Electrify America on road trips

[HC_79]

The first time I used an EA charger, I had to get their tech support to link the car to my account. After that, I just plugged in and the charger did the rest. BTW, the EA tech support was very good.

I'm wondering if it's changed now. I was half expecting to have to link it to EA somehow but didn't have to do a thing. Just pulled up to the charger, plugged in and away she went. I really wish EA would remove the "Continue" button on the charger to start the session (I know it starts eventually without tapping). Yes, I'm sure I want to charge! just START!

 

[hydbob]

I'm wondering if it's changed now. I was half expecting to have to link it to EA somehow but didn't have to do a thing. Just pulled up to the charger, plugged in and away she went. I really wish EA would remove the "Continue" button on the charger to start the session (I know it starts eventually without tapping). Yes, I'm sure I want to charge! just START!

You don't...the Air comes with Plug & Charge enabled. Sometimes there is an issue with it and you go through the Lucid App to start the charge, but I would say 90% of the time I've tried it just works

 

[HC_79]

My concern with EA at the moment is there are mixed messages coming about power delivery to the chargers. They're now splitting power at some locations so 2 chargers share the same feed and if someone comes along and plugs in next to you your speed will then be cut by 50%. Also, not all 350Kw chargers are equal and comes down to the amps that EA is delivering to them. Kyle Conner has mentioned this a bit but some chargers are 500 amps and some are 300 amps etc. which means that depending on the amperage if you plug into a 350Kw charger you may actually never get 350Kw because the charger simply doesn't have enough power \ amperage to do so. I'm by no means an electrician or understand volts, amps, etc. but from Kyle's findings he now has to drive to an EVGo charger that's further away from him because the EA charger near his house has low amperage and can't deliver the speed even though it's labelled as doing so.

This is going to be a big problem if true, because it makes cars with big batteries not necessarily the best choice. Also, who should be expected to figure out the amperage being delivered to a charger? If it says 350Kw it should deliver 350Kw. I think EA has scaled back the 350Kw deployments because they're too expensive to install hence why each location only has 1 or 2.

 

[hydbob]

My concern with EA at the moment is there are mixed messages coming about power delivery to the chargers. They're now splitting power at some locations so 2 chargers share the same feed and if someone comes along and plugs in next to you your speed will then be cut by 50%. Also, not all 350Kw chargers are equal and comes down to the amps that EA is delivering to them. Kyle Conner has mentioned this a bit but some chargers are 500 amps and some are 300 amps etc. which means that depending on the amperage if you plug into a 350Kw charger you may actually never get 350Kw because the charger simply doesn't have enough power \ amperage to do so. I'm by no means an electrician or understand volts, amps, etc. but from Kyle's findings he now has to drive to an EVGo charger that's further away from him because the EA charger near his house has low amperage and can't deliver the speed even though it's labelled as doing so.

This is going to be a big problem if true, because it makes cars with big batteries not necessarily the best choice. Also, who should be expected to figure out the amperage being delivered to a charger? If it says 350Kw it should deliver 350Kw. I think EA has scaled back the 350Kw deployments because they're too expensive to install hence why each location only has 1 or 2.

Because supposedly EA is using a mish-mash of components and if it's anything like Tesla installs, can vary based off the local utility as to how much power they are able to supply to a given site.

Also, the charge curve and software will most likely determine how long you spend at a charger moreso than the charger itself. As long as a charger can deliver 150kw consistently, AND IF the car can actually take it, that will be a faster charge than starting at 350 then ramping down to 80 because the battery cells got too hot.

 

[HC_79]

Because supposedly EA is using a mish-mash of components and if it's anything like Tesla installs, can vary based off the local utility as to how much power they are able to supply to a given site.

Also, the charge curve and software will most likely determine how long you spend at a charger moreso than the charger itself. As long as a charger can deliver 150kw consistently, AND IF the car can actually take it, that will be a faster charge than starting at 350 then ramping down to 80 because the battery cells got too hot.

I agree, I would rather see Lucid focus on 200/250KW to 80% or something rather than get 300Kw for a couple of minutes and start to ramp down. They have said the charging will evolve over time so i'm guessing they're probably waiting to gather some real world data to see where they can tweak the cars BMS.

There is one EA location in CA that makes me wonder if EA know what they're doing. There are 8 chargers at this location and without fail, 2 seem to be always offline and others can't seem to get the power to deliver the speed (to a point that EA planted a technician onsite for a week to figure out what was going on). EA was quick to blame the car then when I said it's always at this location they then opted to blame the power company. What's interesting though is if you literally look over the road to see a nicely shaded Tesla supercharging location with 50 stalls that on weekends is 90% full. These to locations would be operating off the same power grid yet Tesla has no issue delivering that amount of power yet EA can't even get 8 chargers stable at that location. I guess Tesla has a 10 year head start but I do wonder if EA just lacks the expertise in house to make things a little more consistent.

 

[Sandvinsd]

This will be an excellent test of whether there is a break-in period. If your efficiency/range increases at some point during your trip and stays at the higher level, it backs up other people's reports of increased efficiency after X thousand miles. Given reports of lower than expected efficiency by most owners during the first few thousand miles, what are you using as a range guess in planning out your charging stops?

Using ABRP for stops not letting the battery go before 20% before charging. Won’t stretch out the range, but want more charging stops to coincide with my required bathroom breaks , even if for only 10’. After the first day, I should have a pretty good idea as to how far I can go.

