Ford's Connected Charge Station

[macchiaz-o]

I received notification this morning of a software update for the Ford Connected Charge Station, to software version 1.2.2.

When I checked the version on July 4, it was already at 1.2.2. Prior to that, I was at version 1.1.7. All along, the Firmware Version has been 1.058.

Just passing this info along... Check your version before following the power reset guidance from Ford, as that may not be necessary.

To check your software version, you must be within Bluetooth range of the FCCS and then you can check the About page in the FCS Setup app.

And no, I don't know what changed.

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[eastern refugee]

The Ford charge station is THE most expensive one on the market. I have ChargePoint for a lot less and when EV gets theirs in stock I will change to them.

 

[macchiaz-o]

The Ford charge station is THE most expensive one on the market. I have ChargePoint for a lot less and when EV gets theirs in stock I will change to them.

Why are you switching away from ChargePoint?

For me, FCCS was the least expensive option (my alternatives were ChargePoint Home Flex, Grizzl-E, Clipper Creek, and maybe JuiceBox). It all depends on the color of money (how we pay for things).

 

[eastern refugee]

Why are you switching away from ChargePoint?

For me, FCCS was the least expensive option (my alternatives were ChargePoint Home Flex, Grizzl-E, Clipper Creek, and maybe JuiceBox). It all depends on the color of money (how we pay for things).

I plug it in and it will not actually charge so I have to unplug and re plug it in. This happens 4 out of 5 times. Frustrating.

 

[macchiaz-o]

I plug it in and it will not actually charge so I have to unplug and re plug it in. This happens 4 out of 5 times. Frustrating.

It has a three year warranty though, right?

 

[eastern refugee]

It has a three year warranty though, right?

No idea. I am not a fan of ChargePoint on the road and my home one is fine except for having to plug and re plug

but it is way cheaper than ford one

 

[skiingj]

I got the update as well today but didn't check before. Good idea for next upgrade.

My utility gave me a $500 rebate towards the Ford...

 

[JRinOAK]

Hi everyone. This is my first post on the forum. We've ordered our Premium (6/13). Curious about FCCS vs ClipperCreek. If y'all can help me with some questions, I'd appreciate it.

Does wifi need to be available where the charging station is installed?

It looks like FCCS will sync with FordPass to show me how much electricity was used and times of charges - is that accurate? Does ClipperCreek allow this same functionality?

I ask that cause we're in a high rise condo building and the HOA reads the meters and sends residents their bills off the shared electric panel that charging stations get connected to. But neighbors have said they sometimes get the figures wrong. If FCCS displays this info, it will likely justify the couple hundred dollar difference.

Appreciate your thoughts and advice.

 

[macchiaz-o]

Hi everyone. This is my first post on the forum. We've ordered our Premium (6/13). Curious about FCCS vs ClipperCreek. If y'all can help me with some questions, I'd appreciate it.

Does wifi need to be available where the charging station is installed?

It looks like FCCS will sync with FordPass to show me how much electricity was used and times of charges - is that accurate? Does ClipperCreek allow this same functionality?

I ask that cause we're in a high rise condo building and the HOA reads the meters and sends residents their bills off the shared electric panel that charging stations get connected to. But neighbors have said they sometimes get the figures wrong. If FCCS displays this info, it will likely justify the couple hundred dollar difference.

Appreciate your thoughts and advice.

Congrats on your order!

Yes, WiFi needs to be available to the FCCS. While it is functional without it (you can charge your vehicle), you won't be able to see the charging/energy logs. You also need WiFi if you ever want to make adjustments to the maximum charging rate, or if you want to enable access controls to restrict who is allowed to use it.

ClipperCreek doesn't integrate with the FordPass app. Only the FCCS does at this time. I think ClipperCreek has at least one WiFi-connected EVSE that should give you the energy logging you're looking for, but I'm not familiar with it.

Feature for feature, Ford's charger is the less expensive option, too, unless you are eligible for a utility rebate that's tied to specific brands or models.

 

[JRinOAK]

Congrats on your order!

Yes, WiFi needs to be available to the FCCS. While it is functional without it (you can charge your vehicle), you won't be able to see the charging/energy logs. You also need WiFi if you ever want to make adjustments to the maximum charging rate, or if you want to enable access controls to restrict who is allowed to use it.

ClipperCreek doesn't integrate with the FordPass app. Only the FCCS does at this time. I think ClipperCreek has at least one WiFi-connected EVSE that should give you the energy logging you're looking for, but I'm not familiar with it.

Feature for feature, Ford's charger is the less expensive option, too, unless you are eligible for a utility rebate that's tied to specific brands or models.

Thanks, Jonathan. Appreciate this info.

 

[TheVirtualTim]

Hi everyone. This is my first post on the forum. We've ordered our Premium (6/13). Curious about FCCS vs ClipperCreek. If y'all can help me with some questions, I'd appreciate it.

Does wifi need to be available where the charging station is installed?

