Red light on ford connected charger

Jimrpa

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Except Ford didn't make this charger. A 3rd party company did. Ford just put it's logo on it. Also, if you ever charge outside of home, you're using 3rd party charger. Ford should have done what most other manufacturers do and simply provide a convenience cord, as they already do and a recommendation for a wall charger. Instead they created this headache for themselves that they did not need.
I understand the concept of third party OEMs. I know Apple doesn’t make my MacBook Pro. I don’t care. I’m not going to find the foxcom factory in China to complain to, I’m going to the Genius Bar at the Apple Store ? BTW, Ford needs genius bars ?
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Jimrpa

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I guess that's my problem. Thinking like a normal person has never been my strong suit.

For what it's worth, the Pulsar Plus is currently $50 off and in stock at Amazon.

Amazon.com: Pulsar Plus Level 2 Electric Vehicle Smart Charger - 40 Amp NEMA Ultra Compact, WiFi, Bluetooth, Alexa and Google Home - 25 Foot Cable - UL Certified - Indoor/Outdoor - by Wallbox: Automotive
Not to go off-topic too much. I used to be a die-hard Windows person and thought Apple people were “strange” and Macs were stupid. Then, one night, after struggling with a Windows 98 update, I finally got really angry with coming home all the time and spending all my time being a Windows System Administrator (patches, virus updates and scans, disc defrag, the works). I marched into the apple store, bought my first PowerBook Pro (an 12” G3) and have never looked back. Yes, I COULD do all the research and futz around and find out who makes all the different compatible bits and pieces, etc. I DON’T WANT TO! I knew all along, buying the Mustang Mach E was buying V1.0 with lots of stuff that was, in reality, still beta, and I’m fine with that. So far, while I’ve had some issues with the FCCS, it seems to be working ok, other than the apparently super slow charge speed I documented. I’ll try changing the DIP switch as recommended and more carefully record my subsequent charging sessions to see if I continue to have super slow charging. If I do, I’ll call Ford and go through that channel. My backup plan is to return it to Ford and get a ChargePoint+ that seems reasonably priced and most people like it.
 

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understand the concept of third party OEMs. I know Apple doesn’t make my MacBook Pro. I don’t care. I’m not going to find the foxcom factory in China to complain to, I’m going to the Genius Bar at the Apple Store ?
Except that one of Apple's core businesses is selling Macs. And Apple has a big part in designing them. EVSE's are way outside of Ford's core competencies.
BTW, Ford needs genius bars ?
Hmmm. Genius mechanics? Reminds me of a very old joke:
What does IBM FE do when he has a flat tire? He replaces tires one at a time until the problem is fixed.
What does Xerox FE do when he runs out of gas? He replaces tires one at a time until the problem is fixed.
 

Jimrpa

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Except that one of Apple's core businesses is selling Macs. And Apple has a big part in designing them. EVSE's are way outside of Ford's core competencies.
I agree that EVSEs are outside Ford’s core competencies. Not my problem though. They chose to work with some other company to manufacture something, then slapped their name on it. I’m not going to waste my time chasing down Joe’s EVSE’s and Fish Tanks of my Ford Branded EVSE has a problem. I’m going to Ford ? THEY can deal with THEIR supplier as needed.
Hmmm. Genius mechanics? Reminds me of a very old joke:
What does IBM FE do when he has a flat tire? He replaces tires one at a time until the problem is fixed.
What does Xerox FE do when he runs out of gas? He replaces tires one at a time until the problem is fixed.
Funny joke, but I was actually sort of serious. Our cars really are more like computers and the type of problems we are having are more akin to the types of problems that are encountered at the Genius Bar. Instead of “there’s a strange burning smell” or “the steering wobbles at 50 MPH when I turn left”, the problems are now “PaaK isn’t working”, “All my favorite destinations have disappeared.”, “The screen is blank.” So yeah, some kind of a Genius Bar, or remote Genius Bar, along with the ability to remote into the car and the user device, makes sense.
 

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I agree that EVSEs are outside Ford’s core competencies. Not my problem though. They chose to work with some other company to manufacture something, then slapped their name on it. I’m not going to waste my time chasing down Joe’s EVSE’s and Fish Tanks of my Ford Branded EVSE has a problem. I’m going to Ford ? THEY can deal with THEIR supplier as needed.
Which is why I said that Ford created for them selves a headache they didn't need.
Our cars really are more like computers and the type of problems we are having are more akin to the types of problems that are encountered at the Genius Bar. Instead of “there’s a strange burning smell” or “the steering wobbles at 50 MPH when I turn left”, the problems are now “PaaK isn’t working”, “All my favorite destinations have disappeared.”, “The screen is blank.” So yeah, some kind of a Genius Bar, or remote Genius Bar, along with the ability to remote into the car and the user device, makes sense.
Yes computers on wheels, and all. But more complex than your iphone and must operate in a wider range situations. I don't think any car maker yet at point where they can diagnose their cars remotely or standing behind a counter. Maybe in the future, but not now.
 


