free charging at Ford dealerships US nationwide?

[dbsb3233]

Electricity is expensive in the Northeast. In Massachusetts, something like 60% of the supply has to be sourced from wind or solar. $0.25 or more per kWh to charge at home is pretty common here, and my provider has no off-peak pricing options.

Plus when it's DCFC, the electricity is one of the smaller costs. Most of the cost of DCFC is all the rest: equipment, maintenance, administration, networking, payment processing, site rental, etc.

It's like the difference between buying a Starbucks vs making a pot of coffee at home.

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[RandyMache]

In my experience, the number of Ford dealerships that currently offer fast charging is tiny. And even when more do, it’s unlikely that it will be free. If they treat them like they currently treat Level 2 chargers, they’ll also likely be blocked by dealer cars most of the time.

Honestly, if you don’t have home charging, I don’t think you should be considering an EV. It’s just not practical, IMO.

I live in an apartment and I only fast charge in public. Been 6 months and 11,000 miles. It's been great. I own my own company and drive a fair amount. It's all worked well for me. Would I like to plug in at home? sure that would be a little more convenient.

 

[generaltso]

I live in an apartment and I only fast charge in public. Been 6 months and 11,000 miles. It's been great. I own my own company and drive a fair amount. It's all worked well for me. Would I like to plug in at home? sure that would be a little more convenient.

Does that end up being any cheaper than gas?

 

[RandyMache]

Does that end up being any cheaper than gas?

yes, by about half. With memberships in EA and others, I pay about .36 a kw. If I'm at zero %, the max I will pay is about $32.76 to 100%. Here in California where gas is high. When I road trip to Montana where my kids live, I plug in at their house where electricity is about .10 kw.

But to be honest, I didn't get the MME primarily for the gas savings and definitely not for saving the environment. I love how it drives, it's so smooth.

 

[SolarAB]

(first post)
a. do Ford dealers nationwide offer free fast charging?

Not in my city. Charging is either indoors or turned off. You can plead with the dealer for a charge if they happen to be open, but if they need the charger for their own purposes you'll be out of luck.

 

[Mach1E]

I live in an apartment and I only fast charge in public. Been 6 months and 11,000 miles. It's been great. I own my own company and drive a fair amount. It's all worked well for me. Would I like to plug in at home? sure that would be a little more convenient.

Definitely a unique situation.

“I own my own company.”

I doubt another employer would put up with all the extra drive time for the charging.

And the extremely high gas prices in California are the only reason you save money.

“It’s been great?” I could understand someone saying they made it work, or it’s “not that bad.” But honestly shocked by the “great” description. I would expect it to be very inconvenient to DC charge 100% of the time. But obviously people make it work.

 

[RandyMache]

Definitely a unique situation.

“I own my own company.”

I doubt another employer would put up with all the extra drive time for the charging.

And the extremely high gas prices in California are the only reason you save money.

“It’s been great?” I could understand someone saying they made it work, or it’s “not that bad.” But honestly shocked by the “great” description. I would expect it to be very inconvenient to DC charge 100% of the time. But obviously people make it work.

There are a lot of things your not considering which makes it "great" for some users. For starters, at gas prices across the country, I'll never pay more then a ICE vehicle. 2nd, sure having your own company gives you the flexibility of taking more time. But most people don't use their EV for work, only going to and from work. [yes there are exceptions]. In my business, I need to pull over frequently for phone calls, meetings, etc..... 30-40 minutes to charge, I can get a lot done. Yes, it's been pretty great for me. Unique? There are more than 20 EV's in my apartment complex so far. Management is in the process of building L2 charging stations. I am excited about that.

 

[dbsb3233]

Definitely a unique situation.

“I own my own company.”

I doubt another employer would put up with all the extra drive time for the charging.

And the extremely high gas prices in California are the only reason you save money.

“It’s been great?” I could understand someone saying they made it work, or it’s “not that bad.” But honestly shocked by the “great” description. I would expect it to be very inconvenient to DC charge 100% of the time. But obviously people make it work.

I'm sure there's exceptions, but I sure wouldn't wanna see it become the norm. Or even close to the norm. From inconvenience, to price, to frustration as it fills up.

I'm sure there are some people that live or work right next to a DCFC station where it's easier. Heck, some even live/work next to a free DCFC. But those are huge exceptions.

The other downside is the impact on other DCFC users. Doesn't take many apartment dwellers without L2 to start overloading DCFC capacity. Rideshare drivers too. Shifts it from a "5-10 DCFCs per year" for a typical infrequent road tripper to "50-200 DCFCs per year" with no L2 where they sleep. Huge volume difference and impact.

But that's mostly an urban problem. Fortunately that isn't likely to overload rural DCFC much, which road-trippers rely on most.

 

[MrPeanut]

In my experience, the number of Ford dealerships that currently offer fast charging is tiny. And even when more do, it’s unlikely that it will be free. If they treat them like they currently treat Level 2 chargers, they’ll also likely be blocked by dealer cars most of the time.

Honestly, if you don’t have home charging, I don’t think you should be considering an EV. It’s just not practical, IMO.

