EA Station Failed, Bricking a Rivian

[DerekS]

I've never thought twice about DC charging. This gives me some pause.

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[DerekS]

Apparently the charger couldn't be unplugged because it welded itself in.

 

[simcity]

Apparently the charger couldn't be unplugged because it welded itself in.

Not surprising really when you think the currents and voltages from high power DC charging are literally arc welder territory.

 

[tigerbalm]

I think if you told electrical engineers twenty years ago – that ordinary consumers would be handling plugs with up to 1000V and 500 amps – they wouldn't believe you!

Still, petrol is probably a lot more dangerous. Does Oregon still not allow you fill your own tank?

 

[jijitalia]

damm
I guess that I need an extra tool to put in my trunk .....after my DELTA 2 (avoiding a flat dead batt...)

I need a cable cutter for the EV charging station

in case the plug get stock in the car




PS I hope I'll never experience that

 

[thecoloradokid]

I think it may be a Rivian thing since I have seen other information online about the Rivian's wonky thermal management system.

On a lighter note, I had the best charging experience ever this past Saturday on my drive from Denver to Santa Fe. 68kwH in 20 minutes. When Electrify America works as designed it is incredible.

 

[Archimedes]

It ‘exploded’? Don’t see any fire residue or outward signs of damage.

 

[DerekS]

It ‘exploded’? Don’t see any fire residue or outward signs of damage.

The OP described it as a large boom. He posted pics of the affected charge cabinet - no outward signs of damage but he reported the smell.

 

[simcity]

Good lawd, some of the comments....??

 

[DerekS]

Good lawd, some of the comments....??

I know, the Elon-stans are out in full force. Admittedly they are right; Tesla has done a much better job with DC charging.

That said I'd rather have a better car than better DC. I've used DC charging only twice since I got the GTS, and both times it was just to test it out.

 

[ThePaddyWan]

I'll be good to see what the root cause of the issue is. EA does get a bad rap, but, I wonder if it's something Rivian related or just a defect specific to the charger or car.

 

[Archimedes]

The OP described it as a large boom. He posted pics of the affected charge cabinet - no outward signs of damage but he reported the smell.

It didn’t explode. Probably blew a fuse/breaker. Nothing more. And no way to tell if it was caused by the vehicle or the charger.

 

[XLR82XS]

It didn’t explode. Probably blew a fuse/breaker. Nothing more. And no way to tell if it was caused by the vehicle or the charger.

Drama queens......

 

[DerekS]

It didn’t explode. Probably blew a fuse/breaker. Nothing more. And no way to tell if it was caused by the vehicle or the charger.

Fair enough. It made a loud bang noise, stopped working, and apparently welded the connector to the car. But the term "explode" is hyperbolic and not necessarily accurate here.

Agreed that there's no way to determine fault at this time.

 

[fullmetalbaal]

If it really did weld the connector to the car, that's bad enough IMHO.
The damage to the car is real. Presumably this is also far enough from a "controlled/intended" behavior that there's non zero risk to anybody close to it.

If that bricks your Taycan, and you then get to spend hours getting home, hours on the phone with Porsche and insurance, and then weeks waiting for new battery pack/electronics etc...
whether or not that can be called an explosion or not ... that's still F*ing annoying.

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