EA charging FAIL FAIL FAIL

[tigerbalm]

Just so I understand this fully. Here in Europe we get a card for charging in case the station does not have good coverage from a cellular network. If the app is not working or there is no coverage you just tap the card on the charger. Is this not the same in the US?

The card is a Ionity/Europe thing. No RFID card in North America for some reason.

Sponsored

 

[kort]

Just so I understand this fully. Here in Europe we get a card for charging in case the station does not have good coverage from a cellular network. If the app is not working or there is no coverage you just tap the card on the charger. Is this not the same in the US?

no it is a very different process here in north america the process involves linking the app to the charging unit. the 2021 taycans are supposed to be plug and play but I haven't seen that work at any EA unit

 

[kort]

I remember when this board used to include useful information to help out other owners, and not just be a location for people to complain when things do not go exactly as they want.

The car and the EA charging infrastructure are two different animals - regardless of their shared parent company connections. $hit is going to happen with newer technology, so be prepared, accept it, and deal with it. Nothing beats the power of research, so between the EA app and Plugshare, a person should ALWAYS know the status of an EA charger. If you cannot get one to work, move to a different one - it is not the end of the world. I always leave comments on Plugshare for the charger I used to assist people who come after me. EA chargers between Denver and LA, Denver and Houston, Denver and PHX, and Denver and Vegas all have multiple comments from me since that is where I road trip and want to add to the community.

Also, things with EA will only be more complicated in the future as more EVs roll out that will need to leverage EA infrastucture. If you can't deal with the occasional charging hiccup, or can't deal with waiting to get to a charger, then an EV is not for you. I have a lot of experience in driving EVs, and I have 12,000 miles on my 4s - more long distance road trips than I can count over the past 9 months, and not every charging instance happens smoothly. There is no reason to have 10 different posts on here when someone has an EA charging failure. In this instance it seems like user failure, not EA.

God forbid that someone show up in Wagon Mound, New Mexico or Flagler, Colorado and find out that there is no reliable cell phone service in that particular part of northern New Mexico or eastern Colorado, so it is near impossible to start a charging session via the app. Guess what, adapt and take out your credit card and swipe it in the charging cabinet that works since most EA locations will undoubtably have a few cabinets where the card reader is broken.

I am in the middle of a Denver to Tucson run right now and have really good efficeincy data on the range hit with just the Porsche roof rack bars on the car, and then with a road bike sitting on top of the vehicle. I will then drive back to Denver and put the bike in the car and remove the rack to provide additional data for the comparison. I used to think these kind of detail was good to share with the board since many people on here lead an active lifestyle, but it seems now this board is just a tool for people to use to complain when something does not go exactly how they want, whether it is a faulty charging session or a 12v battery issue. There are only so many times it needs to be repeated.

Old man rant over.

failure of a crucial component of the vehicle and discussions of that failure are beyond the scope of this forum? really?

 

[daveo4EV]

@kort did you try starting the charging session with the normal EA app or just swipe your credit card? Did EA try and start the session remotely - or did you just have them reboot the machines and then you tried porsche’s sucky apps again?

 

[thecoloradokid]

failure of a crucial component of the vehicle and discussions of that failure are beyond the scope of this forum? really?

You have no clue on where the failure was with that particular charging session, so you are not adding anything new, or anything helpful to the community. One of the previous responses to your original post shared that others had charged successfully at that EA location previously, so for all we know it was user failure.

If you want to add constructive comments that can also be leveraged with EA and Porsche, then share your overall EA usage success/failure rates. For instance, this weekend I drove almost 1,000 miles in my Taycan - Denver to Tucson, AZ - with a road bike on roof and successfully stopped and charged at 9 EA locations on I-25 and I-10. My efficiency was hammered by the change in car aerodynamics due to the roof rack and bike I was carrying, so I had to stop often to charge. There were multiple times I tried to charge at one cabinet, but had to move because I could not get that particular unit to work. Also, in Wagon Mound, NM there is no T-Mobile service, so I had to start my charging session with my personal credit card by swiping it since the app had no connectivity to the server.

Establish some credibility/justification with your complaint before posting. That is all I am asking.

 

[thecoloradokid]

Tesla‘s supercharger network, combined with vertical integration, continues to give them a significant advantage. I’m about to sell my Model S for a Taycan. I wouldn’t do it if I also didn‘t have other Teslas in the garage that I can use for long trips. I really want to be able to take the Taycan on road trips. I hope Porsche and EA are listening. Based on other reported experiences, it seems more likely the problem is with Porsche vs. EA. Perhaps the “large software update” coming in “a few weeks” will help.