Yep. I've been on several dealer lots and they always have their vehicles blocking the only charger on the premises.

 

[RandyMache]

I'm sure there's exceptions, but I sure wouldn't wanna see it become the norm. Or even close to the norm. From inconvenience, to price, to frustration as it fills up.

I'm sure there are some people that live or work right next to a DCFC station where it's easier. Heck, some even live/work next to a free DCFC. But those are huge exceptions.

The other downside is the impact on other DCFC users. Doesn't take many apartment dwellers without L2 to start overloading DCFC capacity. Rideshare drivers too. Shifts it from a "5-10 DCFCs per year" for a typical infrequent road tripper to "50-200 DCFCs per year" with no L2 where they sleep. Huge volume difference and impact.

But that's mostly an urban problem. Fortunately that isn't likely to overload rural DCFC much, which road-trippers rely on most.

Let's definitely agree that more DCFC are needed [with infrastructure upgrades as well]. But the bottom line is, Pickup trucks work for some, don't work for others. Sports cars work for some but most they don't. Nothing works for everyone. For me, even though I would like to charge at home [maybe soon], only using DCFC is still pretty decent for me. Thanks for the comments back and forth. I wish you well.

 

[Mach1E]

There are a lot of things your not considering which makes it "great" for some users. For starters, at gas prices across the country, I'll never pay more then a ICE vehicle. 2nd, sure having your own company gives you the flexibility of taking more time. But most people don't use their EV for work, only going to and from work. [yes there are exceptions]. In my business, I need to pull over frequently for phone calls, meetings, etc..... 30-40 minutes to charge, I can get a lot done. Yes, it's been pretty great for me. Unique? There are more than 20 EV's in my apartment complex so far. Management is in the process of building L2 charging stations. I am excited about that.

That’s doable, but definitely not “great.”

In this situation I define “great” as spending 20 seconds plugging my car in at home every few days so it charges while I sleep at 1/3 of the price you are paying.

Paying 3x more and spending hours per week waiting around for it to charge sounds “horrible” in comparison.

 

[valfam]

When I drive down to Miami to visit family I usually charge at my families house but when I'm out and about I found a few places that offer free level 2 32 to 40 amp charging once place has a 2 hour limit.

 

[RandyMache]

That’s doable, but definitely not “great.”

In this situation I define “great” as spending 20 seconds plugging my car in at home every few days so it charges while I sleep at 1/3 of the price you are paying.

Paying 3x more and spending hours per week waiting around for it to charge sounds “horrible” in comparison.

I live with my definition of great. You do you and I'll do me.... haha

 

[apwelsh]

(first post)
Mach-E Long Range (~310 miles) recent discounts caught my attention;
it would be my first EV;
living in high rise with no personal parking spaces outlet;
wanting to control overhead during regular work-related road trips;
I read that Ford dealers offer free charging, that some day they may require pay;
but I haven't been able to find definitively...
a. do Ford dealers nationwide offer free fast charging?
b. if not all what percentage? is there map of these specific dealers?
c. can one mostly charge free nationwide during road trips?
d. is it known when they will require pay? all dealers at same time?

any related comments-advice appreciated;
it is free charging that makes Mach-E priority;
previously I'd shopped low mileage 2016 Tesla S-X free lifetime supercharging....
if this topic has been covered, links appreciated;
thanks in advance

My dealership offers free charging, but it’s very slow. It’s like 20amp level 2, if that. When I bought my car, it had 45% charge. When I left several hours later, it didn’t have much more. Now, DC fast chargers from Tesla is available now and electrify America has excellent DC fast chargers. You might find if you drive it often that you need to charge every 2-3 days. So consider that.

 

[apwelsh]

(first post)
Mach-E Long Range (~310 miles) recent discounts caught my attention;
it would be my first EV;
living in high rise with no personal parking spaces outlet;
wanting to control overhead during regular work-related road trips;
I read that Ford dealers offer free charging, that some day they may require pay;
but I haven't been able to find definitively...
a. do Ford dealers nationwide offer free fast charging?
b. if not all what percentage? is there map of these specific dealers?
c. can one mostly charge free nationwide during road trips?
d. is it known when they will require pay? all dealers at same time?

any related comments-advice appreciated;
it is free charging that makes Mach-E priority;
previously I'd shopped low mileage 2016 Tesla S-X free lifetime supercharging....
if this topic has been covered, links appreciated;
thanks in advance

Look near you residence and work to see what chartering options are available. You can fast charge on a 200kw or more DC fast charger, and can charge from 10% to 80% in about 30 minutes, but it’s a sliding scale. The closer you get to 80% the lower the charge rate. I think when at 80% it won’t charge more than 60kw per hour. I forget the exact charge rate, but you can rely solely on dc fast charging if need be. Expect your actual range to be about half what is advertised, and that you will have to charge for 30 minutes every 1.5 hour of driving on trips. Every trip will vary, and the use of climate control affects range considerably.

I would recommend an EV that can get 350-400 miles per charge in your situation and be prepared to spend an hour charging at DC fast charging stations

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