A Spooky Early Morning Charge Sparks Change For The Better
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 12 ม.ค. 2023
- This video is a rollercoaster! From excitement, to disappointment, to a more hopeful future.
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#ev #charging #dcfc - ยานยนต์และพาหนะ
It would be cool if you had an IR camera to show how the cables warm up when you charge. Just a thought.
Amazon sells them for your phone. Android or Apple. $300+ but they might work well for what your request is. I like the request. Would be interesting to see the cables in IR.
Awesome idea
07:00 , your friend Brandon? Let’s Go Brandon!!!
That would be very cool
It would be cool if he had a camera that didn't distract him while driving in fog. Just a thought.
Kyle: Mentions needing a flashlight multiple times
Rivian door flashlight: Bruh 🤷♂️
Great comment, and true.
LOL your right!!! totally forgot the 7777 battery hehe
YES … he must have been kicking himself when he finally remembered it … : )
Foggy morning. Foggy morning brain. : )
And he even got his little Starbucks fru fru drink before this for caffeine. 🤷🏻♂🤷🏻♂🤦🏻♂🤦🏻♂
This comment is epic and deserved to be pinned !
Kyle, those of us in the ev community owe you so much for all the work you do in assessing the state of chargers across this country. So much taking federal funding and dropping the ball on quality and consistency of service. You are a real treasure to us all! Thanks so much. You teach us so much 👍✌️🚘🔌❤
I don’t think any of the chargers until very recently received any federal funding.
None of the public chargers that are currently deployed have received Federal funding under NEVI.
Im afraid to ask, but I don't think Kyle ever sleeps 😂 He is way too happy making videos late at night/early morning 😎 Can't complain!
Fr.. Some of his videos he is up til 3-4am and now he is wake at 5am
Mostly at night...seldom daytime, and then stopping where there is Starbucks, food, shopping, etc. Interested in 50-70% charges...get another 50-80 miles...look for another charge station...
Good videos, explanations, but short on precise details, like 1) exact number of stops during day, 2) exact time in hr/min setting at charger, 3) exact miles gained for the time spent on charger, etc.
Yes, most of those details can be fleshed-out of the videos, but that requires some time reading between the lines.
Yes, He is HONEST in presenting his perception of quality of service, hardware, software, accessories required, etc.
EV Summary:
Not yet ready for prime time.
Insomniac 😵💫😘
You’re doing awesome stuff! Thanks for helping highlight some of the recent issues!
Your rating of 4 is very generous. From a safety standpoint alone, my wife would never visit these unlit sites. Thanks for the review
Never? What about at noon?
He brought it down to 3 but I say 1.
it is sitting right in front of a fire station yes it need a light
This is the future battle ground for charging. Prime, safe, charging sites. Sounded like mercedes is making this a prime focus.
I wouldn't say it's unsafe unless I was irrationally afraid of the dark. This site is adjacent to a fire station that's staffed 24/7.
In the netherlands we had this phase where everything was garbage as well. (Except we had 50kw chargers, so everything took even longer...) Hopefully they sort it out over there as well. In the mean time: Good Luck.
We now have fast charging at almost every freeway gas station/rest stop, so if the charger doesnt work, you just drive 10 min to the next one. Sometimes there are even multiple CPO's at the same rest stop, because the large CPO's are installing stations and some of the existing gas stations now offer charging as well. I think most densely populated areas of the US will be at that point in a few years as well, so let's hope for the best.
By the way: Great that they listened and decided to put in a canopy. I have charged in the rain and even a basic roof makes a massive difference.
Your entire comment shows why the USA (the country I have lived and served all my life) is the furthest behind in innovation compared to the rest of the modern world. A sad time in history for the USA.
