Bringing Sonic Home (my 500 mile odyssey - with MEMES!)

[Mirak]

My interest in the Mach E began last year. I’ve driven a Ford Fusion Hybrid for over 11 years and I wanted to go full BEV for a while, but I was waiting for a vehicle to hit the market that checked my 4 Boxes: looks good, decent range, crossover/suv, and reasonably priced. Tesla failed the looks test with the Model Y and the price test with the Model X. But Ford’s MME looked like a winner.

I took my first test drive about 6 weeks ago, loved it, and placed my order for a Star White Premium Ext AWD. Let the wait begin.

But in the meantime, I started reading more about the Grabber Blue First Edition. And I became fixated.

I told people that an extra $3,600 was a LOT for pretty paint....

def go with the premium and save the $3600. IMHO the only reason to get a FE is for the Grabber Blue, and even then that's a lot of money for flashier paint.

But my big brain couldn’t convince my bigger heart. This became my (non)white whale: could I locate a cancelled order Grabber Blue First Edition at x-plan price? I told myself it couldn’t be done. I told other people it couldn’t be done.....

Come on, nobody’s selling a cancelled FE at xplan.

Hey, in my defense, I was just quoting Sean Bean.

I searched, and searched. Called dealer after dealer. Many GB’s were listed on websites but already spoken for. Other dealers wanted absurd ADM. And then I HIT: A cancelled order GB FE in Denver, just 500 miles away, and the salesman swore he’d take x-plan. He even knew about the Options Bonus Cash! He sent me the pricing in writing! I put down a deposit and pledged to fly there as soon as it arrived. A few weeks later, it did. And so I found taking an early one-way flight to Denver, and an Uber to the Barbee’s Freeway Ford.

I arrived as the doors were opening. Dustin Gonzalez was a joy to work with. He was professional. Not sleazy. He had sold many MMEs. I filled out the initial paperwork with him and then he took me to my MME. He left me to set it up myself.

I had already created my Ford.com account and downloaded the FordPass app. I’d also already added a payment method to my digital wallet on Ford.com. Once at the car, I plugged my VIN into the FordPass and got the car connected. It worked! I had to open up Ford.com/connectedservices one more time to get Connected Services activated, but that worked, too!

While I was there, I inspected the car. Changed my audio to surround sound. Reset the driver history. Made sure Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control was chosen. Selected Engage mode and One Pedal Driving. Set my screen to Dark mode. The exterior was perfect. The interior had a few oily spots which I pointed out to Dustin.

And then Dustin led me to the finance manager, which is where all dealership horror stories start....

Except it wasn’t horrible at all! it was almost flawless!! He wasn’t pushy. Didn’t try to upsell me anything. He screwed up the sales tax but when I pointed that out he fixed it. That was it. I signed the Ford Options agreement (I chose 15,000 miles and 48 months even though I don’t intend to use it as a lease). And I was done! I had my X-Plan Grabber Blue First Edition!!

I named him Sonic. He’s fast and he’s blue. And it was one of my favorite video games as a kid.

But now it was time to take Sonic into the Wastelands of Eastern Colorado and Western Kansas. I was about to embark on a 500 miles odyssey with nothing but a few lonely Electrify America outposts. Would they work?!

Stay tuned....

 

[Mirak]

Before we get to the charging, my first impressions now that I’ve really had time (over 10 solid hours) to evaluate:

