Chicagoland area

[hyperlexis]

Yeah well that's one of the big issues. -- Finding free or fairly-priced charging living in an urban location. It's pretty appalling that some Walgreens and WF shops charge astronomical rates for EV charging -- while others charge nothing at all. Small wonder the pay ones I have seen have never ever had a car parked in them. Good luck paying those off....

Apparently here in Chicago they cant charge by the Kwh, only time. That definitely must be changed. Or it would be best to get an all-you-can-use flat-fee monthly pass from an EV charging company. Although I do not think Chargepoint offers the option. And Chargepoint seems to have the most public stations set up here in the city.

My WF 4 blocks away charges nothing for L2 charges (while the jerks at the big WF on North Ave. actually do charge hourly). But my local WF's L3 machine ($7 Charjit unit) is still down. The Walgreens about 4 miles away on Bryn Mawr and Clark has L2 (poss free?) and a working Charjit L3 unit. Plus there is a Nissan dealer a few miles away closer to where I work which may have free L2 and/or L3 chargers.

So there are some free public charging options sprinkled around Chicago. And using the online apps showing working chargers and cost, etc., always helps. Plus, my garage men may take pity on me and allow me just plug into a 110 outlet overnight anyway. (I still need to ask the management company about this issue). I only drive maybe 15-20 miles around town daily, so the 110 charge may do it for nightly top-offs with only occasional trips to public units needed

The only close alternative would be a Prius C or perhaps Cruze diesel or VW tdi but they still burn oil.

Which WF has the free L2 charging? Also do you currently own/lease a Leaf or are you just considering at this point?

I think the one on Halsted. I am almost certain there is no cost on the L2s at this point. Yes planning purchase wanting to check out the new S model or used. But, obviously, I am first trying to ascertain the feasibility of nearby charging options, costs, etc.

 

[brianchi73]

Yeah well that's one of the big issues. -- Finding free or fairly-priced charging living in an urban location. It's pretty appalling that some Walgreens and WF shops charge astronomical rates for EV charging -- while others charge nothing at all. Small wonder the pay ones I have seen have never ever had a car parked in them. Good luck paying those off....

Apparently here in Chicago they cant charge by the Kwh, only time. That definitely must be changed. Or it would be best to get an all-you-can-use flat-fee monthly pass from an EV charging company. Although I do not think Chargepoint offers the option. And Chargepoint seems to have the most public stations set up here in the city.

My WF 4 blocks away charges nothing for L2 charges (while the jerks at the big WF on North Ave. actually do charge hourly). But my local WF's L3 machine ($7 Charjit unit) is still down. The Walgreens about 4 miles away on Bryn Mawr and Clark has L2 (poss free?) and a working Charjit L3 unit. Plus there is a Nissan dealer a few miles away closer to where I work which may have free L2 and/or L3 chargers.

So there are some free public charging options sprinkled around Chicago. And using the online apps showing working chargers and cost, etc., always helps. Plus, my garage men may take pity on me and allow me just plug into a 110 outlet overnight anyway. (I still need to ask the management company about this issue). I only drive maybe 15-20 miles around town daily, so the 110 charge may do it for nightly top-offs with only occasional trips to public units needed

The only close alternative would be a Prius C or perhaps Cruze diesel or VW tdi but they still burn oil.

Which WF has the free L2 charging? Also do you currently own/lease a Leaf or are you just considering at this point?

I think the one on Halsted. I am almost certain there is no cost on the L2s at this point. Yes planning purchase wanting to check out the new S model or used. But, obviously, I am first trying to ascertain the feasibility of nearby charging options, costs, etc.

I think they use the same ChargePoint access that most L2s use. $2/hour. I wish they could get their L3 up and running. I used to be in a condo building with 660 units, and I think it would have been more or less impossible to have an EV in that situation. Now I'm in a condo building with 8 units (self-managed association) and a detached garage. I had to get a conduit run from the inside of my unit...through the ceiling above my bedroom and out the side of the building. Then down the side of the building and under the sidewalk, up the side of the garage and into the garage.

