The IDEAL Electric Vehicle World

[FLmac]

If it's fully charged to your set level, i.e. 90%, then keeping it plugged in allows it to use house current to prep for departure, do a remote start, or keep the battery warm on a very cold night (or cool on a very hot day). There is zero reason to not do this.

Further, do you never go out without planning on it? "Hey, let's go to dinner. Sorry, can't, I didn't charge the car because I read something on the internet."

I charge at work and have only charged once at home. I charge to 90% and plug in on most days I’m at work. I don’t charge at all on the 2 days (some weeks) that I’m off work. I don’t know if this is bad, but can’t find anywhere that it says it’s bad. I also don’t have to deal with the cold since II’m in FL.

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[FLmac]

Absolutely. My partner and I have had the same conversation as we've scoped out the charging stations along our common long routes.

There are several that aren't at all acceptable to her.

I’ve stopped at about 10 different DCFC chargers and 2 have felt a little shady. Both were at night and on the less used side of the Walmart. I’m more aware now than with my previous car because I think the car attracts attention already.

 

[BadgerGreg]

For me, I have no desire to charge at a rest area, where there are essentially just some vending machines and dirty restrooms.

Rest areas on toll roads (Ohio Turnpike and Illinois Tollway) are great, with clean bathrooms and multiple food options. I love charging at the EA stations on the Ohio Turnpike. Illinois needs to get its act together; the single EVGo chargers at their tollway oases do not cut it.

 

[RickMachE]

I charge at work and have only charged once at home. I charge to 90% and plug in on most days I’m at work. I don’t charge at all on the 2 days (some weeks) that I’m off work. I don’t know if this is bad, but can’t find anywhere that it says it’s bad. I also don’t have to deal with the cold since II’m in FL.

It's fine. You're also not sitting with it at 20% so you can't do something on the spur of the moment.

 

[agdad]

With the new Ford E Division they may be trying to avoid dealerships, but.. I would not be surprised if Automakers do not start investing in charging stations at dealerships. Basic infrastructure is there and they tend to be near major highways...

But......the chargers are always located inside the gated and locked lot at night.
Id like for the to be installed outside the gate where they'd be available 24/7

 

[FLmac]

It's fine. You're also not sitting with it at 20% so you can't do something on the spur of the moment.

True. I rarely get below 30%. Anything I wanted to go run out to do I could. The one time I charged at home was after a long trip and I didn‘t want to worry about range just in case. Also the reason I installed a plug to charge at home.

 

[Murse-In-Airy]

I could see Cracker Barrel’s adding a basic 50 amp which could be used for RVs and EVs. It could be set up as a pay at the charger and per minute. Multi functional.

With a discounted rate for a validated receipt from the restaurant.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

I'm currently on a 1000 mile round trip road trip. The paucity of charging didn't bother me until this afternoon when we ran into 40 mph+ headwinds and our efficiency dropped from >3.3 mi/kWh to 1.5 mi/kWh. We're not in trouble, but we did have to reduce speed to below freeway speeds to accommodate the headwinds. If there was just one more fast charger on this route, we would be so much better off.

 

[Murse-In-Airy]

Thanks, but no.

You and I are a lot alike. And a lot different. I like that in a person. Cheers ?

 

[WheresMyCar]

Some are by the kWh, some by the minute.

Is it easy to tell which type before you get there? By the minute sounds like a penalty for the slower charging of the Mach-E relative to other new EVs.

 

[RickMachE]

Is it easy to tell which type before you get there? By the minute sounds like a penalty for the slower charging of the Mach-E relative to other new EVs.

Yes.
No.


Yes - You should spend some time reading the many threads about trip planning, using apps like ABRP (A Better Route Planner), and especially PlugShare. PlugShare is like Yelp, or TripAdvisor, where people report on the success or failure of their charging efforts, and rates are usually shown. You can of course look up any charger on their network's site, whether it be Electrify America, ChargePoint, or something else.

No - Electrify America is the main network that supplies high speed charging. They charge by the kWh in states that allow them, and by the minute in states that don't. That's easily found on their website, and in a thread I posted. However, charging by the minute is actually about 1/2 the cost of charging by the kWh. The reality is that you don't get anywhere near the speed when you charge that you might think you're getting. Pull up at a 150kW charger, and in ideal conditions the majority of your charge will be in the 80/90kW range. In my experience, you get about 1.75 kWh per minute, so if you need say 50kW that's roughly 30 minutes. Pay by the kWh, with EA's discounted Pass+ kW rate, and that's $15.50. Pay by the minute at the Pass+ per minute rate, and that's $7.20. Roughly 1/2 the cost.
Some chargers are much slower, and charge by the minute, and that's expensive for any car.

 

[dml105]

@Red Baron had a great idea on another thread: make the charging stations have many cables for many stalls (like 4) in places where many people may want to charge for a long time. The charger itself can be intelligent, and calculate how much charge to give to each car and when to get it to a goal SOC by a certain time.

Deployed at an office building, where EVs tend to stay for 8 hours, this would solve the problem of whether to require parkers to come down and move their cars when they reach a target charge. The charger itself can decide to start charging car B when it finishes charging car A, particularly if it knows car B is staying longer.

 

[Mach-E GT PE Jim]

Are you saying you are charged by the minute and not amount of power? Or are you saying you have to pay something if your car is just hooked up but not charging?

I am saying you pay by the minute after you are done charging.
welcome to Electrify America!

 

[timbop]

I am saying you pay by the minute after you are done charging.
welcome to Electrify America!

after a 10 minute grace period

 

[Mach-E GT PE Jim]

after a 10 minute grace period

Grace is always good.

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