Let’s Discuss the Charge Port Door (and DC Charge Pin Cover Too!)

[Jimrpa]

Ford has been building autos since at least the early 20th century. Ford’s have had fuel filler flaps since the 1960s (to the best of my knowledge, perhaps earlier?)
The charge port cover shouldn’t be some incredibly complex technological marvel, yet somehow, Ford has made it so. This morning, I walked into my garage and found my charge port door was magically opened, as if by elves, in the middle of the night. So, I go to close it and, as usual, it requires just the correct closing pressure on the precise point in the middle edge of the flap to properly engage the locking pin. Sometimes, for reasons unknown to me, it takes 3-4 tries before it closes. Supposedly, all this complexity is required because the locking pin engages a switch to tell the car when the charge port door is open so it can turn on the charge port illumination, light up the ring of lights and do other things. You mean to tell me you couldn’t have accomplished the same thing, using the fuel filler flap design from the Escape and a micro switch behind the hinge or something? Really? Every other Ford I’ve owned (and I’ve owned a few ?) have had fuel filler flaps that just closed by pushing them shut. They were spring-loaded and closed onto bumpers. No fancy switches or latches to engage. Sigh.
Moving on to the stupid DC charge PIN connector: instead of a rare earth magnet, why not spring-load this flap? I use it infrequently and there have been a couple of occasions when I’ve forgotten to raise it before closing the charge port door. Now, if Ford REALLY wanted to keep their mechanical engineers busy designing something super complex, they could design it so that, when you lower it, it latches, and when the charge coupler is removed, the latch releases and it closes the DC pins cover. Or a complex mechanism connected internally to the hinges on the charge port door that would pivot the DC pins cover closed if it was opened.
I know - first world problems. I would point out that very small details like these distinguish a true “luxury” car from a “premium” car. (Look at some of the things Lexuses or higher end MBs/BMWs/Audis/Volvos/Jaguars/Lincolns do)

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[TRP]

I've, so far, not forgotten to flip up the DC flap but I have learned that if I put a finger on the door opposite of the plunger I have better success getting it to latch on at least the 2nd or 3rd attempt

It's only popped open on me once so far

 

[2FlyMache]

I've, so far, not forgotten to flip up the DC flap but I have learned that if I put a finger on the door opposite of the plunger I have better success getting it to latch on at least the 2nd or 3rd attempt

It's only popped open on me once so far

I've found the same, press right where the plunger is and hold it closed for a second and it stays latched

 

[macchiaz-o]

I would point out that very small details like these distinguish a true “luxury” car from a “premium” car. (Look at some of the things Lexuses or higher end MBs/BMWs/Audis/Volvos/Jaguars/Lincolns do)

I agree the charge port door is really annoying... But I disagree about luxury cars always being better. They are the same, worse, or better depending on where you look.

This looks like a better design but more complicated, from Audi:

This looks the same as ours, from Porsche Taycan:

This looks worse than ours, from Jaguar I-Pace:

 

[Jimrpa]

I agree the charge port door is really annoying... But I disagree about luxury cars always being better. They are the same, worse, or better depending on where you look.

This looks like a better design but more complicated, from Audi:

This looks the same as ours, from Porsche Taycan:

This looks worse than ours, from Jaguar I-Pace:

Cool! Thanks! I’d never seen any other vehicle’s charger port door implementation. I was speaking more generally about how “luxury” car makers go about implementing different things, versus “premium” car makers. For example, exposed power seat tracks and seat track bolt heads. You’ll commonly see seat tracks and bolt heads on mass market cars. “Premium” cars tend to put a plastic piece at the end of the track, which covers the bolt and the end of the track. Some high-end luxury cars I’ve seen put in trim so that the track is never visible - just a slot in the trim. Then there are the ways that little bits articulate when they slide (drawers, cup holder covers, etc). Very small details, but things that you notice when they add up.

