Charging station navigation error ruined entire day; feedback for @Ford

[chris e]

I’m writing this post out of sheer frustration with the (unrealistic) hope that it might somehow lead to improvements from @Ford. Yesterday, my son and I were getting ready to drive home from his soccer tournament, and Ford Navigation popped us saying we had to go to a fast charging station appr 12 miles the opposite way. The car battery had 58 miles remaining, and we only had to go appr 36 miles to the charging station on the way home, so we should have bene able to make it. The navigation kept alerting us to go to the charging station 15 miles the wrong way, so I assumed the car's computer system knew something I did not, and went to this charging station at an auto dealership. As luck would have it, the fast charger was broken, so we had to use the slow charger, which took 2.5 hours to charge the car to appr 60 miles. We were stuck and had to wait several hours just to get even with the car's original battery power vs distance before driving. We were also in a small town that showed a few "fast" chargers but instead were actually slow chargers. Btw, the small town did have a couple of Tesla superchargers nearby that we could not use. By coincidence, a Ford employee testing a mach-e stopped by the this charging station and rant into the same problem. He informed me that there is a charging plug converter so the Mach-e can charge at a Tesla station...I wish I had known that before the trip. ..

Long story short, this turned a 3 hour, 200 mile drive into a +7 hour drive (because we also had to stop at the charging station on the way home), which ruined the day for my son and I. I have the extended range battery, which is supposed to get 330 miles but only getting appr 240 miles yesterday (and not even that cold). It changes all the time, so I'm never really confident in the actual distance I can drive before running out of power. I’m afraid to use the car on a 3 hour trip because I don’t know what will happen (even if I plan ahead).

BlueCruise: The Ford employee at the charging station had Blue Cruise in his mach-e, and seemed to think all Mach-e owners should have it (installed via normal software updates). When I told him I didn’t have it, he was quite surprised. I asked him how to get it, and he did not know. Now I have the following questions: Do all Mach-e’s now have Blue Cruise? Is my Mach-e the only one that does not have it? How do I get it installed? Btw, @Ford should be telling me, not me asking a forum. last year, I bought the Mach-e excited about Blue Cruise coming in Q4. I still don't have it, and don't know if I ever will. This is a huge disappointment.

We also own a Tesla Model 3, and of course don’t have these issues. Tesla’s battery mileage meter is far more reliable. Tesla also makes regular updates with surprisingly useful new features, such as showing video of the adjacent lane when using a turn signal. Tesla has a 10 year tech lead on all other automakers, so I expected the Model 3 tech to be better. That said, the difference, even on the simple, basic functionality and features as well as the speed of useful software updates, is much wider than I expected.

I like the Mach-e, it’s great car and fun to drive. However, the unreliable battery, charging station, and Mach-e charger navigation issues are making me strongly consider getting rid of it for a Model Y. When I need to drive somewhere within a few hours, I need to be able to rely on the car. I can’t plan my life around it, worrying about getting stuck or unexpectedly wasting several hours.


Suggestions for Ford:
1) @Ford really needs to somehow fix or improve the Mach-e navigation software calculations and guidance to charging stations.
The battery network needs to label chargers as "slow" and "broken" or perhaps "offline" (which may be difficult without cooperation from the charging station owner).
2) Ford needs to get in touch with their customers who own Mach-e's and better understand the battery and charging station issues we deal with, and make improvements much more quickly. Ford most certainly should make amends. If the Tesla plug converters really work, they should have informed all Ford e-car owners (and sent us one).
3) @Ford really needs to improve communication and education with their dealerships and car owners. I’ve raised extended range battery issues with my Ford dealer, and they don’t know anything. After contacting them several times, they gave me a 1-800 number to call Ford’s Mach-e division. This number went to an answering machine in Ford’s marketing division, and they never responded to me, of course. The dealer then gave me a screenshot of an online post about car batteries…not kidding. Btw, I don't have time to fish around on the forums and the internet to find out how to use the car.
4) Blue Cruise: Communication regarding Blue Cruise and when it will be available has been non-existent. @Ford needs to let us know when it will be available, and do something for owners to make up for this delayed release. If my car should have it by now, they need to inform me and let me know if there's anything I need to do to install and use it.

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[dml105]

What do you mean by unreliable battery?

 

[Logal727]

Sorry you had issues but the Tesla mileage readout only gives you EPA rating not actual range. MMEs is more accurate and “honest”.

 

[mpshizzle]

Sorry you ran into that issue! That sounds horrible! While Ford's navigation system USUALLY gets it right, I still double check, just in case ha ha.

Yes, a Tesla to J 1772 adapter does exist. BUT, only for L2 chargers. The adapters do not work for super chargers.

