

Makes sense. Thanks!

 

[timbop]

Why is everything with Ford an "introductory" subscription/trial? FordPass charging we get 2 years of supposedly. I forget how long we get the maps for. Mobile hotspot is a 3 month trial. Same with SiriusXM. Blue Cruise is going to be a $600 "introductory" 3 year offer. Now we have this as a $50 one year "introductory" subscription. How many in app purchases are they going to put into one car?

A: As many as they can get people to buy. I forget his name, but one of the Ford execs mentioned that they want Ford to have an "ongoing relationship" with their customers instead of only seeing them once every 5 to 7 years. I took that to mean a fiscal relationship, as in lots of ongoing subscription fees. As always, if you don't like it then don't buy them - since you have cellphone integration through AA and Carplay you don't need Ford's NAV, hotspot, or SiriusXM. You can choose to have your own accounts with EA and the other networks so that's not really a big deal either. As for bluecruise the alternative is to drive it yourself or use the free auto lane centering. Personally I am willing to pay a fairly reasonable fee for bluecruise considering the staggering cost of developing and thoroughly testing that software.

 

[HDer]

A: As many as they can get people to buy. I forget his name, but one of the Ford execs mentioned that they want Ford to have an "ongoing relationship" with their customers instead of only seeing them once every 5 to 7 years. I took that to mean a fiscal relationship, as in lots of ongoing subscription fees. As always, if you don't like it then don't buy them - since you have cellphone integration through AA and Carplay you don't need Ford's NAV, hotspot, or SiriusXM. You can choose to have your own accounts with EA and the other networks so that's not really a big deal either. As for bluecruise the alternative is to drive it yourself or use the free auto lane centering. Personally I am willing to pay a fairly reasonable fee for bluecruise considering the staggering cost of developing and thoroughly testing that software.

Yeah an ongoing relationship with my wallet is what he meant. Blue Cruise I'm willing to pay for as long as it doesn't suck. Losing plug and charge will be annoying because it was advertised as a key feature both by Ford and by many of the reviews out there. And if you're selling an EV in 2021, having a good route/charge planner included should be table stakes, but of course nobody except for Tesla has really gotten it right. Hopefully in a few years it'll be standard in Google/Apple maps and we won't have to worry about it any more.

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