Ending Rapid Charge

[Nick W]

Hi

Apologies if this has been answered - I've searched the forum...

Just picked up an MG5 and I tried my first rapid charge. The Pulse charger wouldn't respond to the app so I phoned, and a very helpful lady said that there was a communication issue between the app back end and the charger network. She started the charge manually which was all good, except that I then couldn't end the charge via the app and couldn't find any way to end it from the car. I ended up phoning to ask them to end the charge remotely, but is there any way I could have done that from the car?

Many thanks

 

[AdamMGEV]

I guess if the car was locked then unlock the car which releases the charger. If it's unlocked then i guess lock the car and unlock it.

I'm pretty sure unlocking your car from a locked state pauses charge and releases the cable, has in my experience anyway.

 

[Petriix]

Sometimes the only option is the big red button.

 

[Nick W]

I guess if the car was locked then unlock the car which releases the charger. If it's unlocked then i guess lock the car and unlock it.

I'm pretty sure unlocking your car from a locked state pauses charge and releases the cable, has in my experience anyway.

I think that's what I tried, and what seems to work with AC charging. Next time I do a rapid charge I'll try that again.

 

[Nick W]

Sometimes the only option is the big red button.

Did cross my mind!

 

[Jake]

Sometimes the only option is the big red button.

That means the next user will need to phone the support line to get the unit re-booted. Much easier for everybody to phone BP as Nick did and get them to stop the charge. On the odd occasion I have had to phone BP to start the charger and then stop it there has been no cost for the kWh used.

 

[Petriix]

That means the next user will need to phone the support line to get the unit re-booted. Much easier for everybody to phone BP as Nick did and get them to stop the charge. On the odd occasion I have had to phone BP to start the charger and then stop it there has been no cost for the kWh used.

It's BP's problem, not mine. I'm not waiting around on hold while they sort it out.

 

[Jocko]

It's BP's problem, not mine. I'm not waiting around on hold while they sort it out.

Would you feel the same if you arrived at the charger at 2 am on your last few % of charge and found that the user ahead of you had EMO'd it?

 

[Jake]

It's BP's problem, not mine. I'm not waiting around on hold while they sort it out.

I agree it's BP problem but I'm thinking of charger etiquette from a user point of view. We need to help each other and not create unnecessary problems. As Jocko says the next user could be really desperate.

 

[Petriix]

I'm not really sure why the next user's time would be more important than mine. Normally the units reboot just fine if you twist the button again after pressing it; in fact that's sometimes the only way to get certain chargers to work at all.

 

[Nick W]

Getting the charge ended was very quick - not much more than a minute though it being early on Easter Sunday morning might have helped. And although the charge is showing on the app, my credit balance has not reduced so it looks like I am not being charged.

 

[kiltox]

I'm not really sure why the next user's time would be more important than mine. Normally the units reboot just fine if you twist the button again after pressing it; in fact that's sometimes the only way to get certain chargers to work at all.

Sometimes they don’t come back up at all though, which is why they’re plastered with warnings telling you not to press it unless it’s actually an emergency ?

Public charging is crap enough without selfish idiots making it worse.

 

[Petriix]

Sometimes they don’t come back up at all though, which is why they’re plastered with warnings telling you not to press it unless it’s actually an emergency ?

Public charging is crap enough without selfish idiots making it worse.

It's hardly selfish or idiotic to need to end a charging session without spending 45 minutes on the phone; which is actually what happened to me the first time I couldn't get the Podpoint app to stop, before a helpful stranger showed me that the red button would release me right away.

 

[kiltox]

45 minutes - definitely not exaggerating there now, are we?

To not even try to call and go straight for the emergency stop because you had one bad experience and your precious time is too important sounds pretty selfish and idiotic to me.

 

[Petriix]

45 minutes - definitely not exaggerating there now, are we?

To not even try to call and go straight for the emergency stop because you had one bad experience and your precious time is too important sounds pretty selfish and idiotic to me.

The assertion that me spending time on the phone is somehow essential so as to avoid the possibility that the next user might have to spend a similar amount of time on the phone is totally illogical. Most chargers automatically come back online after a reset. It's only when the button is left pressed in without being twisted that they stay offline.

I also never said go straight for the red button, just that you sometimes have to use it.