 

[Sandvinsd]

Because supposedly EA is using a mish-mash of components and if it's anything like Tesla installs, can vary based off the local utility as to how much power they are able to supply to a given site.

Also, the charge curve and software will most likely determine how long you spend at a charger moreso than the charger itself. As long as a charger can deliver 150kw consistently, AND IF the car can actually take it, that will be a faster charge than starting at 350 then ramping down to 80 because the battery cells got too hot.

Will certainly be faster than the Leaf which never took anything higher than about 35 kw

 

[borski]

There seem to be zero in NYC...

View attachment 1850

Queens and Brooklyn are NYC...

 

[hmp10]

Only one EA charger in Charlotte and it is 30 minutes away in a part of town I never go to. The next closest is over an hour away in Greensboro, NC and then a host in various directions 2 hours away. The southeast is not exactly ready for a major influx of EV's. There are other providers, but they really aren't any more prolific.

I've been doing route planning for several road trips out of South Florida. EA coverage is pretty good if you stay on the major interstates, but it thins out quickly along even major non-interstate routes. In driving from Naples, FL to Asheville, NC, for instance, there are two legs where the distances between EA charge stations are well over 200 miles. With the Lucid's range, that's fine . . . unless you arrive at a station that is not functioning, which is not an unheard-of event at an EA charger.

Even though our Model S Plaid has significantly less range, we're considering taking it for the trip as Tesla Superchargers are now so ubiquitous (at least outside of places such as the Dakotas and northern New England) that you don't even have to do any route planning. You just get in the car and drive until you need to charge.

 

[AGTRAIN]

Let me rephrase my main concern — does anyone at EA have the authority and the funds to add fast chargers in any region where they see an imbalance between number of chargers and EVs, whether now or years from now? Their initial funding came from VW as a settlement and that gave them a good start. But unlike Tesla, it is not clear to me who will constantly monitor that balance and have the authority and the $ to install new chargers. I’m also not clear on who is funding EA. In sum, EA handles the chargers, car makers build the EVs, and someone else (Congress?) provides the funding. Doesn’t sound like an efficient business model over the long run, but I see how the car manufacturers escape the cost of charging infrastructure.

 

[DeaneG]

The infrastructure money that did make it out of congress is being allocated to individual states, who are each responsible for drafting an EV charging plan suited to their needs. The plan will prioritize highway travel initially. After highway charging is built out to some degree, local charging is to be implemented - shopping centers, apartment buildings, etc. Not sure how the allocated money winds up funding buildouts by EA, Chargepoint, etc. Note that EA's funding was to be $2 billion over 10 years (2017-2027), while the federal plan will allocate nearly $5 billion over five years - 4x the rate of EA's investment.

President Biden, USDOT and USDOE Announce $5 Billion over Five Years for National EV Charging Network, Made Possible by Bipartisan Infrastructure Law | FHWA

Joint Energy and Transportation Office and DriveElectric.gov Available to Assist States with Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Deployment Plans

highways.dot.gov

 

[HC_79]

Tried out a 350Kw charger at an EA location tonight. Had 20% SOC and maximum charging speed was 115Kw…… The network is just so hit and miss.

 

[borski]

Tried out a 350Kw charger at an EA location tonight. Had 20% SOC and maximum charging speed was 115Kw…… The network is just so hit and miss.

Gotta precondition. Did you? When I don’t, I get ~110-150. When I do, I’ve hit the 300s.

 

[steveairgt]

Gotta precondition. Did you? When I don’t, I get ~110-150. When I do, I’ve hit the 300s.

Does preconditioning happen automatically like with Tesla?

 

[borski]

Does preconditioning happen automatically like with Tesla?

Nope, not yet. You have to start it manually ~20 min before fast charging. If you don’t it’ll charge fine, just at slower speeds - I’ve only seen 150ish then.

 

[CraZ8]

Does EA tell you when you are done? Charging for my first time on EA. I m at dinner and no I won’t make it back in time( only one other car charging at 8 stalls though) any penalty leaving it plugged in like Tesla?

 

[SaratogaLefty]

Does EA tell you when you are done? Charging for my first time on EA. I m at dinner and no I won’t make it back in time( only one other car charging at 8 stalls though) any penalty leaving it plugged in like Tesla?

The actual charging is free but if you get to a full charge or whatever you have the charging limit set to, it will stop charging. Then you have about 10 minutes to unhook or you will be charged for "idle time". Not sure what the rate is but easy enough to avoid by checking your phone app from time to time to see your SOC (state of charge).

 

[HC_79]

The actual charging is free but if you get to a full charge or whatever you have the charging limit set to, it will stop charging. Then you have about 10 minutes to unhook or you will be charged for "idle time". Not sure what the rate is but easy enough to avoid by checking your phone app from time to time to see your SOC (state of charge).

The idle fee is currently waived with Lucid. Not saying you should leave the car connected for hours after you’ve finished charging but you could do so without any penalties. Maybe just the wrath of people wanting to charge

 

[CraZ8]

The idle fee is currently waived with Lucid. Not saying you should leave the car connected for hours after you’ve finished charging but you could do so without any penalties. Maybe just the wrath of people wanting to charge

Ok good news. Normally would never leave plugged in with not charging but only a mustang with me and 6 free stalls. Doubt if any one will have to wait

 

[CraZ8]

I Went out anyway, entree not here yet. Caught it at exact stopping point. The stars aligned.