OC Owners -where are you charging with EA last week and this week - I am finding virtually no working chargers in North and Central OC

[cyberwife]

My plug-in success rate at EA chargers over the last year (getting a charge that didn't fault out, and at the power level expected) is roughly 30%.

We too have had pretty dismal results - but it's gotten substantially worse the last month.

 

[cyberwife]

I certainly understand the motivation to save money on electricity. But, in this case, is the amount saved worth the stress it obviously causes you?

Why should I pay for the electricity when I was sold a package for 3 years of free charging? I am not asking anything CrAzY - LOL EA is supposed to be providing a service and they are not maintaining their facilities. Lucid is promoting that they have negotiated and contracted EA to provide me with a service and they are failing which makes Lucid's contract with them of little to no value.

 

[cyberwife]

I just used a 350 charger today at the Euclid location, unit 7. Worked first try, because I was at around 50%, it started at about 160, then tapered off.

I was at 61% when I pulled in, so that wasn't the issue.

 

[cyberwife]

Does anyone know if EA has to comply with usage requirements during the day when power usage is high? Are they required by Edison or the State of CA to turn down the juice due to power demands in the area? If this is the case then it would make it very hard to ever get the 150 or 350 KW chargers to charge at those rates, or close to them during business hours or early evening.

 

[cyberwife]

I will say again that I have had 100% success rate with EA, as far as walking away with the charge I needed. I've had a few authentication problems that I was able to resolve in minutes, and my speed was a bit underwhelming once or twice, but these EA "disasters" are truly location-specific.

Which sucks if you need to charge in those locations.

Lucid needs to break ties from EA as soon as possible, regardless. Not only because these instances of bad charging experience are damaging the brand, but because encouraging people to use fast DC fast charging instead of charging at home is just the wrong incentive, both from an environmental and infrastructure standpoint.

There are other "perks" Lucid could offer that would be under its own control.

Agree! And yes - location is an issue, I have heard that the chargers at Irvine Spectrum are much more reliable, but the lines are crazy long- EA tech said if you don't get there before 7AM you will easily be waiting for 2 hours to get a charger. My son went there a few weeks ago, since our 3 local spots in Central OC were all not working. He said there was a huge line.

 

[Bobby]

Why should I pay for the electricity when I was sold a package for 3 years of free charging? I am not asking anything CrAzY - LOL EA is supposed to be providing a service and they are not maintaining their facilities. Lucid is promoting that they have negotiated and contracted EA to provide me with a service and they are failing which makes Lucid's contract with them of little to no value.

I completely understand your position. While my car also has three years of free charging, I much prefer to simply drive into my garage and plug it in. I get that it costs money, but it is very easy and works every time. Worth the expense.

 

[EZEVDriver]

Agree! And yes - location is an issue, I have heard that the chargers at Irvine Spectrum are much more reliable, but the lines are crazy long- EA tech said if you don't get there before 7AM you will easily be waiting for 2 hours to get a charger. My son went there a few weeks ago, since our 3 local spots in Central OC were all not working. He said there was a huge line.

I have waited at most 30-40 minutes at Irvine Spectrum, but the good news is that it tends to work without having to switch chargers (which I did on once). Fashion Island has EA stations that seem to work even better, particularly compared to the 350 stations at Spectrum. There are two other stations in Irvine that are frequently down or have just one charger working, although calling EA sometimes works.

I completely agree that unless Lucid has some kind of guarantee for increased uptime in the next year, it can't rely on EA and should have a backup plan. Rivian created destination chargers to encourage its association with outdoor activites. Perhaps Lucid should set up demonstration chargers - very few, but in strategic spots where the reports of super-fast charging will relax existing customers and demonstrate the usefulness to prospective customers of its efficient batteries and charging systems.

 

[DeaneG]

Several states have begun to award contracts for DCFC installations using NEVI funds. It's a far larger program than any automaker could undertake alone. 97% uptime requirement for each station with state-determined penalties. We'll see in the next 2-3 years.

 

[Viking]

Anyone know what is happening at the Walmart Foothill Ranch location? I saw yesterday the chargers have been removed and placed in wooden boxes. Only a Level 2 charger remains.

 

[DeaneG]

Anyone know what is happening at the Walmart Foothill Ranch location? I saw yesterday the chargers have been removed and placed in wooden boxes. Only a Level 2 charger remains.

Typically for EA, this means that the charging hardware is being replaced with brand new (supportable) 350kW shared units from SK Signet. Bad news is the Signet Surge; good news is that EA is working on a software fix. I observed the replacement process to take a few weeks at a couple sites last fall.

 

[Viking]

Typically for EA, this means that the charging hardware is being replaced with brand new (supportable) 350kW shared units from SK Signet. Bad news is the Signet Surge; good news is that EA is working on a software fix. I observed the replacement process to take a few weeks at a couple sites last fall.

If they are changing hardware then why not get rid of the infamous Signet stuff? Replace it with ABB, which seems to not have the Signet surge/rollercoaster for Lucid.

Good to hear, however, they are replacing and not picking up sticks.

 

[hydbob]

If they are changing hardware then why not get rid of the infamous Signet stuff? Replace it with ABB, which seems to not have the Signet surge/rollercoaster for Lucid.

Good to hear, however, they are replacing and not picking up sticks.

Probably have a contract with Signet for x number of units prior to Signet surge being a thing. Just a guess.