 

[ahoffcole]

Hello. We're in the process of buying a Leaf- having negotiated price, etc. Now my partner would like to see a blue Leaf in person. None of the dealers we've contacted in the northern suburbs has one to look at. If anyone in the near north suburbs has a blue Leaf that we can view, I'd really appreaciate it. Thanks.

 

[hyperlexis]

[/quote]Which WF has the free L2 charging? Also do you currently own/lease a Leaf or are you just considering at this point?[/quote]

I think the one on Halsted. I am almost certain there is no cost on the L2s at this point. Yes planning purchase wanting to check out the new S model or used. But, obviously, I am first trying to ascertain the feasibility of nearby charging options, costs, etc.[/quote]

I think they use the same ChargePoint access that most L2s use. $2/hour. I wish they could get their L3 up and running. I used to be in a condo building with 660 units, and I think it would have been more or less impossible to have an EV in that situation. Now I'm in a condo building with 8 units (self-managed association) and a detached garage. I had to get a conduit run from the inside of my unit...through the ceiling above my bedroom and out the side of the building. Then down the side of the building and under the sidewalk, up the side of the garage and into the garage.[/quote]

Some chargepoints charge, some don't. Depends on the operator. Walgreens seems to charge (ridiculous) except the one Walgreens I saw on Peterson that has free L2 chargers (non-chargepoint units). Why would it be harder to have an L2 charger installed in a wealthy highrise with 600 condos than a small bldg facing thousands of dollars to just run conduit? My bldg has 900 condos + commercial spaces. No way a big bldg can rationally say it cant shell out $2k from a +2M annual budget to install a charger -- other than just being douches.

 

[redLEAF]

Hello. We're in the process of buying a Leaf- having negotiated price, etc. Now my partner would like to see a blue Leaf in person. None of the dealers we've contacted in the northern suburbs has one to look at. If anyone in the near north suburbs has a blue Leaf that we can view, I'd really appreaciate it. Thanks.

Use 'autotrader' for a lookup ... they showed about 5 blue ones within about 60 miles of Chicago, one in Schaumburg:

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-...howcaseOwnerId=85464&captureSearch=true&Log=0

Mine is red so would bot be of any help ... we thought about the blue (which is also the launch color) as our second choice ... welcome and good luck!

 

[ahoffcole]

Thanks for your help. We did that, looked at the blue color, and now ordered a car. Looking forward to picking it up in 4-6 weeks. Now onto looking into charging stations.

 

[brianchi73]

Which WF has the free L2 charging? Also do you currently own/lease a Leaf or are you just considering at this point?[/quote]

I think the one on Halsted. I am almost certain there is no cost on the L2s at this point. Yes planning purchase wanting to check out the new S model or used. But, obviously, I am first trying to ascertain the feasibility of nearby charging options, costs, etc.[/quote]

I think they use the same ChargePoint access that most L2s use. $2/hour. I wish they could get their L3 up and running. I used to be in a condo building with 660 units, and I think it would have been more or less impossible to have an EV in that situation. Now I'm in a condo building with 8 units (self-managed association) and a detached garage. I had to get a conduit run from the inside of my unit...through the ceiling above my bedroom and out the side of the building. Then down the side of the building and under the sidewalk, up the side of the garage and into the garage.[/quote]

Some chargepoints charge, some don't. Depends on the operator. Walgreens seems to charge (ridiculous) except the one Walgreens I saw on Peterson that has free L2 chargers (non-chargepoint units). Why would it be harder to have an L2 charger installed in a wealthy highrise with 600 condos than a small bldg facing thousands of dollars to just run conduit? My bldg has 900 condos + commercial spaces. No way a big bldg can rationally say it cant shell out $2k from a +2M annual budget to install a charger -- other than just being douches.[/quote]

I paid for mine on my own. The board was only involved in the approval. In the other building they just looked at me like I was crazy. Seems easier/quicker to get things done with a smaller condo association. I didn't move because of the EV, but since I was already moving it was definitely a consideration at the new place. Good luck to you though.