Blue Cruise can be installed at a dealer if you ask them to complete FSA 21G01.

The OTA update is coming soon, but has not been rolled out to the general public. Only a small percentage of early Mach E owners have gotten blue cruise

 

[Garbone]

Android Auto or Apple car play are your friends. I have told my spousal unit to ignore the built in Ford Nav as it is truly awfully in my experience.

Better Route Planner, Plugshare or EA app are how I do my travel charge planning.

 

[OrchidMania]

Too bad you didn’t get in on tesla rap discount. We got a 15% discount but was only available for 1 week.

 

[Unclespike102]

Wholeheartedly agree with your suggestions to Ford. It appears someone at Ford monitors this - but replies only to safety issues.

None of your suggestions are difficult or revolutionary. They are basic issues! It boggles my mind to have encountered these exact circumstances and issues - from a company with the resources of Ford! Why are they so far behind the curve?

Every auto company coming out with EVs; Ford needs to get their act together! And sooner is better for owners, stock holders as well as Ford employees.

time to get yer shxt together!

 

[Mach-Lee]

Yes maintaining an up-to-date database of chargers is important. Seems like there should be a way to report an error somewhere?

BlueCruise is available through your dealer now. You will get a letter in the mail from Ford announcing it in a week or two.

Buy a TeslaTap or Lectron adapter so you can use Tesla AC chargers (doesn’t work with superchargers). Ford isn’t going to tell you about an adapter for a competitor’s hardware.

Use PlugShare to verify charger status for single charging locations before committing to drive there.

Also recognize that coming from a Tesla Supercharging experience other brands are much more primitive. Tesla will reroute you if the supercharger goes down automatically, no other brand does this yet so you have to manually check.

Also I can see why that might have been confusing, if a Tesla tells you to divert for charging you should probably do what it says, but in other brands you need to sanity check those alerts before you change your route. This is something that should improve to be seamless, but how different brands handle routing will always be different. So for now you have to know the quirks of the car you’re in and its routing algorithms.

 

[heisnuts]

Too bad you didn’t get in on tesla rap discount. We got a 15% discount but was only available for 1 week.

I don't think it would have helped him in this case, since the adapter only works at a L2 Tesla destination charger it would have been the same speed that he ended up charging at anyways.

 

[Maquis]

I don't think it would have helped him in this case, since the adapter only works at a L2 Tesla destination charger it would have been the same speed that he ended up charging at anyways.

But he could have had the pleasure of listening to “Tesla rap” while charging! ?

 

[ElectrifyCLT]

Plugshare app is your friend. Not only does it have the map of all chargers (and their speeds) but also user ratings. So if a charger is broken, the community reports it as such and you'll be able to adapt accordingly.

I always cross reference a predicting charging stop with plug share to make sure A: The location has a good rating and isn't flagged for repair and B: Validate the charging speed aligns with my expectations.

I've visited family a few times in the Cincinnati area, it's mostly a DCFC desert right now.

 

[macchiaz-o]

But he could have had the pleasure of listening to “Tesla rap” while charging! ?

Keying off something you said... I typed up a junior high response and then erased it all so that I don't attrack too many infractions all at once from the Not Post Police (@GoGoGadgetMachE, that is).

So here, pleasure yourself with this, instead -- recharge later.

 

[engnrng]

I’m writing this post out of sheer frustration with the (unrealistic) hope that it might somehow lead to improvements from Ford. Yesterday, my son and I were getting ready to drive home from his soccer tournament, and Ford Navigation popped us saying we had to go to a fast charging station appr 12 miles the opposite way. The car battery had 58 miles remaining, and we only had to go appr 36 miles to the charging station on the way home, so we should have bene able to make it. The navigation kept alerting us to go to the charging station 15 miles the wrong way, so I assumed the car's computer system knew something I did not, and went to this charging station at an auto dealership. As luck would have it, the fast charger was broken, so we had to use the slow charger, which took 2.5 hours to charge the car to appr 60 miles. We were stuck and had to wait several hours just to get even with the car's original battery power vs distance before driving. We were also in a small town that showed a few "fast" chargers but instead were actually slow chargers. Btw, the small town did have a couple of Tesla superchargers nearby that we could not use. By coincidence, a Ford employee testing a mach-e stopped by the this charging station and rant into the same problem. He informed me that there is a charging plug converter so the Mach-e can charge at a Tesla station...I wish I had known that before the trip. ..

Long story short, this turned a 3 hour, 200 mile drive into a +7 hour drive (because we also had to stop at the charging station on the way home), which ruined the day for my son and I. I have the extended range battery, which is supposed to get 330 miles but only getting appr 240 miles yesterday (and not even that cold). It changes all the time, so I'm never really confident in the actual distance I can drive before running out of power. I’m afraid to use the car on a 3 hour trip because I don’t know what will happen (even if I plan ahead).