Wow, I love where this channel is going. Infrastructure and improving the development how EV's will be supported and how people will be using them is a big deal. Thanks for the video Kyle. Was hoping that meant a new charging network was going in, but does not sound like it. Lighting, covered parking is a big deal. Granted this sounds like a low traffic site, but come on, whoever is putting these in does not envision actually using it themselves. Sounds like Excel is listening. I hope they do it and make the site useful. Please do a follow up review.
Another dark, in the back, hard to find and uncovered charger that is mis-labeled. Yes: We need call the charging networks out for this type of thing. Also, drive through is really needed for different cars and when towing.
Kyle - Thank you for your dedication and thoroughness in testing the current state of EV charging infrastructure. We're all indebted to you!
Great video Kyle. Glad to see the responses from the Xcel. Would be nice if operators engaged with EV owners more during design and launch of new locations.
I believe you have to open the shell recharge app and use the qr code scanner through the app, not just a regular QR code scanner.
Maybe the GAO should do an audit on installed chargers from companies that receive government subsidies to see if they meet the minimum power and reliability requirements?
You used the app to scan the QR code and it enters the station number. It actually works quite well.
Xcel energy screwing something up from day one, what a surprise. As always, you are the voice of common sense on a dark morning. Thank you.
Lighting is a must. One 20' tall flood light would make a world of difference.
Kyle drives down a dark and lonely road, rolling fog enveloping his Rivian as he drifts into a small clearing on the last few watt-hours he had left, coming to a stop in front of a dingy charger, barely lit and sounds of arcing in the background. He gets out, sizes up the charger, and nervously reaches out to lift out the plug, but it is frozen fast to the charger. As he considers what to do next, he hears a raspy voice from behind him: "Hey, buddy! Looking for a charge?" Kyle whirls around to see an unshaven man in a black trench coat standing there, the rest of his face obscured by a wide-brimmed hat pulled down low over his eyes. "I've got a great deal on kilowatt-hours for you... they're legit! They just spilled off the back of a Hummer EV out on the highway!" Kyle looks around hoping someone else will show up, but there's no other sign of life in sight. Even the ghosts don't want to come anywhere near here. The man continues: "Nah, really, I've even got any connector you need!" Just then he whips open his trench coat revealing every connector he's ever seen... plain J1772, CCS, Chademo, Tesla, the old contactless EV1 induction bar... and worrisomely even a pair of alligator clips! As Kyle took this all in, he further saw that the man had a huge belt made of 42120 lithium cells, as well as crossed straps of the cells over his shoulders, like machine gun ammunition.
"Where else are you going to get a charge for your truck on a night like this? From THAT thing?" the man sneered, motioning toward the frozen charger. Kyle couldn't seem to get words to come out of his mouth as he tried to think of what to do... until...
Kyle woke up. He sat bolt upright in his bed, looking around his room in a cold sweat... "That's it! No more going out to do reviews at 4:00 AM!" he yelled to himself, and flopped back into bed, jamming the pillow over his head, and went back to sleep.
😄 Thanks for the spooky morning vids, Kyle, and have a happy weekend! 😁
We have a number of Shell Recharge locations in our state. I can tell you they are NOT well maintained. We have a Shell Recharge location a couple miles away. Two chargers and one has been down rated from its 150 KW speed to roughly 30 KW for 12 months.
Another location is a never ending problem with maybe one pedestal usually working, currently none are working. A third location with 6 pedestals usually has at least one down rated and 2 not working.
SHELL is constantly being sent requests to fix their problems, and they never get fixed.
I wonder why this is so hard? They made every mistake with this site.
I agree, the fact that 200 amp chargers are technically NEVI compliant blows my mind. I would want to at the absolute least use the 300 amp cables FreeWire uses (edit: with the boost above 370 amps).
It's amazing how you'd need a GPS, credit card, a flashlight, just to have a sub-tastic experience.
I'm glad some people are listening, but they have a long way to go.
I don’t have a charger at home yet so I’ve been relying on a Shell Recharge station run by Seattle. It’s only 50kw, but it’s been the most reliable and rock solid charger, 50kw from start to 85%. More city run chargers, even at 50kw, would be amazing for folks that don’t have at home charging.