 

[dmen]

Hi! I own a 2013 focus electric, purchased in December. It's funny reading through the posts here from this time last year when many of you obtained your Leaves- our much smaller FFE community is going through our first winter with an electric car and having the same range surprises you all did. My expectations weren't quite as high but still, took a month or two to get used to that. Really looking forward to a jump in range when it gets above 50 degrees!
Anyway, ford dealerships, or at least mine, have no idea about the EL plates and it was easiest for me to transfer my old car's plates. Now I'm trying to plan the most painless way to switch to EL's. My reg will expire in Dec 2013, and I just paid my $99, so I don't want to get the plates until closer to my expiration date. But since the EL plates expire in Dec 2013 too, I don't want to have to turn around and renew right away. My question to the group is did any of you change plates like I have to, and was it a hassle, and do you have any tips?
I was also going to ask how long the IL EV rebate took but scrolling through it looks like you mostly received checks in April. Hopefully I'll be as lucky!
Hope you don't mind the cross-vehicle post! Not a lot of FFE drivers in IL just yet! It would be nice to have a Chicagoland EV online community for all models but I haven't seen anything out here yet.

 

[redLEAF]

Hi! I own a 2013 focus electric, purchased in December. It's funny reading through the posts here from this time last year when many of you obtained your Leaves- our much smaller FFE community is going through our first winter with an electric car and having the same range surprises you all did. My expectations weren't quite as high but still, took a month or two to get used to that. Really looking forward to a jump in range when it gets above 50 degrees!
Anyway, ford dealerships, or at least mine, have no idea about the EL plates and it was easiest for me to transfer my old car's plates. Now I'm trying to plan the most painless way to switch to EL's. My reg will expire in Dec 2013, and I just paid my $99, so I don't want to get the plates until closer to my expiration date. But since the EL plates expire in Dec 2013 too, I don't want to have to turn around and renew right away. My question to the group is did any of you change plates like I have to, and was it a hassle, and do you have any tips?
I was also going to ask how long the IL EV rebate took but scrolling through it looks like you mostly received checks in April. Hopefully I'll be as lucky!
Hope you don't mind the cross-vehicle post! Not a lot of FFE drivers in IL just yet! It would be nice to have a Chicagoland EV online community for all models but I haven't seen anything out here yet.

Welcome 'dmen' -- I too almost bought an FFE instead of my LEAF as it looked early on that Ford would beat Nissan to Chicago but of course we know that didn't happen! While I wasn't the first to get a LEAF here, we have had ours since Dec of 2011 so well over a year now. As far as the 'EL' IL plates, remember that they prorate when you get them as they'll all expire Dec of 2013. You can see the schedule on the link below (towards the bottom of page 1); you'll still get hit with a plate transfer fee but you won't need to pay the full 2-year plate fee so it doesn't really matter when you apply for them other than I suppose you'll feel better about getting the 'value' out of the $99 first year 'regular' plate fee:

http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/publications/pdf_publications/vsd522.pdf

Also, besides the EV IL EPA rebate (BTW, they only process these twice a year so yours won't be coming until later over the summer) be sure to check out the 50% EVSE (or garage EV 'charger') rebates as well ... it's from another agency within the state of IL, here's a link, I believe they still have funds set aside so definitely worth checking out if you plan to have a garage installed L2 charger.

http://www.ildceo.net/dceo/Bureaus/Energy_Recycling/ev.htm

As far as your last comment about Chicagoland EV's, there has always been the home built EV's for years and Fox Valley has a 'club' but as more mfg's are starting to introduce them, each one seems to have sprung up a site that seems to have a following ... Ford has another 'plug-in' but a combo plug-in hybrid (the C-Max Energi) as well as the Mitsubishi 'i', hopefully soon the smart electric drive and well as of course the high-end Tesla and Fisker and of course who can forget the Chevy Volt among others. You'll find a number of us on this forum have more than one EV as I hope to be once smart starts selling theirs in Chicago -- an FFE or Volt would be tempting but too big for the space I have in my tandem garage (plan to replace an ICE smart with the EV version).