Btw, the chargers are measured in kW — a measure of power. kWh is a measure of energy. If you’re talking chargers, it’s kW; batteries, kWh.

Andrew:

You live on the east coast, and will have no issues with road tripping in your Taycan, once it arrives. The EA network is denser on the east coast, and you have significant EV experience. You know the nuances of long distance EV driving. I have put 12,000 miles on my 4s in 9 months, and have no issues while road tripping. Sure, I had the 12v battery issue in the 2nd month I had the card but once that was fixed, the car has worked great since then.

Make sure you do a couple of short distance trips to break in the car to identify any issues early, then get and out and enjoy the car. It is an amazing vehicle to drive long distances.

 

[kort]

You have no clue on where the failure was with that particular charging session, so you are not adding anything new, or anything helpful to the community. One of the previous responses to your original post shared that others had charged successfully at that EA location previously, so for all we know it was user failure.

If you want to add constructive comments that can also be leveraged with EA and Porsche, then share your overall EA usage success/failure rates. For instance, this weekend I drove almost 1,000 miles in my Taycan - Denver to Tucson, AZ - with a road bike on roof and successfully stopped and charged at 9 EA locations on I-25 and I-10. My efficiency was hammered by the change in car aerodynamics due to the roof rack and bike I was carrying, so I had to stop often to charge. There were multiple times I tried to charge at one cabinet, but had to move because I could not get that particular unit to work. Also, in Wagon Mound, NM there is no T-Mobile service, so I had to start my charging session with my personal credit card by swiping it since the app had no connectivity to the server.

Establish some credibility/justification with your complaint before posting. That is all I am asking.

I drove 500 miles this weekend.
2 out of three charging sessions resulted in failures.

car; 2021 taycan 4s, app used; charge NA,
EA stations visited, bushnell FL, failure overridden on a 150kw unit, haines city FL, charge failed and could not be initiated on any unit. ormond beach Fl car charge on a 150kw unit.

I am glad that you have not had the experience of being in the full sun on a 92 degree day in a truck stop full of idling diesel engines. the charging failed. porsche roadside was willing to dispatch a tow but could not make accommodations for me, meaning that I would have been at that truck stop in the middle of nowhere without transport for the 170 mile or so for me to get home. fortunately I had enough range to get to a nearby greenlots 50kw charger that took another hour to get me enough charge to get me 100 mile closer to my home and where I was able to charge at an EA unit.
is that enough suck for you?

 

[JimBob]

Porsche makes a point that one of the benefits of Taycan ownership is free charging for the first three years. Lots of anecdotal and some factual evidence that at times the charging is failing.

 

[daveo4EV]

My efficiency was hammered by the change in car aerodynamics due to the roof rack and bike I was carrying, so I had to stop often to charge.

I would appreciate a new thread where you can share any data as to the efficiency loss you experienced - there is virtually no public information on what to expect - I think your experience would help inform a lot of people.

 

[thecoloradokid]

I drove 500 miles this weekend.
2 out of three charging sessions resulted in failures.

car; 2021 taycan 4s, app used; charge NA,
EA stations visited, bushnell FL, failure overridden on a 150kw unit, haines city FL, charge failed and could not be initiated on any unit. ormond beach Fl car charge on a 150kw unit.

I am glad that you have not had the experience of being in the full sun on a 92 degree day in a truck stop full of idling diesel engines. the charging failed. porsche roadside was willing to dispatch a tow but could not make accommodations for me, meaning that I would have been at that truck stop in the middle of nowhere without transport for the 170 mile or so for me to get home. fortunately I had enough range to get to a nearby greenlots 50kw charger that took another hour to get me enough charge to get me 100 mile closer to my home and where I was able to charge at an EA unit.
is that enough suck for you?

I am sorry this happened to you, but what is your overall experience with EA outside of the 3 sessions from this trip? How many times have you charged your '21 Taycan at an EA location previously to this trip?

Honestly, outside of when much of the I-95 EA corridor network went down for an unannounced upgrade, I have never heard of an instance where an entire EA location was down without it being broadcast on the Plugshare app or the EA app. What did EA customer service say when you called them to get help initiating a charge? There have been a few instances in the past where they have had to reset a cabinet to initiate a charging session remotely for me.