Agree. A pair of 50kw+ chargers in every shopping area of towns/cities would be great for those w/o home charging and would nearly eliminate the range anxiety when trying to hop 150 miles between true fast charging stops. I currently overcharge so that I can skip a charger if necessary because the reliability is so poor. So I'm regularly leaving 50-80mi of range on the table.
Well, if they're going to be doing construction on the site to put in lights and canopy, then yeah, take the site offline while the construction is in process. Safer for everyone. But especially if they only just announced it was open. It's not like anyone could have come to depend on it yet. So even more reason to just delay the grand opening. "Oops. We made a mistake. We're fixing it." Awesome response! And then when it's all fixed and reopened you can visit it again and compare. More content. Win win.
Thanks Kyle! Keep testing chargers! This is the only way to improve the charging experience.
Awesome Kyle. You are the hardest worker in the EV Charging field, and doing great things. Keep it up.
Love these charger videos.
Glad to see you exposing the good the bad and the ugly. Nice job. Nice that they are making changes,hope they swap cables as well.
thanks for the honest "charge talk" kyle. For lightning owner it is confirmation that my truck best use is just what i bought it for (about 70-80 mile circle) and charging will be crap here in S Dakota long after my cyber truck reservation is filled. thanks again for some honest charge- talk!
They could temporary sign to help and note the 'new and temporary' nature of the facility. But leaving it online does add some functionality. It is great they got back with you so quickly, so there is hope! It also sounds like they may take it to heart for future installations!
There is nothing wrong in not getting it right, it is wrong if once brought to your attention not fixing it. Glad they are listening!
Your comment almost perfectly parallels the comment that I just made. 🙂
What if there was a well lighted, covered place where you could just pull up and stick your credit card in the machine and charge? And they could have a store with food and bathrooms. Nah, ridiculous! That would never work.
Thank you for testing the new charging infrastructure.
I want to ask about your R1T. Some TH-camrs have talked about the Vampire battery drain on the Rivian (Alex on Auto). He specifically said the Rivian’s drain was very high(much higher than the Ford lightening) even in transport or storage mode. Have you experienced similar drain with yours?
You do need to get out east of Denver, and south, sometime because there are people who own and drive EV’s in eastern Colorado, western Kansas, Oklahome, northeast New Mexico, and the panhandles. Get away from the Interstates and all the Electrify America and Supercharger locations and see what it’s like for regular folks on US and State highways. Since this is the “Year of the Charger” your reporting on charging infrastructure in these areas would be greatly helpful and eye-opening, I guarantee you.
So do we anticipate places like a fancy oil change and detailing shop? Maybe combining valet charging and battery conditioning with light shopping and a burrito bar coffee shop in addition to a wash and wax and vac?
Shell already has them setup this way in the UK.
Shell has installed these units at their gas stations in Ontario, which makes more sense than a back lot.
We want amenities! They should be installed in the same fashion as gas pumps.
You're a trooper Kile! Thanks for unpicking the EV charging maze, even at 5 in the morning throuugh literal fog.
Kyle, you have a future as a TV anchorman, if you so choose. You give off a positive vibe, you're articulate, with a clear and constant delivery.....all without the benefit of scripting. That you can do all this at 4AM is particularly impressive. Good stuff!
If only anchors would have those characteristics!
I greatly appreciate these videos.
I don't have an EV just yet but it's helping me understand a lot more.
I've found Shell/Greenlots to be so-so overall. The DCFC I used was a Tritium unit and between it and the app it was incredibly clunky to get it started. One of the two units was out of service and had been for a while. Still, it actually worked whereas I've never gotten any Electrify America station to work using the app despite many tries over many months.
All that said, some charging in areas that previously had nothing is still better than no charging.
The cables “fix” the load balancing software issue. Working as intended. Lol😅
Thank you. Awesome work 👏
I’d say taking the charger offline is the right thing t do. Get it right first, so that customers have the best experience possible.