• Because I bought in CO, front plate indeed came installed from factory. Stupid front plate state with your stupid front plates. Now I’m gonna have three rivet holes in my bumper.
• I do have the driver screen coil whine. It’s noticeable when in park if I listen for it, but not once I start driving or turn on really any other noise. Should it be there? No. Should Ford fix it? Yes. Do I care enough to make a big deal of it. Not really. If Ford announces a fix I’ll bring my car in but otherwise I’m gonna enjoy my car.
• I have no discernible wind noise - and today was WINDY. My glass roof is only raised a tiny bit above windshield.
• I was extremely impressed how intuitive and well-integrated the center screen is. Ford nav was great. It created my route, pulled up the next high speed charger, listed the distance to that charge over on the driver screen. It’s very well thought out. I didn’t think I’d care about Apple CarPlay but I LOVE IT. I used CarPlay for Pandora and I could still easily toggle over to the Ford nav or trip computer without interrupting my music. It just WORKS!!!
• The CoPilot360 is GOOD. Using Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control with Lane Keep Assist and you barely have to tough the wheel or pedals on the highway. It’s that good. The hand-nanny might use a little work - it occasionally nagged me when my hand was on the wheel. Minor nuisance.
• Pandora sounds great in surround
• Rear visibility is good.

A few bugs....

• Refuses to remember my dark screen setting. Resets to daytime setting every time I start car.
• I only saw the “blue bar bug” on the driver screen nav once the entire trip.
• Nav occasionally lost my destination when I turned the car off and on for charging.

 

[Mirak]

Ok now the part you all want to hear about: road trip DCFC charging.

TL/DR Version:
1. The Electrify America chargers worked great – or would have worked great without Ford’s Plug & Charge interfering.
2. Whoever was in charge of designing and implementing Ford Plug & Charge needs to be slapped across the face and fired. It is a completely useless turd. It’s worse than useless, because not only does it not work – it interferes with using the EA App which would ordinarily work great.

Long Version

There are 4 EA 150-350kW DCFC stations between Denver and Wichita: Flagler CO, Colby KS, Hays KS, and Salina KS. My plan was hit at least the first three to be safe, and maybe skip Salina if I felt I had enough range to get home to my garage.

All legs were highway speed at around 77mph with a few short bursts. I stopped all charging sessions at 80%. Here is how that went down….

Leg 1: Dealership to Flagler.

• 125mi, 2.8mi/kW. 53% SOC and 137mi GOM at arrival. 68 deg F.
• First observation: EA charger cables aren’t very long. You have to park just right, especially for the nose-first stations.
• I tried Ford Plug & Charge (from now on it will be called POS P&C) three times. It failed to initiate and gave me charging faults three times. I gave up and used the EA app, which worked great.
• $0.31/kWh, 18mins, 25kWh added, 83.33kW avg speed, $7.80 total price. Stopped at 80%.

Leg 2: Flagler to Colby.

• 108mi, 2.6mi/kWh, 36% SOC and 94mi GOM at arrival. 76 deg F.
• Same problem with POS P&C. This time EA app didn’t work either. Called EA and they started it manually. Worked great. Help desk was super friendly and didn’t have to wait on hold.
• $0.24/min, 29mins, 41kWh added, 84.83kW avg speed, $7.44 total price.

Leg 3: Colby to Hays.

• 105mi, 2.2mi/kWh, 30% SOC and 72mi GOM at arrival. 69 deg F.
• Same problem with POS P&C. Same problem with EA app. This time me and the EA CR determined that the POS P&C was interfering with the EA app initiating the charging session. So he again started it manually.
• $0.24/min, 28mins. 47kWh added, 102.86kW avg speed, $7.30 total price.

At this point I had to decide whether to push for home or stop in Salina. Due to brutal 20-25mph headwinds from the south as I got further into Kansas, my efficiency was dropping with every leg. I knew I wouldn’t make it home, so I stopped in Salina.

Leg 4: Hays to Salina.

• 95mi, 2.1mi/kWh, 32% SOC and 72mi GOM at arrival. 67 deg F.
• Same problem with POS P&C. Called EA and they sent a manual start.
• $0.24/min, 27mins, 45kWh added, 100kW avg speed, $7.06 total price.

Trip 5: Salina to Home. 92mi, 1.9mi/kWh, 28% SOC and 61mi GOM at arrival.

