Charging Woes

Shrink Proof said:

I've no idea about a North/South divide as far as charger maintainence goes, but there's definitely one for charger installation.

"According to Office of National Statistics and Zap-Map data, there are 390 chargers per
100,000 people in Westminster – the highest rate in the UK. There may be an argument
that more chargers are needed due to car traffic. However, this does not correlate with
separate ONS stats on miles driven by region. This data shows there is an EV charger for
every 500,000 vehicle miles driven in Westminster. The UK average is one EV charging
point per 14.8 million miles driven, while in Greater Manchester, the figure is 30 million."

That's a quote from this report, compiled last year from a Freedom of Information request. It's worth 5 minutes of your time having a read to see what's really happening.

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Please explain how you comment relates to my post.

It would be nice if you had the decency to actually read my comment and not try and discredit me with some text taken out of context from a report written by a company with skin in the game.

I specifically stated 'rapid chargers' & your quote obviously includes ALL types of chargers with no mention of the charger type.
I specifically stated the boundry of my observation which did NOT include London, but you felt the need to try and prove a point, why?

That report is of no use in your argument:
1) The report only relates to councils in the UK of government funded installations with no private company funded charger installations.
2) As the report only relates to UK council EV charger installations, it is likely that very few of these are rapid chargers, but who knows because there is no actual reference data provided.
3) Only 60% of councils responded, but no mention of which 60%, so this report is seriously flawed in proving any North/South divide statistics.

BTW - It was a waste of my time reading that report, it seems as though you have some relation to it, otherwise why you quote it?
I think you should have read the first page to understand it's aims.

MikeBo said:

It would be nice if you had the decency to actually read my comment and not try and discredit me with some text taken out of context from a report written by a company with skin in the game.

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Of course I read your comment. That's why I replied to it.

Despite what you appear to assume, I have no connection with the report. I quoted it as it highlights a variety of regional inconsistencies in EV provision. Which is what you were complaining about.

You needn't worry about me trying to discredit you, as you put it.

I’ve never had a problem on my long trips…. Until the last one weekend away started fully charged. Got to destination on about 35% (160 miles) competing that day then drove to accommodation) and then for food putting me down into the 20s. Next day went to Morrisons in morning plugged in clicked start. Did a shop. Back to car. And car has failed to charge.
Head to comp on even lower charge. But think I’ll run to the bp pulse at lunch. Head to bp pulse. 1 of 4 in use. Other 3 all instantly say charge complete. Charge me the minimum rate add no charge. Lots of time wasted. Head back to Morrisons. Manage to get 15 kw in before I need to go back to compete. Think I’ll stop in services. 1st services 10 car Que. next services only a bit further so head on. Next services no charger at all (I know I should of checked app). Now getting low and look on app nearest charger is a couple miles within range but we’ll off route. Made it to Tesco slow charger on 3% and had to sit there for couple hours to get enough range to make it home.

Stuart Priest said:

Last weekend we did our first long distance trip from Yorkshire to Essex and back and we discovered that fast charging in the area we stayed was really poor (though it looked ok on zap map) - we discovered that all the fast chargers had two painted bays but they only allowed one car to charge at a time! We got down to 3% before we found a free one!
We now know that charging on the way down and way back at motorway services is the way to go! Has anyone got any other hints for newbies?
Ta!

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As I mentioned elsewhere when on a long trip I aim if possible to do a rapid fill close to my journey end before I get there, say 20 or 30 miles away. By doing this I have around 70% to play with on arrival therefore avoiding the need to run around looking for a charger straight away, and if not using the car much whilst there a good start for the next journey.

Gomev said:

You seem to have had a bad experience, don't let it put you off. Your next long trip and stay away will probably be completely different.
My first long trip was from Leeds was to North Norfolk and I overplanned worrying like mad, especially as I had the Gen1 ZS EV with only a real range of about 140 miles and everyone said, and it was true that Norfolk was a charger desert. As it turned out I managed quite easily by charging whenever I could, more times than I actually needed to and only got really low once.
I have since done long trips and stays covering N. Wales, midlands, London, south coast twice (Brighton and Southampton) all without concern planning the journey to stop and make sure I have a highish SOC on arrival at destination, (opposite of what most app planners work to) which gives me time to find local chargers.

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North Norfolk is not quite a desert, i was there in my car when there was queuing for petrol last year. I did most of my traveling in EV with charging at my destination to get back to where I was staying. There are plenty of chargers and now Gridserve have open a 32 charger station out side Norwich you have a good choice.

Gomev said:

when on a long trip I aim if possible to do a rapid fill close to my journey end before I get there, say 20 or 30 miles away.

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I do similar if not staying overnight, but if doing so I choose to find Fast AC charging near to where I stay or even if paying for accommodation only selecting one with associated charging.

Another near failure! I had a free charge with Bonnet and so made my way, (12 miles), to the nearest charger under their umbrella, an Osprey.
Four attempts failed plus one not through the app. It connected and started once for about 30 seconds then stopped.
Rang Osprey. Very nice lady could see my car connected and tried all sorts of things to initiate the charge with no joy.
After coming off the phone I couldn’t get the plug out of the car. Unlocked, locked and unlocked the car, (which has worked before), but not this time.
Hit the emergency stop button on the charger and voila! Charger disconnected from the car.
Waited a few minutes for the charger to reset and had one more try through the Bonnet app. Charge started immediately!
Got a good 40 minute charge but it had taken me the same length of time to get the connection.
Things can only get better!!

Jto said:

North Norfolk is not quite a desert, i was there in my car when there was queuing for petrol last year. I did most of my traveling in EV with charging at my destination to get back to where I was staying. There are plenty of chargers and now Gridserve have open a 32 charger station out side Norwich you have a good choice.