Edit to add: Thanks for doing this. Putting this out obviously gets results and there are so many new EV owners that don’t have your reach or level of knowledge. I love to see these videos.
I disagree. A canopy isn’t a quick fix, it’ll take months before they install a canopy. So a working charger goes offline because it’s dark. What about during the day? Make it known on PlugShare and let users make the decision.
Kyle: “Utility doesn’t have to charge themselves demand charges” - Not really, the utility still has to pay their costs for demand. They save their profit margin, but that is all. Utility profit margins are regulated, so only about 10% or so. It seems that only large industrial customers really understand demand charges, why they are necessary, and how they can use them to lower their overall utility bill. By paying for demand separate from the energy charge, the cost of energy is much lower. Customers can work to shape their demand to keep total costs low. Hard to do for EV fast chargers with low utilization, but this will improve as the EV fleet grows. If EV charge networks are not incentivized to minimize their demand, total costs would skyrocket as utilities have to install new substations, distribution feeders, and even transmission lines and peak generation.
Demand is using electricity at times of heavy use requiring more costly infrastructure. At 5am they should lower cost.
Great work, Kyle.
We need a channel like this in the UK.
This belongs on this channel, always welcome to see charger reviews!
Infrastructure is as import as the cars themselves, so please keep doing these reviews.
I drove my E-transit about 50 miles to repair my first Shell Recharge (Tritium) in KY last week. Grabbed about 40 kwh from it before heading back home in freezing weather.
That QR code only works in their app!
love the testing of chargers content
Great charging site review theme overall and approach on this video. Mainstream people won't put up with this and need a safe space to charge with lighting, rain protection, simple user experience, and increased charging speed. Keep it up!
I think a lot of charging providers have the attitude that you need the electricity and they have it so you will be desperate enough to put up with underperforming or broken equipment. Service levels won't rise until there is competition which is a long way off. My family has put off our purchase of our first EV base on all the tomfoolery the dealerships are playing in and the immense problems with the charging network.
If you need a charge it's nice to find one working ! It's better than a TOW. Especially if you are from out of town. Tx for your Vid's.
Glad to hear they reached out to you and took your suggestions
I have to add a BIG thank you to these comments! My model Y has a whopping 2800 miles and is two years old. I have been getting buy with supper charging ,there is one less than 3 miles away, and home charging so far. I just got a ccs adapter. Why do we need a different app for each charging network? Why do we need an app at all? I used to drive up to the pump, swipe my credit card, and "fill er up". Thanks again for the 6 am tour!
Excellent video. I'm glad that providers are following you and seem to be responding to your concerns.
Thanks very much for the update at the end of the video. It's a hard call as to keeping this new charge point on line or take it off line until site upgrades are made. I lean slightly toward keeping it on line with a sign on site stating that upgrades are coming soon - only if these site upgrades really are coming soon. It would be better to have the charging available should someone really need it.
WHY?? is any of this so complicated compared to using a gas pump?? ... why can't people just shove a credit card in, then plug the charge cable and be DONE?? Downloading apps, using your phone, guessing configurations and hoping all this software crap works... absurd.
Agree. Circle K has done that in Denmark. It’s the way to go.
Glad it worked for you. Greenlots worked great, once Shell took over, not so much. The app has never worked for me, hope they have fixed that in the past months as I could use it out west when visiting. Thanks for posting this.
Really glad you are focusing this year on the charger and infrastructure, and hope others amplify that focus. I’m a current Tesla owner, but am a Rivian R1S pre-order (2024 window). My biggest hesitation is not having Tesla Supercharger Network if I switch to Rivian and CCS. It’s no longer range anxiety at the vehicle level… it’s all about can I road-trip and find fast charging and will chargers be online at all, and being stranded (I think the other concern about crowding and wait times is hitting Tesla and all networks)
The charging companies are an embarrassment but act like every other business. They are doing what they can get away with. We need to demand more. Thanks for the work.
