dnanian
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- David
- Joined
- May 18, 2020
- Threads
- 19
- Messages
- 322
- Reaction score
- 240
- Location
- Massachusetts
- Vehicles
- Taycan, Tesla Model S, BMW i3
- Thread starter
- #1
Just took my first long roadtrip from home near Boston up to Ogunquit, ME - then to Portland and then back home. I figured I'd see how the range estimate was, and how much more than the obviously ridiculous EPA rating I could achive.
Good things first: I made this drive without any problem, going mostly at the speed limit (which is 70 in ME) , 244 miles according to the trip-o-meter, with 54 miles left according to the guess-o-meter.
That seems about right, and was a mix of highway, city and rural driving. I think that's more than I ever achieved with my Tesla Model S P85.
But now the bad part: Electrify America.
There are only two EA chargers anywhere near this route. One is in Scarborough, ME, and the other is in Seabrook, NH.
Even though I had enough charge to get home, I figured I would give the EA charger a try, just to see how it worked.
First off, one of the four chargers (each with two cables) was dead, and it was oen of the 350kW units.
I tried the other 350kW unit first. It failed four times with error 85005 (as I recall). I called EA at that point, and they said it was a "communication problem" and reset the charger, but that didn't work. So, we tried charger #4, which was a 150kW charger.
Moved the car and tried that. Error again, 85005. Tried a few more times. Same thing.
Moved to the next charger - another 150kW. That one had a cable that was replaced wrong, and due to recent rain was full of water. Trying that gave error -1. Three times.
Finally tried the other lead on the 350kW charger that we started with. Same error - 85005.
So, four chargers, seven cables (one was CHADemo), three "working". Total of five potential charges, no success.
Had I arrived with a 5% charge, it would have meant a tow.
Now, I have no idea if the problem was my car or EA. This was my first DC fast charge attempt. But you'd think a new car wouldn't have a basic problem like that.
I know it's early days, but without a viable fast charge network, it's hard to see how EA and their partners - including the whole VW group - can possibly succeed. For me, this was a mild annoyance due to the wasted time. But what if I had needed the power?
Good things first: I made this drive without any problem, going mostly at the speed limit (which is 70 in ME) , 244 miles according to the trip-o-meter, with 54 miles left according to the guess-o-meter.
That seems about right, and was a mix of highway, city and rural driving. I think that's more than I ever achieved with my Tesla Model S P85.
But now the bad part: Electrify America.
There are only two EA chargers anywhere near this route. One is in Scarborough, ME, and the other is in Seabrook, NH.
Even though I had enough charge to get home, I figured I would give the EA charger a try, just to see how it worked.
First off, one of the four chargers (each with two cables) was dead, and it was oen of the 350kW units.
I tried the other 350kW unit first. It failed four times with error 85005 (as I recall). I called EA at that point, and they said it was a "communication problem" and reset the charger, but that didn't work. So, we tried charger #4, which was a 150kW charger.
Moved the car and tried that. Error again, 85005. Tried a few more times. Same thing.
Moved to the next charger - another 150kW. That one had a cable that was replaced wrong, and due to recent rain was full of water. Trying that gave error -1. Three times.
Finally tried the other lead on the 350kW charger that we started with. Same error - 85005.
So, four chargers, seven cables (one was CHADemo), three "working". Total of five potential charges, no success.
Had I arrived with a 5% charge, it would have meant a tow.
Now, I have no idea if the problem was my car or EA. This was my first DC fast charge attempt. But you'd think a new car wouldn't have a basic problem like that.
I know it's early days, but without a viable fast charge network, it's hard to see how EA and their partners - including the whole VW group - can possibly succeed. For me, this was a mild annoyance due to the wasted time. But what if I had needed the power?
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