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Once again, charging stations or the lack there of seem to be a critical point of failure for EV's. I am hopeful with the mass migration toward a standardized connector and building of more charge stations, things will get better.
Headline: Watch Ford F-150 Lightning Driver’s Terrible Charging Experience In Michigan
IMO it makes sense--it's possible the station owner stands to make more money selling the motorist drinks and snacks than they make on the gas--at least it was that way at one time with the lower prices.
So the EV driver could need a drink or two as he will be hooked up quite a bit longer than the gas customer.
Gas stations moving away from repair to retail started in the mid '70s. I did a poor quality term paper on it at U.W. in '75.
Unfortunately, it’s not surprising. There’s a learning curve, but the average DC fast charger is a much easier thing to install than a regular gas station. I don’t understand why it’s so hard for third-party stations to keep them running, but it shouldn’t be that way. It won’t be that way for long, and competition from Tesla should spur things along in that regard. The competition is coming fast next year when adapters to NACS start rolling out, and third-party networks can get their act together or go out of business.
Originally Posted by 85e150
IMO it makes sense--it's possible the station owner stands to make more money selling the motorist drinks and snacks than they make on the gas--at least it was that way at one time with the lower prices.
So the EV driver could need a drink or two as he will be hooked up quite a bit longer than the gas customer.
Gas stations moving away from repair to retail started in the mid '70s. I did a poor quality term paper on it at U.W. in '75.
Yeah, I think it makes sense as well. Earlier today, I saw a post on a Facebook group that a major convenience store chain filed permits for DC fast chargers at one of their locations. It’s a natural switch, and it fits right in with their profit model. They might as well sell the gas for free; all of the profit comes from the convenience store. Install some chargers, make enough to cover the costs of supply and maintenance, and earn that paycheck selling junk food and coffee.
It seems (from an outside perspective) that most of the failures are software related. Granted, the software likely checks the serviceability of the hardware, but the payment system or some sort of error is typically the cause of the DC charger being inoperative. Perhaps they rushed their "product" and service out to the market too quickly.
Sometimes being one of the first to the market is a good thing and other times it is not. Software can be a tricky thing that can produce results that were never experienced in testing.
It seems (from an outside perspective) that most of the failures are software related. Granted, the software likely checks the serviceability of the hardware, but the payment system or some sort of error is typically the cause of the DC charger being inoperative. Perhaps they rushed their "product" and service out to the market too quickly.
Sometimes being one of the first to the market is a good thing and other times it is not. Software can be a tricky thing that can produce results that were never experienced in testing.
No, it’s usually the opposite. EA and others can push live software updates to their units as well as reset them remotely. Almost all of these are hardware failures of some flavor that require a service appointment to fix. Sometimes they operate at reduced speed because of cable cooling failures, other times it’s something else that takes the units completely offline.
This is a good example from my area. The closest EA station has 6/8 units that are currently working, and this other one only has 2/4 fully operational. Sometimes, they’ll show as fully operational and still not work right. Unplug and try again, and they’ll usually do the same thing. Switch to another unit and things work just fine. These are hardware failures from equipment that’s badly designed and/or improperly maintained.
Here’s another one. Both 350 kW units are either operating at a reduced 50 kW or inoperable. The Lightning can swallow 160 kW; it would take a Lightning over 2 1/2 hours to charge at 1/3rd of that.
At least theee charging providers show live usage in their apps. All of them are in-use at this very moment, so you could be waiting a long time if you had to use one.
But once Tesla’s network is open, you have lots of options. The numbers in red are open and online; the only full station is a mall location with three units.
As with any new emerging product or service its growth will be decided by whatever profit motives exist, supply and demand. I'd not be too quick to assume what emerges as a publicly accessible charging network will resemble what's currently available. As fueling points incorporate charging capability the reliability and final quality of the "dispensers" will also rise, most likely far beyond what we see today.
Even with the sometimes woeful lack of quick and ready chargers it seems the most dedicated EV operators have been resourceful enough to plan their trips and keep at hand a system or method to quickly and easily find a charger. Certainly its not as easy as finding a petrol refueling point but we're slowly moving towards that becoming less of an issue. The retail convenience store/fueling station model will change to attract EV customers---that'll be imperative if they're to flourish going forward.
My mistake, although I did state from an outside perspective that was my viewpoint.
Last night I read an article about Toyota having a solid state battery EV with a range of 745 miles and a 10 minute recharge time. It did not specify if that was to 80%, 90% or higher. All of this is taking place just as the largest fuel stop in the world with 140 pumps opened up in eastern TN. Once the charging stations bugs are ironed out and they make more pull through stations and more stations in general, things will get better.
The local Bucees here in Katy TX recently installed 25 Tesla Super chargers and the HEB grocery store has 12 Tesla Super chargers and the Katy Mills Mall has four Tesla destination chargers. So that's 41 Tesla Super Chargers that's just off I10. In my area (West Houston) the amount of Tesla's I see have grown exponentially in the last year or two. I can literally be at any intersection (four way stop, or lighted) and pretty much spot one or more Tesla's. Must be all those people who moved from California.
Tesla's I see have grown exponentially in the last year or two. I can literally be at any intersection (four way stop, or lighted) and pretty much spot one or more Tesla's.
I see them all the time down here as well, neighbor 3 doors down has one.
I see them all the time down here as well, neighbor 3 doors down has one.
In terms of cars I think I see more Tesla's than any other brand in my particular area. Venture out into the smaller towns and you're lucky on a good day to see just one.