That's probably the coolest thumbnail I've ever seen
Big fan of your channel and congratulations on the shout out from Sandy Munro live.
If Kyle has trouble with it what chance does a mere mortal have!
Shell Recharge also appears to be putting in a 1st location near me (OKC). The location is an AdsTec w/ChargeBox 140kWh battery storage. Very high quality feeling charging station.
Classic bureaucracy no-one actually knows what they are dong - but they do something, sadly not very good. Fantastic that you are able to shine a light on the issues. Hopefully in the near future things will improve.
Greetings from the uk. Shell recharge has a couple of chargers in my area and they also seem to have purchased Newmotion, who put in 44 fast chargers (11/22kW) across Southampton, about 5 years ago.
The recharge rapid charger at Chandlers Ford was offline for a long time. I still haven’t managed to use that one.
The newmotion units were often faulty . Some were free to use but that’s all stopped now. The university ones required a key fob to start the charge.
The one good thing to say about these units was that you get a monthly bill and paperwork that you could submit straight away for expenses - I did like that and that might have encouraged business users to be loyal… if only the units themselves were faster… keep up the good work.
So excited to move to Denver in a few months and explore around Colorado too, what a beautiful state, love it so much
While not a premium charging experience, I am thankful for utilities beginning to provide minimal charging, especially in areas that have been charging deserts. A similar Shell ReCharge unit has been installled in the mountains of Western NC (Franklin, NC) by the local municipality. The app indicates in that case that 400v cars will receive a reduced charge rate. I don't know if the reductions are for the same reason but it seems like a weird coincidence. This makes me ask....who is promoting this combo of charger and cable. Is this an ABB sales "bundle"? Is this somehow a Shell ReCharge arrangement? Or is this simply a typical case of government institutions cutting the wrong corners to keep install costs down? I wonder if there are other Shell ReCharge sites with this same arrangement? They certainly seem to be focused on this niche in the market.
Screwed you over on the cables- nope, they FLAT LIED and still get that gubmnt subsidy, handout, whatever. Claimed one thing, and the average EV owner isn't going to know your tremendous level of how they are being lied to. And no lights around, no safety at all. 4 out of 10, too generous. I'd say a 1 million dollar fine, for each charger not correctly labeled, each month until fixed. And I'd say YOU are the one to determine when it's right. Another great informative video from you. Thanks. I can see zero benefit being forced to electric. Oops, ya dropped it to 3 out if 10- very good. And as I watch more, they reached out to you. Remarkable. YOU accomplished this change. I'm grinning, congratulations and hope you'll visit this if they actually fix it.
great job. most of the time people are not aware of the mistakes they make, so somebody has to show them. Great people do dare to say they made a mistake, that's the positive news. Only from mistakes we can learn.
Thanks for being "out there" for all EV drivers. You're more knowledgeable than the the average EV driver is (or even should need to be!) and that makes you credible to EV Charger operators. So, again -- thanks for being our trailblazer! 👍
You're pretty lucky to live where you do. Shell shut down most greenlots sites in MN completely after they buyout and hasn't really added much new. the state of DCFC in MN is pretty abysmal.
Kyle it's not boring , I'm learning through you how to charge a car with different machines thanks , great channel 👍
If you’re looking for a fun way to drive the new LEAF E+, go in eco mode and mash the throttle at 30-40mph hitting kick down.
As EVs become more common, it seems like the charging experience needs to be closer to a gas pump - drive in, swipe a card, and plug in. The difference would be that, because of charging time, charging would be better located near food or shopping, not just a convenience store like gas stations have. (And definitely not in the back of a dark parking lot)
Tesla Superchargers for win.
You don't even have to thought about anything. Go plugin and in 20 minutes you are good to go.