Summary: the EA Chargers were FAST and still cheaper than gas! But Ford POS P&C is a steaming turd and Ford giving us an extra 250kWh to compensate for our troubles is a sick joke given that WE CAN’T USE THE FREE CHARGING UNTIL THEY FIX POS P&C. THIS NEEDS TO BE SUPER HIGH PRIORITY.

Other than that, I LOVE everything about this car and Sonic looks amazing in my garage!!

 

[Mach-E VLOG]

Congrats!!! I'm glad it all worked out.

 

[Mirak]

Congrats!!! I'm glad it all worked out.

All thanks to you, good sir!

 

[Liv]

Ok now the part you all want to hear about: road trip DCFC charging.

TL/DR Version:
1. The Electrify America chargers worked great – without Ford’s Plug & Charge interfering.
2. Whoever was in charge of designing and implementing Ford Plug & Charge needs to be slapped across the face and fired. It is a completely useless turd. It’s worse than useless, because not only does it not work – it interferes with using the EA App which would ordinarily work great.

Long Version

There are 4 EA 150-350kW DCFC stations between Denver and Wichita: Flagler CO, Colby KS, Hays KS, and Salina KS. My plan was hit at least the first three to be safe, and maybe skip Salina if I felt I had enough range to get home to my garage.

All legs were highway speed at around 77mph with a few short bursts. I stopped all charging sessions at 80%. Here is how that went down….

Leg 1: Dealership to Flagler.

• 125mi, 2.8mi/kW. 53% SOC and 137mi GOM at arrival. 68 deg F.
• First observation: EA charger cables aren’t very long. You have to park just right, especially for the nose-first stations.
• I tried Ford Plug & Charge (from now on it will be called POS P&C) three times. It failed to initiate and gave me charging faults three times. I gave up and used the EA app, which worked great.
• $0.31/kWh, 18mins, 25kWh added, 83.33kW avg speed, $7.80 total price. Stopped at 80%.

Leg 2: Flagler to Colby.

• 108mi, 2.6mi/kWh, 36% SOC and 94mi GOM at arrival. 76 deg F.
• Same problem with POS P&C. This time EA app didn’t work either. Called EA and they started it manually. Worked great. Help desk was super friendly and didn’t have to wait on hold.
• $0.24/min, 29mins, 41kWh added, 84.83kW avg speed, $7.44 total price.

Leg 3: Colby to Hays.

• 105mi, 2.2mi/kWh, 30% SOC and 72mi GOM at arrival. 69 deg F.
• Same problem with POS P&C. Same problem with EA app. This time me and the EA CR determined that the POS P&C was interfering with the EA app initiating the charging session. So he again started it manually.
• $0.24/min, 28mins. 47kWh added, 102.86kW avg speed, $7.30 total price.

At this point I had to decide whether to push for home or stop in Salina. Due to brutal 20-25mph headwinds from the south as I got further into Kansas, my efficiency was dropping with every leg. I knew I wouldn’t make it home, so I stopped in Salina.

Leg 4: Hays to Salina.

• 95mi, 2.1mi/kWh, 32% SOC and 72mi GOM at arrival. 67 deg F.
• Same problem with POS P&C. Called EA and they sent a manual start.
• $0.24/min, 27mins, 45kWh added, 100kW avg speed, $7.06 total price.

Trip 5: Salina to Home. 92mi, 1.9mi/kWh, 28% SOC and 61mi GOM at arrival.

Summary: the EA Chargers were FAST and still cheaper than gas! But Ford POS P&C is a steaming turd and Ford giving us an extra 250kWh to compensate for our troubles is a sick joke given that WE CAN’T USE THE FREE CHARGING UNTIL THEY FIX POS P&C. THIS NEEDS TO BE SUPER HIGH PRIORITY.

Other than that, I LOVE everything about this car and Sonic looks amazing in my garage!!

Dude, this was all super entertaining AND informative! So glad you were able to get our other order!! Please tell all your future stories in memes too! ?

 

[Maric]

You win the internet.