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That Gridserve hub is great, I'll never get to use it, 'cos it's only 5 miles from home, but it looks fantastic

BruceT said:

That Gridserve hub is great, I'll never get to use it, 'cos it's only 5 miles from home, but it looks fantastic

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I been thinking at get a MG4 now that It about same distance from my partner sister home but still plenty of places to charge.

Does anyone use Zap-Map Premium? What are the benefits and costs?

DK1083 said:

Does anyone use Zap-Map Premium? What are the benefits and costs?

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BruceT said:

Compare Zapmap plans

Zapmap helps electric car drivers search for EV chargers, plan journeys & pay for charging. See the different benefits & features of the free Zapmap app and Zapmap Premium outlined here.

www.zap-map.com

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Thank you.
I’m assuming then that if I go for Plus or Premium I can connect my iPhone to the car and then have a route map on my infotainment screen which will also show charge points along my route?
The MG5 sat nave requires the charge point to be the destination rather than have it as a point of interest on the route.

DK1083 said:

Thank you.

I’m assuming then that if I go for Plus or Premium I can connect my iPhone to the car and then have a route map on my infotainment screen which will also show charge points along my route?
The MG5 sat nave requires the charge point to be the destination rather than have it as a point of interest on the route.

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I've had the in car sat nav on and waze running on android auto, the speed limit warning on the in car sat nav warn me of the speed limit.
Its set to warn as soon as i go 1mph over.
So I'm guessing both will run at the same time- audibly at least.

DK1083 said:

Thank you.

I’m assuming then that if I go for Plus or Premium I can connect my iPhone to the car and then have a route map on my infotainment screen which will also show charge points along my route?
The MG5 sat nave requires the charge point to be the destination rather than have it as a point of interest on the route.

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You'll need the premium one to use it on your infotainment system, connected with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto. I don't know how well it works, On my old zs mod1 it was terrible. I have't tried it on the new car

BruceT said:

You'll need the premium one to use it on your infotainment system, connected with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto. I don't know how well it works, On my old zs mod1 it was terrible. I have't tried it on the new car

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I do think you can get a free trial, for, maybe 30 days, give it a go, nothing to lose, right?

DK1083 said:

Just completed our first longish trip in our MG5 Exclusive. Around 400 miles in total from Gloucestershire to Sussex.
Found the charging infrastructure woefully lacking. Very few rapid chargers actually working but plenty of 7.4kwh which were but of little use when on a long journey.
One rapid we found that was working, an InstaVolt was 66pkwh and I worked out that the cost was very nearly the same as it would have been to put the same amount of range on my old ICE diesel..!
I did have a free Bonnet charge that I tried to take advantage of but the only charger I found under their umbrella was an Osprey and you guessed it - it wasn’t working!
Thinking of going back to ICE for long journeys and the EV for local trips for which I can charge at home!
Things can only get better!

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I absolutely agree with @shaunuk, make the charging part of the trip rather than a chore to be done.

One other thing, in my opinion only. You said "we" were going on a trip, so you have a wife/significant other in the car, Are they interested in the whole EV lifestyle? we are still a bit niche. If they are interested get them involved in the planning, so much easier using the maps and route planner when you are passengering. Personally, my wife doesn't give a toss, doesn't help and doesn't even know how it all works.

BruceT said:

I absolutely agree with @shaunuk, make the charging part of the trip rather than a chore to be done.

One other thing, in my opinion only. You said "we" were going on a trip, so you have a wife/significant other in the car, Are they interested in the whole EV lifestyle? we are still a bit niche. If they are interested get them involved in the planning, so much easier using the maps and route planner when you are passengering. Personally, my wife doesn't give a toss, doesn't help and doesn't even know how it all works.

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I try to make charging part of the trip/opportunity for a break etc but when you get there and find the charger isn’t working it’s very frustrating and like yours. my wife would rather be in her ICE!

BruceT said:

Are they interested in the whole EV lifestyle? we are still a bit niche.

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BruceT said:

Personally, my wife doesn't give a toss, doesn't help and doesn't even know how it all works.

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DK1083 said:

my wife would rather be in her ICE!

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I admire your persistence and fortitude. Personally I'd let them choose whether to do the driving in their car rather than forcing them to let you take the BEV lifestyle route. They might then see it as the lesser of two evils.

DK1083 said:

Thank you.
I’m assuming then that if I go for Plus or Premium I can connect my iPhone to the car and then have a route map on my infotainment screen which will also show charge points along my route?
The MG5 sat nave requires the charge point to be the destination rather than have it as a point of interest on the route.

Click to expand...

Just use Zapmap to find the charger you want to aim for then use whatever satnav you prefer to use to get there.
You can use Google maps or Waze on your infotainment screen via your phone and Android Auto without having to pay a premium. (I think Zapmap switches you to Google maps anyway for the satnav bit, it just passes a destination to it.)
In my opinion why try to complicate things, treat the charger as the destination and get to it how you would normally get anywhere. Phone Satnavs are far far superior to the built in satnav as they have live updates, (without paying a premium) which could save you hours stuck in a jam.

PS and don't aim for a solitary charger look for a 'hotspot area' where there are options or a hub with many chargers, aim to charge before you need to, in other words leave some in the tank just in case. Completing a trip with an EV doesn't need to be difficult, even with broken chargers, unless we make it so ourselves.

Charger reliability is a crucial issue, I am sure that Zap Map et al could easily produce a league table of chargers working/or not over a period of say a month, and 'name and shame' the networks that are providing a poor service, the adverse publicity, thinking Shell/BP, might shame them into upping their game/maintenance?