It looks like FCCS will sync with FordPass to show me how much electricity was used and times of charges - is that accurate? Does ClipperCreek allow this same functionality?

I ask that cause we're in a high rise condo building and the HOA reads the meters and sends residents their bills off the shared electric panel that charging stations get connected to. But neighbors have said they sometimes get the figures wrong. If FCCS displays this info, it will likely justify the couple hundred dollar difference.

Appreciate your thoughts and advice.

I own both the ChargePoint Home Flex and the Ford Connected Charge Station.

Both have Bluetooth and WiFi. Bluetooth is *only* used temporarily during the pairing process (so the 'setup' app on the phone can talk to the station as it would not yet have been linked to your home WiFi).

Once the station setup is complete it only uses WiFi.

The WiFi is *only* needed if you plan to remotely control the station. You can monitor charge logs to see how much charging has occurred. You can remotely enable/disable charging. You can also change the maximum power draw permitted

If you don't have WiFi the station will still work to charge the car ... you just wont be able to control any of those features.

I should mention that we have a WiFi access point on the side of the house that faces the detached garage ... so WiFi does work in our garage.

But if you have WiFi issues you might consider getting a WiFi "Mesh" router (a cluster of access points that you can put in various locations throughout your home to get better coverage). I just helped a friend do this at his house and he now tells me he has the best coverage he has ever had in all the years he has lived there.

 

[dbsb3233]

I own both the ChargePoint Home Flex and the Ford Connected Charge Station.

Both have Bluetooth and WiFi. Bluetooth is *only* used temporarily during the pairing process (so the 'setup' app on the phone can talk to the station as it would not yet have been linked to your home WiFi).

Once the station setup is complete it only uses WiFi.

The WiFi is *only* needed if you plan to remotely control the station. You can monitor charge logs to see how much charging has occurred. You can remotely enable/disable charging. You can also change the maximum power draw permitted

If you don't have WiFi the station will still work to charge the car ... you just wont be able to control any of those features.

I should mention that we have a WiFi access point on the side of the house that faces the detached garage ... so WiFi does work in our garage.

But if you have WiFi issues you might consider getting a WiFi "Mesh" router (a cluster of access points that you can put in various locations throughout your home to get better coverage). I just helped a friend do this at his house and he now tells me he has the best coverage he has ever had in all the years he has lived there.

So from the sounds of it, the charge logs keep recording whether there's wifi or not. You just need wifi active when you want to download the logs (probably monthly), right?

I assume another key part for the OP is whether the log data contains a vehicle ID of some sort within each charge record, so they can separate the billing out per resident. Is that part of the logs?

 

[RickMachE]

No idea. I am not a fan of ChargePoint on the road and my home one is fine except for having to plug and re plug

but it is way cheaper than ford one

You have no idea if a product you bought has a warranty, and it sounds like even if it did you wouldn't try to get it fixed/replaced under warranty? I guess I don't get that.

I bought the JuiceBox 48, which has a 3 year warranty. I used my Costco Visa, which adds 2 years, so I have the equivalent of a 5 year warranty.

JuiceBox models, or the ChargePoint Flex were the only ones my utility gives a $500 rebate on.

 

[cloud9]

I received notification this morning of a software update for the Ford Connected Charge Station, to software version 1.2.2.

When I checked the version on July 4, it was already at 1.2.2. Prior to that, I was at version 1.1.7. All along, the Firmware Version has been 1.058.

Just passing this info along... Check your version before following the power reset guidance from Ford, as that may not be necessary.

To check your software version, you must be within Bluetooth range of the FCCS and then you can check the About page in the FCS Setup app.

And no, I don't know what changed.

Thanks for posting. My FCCS is connected and I previously paired it and went through the setup on my phone. Now when I go in to check the version the app crashes. I have to re-pair each time I go in to the app. I do not have my vehicle yet, which shouldn't make a difference. I'm also not sure my wifi connection is as strong as it needs to be in the garage although I'm not sure why that would cause the app to crash on my phone. Any ideas?

 

[macchiaz-o]

Thanks for posting. My FCCS is comnected and I previously aired it amd went through the setup on my phone. Now when I go in to check the version the app crashes. I have to re-pair each time I go in to the app.

Thanks for posting. When I open the app and click on About, it crashes the app. Then when I go back into the app I have to re-pair it to the FCCS. And if I try it again it crashes and I go through the same loop having to re-pairr it again...... Any ideas? I do not have the vehicle yet. I also wonder whether my wifi is strong enough in the garage and if that is a possible cause?

That was happening to me a lot on my Android phone, but not always... I submitted a complaint about it via an app store review. An update was published to the store on 6/17... Sometime before or after that point, I noticed that mine hasn't been crashing when I try to view the About page anymore.

Keep trying... When this problem was happening to me, it would successfully show the About page maybe 1 out of 20 times. Between attempts, I had to toggle my phone's Bluetooth off and back on in order to get another pairing attempt to the station to work.

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