It seems strange to me that one of the first "Shell" recharge stations in the country should be set up in a random parking lot rather than at an actual "Shell" station. I suppose that it could be because the station is co-sponsored by Ecel energy. As you mentioned, it does help when a Utility takes an interest setting up EV charging stations, I just wish that more service station chains would also take more of an interest in EV charging. Any chance you may come back to this location to test to see if this Xcel station is indeed capable of simultaneous vehicle charging?
Shell Recharge is a large OCPP backend provider. This station is not owned or operated by them. They are the payment processor, basically, a credit card reader at a self-service gas station, VISA.
In your future I see a showroom, a resale lot, an accessories store, a carwash and an owners club. Add Supercharging, road service, tire sales and rentals. Oh, and a Starbucks counter.
Additionally--Well done Kyle! You have a much better variety of chargers in your area than we do in CA. At least in our area only EA units are the only ones over 50Kw. Good review & critique of this location.
In Denville, NJ, there is a four-dispenser EA station not a quarter mile off I-80. It is behind the Walgreens, by a Starbucks, multiple restaurants, hair salons, etc. etc. You point about locating by retail is well taken.
Great job keep up the pressure
Great review Kyle. Companies need to do much better and I hope they're paying attention to this,
You are doing such an important work there, Kyle. Kudos to you
One thing I LOVE about my polestar is it tells you the volts and amps it's getting both on AC and DC, it's amazing. If only the rest of the car would be that expert friendly, all in all I do love the car tho
My wife would never go to a place like this at night without lighting. Excellent video Kyle. You are one brave guy, the cold, darkness and remoteness of that location.
As a woman that works in sketchy neighborhood far from my house, sometimes I need a charge. It would be great to have a level 3 charger in that area. There are only level 2, and I don't want to hang out at a creepy park with no one but the drug dealers. A fire station would be much preferred.
love the review on the charger, don't let up on the big companies.
Great review showing all the problems with public charging stations.
Great headlights on this Rivian!
Hi, Love your video's. You are the reason why I am getting on EV. It was the correct decision to take the station off line. If a new EV owner got stuck there that would not have been good.
I like the way you're starting to get after the DCFC networks and letting them know that the current situation is completely unacceptable. As for Shell Recharge, I've had three experiences with them since September here in Florida along US 19, All were 50 kW, which is OK for my Bolt EUV.
The one closest to us is 15 cents/kWh. And it worked fine when I tested it just to get set up and see how it worked. (Actually there were two of them on the site, but I only tried one.) The next one I tried was up in Chiefland, FL on the way to Michigan. Their app and Plugshare both said both chargers worked. Had they worked, they would have been 35 cent/kWh. They did not work. I called their tech support and he told me there were service tickets on both of them but he assured me that both units up in Perry worked. It would have saved a lot of time if the app was accurate. I wasted over 40 minutes trying to get them to connect and waiting on hold for support. We went on up to Perry where there were two more Shell Recharge units. The one I used was flawless and is 15 cents/kWh.
The only issues I had were the obvious one where neither one worked and also that first charge as I set up the app and figured out what the steps were and the sequence for getting electrons into my battery. I haven't had any need for DCFC since then since charging at home on solar is almost free. Getting the itch for another road trip, but I think I'll wait for better weather and better charging.
Again, great job on the videos. You obviously love your job.
This (snafu DCFC sites) _is_ the expectation.
I just visited 3 EVgo sites in Silicon Valley. All advertised as 200kW (by EVgo and on the Rivian Nav.)
All were variously 50kW units.
One unit was label 150kW and it might be. But for a 400V R1T, it was 80kW.
Effectively 30% of optimal … tripling the charge time …
I had driven past a known 350kW EA site to eke out the last 50 miles before charging.
This left insufficient range to get to the next EA site. So I "hopped" 10 miles at a time between the EVgo sites.
The hope was to find one doing better than 50kW.
The 80kW was still an expensive waste of time. I sat there, delayed a total of an hour, still needing to charge!
