Charging rant. Shell Recharge

[steveg95]

We often travel to the Des Moines, IA area. This is the capital of our great State. The population is 750k. You would think this area would have some decent chargers. Most of the “high speed” are Shell Recharge, operated by Mid-American Energy. The one near my daughter’s house has been down for months. I went to the next closest one. It was listed as 150 kW. One side was doing 25 and the other was giving 49. I searched in the Ford app and found one at a grocery store that was listed as 300 kW. When I arrived, one side was completely down and the other was only charging at 48 kW. I had time to kill so I drove to another site that was listed as 150 kW. Both sides seemed to be working. The first one I connected to wouldn’t read my Shell RFID card. The other one read the card but, again, would only output at 49 kW. There seems to be a thread here. I’m going to attempt to contact Shell and Mid-America but don’t hold out too much hope of resolving anything. I installed a 220v outlet in my daughter’s garage to use my mobile charger when we’re staying overnight. It may be time to install a mid level charger at her house.

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[mdwinther35]

Make sure you leave check-in's on plugshare. If enough people ding them and drive down their score that might help get their attention.

 

[2FlyMache]

Yeah, Shell has been a little quirky for me

 

[steveg95]

Make sure you leave check-in's on plugshare. If enough people ding them and drive down their score that might help get their attention.

I’m definitely providing feedback to them and posting my experiences on PlugShare

 

[Billyk24]

This is why many of us look at Tesla locations first when planning road trips. I assume you have an adaptor?

 

[ponEpwr]

I’ve used a couple of those shell ones in Des Moines and was always in the 60kw range. This was a year or two ago. Next time I’m going through there I’ll be using the Tesla charger.

And now pulling up the Tesla map I see they added a charger halfway between Kansas City and Des Moines! This makes me very happy as there were only two small (2plug) ccs stations in that stretch. This will make a winter trip much more comfortable.

Got family near Cedar Rapids so it looks like I can rely 100% on the Tesla network for the trip now.

 

[AllenXS]

Want to one similar to Shell last summer as I was just below empty 0%. They were even offering some free kws.
Started fast (ish) then it dropped after a minute to L1 charging.
Want next door to Petro Canada.
Bit better at 25kwh.
Then it was over to electrify Canada on a far 350 charger. Way more expensive and worth every loonie (4 quarters).
next time it will be at Tesla land with the adapter!

 

[Phantom E]

Companies don't care. They don't want to spend any money on maintenance, and it's hard to get competent people to come to work and actually work. Unfortunately it's like this with most things these days.

 

[RickMachE]

Electrify America owns the chargers and network.
Tesla owns their Superchargers and network.

Shell Recharge provides the network - private ownership of chargers. So, when it's not fixed, it's not Shell Recharge at fault (unless they are contracted for the maintenance). Same with ChargePoint, and others.

We found a place in Iowa where we've stopped several times overnight. There is a free 50kW charger on the Shell Recharge network. The chargers are owned by MidAmerican Energy Company, whose slogan is "Obsessively, Relentlessly At Your Service". At least one of these chargers is always broken. I just looked, haven't been there since March, and yup - broken. It's free because the businesses in that area pay for it (or the town). I plug in, go to hotel a block away, and come back when it's done.

We hit a brand new Shell Recharge location. First week, a truck backed into one of the two chargers and broke it. They had no idea who to call to fix it. I finally get on the other one, and someone comes and starts charging too, sharing the load.

 

[Sikkun]

Companies don't care. They don't want to spend any money on maintenance, and it's hard to get competent people to come to work and actually work. Unfortunately it's like this with most things these days.

It’s very easy to get competent work done. It just cuts into record profits.

 

[rcechinel]

On all my Shell Recharge experiences, the charger was very derated. I had time to kill and it wasn't a problem.

Also, it's winter, are you remembering to navigate using the built-in NAV to pre-condition the battery? My wife went to Alabama from Atlanta last week and called me complaining "this is charging at 67KW". It was around 45 degrees and she hadn't pre-condition.

 

[steveg95]

This is why many of us look at Tesla locations first when planning road trips. I assume you have an adaptor?

I do, but the Tesla option near my daughter's says it's not compatible with my Mach e.

 

[rcechinel]

I do, but the Tesla option near my daughter's says it's not compatible with my Mach e.

It's a V2 then. Only V3s and the V4s (when available) are compatible with the CCS cars.

 

[67 Stang Convertible]

Electrify America owns the chargers and network.
Tesla owns their Superchargers and network.

Shell Recharge provides the network - private ownership of chargers. So, when it's not fixed, it's not Shell Recharge at fault (unless they are contracted for the maintenance). Same with ChargePoint, and others.

We found a place in Iowa where we've stopped several times overnight. There is a free 50kW charger on the Shell Recharge network. The chargers are owned by MidAmerican Energy Company, whose slogan is "Obsessively, Relentlessly At Your Service". At least one of these chargers is always broken. I just looked, haven't been there since March, and yup - broken. It's free because the businesses in that area pay for it (or the town). I plug in, go to hotel a block away, and come back when it's done.

We hit a brand new Shell Recharge location. First week, a truck backed into one of the two chargers and broke it. They had no idea who to call to fix it. I finally get on the other one, and someone comes and starts charging too, sharing the load.

As ROUGH as a start the Electrify America had, I've been pleasantly surprised in the last year. At least the chargers I use they have upgraded the hardware and the vast majority of the plugs have worked. But, YES, Tesla is just flawless and worry-free.

 

[dwst480]

We often travel to the Des Moines, IA area. This is the capital of our great State. The population is 750k. You would think this area would have some decent chargers. Most of the “high speed” are Shell Recharge, operated by Mid-American Energy. The one near my daughter’s house has been down for months. I went to the next closest one. It was listed as 150 kW. One side was doing 25 and the other was giving 49. I searched in the Ford app and found one at a grocery store that was listed as 300 kW. When I arrived, one side was completely down and the other was only charging at 48 kW. I had time to kill so I drove to another site that was listed as 150 kW. Both sides seemed to be working. The first one I connected to wouldn’t read my Shell RFID card. The other one read the card but, again, would only output at 49 kW. There seems to be a thread here. I’m going to attempt to contact Shell and Mid-America but don’t hold out too much hope of resolving anything. I installed a 220v outlet in my daughter’s garage to use my mobile charger when we’re staying overnight. It may be time to install a mid level charger at her house.

I live in Ames and have used several Shell/MidAmerican chargers in the rural areas of Iowa, so I sympathize.

You've probably noticed them, but if you can get to an Electrify America charger, you'll probably have better luck. All the ones I've used in the DSM area have been good.

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