Ford "Trip-Planner" and EV Charging Station Search feature is unreliable.

[RLaTerra]

Had to pick up a relative in Upstate NY and bring her to NYC. I knew i would need to recharge in the city, but saw a map full of charging stations, so i took the chance

Three Chargers I was directed to in NYC, from the Ford app, led me to non-existent Chargers! All were listed as "Public", two were listed as "In Network" and only one actually had chargers...inside a parking lot that was a minimal $8 / hour to use... and it was a slow charger that DID NOT WORK at that! Still had to pay $8 to get out of the lot. Another was inside a Mercedes Benz dealership, listed as Public with a price per Kw hr and everything! Did not exist!

After a seemingly futile Search, I had no choice but to park in another NYC parking lot to charge for two hours @ $11.00 / hr!

So, I'm $30 out of pocket for parking so I can get an emergency charge to get back to Jersey.

There has to be a better way to map out and preplan a trip with an EV, but I have not found that way yet... and Fords "Trip Planner" is not the answer.

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[hybrid2bev]

There has to be a better way to map out and preplan a trip with an EV, but I have not found that way yet... and Fords "Trip Planner" is not the answer.

Here you go:
A Better Route Planner
PlugShare

 

[RickMachE]

Discussed often here, and on Facebook. Pre-plan your trip, using tools like those just mentioned. Lookup locations on PlugShare BEFORE, and DURING your trip.

Also, learn how to restrict the in-car navigation to only showing you high speed chargers.

 

[Logal727]

I just think the information it receives from big cities like NYC is totally unreliable, it uses PlugShare data and it’s crowdsourced, I’m sure there’s another source too but it’s not like Ford is vetting every single charger

 

[AEGinMD]

Discussed often here, and on Facebook. Pre-plan your trip, using tools like those just mentioned. Lookup locations on PlugShare BEFORE, and DURING your trip.

Also, learn how to restrict the in-car navigation to only showing you high speed chargers.

Those are great tips & mostly work, but OP is onto something real. My recent trip from DC to far upstate NY (Lake Champlain above Plattsburgh) & back was my first extended MME adventure. Planned & mapped extensively on each leg. Scarcity of fast chargers was expected -- what was not expected was how bad several apps are (including Ford navigation) at pinpointing precise locations of chargers. Worst example was on the southbound NYS Thruway below Albany where multiple apps stated there were fast chargers in the Mobil Station in a rest stop (no need to exit & pay toll) but it turned out (after 2 passes requiring me to exit, U-turn & reenter) the chargers were actually only on the northbound side in the corresponding rest stop that was closed for construction. On my second pass I turned to scan the closed station as I sailed by & saw 4 beautiful empty charging stations... I finally opted to leave the thruway & navigate local streets to a Walmart/EVGo - then get back on course. Lost an hour in the search-- fortunately I started the search with plenty of charge & there were off-highway options. All I can say is Drivers Beware & plan carefully.

BTW my 2022 MME Premium performed beautifully over the 10-day/ 1K mile trip!

 

[RickMachE]

Those are great tips & mostly work, but OP is onto something real. My recent trip from DC to far upstate NY (Lake Champlain above Plattsburgh) & back was my first extended MME adventure. Planned & mapped extensively on each leg. Scarcity of fast chargers was expected -- what was not expected was how bad several apps are (including Ford navigation) at pinpointing precise locations of chargers. Worst example was on the southbound NYS Thruway below Albany where multiple apps stated there were fast chargers in the Mobil Station in a rest stop (no need to exit & pay toll) but it turned out (after 2 passes requiring me to exit, U-turn & reenter) the chargers were actually only on the northbound side in the corresponding rest stop that was closed for construction. On my second pass I turned to scan the closed station as I sailed by & saw 4 beautiful empty charging stations... I finally opted to leave the thruway & navigate local streets to a Walmart/EVGo - then get back on course. Lost an hour in the search-- fortunately I started the search with plenty of charge & there were off-highway options. All I can say is Drivers Beware & plan carefully.