 

[brianchi73]

Hi! I own a 2013 focus electric, purchased in December. It's funny reading through the posts here from this time last year when many of you obtained your Leaves- our much smaller FFE community is going through our first winter with an electric car and having the same range surprises you all did. My expectations weren't quite as high but still, took a month or two to get used to that. Really looking forward to a jump in range when it gets above 50 degrees!
Anyway, ford dealerships, or at least mine, have no idea about the EL plates and it was easiest for me to transfer my old car's plates. Now I'm trying to plan the most painless way to switch to EL's. My reg will expire in Dec 2013, and I just paid my $99, so I don't want to get the plates until closer to my expiration date. But since the EL plates expire in Dec 2013 too, I don't want to have to turn around and renew right away. My question to the group is did any of you change plates like I have to, and was it a hassle, and do you have any tips?
I was also going to ask how long the IL EV rebate took but scrolling through it looks like you mostly received checks in April. Hopefully I'll be as lucky!
Hope you don't mind the cross-vehicle post! Not a lot of FFE drivers in IL just yet! It would be nice to have a Chicagoland EV online community for all models but I haven't seen anything out here yet.

Welcome 'dmen' -- I too almost bought an FFE instead of my LEAF as it looked early on that Ford would beat Nissan to Chicago but of course we know that didn't happen! While I wasn't the first to get a LEAF here, we have had ours since Dec of 2011 so well over a year now. As far as the 'EL' IL plates, remember that they prorate when you get them as they'll all expire Dec of 2013. You can see the schedule on the link below (towards the bottom of page 1); you'll still get hit with a plate transfer fee but you won't need to pay the full 2-year plate fee so it doesn't really matter when you apply for them other than I suppose you'll feel better about getting the 'value' out of the $99 first year 'regular' plate fee:

http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/publications/pdf_publications/vsd522.pdf

Also, besides the EV IL EPA rebate (BTW, they only process these twice a year so yours won't be coming until later over the summer) be sure to check out the 50% EVSE (or garage EV 'charger') rebates as well ... it's from another agency within the state of IL, here's a link, I believe they still have funds set aside so definitely worth checking out if you plan to have a garage installed L2 charger.

http://www.ildceo.net/dceo/Bureaus/Energy_Recycling/ev.htm

As far as your last comment about Chicagoland EV's, there has always been the home built EV's for years and Fox Valley has a 'club' but as more mfg's are starting to introduce them, each one seems to have sprung up a site that seems to have a following ... Ford has another 'plug-in' but a combo plug-in hybrid (the C-Max Energi) as well as the Mitsubishi 'i', hopefully soon the smart electric drive and well as of course the high-end Tesla and Fisker and of course who can forget the Chevy Volt among others. You'll find a number of us on this forum have more than one EV as I hope to be once smart starts selling theirs in Chicago -- an FFE or Volt would be tempting but too big for the space I have in my tandem garage (plan to replace an ICE smart with the EV version).

Hi dmen. If you go to the Secretary of State facility on Elston...talk to Peter in Special Services. I just went through this process about a week ago, and my plate was expiring within days. He had me fill out an application (take your checkbook because they don't take cash or credit), and then he gave me a temp plate and sent the application off to Springfield.

Also I'm not sure if you have an L2 charger yet, but I got one free through Ecotality and the Department of Energy. Be aware that you will not qualify for the State of Illinois program if you do the Ecotality program, so you should figure out which one is a better benefit for you. Unfortunately for me the State's program was better, but they did not clarify that the Ecotality offer excluded me from the State's program until AFTER I spent the money on the installation. They literally put up an FAQ document to "clarify" that rule a few days before I submitted my app, but after all of the work had been done and $$ had been spent. Argh!

 

[ForestWattaker]

I was also going to ask how long the IL EV rebate took but scrolling through it looks like you mostly received checks in April. Hopefully I'll be as lucky!

Don't hold your breath for the IL EV rebate. We got our Leaf 4/30/12 and submitted our application by the June deadline. We have yet to get a rebate. We called about a month ago and they said there was no money in the fund, and we were about 30th on the list (which I believe is first-come first-served). They said that we would get our rebate when the state gave them the money. Knowing the state of Illinois, that could still be a while.

Anyway, welcome!

