Why is the charge port door so awful?

CopperRobot

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Just had a car wash where the Charge Port Door opened. I see we can lock the plug when charging. Can we lock the port door? It has been finicky to shut since day one. Don't think it is malfunctioning, just not as solid as I would prefer.
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generaltso

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Just had a car wash where the Charge Port Door opened. I see we can lock the plug when charging. Can we lock the port door? It has been finicky to shut since day one. Don't think it is malfunctioning, just not as solid as I would prefer.
No, and you can’t lock the plug while charging either, at least not on level 2.
 

Infinite_Jester

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Mine opened on its own while going down the highway during a driving rainstorm. Agree it feels frustratingly flimsy.
 

StillWaitingForMachE

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Based on Sandy Munro's review, it might be nice if it had a sliding door instead of hinged. That would keep it nice and out of the way.
 


Burnsy8787

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Didn't Ford upload some car wash torture test on the Mach E? It looks like the car wash I go to is even more superior than whatever torture test they did.
Yeah I've had my car washed probably 50 times at a car wash and have no such "micro scratches".
He was basically just trying to deflect from Ford and their poor design. Instead of saying yeah that shouldn't happen, he goes on a tangent about how car washes are bad.

That being said, I've never had my charge port door pop open. I think people that are having this issue either have a defective locking mechanism or they are not actually closing it all the way when they think they did.
 

jrstinkfish

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My wife has a Nissan Leaf as a rental car while her Niro EV is getting body work done, its charging door has to be opened via the key fob or from inside. Seems a bit cheap to not have that door secured on a vehicle that costs almost twice as much.
 

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It happened to me, I almost shit my pants, most stupid door ever!
 

MyLittlePony2022

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My door keeps opening too. I was thinking of mounting small neodymium magnets to try to keep the door closed. Mount one on the inside of charge area and one to the charge port door. Need to figure out if silicon adhesive will keep them in place, long term. I figured to keep it far away from the charge port, perhaps in the upper or lower corners. Not sure if the magnet would interfer with the charging electronics or the charge port. My inititial though is probably not.

Anyone done this? Any input or advice?
 

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My door keeps opening too. I was thinking of mounting small neodymium magnets to try to keep the door closed. Mount one on the inside of charge area and one to the charge port door. Need to figure out if silicon adhesive will keep them in place, long term. I figured to keep it far away from the charge port, perhaps in the upper or lower corners. Not sure if the magnet would interfer with the charging electronics or the charge port. My inititial though is probably not.

Anyone done this? Any input or advice?
If they're not strong enough to keep the door from opening when unlocked, then it might be a good idea (presuming it's opening due to wear, or force and compliance overcoming the locking mechanism).

If you use magnets strong enough to keep the door closed when unlocked, how will you open it? It'll press down to unlatch, but then you'll have to pry it open with your fingernails or something, right?

Also, depending on how the mechanism works, if the magnets are strong enough to keep the door closed, then they might interfere with the unlocking mechanism. E.g. think of a click pen: you click it down to expose the pen (lock). If you don't let go (like a magnet holding in the door), however, you can't press further down to retract (unlock). You first need to release, then click down, and release again. Four stages. So with magnets, after it's locked (S1), you might need to pry it a bit (S2), let go/push down again (S3), and pry again (S4) to open.
 

dliunatic

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You may also want to take it into the dealer as these charge door plungers are known to be commonly defective.
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