Electrify America to only allow charging to 85%

[Tclark5]

Yeah, this seems dumb, but at least they're just piloting for now. What if you need to charge up to 90-95% to get to the next charger?

Maybe if there were more charges or something.

maybe people are used to filling up their car to 100% with gasoline, the problem is not enough chargers……..

Sponsored

 

[Bigisland Guy]

They will still have nearby facilities that won't have the restrictions during the pilot, hopefully they learn that allowing +85% charging for an increased cost might be a way to inhibit charging abuses at the flip cost to those who actually need the extra juice to make the next leap

So true, California has over 1 million registered EV's and Plug ins. The corner has turned on EV ownership in this state. The early EV incentive programs have succeeded and now they will change towards battery storage. The partnerships with auto makers and EV stations will change rapidly as the current free charging expires and battery storage becomes the thing. With so many EV's on the road already the EV incentives are gearing towards the used EV market and the lower economic class so, the demand for charging infostructure will only increase so limiting charging is a good thing in my opinion.

 

[Ekiehn]

Anyone who has had to wait because all chargers are full and have to wait while a Checy bolt is charging to 100% will appreciate this!

 

[invertedspear]

OP said it right in the original post. EA needs to start maintaining their hardware before they start going down this road. Sure, it's frustrating when cars are just parked there, getting to a likely unnecessary SOC. But it's far more frustrating when 2/4 stations are not working, especially if there's no indication in the app that those chargers are not working.

 

[data003]

While that would make a lot of sense, I'm guessing it's not that simple - an agreement was made with the people that have free charging.

This is an interesting experiment. There are few places or times where a person needs to go to 100% at a DCFC.

Cellular providers figure out how to get people to give up their contracts all the time, EA is just lacking in will and creativity.

 

[Runaway Tractor]

This is the right decision from a business perspective 100% and I can't believe they didn't do it sooner. In the time it takes to sell a customer that last 10kwh into their car for an hour, they could sell 100kwh to two other customers. They are losing buckets of cash letting people waste hours of time on topping off their car while other customers wait at busy urban chargers.

 

[Daragh]

I ran across this article that is really a head scratcher. You would think EA would at least try to get more of their chargers working. This is just another reason to avoid EA chargers…

https://www.electrive.com/2024/07/09/electrify-america-to-charge-batteries-to-85-only/

Why?? Their plan makes perfect sense, very few if anybody needs to charge to 100% on a DC fast chargers! Its an inefficient waste of time! This is also only being consider on "congested" charging stations!

 

[RocketGhost]

Aside from the issue of folks with free charging, I think the best solution is to increase the price past 85%. Gives people the option to continue if really necessary. And it should have an explanation on the charger screen. Many people don’t really understand or pay attention to the charging rate decrease.

Also it would be nice if a notice would pop up for slower charging cars like Bolts at 350kw stalls. “It appears your vehicle‘s maximum charge rate is 50kw. Next time consider choosing the 150kw charger, if available, as a courtesy to drivers with vehicles capable of faster charging.”

 

[metroshot]

maybe people are used to filling up their car to 100% with gasoline, the problem is not enough chargers……..

Correct on both!

I am guilty of one charging to over 90% on DCFC.

When I was charging in Brea, CA this weekend - 4 EA chargers + 24 Tesla Superchargers sharing the same lot - a big line of non Teslas were waiting in a line for 3 out of 4 working EA chargers.

Ever since Tesla opened up for Ford & Rivian, all my DCFC is at Tesla.
When we got back after a quick shopping trip at the mall, the line got longer.

See line of non Teslas in the back waiting for the EA chargers on the left while the Superchargers are mostly unused:

 

[detansinn]

As someone who has waited in line while there were Chevy Bolts charging to 100% pulling a whopping 3-5kw towards the end, I am all for this. 85 vs 90% isn't going to change my route plan.

EA has been clear that this isn't for everywhere, but it's a big quality of life of improvement if you've got congestion.

 

[Slick68]

I can see their reasoning to cap it at 80% or whatever, but the underlying issue is that at any given time, half or more of their chargers are inoperable. If they would put more effort into ensuring ALL of their chargers at these locations worked, that would get rid of some of the frustration from those of us waiting on those Chevy Bolts or “Free To Charge” customers sitting at the few working chargers at a given location.

 

[TheWoo]

Cellular providers figure out how to get people to give up their contracts all the time, EA is just lacking in will and creativity.

While true, the contract that people signed wasn't with EA. It was with their automaker.

 

[TaxmanHog]

 

[Slick68]

He makes some good points but, wow, is he getting a kickback from EA?
I like how he mentions he thinks this a great idea and how …”It’ll increase throughput and allow for quicker charging...”. True, but not once in this 15 minute video does he mention EA’s horrible down-time at so many of their charging stations. If EA would ensure more of their chargers were up and working, that would also “increase throughput and allow for quicker charging” for those cars lined up in the queue waiting to charge.

 

[Ekiehn]

I can see their reasoning to cap it at 80% or whatever, but the underlying issue is that at any given time, half or more of their chargers are inoperable. If they would put more effort into ensuring ALL of their chargers at these locations worked, that would get rid of some of the frustration from those of us waiting on those Chevy Bolts or “Free To Charge” customers sitting at the few working chargers at a given location.

I guess it all depends on what area of rhe country you are in regarding EA reliability. In the last 8 EA charging stops at multiple locations only 1 had 1 of 4 chargers out of commission, non derated even in the heat and that was clearly noted in the app (didn't stop people not using the app from pulling in and trying to charge)

Sponsored