 

[dmen]

Thanks all for your replies.
Since I got my papers for the IL EV rebate in before the end of December, I thought I'd be seeing a check in April as many of you did last April. Thanks for the reality check, Forest. I just received a voice mail from Springfield EPA making it sound like it wouldn't be too long, but I won't hold my breath.

I am aware of the IL EVSE rebate, but I haven't seen anything confirming that the program has been renewed this year. I'll check out Red's link. I have a Schneider but haven't installed it, since I didn't feel the need to dig through frozen back yard to lay conduit to detached garage (love my bungalow). I figure I'll install in spring/summer. So far 120v is working fine.

Brian(?), I was under the impression that EcoTality had filled their program quota. I was going to apply for that program to install on a home in New Buffalo, but the southern Michigan part of their program has definitely stopped taking new orders. Maybe I'll put the Schneider in there, and see about an EcoTality unit here... And thanks for the SOS contact. I was just there to renew driver's license, and aside from learning that Pulaski Day is NOT a good day to visit the SOS, I came away with the impression that no one there knows anything about EL plates. I stood in front of a special plates clerk while she stared at her computer screen for 10 minutes without saying a word, looking for details on the plates. And she was the expert according to the manager. I finally asked her if maybe I should just call Springfield, and she seemed relieved. I'll look for Peter next time.

Red, I know there are many plug-in models on the road and/or in the works, so it would be great to have an online place for all of these models' local owners to share ideas/questions. This Chicagoland Leaf topic has a lot of info, but at 114 pages, it's not exactly easy to search. I don't have the patience to browse other subjects here looking for locally relevant topics. FFE has a few forums, but with so few on the road there isn't really a critical mass for any regional breakout. How the car performs in CA, where 90% of the sales occurred, means much less to me here in IL than how FFE and other BEVs perform here. Our local weather, roads, politics, incentives, parking, weekend travel habits, and who knows what else uniquely affects the EV owner/driver here, and it would be nice to have a common place to ask/answer/suggest. For me, something like that would be a lot more convenient than looking through several poorly populated FFE user sites, long strings on other vehicles' user sites, and infrequently updated web/mobile apps.

Anyway, thanks again for your help!

Dan.

 

[redLEAF]

Thanks all for your replies.


Red, I know there are many plug-in models on the road and/or in the works, so it would be great to have an online place for all of these models' local owners to share ideas/questions. This Chicagoland Leaf topic has a lot of info, but at 114 pages, it's not exactly easy to search. I don't have the patience to browse other subjects here looking for locally relevant topics. FFE has a few forums, but with so few on the road there isn't really a critical mass for any regional breakout. How the car performs in CA, where 90% of the sales occurred, means much less to me here in IL than how FFE and other BEVs perform here. Our local weather, roads, politics, incentives, parking, weekend travel habits, and who knows what else uniquely affects the EV owner/driver here, and it would be nice to have a common place to ask/answer/suggest. For me, something like that would be a lot more convenient than looking through several poorly populated FFE user sites, long strings on other vehicles' user sites, and infrequently updated web/mobile apps.

Anyway, thanks again for your help!

Dan.

Totally agree -- I also participate in a number of other forums as we currently are a household of 3 drivers and 4 cars all of different makes & models for which the forums are a varied as they can be; many of us here would be considered 'pioneers' as there was no (and still really isn't) a single all-in-one source of information on these cars, the rebates, licensing, etc. so we all needed to do our own research for which there is a lot but not all can be found here but perhaps could be better organized as this forum alone now has (as of this posting):

Total posts 270,301 | Total topics 10,484 | Total members 7,513

I personally found it a challenge to find out the latest info but can understand the need for any 'newbie' to get up to speed and not be left out of the programs that are out there ... even though electric cars have been made for 100 years or more, this most recent activity is really new ground so there are bound to be some knowledge gaps with the car dealers, state agencies, etc. so try to be patient and make the most of trying something new and keep checking the threads, something of interest is always coming up!

 

[greengate]

I noticed in looking through the ILEV website that this home charger program is now closed.

I just applied for the IL EL Leaf rebate and hope that it doesn't fall into the same hole!!