No offense to you, but this still seems like user failure, and not an EA issue.

I know for a fact that EA looks at Plugshare posts from Taycan owners, and they go the extra mile to provide as much help to Taycan owners as they can. I have had them call me to apologize because I had to move cabinets 3 times to get a charge started.

Charging in 92 degree weather in a truck stop? Are you going to post a separate thread complaining about the locations of EA chargers as well? Your credibility is further shot with comments like that. There are people on this board, myself included, who have charged their Taycan in August and September in Nevada, Arizona, and Utah where the temps were 110 degrees in a unshaded Walmart parking lot. The existing charging infrastructure is what it is, so you complaining about 92 degrees in a truck stop is not constructive.

Details, facts, and proof that it is an EA issue, not a user error. That is what this board needs. Complaints about temperature do nothing to help the EA network improve.

 

[thecoloradokid]

I would appreciate a new thread where you can share any data as to the efficiency loss you experienced - there is virtually no public information on what to expect - I think your experience would help inform a lot of people.

Dave:

I certainly will. I will have a complete comparison once I get back to Denver this weekend. The trip out from Denver to Tucson was broken into two parts, Denver to Socorro, NM and Socorro to Tucson, AZ. From Denver to Socorro it was super cold, so I put the bike in trunk. From Socorro to Tucson I put the bike on the roof. I have a 4s, 20 inch wheels, Pirelli snow tires, and it was 5 degrees when I left Denver the other day. It was 30 degrees when I left Socorro and 70 when I got to Tucson.

Drive from Denver to Socorro, NM with just the roof rack on the car.

Drive from Socorro, NM to Tucson, AZ. Pretty obvious efficiency hit with the bike on top of the car.

Car with the bike on top of it. Was getting ready to leave to the hotel to Tucson. The Best Western hotel in Socorro, NM is the only charging option between Albuquerque and the Deming, NM EA charger. that is a 235 mile distance between them and not possible with a roof rack in cooler temps.

the bike.

Tucson and the Oro Velley from Mt. Lemmon.

I am going to remove the bike and the roof rack for the drive back to Denver. This will give us a better comparison on the actual efficiency hit. I will post a separate thread and provide full details.

 

[Scandinavian]

Do we know are people experiencing similar levels of "refusing to charge" at Europe's Ionity network or is this a EA specific issue?

I have charged about a dozen times at different Ionity chargers in France so far. Both with Taycan and Model3. Both cars have experienced trouble at some charger but been fine when moving to the next one. Ionity tried to reset the charger and all started to work except no power was delivered. There was clearly a fault in the charger.

If you look at any of the EV videos from Norway, it is quite seldom that there are any total failures. There are reports of charging sessions not delivering the expected power etc. But not repeated failures at the same place.

Another reflection is, without using a stopwatch, that a 150 kW charger is not significant slower to charge between about 10 to 80 % compared to a 350 kW one. Seems the 150 kW charger has less reduction at the higher SOC levels? Perhaps the battery did not heat up as much so it kept charging at a higher level for a longer time. It might have taken a few more minutes but we’ll within a coffee and a biological break.

 

[hshm]

Have you guys watched this YouTube video of the Taycan road trip from Florida to NY? The charging experience is an absolute nightmare. Just imagine hitting all these EA issues while on a road trip with your family.

Porsche needs to fix this or they need to find a new charging station partner. Otherwise, they have zero chance against Tesla.

 

[Torv]

Have you guys watched this YouTube video of the Taycan road trip from Florida to NY? The charging experience is an absolute nightmare. Just imagine hitting all these EA issues while on a road trip with your family.

Porsche needs to fix this or they need to find a new charging station partner. Otherwise, they have zero chance against Tesla.

I watched that video a month or so ago and you’re right, EA needs massive work. On the upside though, the dude lives the Taycan!

 

[thecoloradokid]

Have you guys watched this YouTube video of the Taycan road trip from Florida to NY? The charging experience is an absolute nightmare. Just imagine hitting all these EA issues while on a road trip with your family.

Porsche needs to fix this or they need to find a new charging station partner. Otherwise, they have zero chance against Tesla.

This is the same guy who broke the US cannonball record from NYC to LA in that same black Taycan a week later and had no issues with charging while driving 3,000 miles. He also admitted that the Taycan they used did not have the most updated software in the vehicle. So, lots of caveats in this video.

EA is not perfect, but it is the only road trip charging option we have. Constructive criticism is required for them to improve.

Sponsored