BlueCruise: The Ford employee at the charging station had Blue Cruise in his mach-e, and seemed to think all Mach-e owners should have it (installed via normal software updates). When I told him I didn’t have it, he was quite surprised. I asked him how to get it, and he did not know. Now I have the following questions: Do all Mach-e’s now have Blue Cruise? Is my Mach-e the only one that does not have it? How do I get it installed? Btw, Ford should be telling me, not me asking a forum. last year, I bought the Mach-e excited about Blue Cruise coming in Q4. I still don't have it, and don't know if I ever will. This is a huge disappointment.

We also own a Tesla Model 3, and of course don’t have these issues. Tesla’s battery mileage meter is far more reliable. Tesla also makes regular updates with surprisingly useful new features, such as showing video of the adjacent lane when using a turn signal. Tesla has a 10 year tech lead on all other automakers, so I expected the Model 3 tech to be better. That said, the difference, even on the simple, basic functionality and features as well as the speed of useful software updates, is much wider than I expected.

I like the Mach-e, it’s great car and fun to drive. However, the unreliable battery, charging station, and Mach-e charger navigation issues are making me strongly consider getting rid of it for a Model Y. When I need to drive somewhere within a few hours, I need to be able to rely on the car. I can’t plan my life around it, worrying about getting stuck or unexpectedly wasting several hours.


Suggestions for Ford:
1) Ford really needs to somehow fix or improve the Mach-e navigation software calculations and guidance to charging stations.
The battery network needs to label chargers as "slow" and "broken" or perhaps "offline" (which may be difficult without cooperation from the charging station owner).
2) Ford needs to get in touch with their customers who own Mach-e's and better understand the battery and charging station issues we deal with, and make improvements much more quickly. Ford most certainly should make amends. If the Tesla plug converters really work, they should have informed all Ford e-car owners (and sent us one).
3) Ford really needs to improve communication and education with their dealerships and car owners. I’ve raised extended range battery issues with my Ford dealer, and they don’t know anything. After contacting them several times, they gave me a 1-800 number to call Ford’s Mach-e division. This number went to an answering machine in Ford’s marketing division, and they never responded to me, of course. The dealer then gave me a screenshot of an online post about car batteries…not kidding. Btw, I don't have time to fish around on the forums and the internet to find out how to use the car.
4) Blue Cruise: Communication regarding Blue Cruise and when it will be available has been non-existent. Ford needs to let us know when it will be available, and do something for owners to make up for this delayed release. If my car should have it by now, they need to inform me and let me know if there's anything I need to do to install and use it.

Sorry all this happened to you, for sure. I suggest that you go back and edit your post. Every time you mention "Ford" change it to "@Ford" which will call attention to that account that you posted. Or, at least a couple of places in your post. This forum is extremely active and they do not monitor every post. Call their attention to your plight by using the notification feature.

 

[Mirak]

I had my share of terrible fast-charging experiences early on. Here is what you need to know....

1. Road-tripping in an EV requires planning. Especially if you are somewhere where there is not an abundance of DCFC. You're like an 18th century sea captain putting out of port. You better have a good plan in place, and be aware of the weather (a stiff head wind can dramatically reduce range).
2. Ford's efforts to make DCFC planning and charging "easy" - things like the Nav integration and "Blue Oval Network" - should not be relied upon at this point. There are just too many damned bugs.
3. So first you've gotta get on Plugshare and research your charging options. What's your primary? What's your backup? Do the stations appear to be working based upon user reviews? Is there any L2 to plug into for a few hours while you're doing an activity (soccer game)?
4. The "Tesla adapter" only works on L2 - not Super Chargers. Give it another year and I suspect the Super Charger network will be open to all (but it'll be very expensive, relatively speaking).
5. You're gonna get a lot of crappy information from Ford. If you spend a few weeks reading on this Forum, you'll know more about your car than any of Ford' frontline (and even second line) customer service representatives, salespeople, and even most technicians.

You can complain to Ford about how hard / risky road-tripping is, or how poorly informed their reps are, but you might as well be shouting into the wind. If you wanted the easiest possible road-tripping experience, you should have driven your Tesla. If you want a car that is better than the Tesla in most of other respects - that's where the Mach E comes in.

Not trying to be callous because I know how frustrating this can be. Just giving you the unvarnished truth.

 

[OWG]

"So first you've gotta get on Plugshare and research your charging options. "

Throwing ABRP (abetterrouteplanner.com) out there. It's a great supplement for roadtrip planning.

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