 

[dmen]

Yes, IL DCEO EVSE 50% rebate is currently closed. Should re-open later this year though. From their website:
This program is currently closed. DCEO anticipates re-opening this rebate program again in the spring or summer of 2013. Program guidelines and application packets will be posted on this webpage when the program re-opens.

And the Blink/Ecotality/EVProject free EVSE program is also closed. It was only open to LEAF and Volt owners anyway. From EV Project website:
As of March 11, 2013, we have met the EV Project goal for residential charging units. While we are no longer accepting applications, EV drivers are invited to participate in the Project by signing up for a Blink Membership to charge their vehicles at any of the over 3,000 publicly accessible Blink Chargers.

 

[greengate]

I learned not to rely on what the employees say where a charging station exists.

When I called WF in Northbrook a few weeks ago, I was told all 3 were operational. (Two 2's and a level3.)

When I got there, nothing was working. I called Chargepoint and was told that they were out of order and a trouble ticket would be sent in. A week later, same thing...all light, but not working. I called again and got the same story.


I then spoke with the manager of WF who said they have nothing to do with the systems..it's the landlord. Yes, they are aware it is bad PR for them as it looks like it is a WF operation. They will speak to the landlord about it and ask that the landlord call me.

If I hear, I'll pass it along, but was told by someone who knows a bit about this. He said, "the shopping centers are not spending a dime due to the economy."

(When I look around this center in Northfield, I don't see any empty store fronts. I only see many people shopping which leads me to wonder; "How many acorns does a squirrel need? And or will the squirrel finally stop gathering up all the acorns when he realizes there are no other squirrels coming to the area for him to be with since he has hoarded all of the acorns?)

 

[brianchi73]

I learned not to rely on what the employees say where a charging station exists.

When I called WF in Northbrook a few weeks ago, I was told all 3 were operational. (Two 2's and a level3.)

When I got there, nothing was working. I called Chargepoint and was told that they were out of order and a trouble ticket would be sent in. A week later, same thing...all light, but not working. I called again and got the same story.


I then spoke with the manager of WF who said they have nothing to do with the systems..it's the landlord. Yes, they are aware it is bad PR for them as it looks like it is a WF operation. They will speak to the landlord about it and ask that the landlord call me.

If I hear, I'll pass it along, but was told by someone who knows a bit about this. He said, "the shopping centers are not spending a dime due to the economy."

(When I look around this center in Northfield, I don't see any empty store fronts. I only see many people shopping which leads me to wonder; "How many acorns does a squirrel need? And or will the squirrel finally stop gathering up all the acorns when he realizes there are no other squirrels coming to the area for him to be with since he has hoarded all of the acorns?)

You should definitely report it at the link below. I think you have to find it and do an edit to report it. It might not matter, but I did is for some stations at Golf Mill Mall, and an international agency contacted me and got those statins turned on! I was shocked. Chargepoint seems worthless for doing anything other than processing payments.

http://www.afdc.energy.gov/fuels/electricity_locations.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[Tardis]

My Chicago work commute is increasing from 50 miles to 60ish miles. Not really an issue for summer but winter would be chilly ride since my job doesn't have charging area. Call me stubborn and a glutton for punishment because I can't bring myself to go back to ICE vehicle. So, I'm going to be cash poor with a Tesla model S. I hope to be able to drive to st. Louis once Illinois fueling station built.

2012 Nissan leaf SV
About 21,400 miles
Transferrable gold package protection warranty up to 75,000 miles or 12/1/2016
4 extra tires (OEM). Nokians on car now
Cargo organizer

Looking for $22,000

 

[brianchi73]

My Chicago work commute is increasing from 50 miles to 60ish miles. Not really an issue for summer but winter would be chilly ride since my job doesn't have charging area. Call me stubborn and a glutton for punishment because I can't bring myself to go back to ICE vehicle. So, I'm going to be cash poor with a Tesla model S. I hope to be able to drive to st. Louis once Illinois fueling station built.

2012 Nissan leaf SV
About 21,400 miles
Transferrable gold package protection warranty up to 75,000 miles or 12/1/2016
4 extra tires (OEM). Nokians on car now
Cargo organizer

Looking for $22,000

Is that round trip total miles?

 

[Tardis]

Most definitely round trip.