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Funny joke, but I was actually sort of serious. Our cars really are more like computers and the type of problems we are having are more akin to the types of problems that are encountered at the Genius Bar. Instead of “there’s a strange burning smell” or “the steering wobbles at 50 MPH when I turn left”, the problems are now “PaaK isn’t working”, “All my favorite destinations have disappeared.”, “The screen is blank.” So yeah, some kind of a Genius Bar, or remote Genius Bar, along with the ability to remote into the car and the user device, makes sense.
Ford absolutely missed how much software support they would need on this car. The model of putting it on dealerships isn't going to work; there is too little margin for them and it is a completely different skill set. There absolutely should have been an effort by Ford to get a dedicated support line fully staffed with people properly trained on the car before it started shipping. Or at least realized it and done it by now.
 

Jimrpa

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Which is why I said that Ford created for them selves a headache they didn't need.
As a customer, not my problem. There are other Ford branded products that Ford sells that aren’t made by Ford. Those rubber floor mats? Made by a 3rd party? The battery in our Mustang Mach E? Not made by Ford. End of the day, I bought a Ford product and will be going to them for service and support. They could choose to say “screw it, we’re getting out of that business, here’s your money back and a $100 gift card for Ford accessories” as goodwill. Maybe even recommend a 3rd party chargers as “works with” like Apple does with some third party products.

Yes computers on wheels, and all. But more complex than your iphone and must operate in a wider range situations. I don't think any car maker yet at point where they can diagnose their cars remotely or standing behind a counter. Maybe in the future, but not now.
Yet. But that is the direction they’d better be working toward because I guarantee you that is what customers are going to expect in a more and more connected world. Why do you think premium brands are going to the “we will pick up your car when it needs service” model? Nobody wants to go to a dealer and sit around while bob plugs his console into the OBD II port, reads some codes, then downloads new firmware (and I mean that in the generic sense, not the specific Ford definition.)
 

Jimrpa

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Ford absolutely missed how much software support they would need on this car. The model of putting it on dealerships isn't going to work; there is too little margin for them and it is a completely different skill set. There absolutely should have been an effort by Ford to get a dedicated support line fully staffed with people properly trained on the car before it started shipping. Or at least realized it and done it by now.
I don’t think they “missed it”. I think it’s just something they have to build. After all, Apple’s support model wasn’t built overnight. Let’s be honest, in many ways, this car is still sort of very late Beta for Ford. V0.95 if you will. I think of it as the “early preview” channel from Microsoft. They’re still getting some of the final bugs out, but it’s feature complete and works well.
 

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As a customer, not my problem. There are other Ford branded products that Ford sells that aren’t made by Ford. Those rubber floor mats? Made by a 3rd party? The battery in our Mustang Mach E? Not made by Ford. End of the day, I bought a Ford product and will be going to them for service and support. They could choose to say “screw it, we’re getting out of that business, here’s your money back and a $100 gift card for Ford accessories” as goodwill. Maybe even recommend a 3rd party chargers as “works with” like Apple does with some third party products.
My point is that Ford should never gotten into EVSE business in the first place. There was never an upside in it for them. They should have just started with recommending a handful of "works with" products.
 

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I don’t think they “missed it”. I think it’s just something they have to build. After all, Apple’s support model wasn’t built overnight. Let’s be honest, in many ways, this car is still sort of very late Beta for Ford. V0.95 if you will. I think of it as the “early preview” channel from Microsoft. They’re still getting some of the final bugs out, but it’s feature complete and works well.
I've worked for small, medium and large software companies. One of those is a very large cable/entertainment company notorious for its awful customer service - if they didn't have a captive audience they would have gone out of business long ago, and based on how the market is going they very well may be much smaller very soon.

The small and medium sized companies survived and thrived by stellar customer support. The medium sized company knew it had to be better than its much bigger competition, and when we rolled out our products worldwide we had the support infrastructure in place before one sale was made. We were competing with behemoths with many diverse products, but in our market space we competed very well. Unfortunately management had no idea how to transition as the market/technology completely changed.
 

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Don't return the Ford charger. According to my contacts at Ford, the fix for it is very close to being released. You'll be able to get your working again much faster than you'll be able to replace it.
 

Jimrpa

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I've worked for small, medium and large software companies. One of those is a very large cable/entertainment company notorious for its awful customer service - if they didn't have a captive audience they would have gone out of business long ago, and based on how the market is going they very well may be much smaller very soon.

The small and medium sized companies survived and thrived by stellar customer support. The medium sized company knew it had to be better than its much bigger competition, and when we rolled out our products worldwide we had the support infrastructure in place before one sale was made. We were competing with behemoths with many diverse products, but in our market space we competed very well. Unfortunately management had no idea how to transition as the market/technology completely changed.
*cough*comcastic*cough* ??
I love their Florida theme park though. Almost as much as I love their (rat-infested) competition just a bit to the south ?
 

Jimrpa

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Don't return the Ford charger. According to my contacts at Ford, the fix for it is very close to being released. You'll be able to get your working again much faster than you'll be able to replace it.
I have no intention of returning it unless I’m told to do so. My only hope is that the people deploying the fix for it (and I’m assuming it’s some kind of OTA software fix) are going to be faster than the people rolling out the Mustang Mach E OTA upgrade ?
 

Jimrpa

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My point is that Ford should never gotten into EVSE business in the first place. There was never an upside in it for them. They should have just started with recommending a handful of "works with" products.
You mean the charger, not after vehicle sale support, right?
 
 




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