BTW my 2022 MME Premium performed beautifully over the 10-day/ 1K mile trip!

Good point.

Did you know you can go into PlugShare and change the listing to show that those chargers are unaccessible?

 

[AEGinMD]

Good point.

Did you know you can go into PlugShare and change the listing to show that those chargers are unaccessible?

No-- as it happens I didn't discover PlugShare until reading related posts here after the trip!

 

[RickMachE]

No-- as it happens I didn't discover PlugShare until reading related posts here after the trip!

Just yesterday I read about a station that was ripped out somewhere "and PlugShare doesn't say it is". I went in, and edited PlugShare. Took me about 20 seconds.

 

[dmastro]

Just yesterday I read about a station that was ripped out somewhere "and PlugShare doesn't say it is". I went in, and edited PlugShare. Took me about 20 seconds.

This is the problem with PlugShare. It’s crowdsourced and in my experience lacking in enough / current information to be relied upon. It left me high and dry a few times.

Until chargers are networked and operational status / availability are available real-time, it’s still a crapshoot.

 

[RickMachE]

This is the problem with PlugShare. It’s crowdsourced and in my experience lacking in enough / current information to be relied upon. It left me high and dry a few times.

Until chargers are networked and operational status / availability are available real-time, it’s still a crapshoot.

The problem with crowdsourced apps, is well, people. People bitch and moan, but ask them to actually do something to fix the problem, and they get all quiet.

Michigan is renowned for potholes. There's an app where you can report potholes. Surprise, they fix them when you report them (whodahthunk?). Bonus - if you report a pothole, it's documented. If a fellow citizen gets a blowout or other damage to their car from that pothole, they stand a higher chance of recovery.

From Jan 2018 to May 2023, Michigan paid out 118 claims for pothole damage, totaling $60k, out of an estimated $4.3 billion in annual damages. Guess who got paid for a blowout, largely due to potholes getting documented by people?

[gets on soapbox] People need to STFU and actually do something when they can, and they can with PlugShare. There is no excuse for not reporting your session, successful or not successful, in the app. If you don't, then you lose the right to complain. [/removes soapbox]

Gas pumps aren't networked, and you can't find operational status, or prices, except on a crowdsourced app like Gasbuddy. How many people use it? Not enough.

 

[dmastro]

The problem with crowdsourced apps, is well, people. People bitch and moan, but ask them to actually do something to fix the problem, and they get all quiet.

Michigan is renowned for potholes. There's an app where you can report potholes. Surprise, they fix them when you report them (whodahthunk?). Bonus - if you report a pothole, it's documented. If a fellow citizen gets a blowout or other damage to their car from that pothole, they stand a higher chance of recovery.

From Jan 2018 to May 2023, Michigan paid out 118 claims for pothole damage, totaling $60k, out of an estimated $4.3 billion in annual damages. Guess who got paid for a blowout, largely due to potholes getting documented by people?

[gets on soapbox] People need to STFU and actually do something when they can, and they can with PlugShare. There is no excuse for not reporting your session, successful or not successful, in the app. If you don't, then you lose the right to complain. [/removes soapbox]

Gas pumps aren't networked, and you can't find operational status, or prices, except on a crowdsourced app like Gasbuddy. How many people use it? Not enough.

gas stations are ubiquitous, reliable, and take far less time to fill up at, so a similar resource isn’t necessary.

We agree that people are the issue with PlugShare and other crowdsourced apps. Until DCFC are networked and status is available real-time, using those is a guess, even if a better guess than without them.

 

[Ghost Ryder]

I feel sorry for you peasants. I just have my advance team of govt workers go out in their ICE cars and “reserve” a spot at the local charging stations. Never have to wait for a spot. And all chargers that I pull up to seems to work just fine.

-Energy ecretary.

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