What to do about someone who unplugged my car

[timbop]

The button inside of the charge circle stops DCFC charging. It has no effect at all on AC (L1 or L2) charging. I honestly think that it should just stop any charging, but Ford didn’t think it was important enough to force stoppage of AC charging since it’s at lower voltage and amperage than DC charging is.

Pressing the release button on the J1772 handle stops the charging and allows you to pull the connector out - there's no need for a separate operation. I'm guessing for DCFC they added the extra step just to be damn sure and to allow the cable to be fully de-energized.

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[HuntingPudel]

Pressing the release button on the J1772 handle stops the charging and allows you to pull the connector out - there's no need for a separate operation. I'm guessing for DCFC they added the extra step just to be damn sure and to allow the cable to be fully de-energized.

Yeah, but it doesn’t stop current flow immediately. The animation on the ring lets you know when it’s safe to perform the physical disconnect. Pushing the release latch on the J1772 handle initiates the stop charge request. You have to wait until you hear the contactors open before you pull the cable end out of the car. It would be nice if the DCFC stop charge button also functioned for AC charging so you could just watch for the animation to end. Alternatively, if the animation would happen when the button on the charge handle is depressed, it would perform the same task. The problem is that once most people hit that release button, they pull the cable from the car, while current is still flowing. There is conjecture that this *might* be a source of damage for the HVBJB.

 

[Dancefreak]

120V lamp-post charging, especially in a large airport parking lot, but even on residential streets, seems like a great idea.

See https://www.ubitricity.com/ and

Los Angeles has a few hundred of these now....

 

[tannerk89]

You could always run a wire from the J1772 plug to the handle to give the culprit a nasty shock when they unwittingly grab the handle to prematurely unplug you

 

[Tngo23]

There is an approach that I don't think I've seen mentioned and it is fairly simple and something I would likely do if faced with this situation: leave a note. Just write something like "sorry I had to remove the charging cable, but it looked like you were done charging and there were no other ones available." On the flip side, I would leave a note on my car if I had to park for longer than necessary (which I would avoid doing), something like: "Please feel free to remove the charging cable if I am done charging, I should be back soon." Or something like that. I think a nice note can go a long way towards avoiding tempers flaring.

You would think that is the common sense to do right?

Unfortunately we live in a society that is always on the go, people rarely think of the Common sense things to benefit themselves
Good suggestion though

 

[Tngo23]

You could always run a wire from the J1772 plug to the handle to give the culprit a nasty shock when they unwittingly grab the handle to prematurely unplug you

Evil Sir….Lol
Also illegal…. Dude dies from taking out a charging attachment from someone else’s EV….
Definitely negligent on the person who rigged it up…
People think it but you say it
Hilarious

 

[Triggerhappy007]

I did not realize this topic would generate the amount of passion it did .

Was your car fully charged when he removed it?

 

[rodhx]

Pressing the release button on the J1772 handle stops the charging and allows you to pull the connector out - there's no need for a separate operation. I'm guessing for DCFC they added the extra step just to be damn sure and to allow the cable to be fully de-energized.

There is no needed extra step for DCFC. At least on EA chargers. It works exactly like j1772 in my experience. Press the release on the dcfc handle, charging stops, the handle unlocks, and you return it to the charger. I have never had to use the unlock button on the car. Which makes sense when you consider there are other cars with no such button.

 

[SnowBunnE]

I guess this post does bring up a question in my mind related to charging etiquette... I have pretty much never run into an issue with charging spots being fully occupied when I have needed them, but have come close when staying at hotels for the night. Let's say that I drive a long distance and need maybe 8 hours or so to recharge my battery fully for a long drive the following morning, but the charge will complete at like 3:00 a.m. Would it be inconsiderate of me to not set an alarm and wake myself up at 3:00 to go move my car to free it up for someone else or would most rational EV drivers allow me to remain in that spot until I wake up around 7:00-8:00 and check out?

On some EVs, you can't open the charge door or remove the charging cable if the car is locked. Ford needs to implement this feature next go-round in order to prevent this kind of issues. It never happened when I had my MME but, it was a concern in the event I went to a place and had to charge overnight. The Good thing about this....it's a 1st generation vehicle. They will learn from their mistakes and from other manufacturers that got it right. There is NO perfect EV and as 1st adopters, we all knew it wasn't going to be perfect coming in. I can't wait to see where EVs are in 3-4 years when I'm ready for a new one.

 

[RSH]

I always get angry when I get unplugged without permission, but I never let it escalate into a confrontation, especially when it’s a free charging station.

Twice I’ve parked next to cars that were charging (they got there first so they win) and have been pleasantly surprised to see they plugged me in when they left. Now I always look to see if an EV is parked near me and I just plug them in when I leave. it’s like a team sport for me now.

Interesting. I don't think it would cross my mind to touch someone's car even to do something considerate like plugging them in when I finished charging. People are too crazy. If this happened to be known EV etiquette, I'd be happy to oblige but until then, I don't think i would touch the car. I think it's great that you do it though.

 

[Triggerhappy007]

Interesting. I don't think it would cross my mind to touch someone's car even to do something considerate like plugging them in when I finished charging. People are too crazy. If this happened to be known EV etiquette, I'd be happy to oblige but until then, I don't think i would touch the car. I think it's great that you do it though.

Usually, if they leave their charging door open, it means they want you to plug it in when you're done.

 

[timbop]

There is no needed extra step for DCFC. At least on EA chargers. It works exactly like j1772 in my experience. Press the release on the dcfc handle, charging stops, the handle unlocks, and you return it to the charger. I have never had to use the unlock button on the car. Which makes sense when you consider there are other cars with no such button.

I don't know if it still does it, but originally the only way to stop a DCFC charge WITHOUT the car reporting a charging fault was to press the unlock button inside the 5 segment circle. I only stop the charge by pressing that unlock button, so I don't know if that is still the case.

 

[rodhx]

I don't know if it still does it, but originally the only way to stop a DCFC charge WITHOUT the car reporting a charging fault was to press the unlock button inside the 5 segment circle. I only stop the charge by pressing that unlock button, so I don't know if that is still the case.

Not sure, but I've had my car a year now and using the release button on the dcfc handle has worked each time. Given the multitude of various user experiences documented on this board I suppose none of us should be surprised if they don't act the same

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