Charging @ EVGo

[heisnuts]

I have learned to always have a backup plan when it comes to charging on the road. We picked up our MME ER a week ago and had a 260 mile trip home. Knowing that it would be tight I planned a stop half way back at an EA charger. We pulled into EA at 10 pm at night just above freezing temps and that is when the fun began.

There was one car (I-Pace) charging so I pulled into the station 2 spots away only to find that charger unavailable. I moved over to another one a spot away form the I-Pace, but that too was unavailable. So now I walked all 6 stations to see that there were only 2 chargers working, the one the I-Pace was using and then one attached (next to) the I-Pace charger.

So I pull up right next to the I-Pace but no matter how close I got to the I-Pace the cable was not long enough to reach to the side of the MME. So I ended up pulling in sideways so the cable would reach and plugged into the charger.

I was expecting it just to plug and charge since I had the Ford Pass App all set up and connected to the car, but as I found out if you did not also set up the charging account on the Ford Pass App it will not work.

At this point I was happy to use my credit card and pay for the charge, but after inserting the card, the charger showed card reading error - please contact EA at (800) xxx-xxxx. By this time I am shivering on the phone with EA who explains why the Ford Pass wasn't working and that the card reader just needed to be re-booted, which she did remotely. 10 minutes later the charger was working and I was warming up in the car with the seat heater on and holding the heated steering wheel even though I was just sitting there. The I-Pace owner was just unplugging as I was getting back into the car and his comment was, "boy, that was painful to watch."

The story is so funny after the fact that I really cannot be mad about it (I still laugh about it today). However, it did teach me to first look at the EA website to see if there are working chargers at that location and also look at the map for the next closest station. After we got home I set up the charging payment section in the Ford Pass App and went down to our local EA station where they had side mounted stations that easily reached the MME and once I plugged in the charger immediately recognized the car and started charging with no problems.

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[Mirak]

So I’m headed from Wichita to KC next weekend. I’m trying to decide if I can trust the recently installed and super conveniently located EVgo station at Oak Park Mall at the confluence of Interstates 35 and 69. It is 175 miles from my home, so I can make it there with around 25miles of range to spare (assuming it is not freezing or massive north headwinds - in which case forget it), and it allows me to take the fastest route directly along I-35.

But if it doesn’t work…. that will suck badly. Because Johnson County is otherwise a charging desert. And no, there’s inexplicably nowhere to charge up along the way unless I take the long road through Topeka.

I asked EVgo if there are any compatibility problems with the Mach E. They said no. I don’t trust them, but figured I’d better ask. PlugShare doesn’t give me any reliable info for the Mach E.

These are new chargers - not the old Efacec “fat boy” 50kW chargers that are known to have comparability problems. Can anyone attest that the newer chargers pictured at the Oak Park location have worked for them?

And what is the surest way to initiate the charge? Blue Oval, or EVgo app or EVgo card? I have already installed the app and added a payment method there, and they are mailing me a card.

 

[titan2220]

Has there been a definitive fix for the EVgo older charging issue? I connect successfully, initiate the charge, but no electricity ever flows. The car throws a charge fault error and that's it. Resetting charger did nothing. EA works flawlessly.

 

[Woeo]

Has there been a definitive fix for the EVgo older charging issue? I connect successfully, initiate the charge, but no electricity ever flows. The car throws a charge fault error and that's it. Resetting charger did nothing. EA works flawlessly.

Recenty had a fail at the EVGo site at Barracks Rd in CharlottSeville, Va. Tried one charger twice and a third once. 50kWh units.

 

[titan2220]

This is the model EVgo charger that constantly fails on me. I had a 100kwh newer one work just fine. Frustrating that these are the most prevalent around me.

 

[michaelmmegt]

I tried one of the 350 kW EVgo Signet Ultium ready chargers earlier today that just opened in the last few weeks. It was great, started no issue and hit speeds of about 160 kW. It unfortunately charges per minute instead of per kWh, but the per minute price is actually cheaper than the EA+ rate at the speed the Mach-E charges.

It was really cool that these chargers show current and voltage in addition to power. I'll consider these equivalent to EA in the future when traveling if they are available.

 

[kltye]

I'm failing at the old ABB chargers all of a sudden. I think there's an OBCC update in one of the Bluecruise updates (2.4.x or 2.5.x), so I'll be sure to check it out after I get the update.

 

[Logal727]

I asked EVGO about this issue on Twitter, they said it was resolved but I don’t think that’s true? I don’t understand why it would be on Ford to fix anything. Most other DCFC chargers work just fine.

 

[titan2220]

I asked EVGO about this issue on Twitter, they said it was resolved but I don’t think that’s true? I don’t understand why it would be on Ford to fix anything. Most other DCFC chargers work just fine.

I would doubt it. I check Plugshare for the EVgo chargers, and the only vehicles that report failures are MME's!! Doesn't seem like they've rectified it for most owners.

 

[Logal727]

I would doubt it. I check Plugshare for the EVgo chargers, and the only vehicles that report failures are MME's!! Doesn't seem like they've rectified it for most owners.

Seems like the ones near me are the ones without issues, but there’s no way to tell without looking at PlugShare I guess.

 

[jgillmer]

Has there been a definitive fix for the EVgo older charging issue? I connect successfully, initiate the charge, but no electricity ever flows. The car throws a charge fault error and that's it. Resetting charger did nothing. EA works flawlessly.

I have the same issue with EVgo. Very frequently seems to start and then it throws a charge fault and I have to turn on and off MME several times to clear it so the MME can accept it. On EAs, I have no trouble. Nearly all L2s also no trouble. It's EVgo DCFC and, last night on I95 in Maryland, had the same issue with the Electric Institute DCFC

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