 

[Mirak]

Oh couple other things I forgot to mention: if you have a choice between 150kW and 350kW EA charger, just use the 150. They are cheaper and appear to be just as fast (for the MME’s purposes) as the 350.

Also try to avoid parking in front of the one station with a combo CCS and Chademo plugs just in case a LEAF comes along.

Also, the price was pretty much the same whether by the kWh (in CO) or by the minute (in KS).

I was the sole car at all my stops. In fact one guy (Walmart worker) walked up to me at the Hays station in the Walmart parking lot and said, after complimenting the Mach E, “that’s the first time I’ve ever seen one of these in use!”

Finally, I think it is interesting that my efficiency decreased with every leg. Granted, the wind got stronger throughout the day so maybe that’s all it was. I hope there isn’t “battery fatigue” on long road trips.

If somebody were to ask me if I’d do a road trip like this again in the MME, I guess I’d say “maybe.” It is a joy to drive on the highway. But the charging is still half-baked.

 

[dbsb3233]

While my 5-minute test P&C at the Denver West EA station worked fine yesterday, I may just skip P&C for a while until stations are working better, and use the EA app (and Pass+) for road trips this year. I think our 250 kWh free is good for 2 years, so really no hurry using it up. It's only about 4 charges, easily done in one road trip. It'll probably work a lot better in 2022.

 

[Tampamike]

I too had problems initially with P+C but then it worked a couple days later. It seems like that is baked in somehow on this car’s connectivity. Things don’t want to work initially but they will in a little while. Go figure. On my last road trip I used an EA station and had success with P+C, except that the 350 CCS charger didn’t work. The 150 worked as advertised. Didn’t call anyone so I don’t know what was up with that.

 

[Mirak]

I too had problems initially with P+C but then it worked a couple days later. It seems like that is baked in somehow on this car’s connectivity. Things don’t want to work initially but they will in a little while. Go figure. On my last road trip I used an EA station and had success with P+C, except that the 350 CCS charger didn’t work. The 150 worked as advertised. Didn’t call anyone so I don’t know what was up with that.

Boy I hope that's the case. I'll have another chance to test it out on a shorter road trip to KC in a few weeks, although there it is going to be a ChargePoint station. Not sure if this is just an issue with POS P&C not working with EA stations, or if it applies to other chargers, too.

 

[Mirak]

My car fully recharged overnight in my garage, although took almost exactly 10hrs to get there. My first use of the mobile charger was perfect.

With my long road trip over, I reset the driver history. Outside temp was 62 deg F this morning. Right away, my GOM read 268 at 100% SOC.

One bit of sad news.... the Intelligent ACC does get occasionally tricked by the lower speed limit signs on frontage roads adjoining the highway. I didn't experience this once yesterday along I-70, but it occurred twice today on Highway 50 (Kellogg) through Wichita.

 

[agoldman]

Oh couple other things I forgot to mention: if you have a choice between 150kW and 350kW EA charger, just use the 150. They are cheaper and appear to be just as fast (for the MME’s purposes) as the 350.

Thanks for the tip. It is mind boggling that the charging issues are so pervasive still. Di they not even test this?

 

[Accord07]

• I do have the driver screen coil whine. It’s noticeable when in park if I listen for it, but not once I start driving or turn on really any other noise. Should it be there? No. Should Ford fix it? Yes. Do I care enough to make a big deal of it. Not really. If Ford announces a fix I’ll bring my car in but otherwise I’m gonna enjoy my car.

Great news! You won't need that pillow after all...

 

[SteelMach]

Boy I hope that's the case. I'll have another chance to test it out on a shorter road trip to KC in a few weeks, although there it is going to be a ChargePoint station. Not sure if this is just an issue with POS P&C not working with EA stations, or if it applies to other chargers, too.

ChargePoint does not support Plug&Charge (on some "we got outvoted at the table writing the standard, wah wah" principle) so the station will not care whether you have a P&C vehicle.

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