 

[macchiaz-o]

Cool! Thanks! I’d never seen any other vehicle’s charger port door implementation. I was speaking more generally about how “luxury” car makers go about implementing different things, versus “premium” car makers. For example, exposed power seat tracks and seat track bolt heads. You’ll commonly see seat tracks and bolt heads on mass market cars. “Premium” cars tend to put a plastic piece at the end of the track, which covers the bolt and the end of the track. Some high-end luxury cars I’ve seen put in trim so that the track is never visible - just a slot in the trim. Then there are the ways that little bits articulate when they slide (drawers, cup holder covers, etc). Very small details, but things that you notice when they add up.

Yeah that's true. Sometimes they go a little bit too far with the covers, maybe? Like the new electric BMW (or was it Mercedes?) where the only thing accessible under the front hood is the washer fluid filler. Literally... The whole rest of the hood (and the hood itself) requires BMW special tooling to open.

 

[Jimrpa]

Yeah that's true. Sometimes they go a little bit too far with the covers, maybe? Like the new electric BMW (or was it Mercedes?) where the only thing accessible under the front hood is the washer fluid filler. Literally... The whole rest of the hood (and the hood itself) requires BMW special tooling to open.

Hmmm that also sounds like the Mustang Mach E. Don’t we have to disassemble the Front Trunk to get to the 12V battery terminals or the fuse box?

 

[macchiaz-o]

Hmmm that also sounds like the Mustang Mach E. Don’t we have to disassemble the Front Trunk to get to the 12V battery terminals or the fuse box?

Yes, but we don't require special tools. We can use fingers and screwdrivers etc.

 

[BMT1071]

Cool! Thanks! I’d never seen any other vehicle’s charger port door implementation. I was speaking more generally about how “luxury” car makers go about implementing different things, versus “premium” car makers. For example, exposed power seat tracks and seat track bolt heads. You’ll commonly see seat tracks and bolt heads on mass market cars. “Premium” cars tend to put a plastic piece at the end of the track, which covers the bolt and the end of the track. Some high-end luxury cars I’ve seen put in trim so that the track is never visible - just a slot in the trim. Then there are the ways that little bits articulate when they slide (drawers, cup holder covers, etc). Very small details, but things that you notice when they add up.

You might also notice that the cost adds up along with those very small details.

 

[mpshizzle]

I actually love the design of the DC port cover. Aside from being very tactically satisfying, I think it's a usability thing. DC fast charge cables are just so thick and unwieldy that it's often a 2 handed affair. If it was spring loaded, that would make plugging in REALLY difficult since you'd have to hold it open with one hand while wrangling the cord with the other.

 

[RedStallion]

Today I found a charge port door open when my car was parked for an hour on the street. It never happened before. It's possible somebody was curios and opened it, it's possible it opened itself.
And just like others reported the door doesn't usually open/close at first attempt. That's just a bad design in my view.
In fact many things on the front of the car designed poorly. The camera sprinkler cover is terrible and fell off once, the emergency 12V cover is flimsy, the hood doesn't close easily. Did Ford outsource the design of those items to some Chinese company?

 

[Jimrpa]

I actually love the design of the DC port cover. Aside from being very tactically satisfying, I think it's a usability thing. DC fast charge cables are just so thick and unwieldy that it's often a 2 handed affair. If it was spring loaded, that would make plugging in REALLY difficult since you'd have to hold it open with one hand while wrangling the cord with the other.

That’s why I said spring loaded with latching. It would come down and latch, then when the charge coupler is removed, it would snap closed ?

 

[Jimrpa]

Today I found a charge port door open when my car was parked for an hour on the street. It never happened before. It's possible somebody was curios and opened it, it's possible it opened itself.
And just like others reported the door doesn't usually open/close at first attempt. That's just a bad design in my view.
In fact many things on the front of the car designed poorly. The camera sprinkler cover is terrible and fell off once, the emergency 12V cover is flimsy, the hood doesn't close easily. Did Ford outsource the design of those items to some Chinese company?

I haven’t had the front camera wash cover issue others have reported. I haven’t had to access the emergency 12V leads so I can’t comment on the cover for them. Agree on the hood, but I think that traditional hoods have also always had to be closed “firmly”. I recall that with my escape.

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