All I could do was sit and "trickle charge" till the R1T had range to get to the EA charger and then resume my trip.
AAAArrrghhh!!!
Love the Rivian, loathe the network.
Tesla is clearly embattled on all fronts right now, but it has its network and that makes the Models 3 and Y the superior EVs.
If only the government was spending billions on actually installing 350kW pedestals …
The "bi-partisan infrastructure bill" is a cash windfall for corporations to take years (already 2+ years) and get nothing done.
Meanwhile, Tesla is building a 1kV 1MW network and vehicles … that's what I think we should be able to expect for 2023.
p.s. Rivian flashlight … : )
I'm glad to see a responsive charging provider, hope it is a sign they'll be looking at the bigger picture more. And it is good that they are following you, because constructive criticism has to be welcomed for them to improve. I'm near bleeding edge here in rural NC, as I have a Prius! Not a plug-in either. I'm getting far fewer weird looks, so progress is being made. I still don't think there is a public charger in the county. My friend who has a Tesla has an in-garage charger of his own.
Should they have pulled the charger offline? Yes, absolutely that is the right move. Kyle, you're probably more experienced than most drivers out there, and from your explanation, it sounded like this was a complete $%&@ show just to get the thing going. I'm glad they took your comments to heart, and are going to make the necessary improvements to make this charging station what it should have been in the first place. Thank you for bringing awareness of the situation, and improving future charging experiences for all of us. Because it's not just this one station that you had a direct hand in improving, other charge point operators may see this video and reassess their station plans. Thank you sir. 😊
Best car review channel on TH-cam love your videos man keep up the good work
Thank you Kyle! You're amazing! Shell is one of the Sharks entering the pool. Charging costs are going to skyrocket.
You seem to be up at all hours of the night making very helpful videos. Hopefully you get at least a few hours of sleep each night😊
One thing that I've seen for most of the dispensers, is that they are hardly ever covered with all the rain and snow you guys get one would think that would be a priority.
Hey Kyle. So I found your channel a few weeks ago and have been watching all your videos. I've always been fascinated with Tesla's as I have a very technological background, more so then 99.9% of people but always worried what a nightmare it would be for charging and battery range. I just rented a Model S Plaid with intentions now on either ordering or buying one a year old. Still not sure if I need to go the full Monty for my first EV or if I'll get one a few years old but I cannot tell you enough how great this channel is and how much it amped me up for buying an EV. Keep up the great work and thanks for all the content!
Plaid prices are dropping like a rock. A 21 can be had for less than $100k now. Even 22s are running close to $100k, a $40k drop in a year.
I think little places like this are really nice for local people, especially people who don't have chargers at home. If they have too many things near by a bunch of travelers will stop there. Just a thought.
Be glad it is only 42 cents for a kw hour. In Europe we have to pay double that amount for fastcharging
I've had amazing experiences on Shell Recharge units sponsored by NY Power Authority here in NYS.
There’s enough known about setting up a charging station to have a really good requirements doc for it. But it seems like many of them are just haphazardly done - off the top of someone’s head. Surprising that the dispenser vendors don’t seem to manage this since they often get the black eye. But then, the dispensers are still so bad in many cases - bad dispenser software, bad app, bad hardware, bad connectivity. And it seems like they all do at least something badly. Except Tesla - plug the car in and it charges - vertical integration solves many problems!
I am not an EV expert, but the cable is 1000 volt DC at 200A. That equates to 200 KW.
Google indicates Rivian is 400V so it would need a 450 amp cable and a charger capable of that voltage and current.
There have been some mumblings around here in southwest VA that Appalachian Power is going to start installing their own DC fast chargers. Hopefully the Executives will pay attention to the failing of others and actually install decent 150+ kW chargers although I have my doubts considering how much their demand prices are for end users.
Appalachian Power is the main reason my friend is going for the new V2 Freewire chargers instead of something like ChargePoint or Tritium units.