I Want my (fast) DC!

[DNAinaGoodWay]

EVgo monitors Plugshare comments and responds immediately to any reports of malfunction. Most locations have two CHAdeMOs now, a welcome first in this area, and the locations offer something to do. Given the general lack of stations I think they're well worth paying for. But they still need an app or at least a way to view your usage and billing online. Their accounting system isn't up to par.

[annabel398]

I love the EVgo network, and I really don't like going to broken / crowded free sites. I particularly like that they have now installed over 900 DC fast chargers.

I pay just $14.95 per month, and 10 cents per minute. My cost per mile using EVgo is on par with me charging at home at about 6.5 cents per mile. A typical fillup in my new 2017 LEAF-S is just 30-45 minutes, so just $3 to $4.50. Just using it twice per month pays that monthly fee, and everything after that is really cheap.

I'll happily support such a low cost, widely dispersed charging infrastructure, and you're welcome to contribute what you do.

I pay $4.16 a month, flat fee, to use any one of over 250 Chargepoint chargers in Austin, including QC -- zero per-minute charge. Since I visit our downtown QC at least three times a week, my cost per "fill-up" there alone is only about 35¢. My marginal cost of kWhs at home is 3¢/mile.

As a friend of mine says, "The map of the world is drawn from where you stand." So, yeah, sounds like for you the EVgo pricing structure is a good deal. Not so much for me, but "pricey" is relative, and I should have remembered that.

(Re "broken": the only QC in Austin that's consistently broken is an Eaton at one of the bigger Nissan dealers. Re: "crowded": It's true that the QC downtown is popular with the Teslas. However, I find that they're pretty nice about letting me cut in line. If another Leaf owner or a BMW is there, I hang and chat with them for the few minutes it takes for them to finish up. Oddly, I have never encountered a Volt/Bolt at that station--do they not have QC ports?)

The Chargepoint app lets you see whether a given station is in use. More importantly, if it is, they can send you a notification when it's available again. That's a handy feature -- I use it a lot.

[VitaminJ]

EVgo has a monopoly on QCs around here I'm on the Flex plan no monthly fee but it's like $4.95 per QC + 20 cents a minute. Costs over $10 for 30 mins!

[GetOffYourGas]

Oddly, I have never encountered a Volt/Bolt at that station--do they not have QC ports?

Volts do not have an option for QC, but Bolts do. Bolts are not available in Texas yet, but will be later in the year. I suspect you will see them around late summer.

[finman100]

Bolt will have the CCS frankenplug as a 'quick charge' port option. To date, I see WAY more Chademo DC chargers than the CCS type. A sprinkling of Dual DC chargers (both CCS and Chademo plugs) are popping up in OR and WA. And you still can only use one at a time! Really? And people wonder why EV adoption is hard.

So if a Bolt needs a 90 min "quick charge", and yes, I'm using my air quotes 'cause that ain't fast, then a Leaf or Soul or iMiEV are waiting (all these use Chademo). or looking for the next nearest DC charger. Just my 1.5 cents worth.

PS Yes, I know a Bolt doesn't HAVE to charge to full everytime. a 20 minute session could surely net as much as a Leaf? But do the owners know this? or care they are holding someone up when they have enough to get to their destination. WAY too many times EVs are PARKED, not charging, blocking a spot. And this is in OR, where we actually have a law against that! Never enforced. very, very frustrating. I've left many notes indicating as such. The actual law spelled out in a printable pdf. I've lost count on the number I've left on offending vehicles. okay, rant over...

[GRA]

Bolt will have the CCS frankenplug as a 'quick charge' port option. To date, I see WAY more Chademo DC chargers than the CCS type. A sprinkling of Dual DC chargers (both CCS and Chademo plugs) are popping up in OR and WA. And you still can only use one at a time! Really? And people wonder why EV adoption is hard.

So if a Bolt needs a 90 min "quick charge", and yes, I'm using my air quotes 'cause that ain't fast, then a Leaf or Soul or iMiEV are waiting (all these use Chademo). or looking for the next nearest DC charger. Just my 1.5 cents worth.

PS Yes, I know a Bolt doesn't HAVE to charge to full everytime. a 20 minute session could surely net as much as a Leaf? But do the owners know this? or care they are holding someone up when they have enough to get to their destination. WAY too many times EVs are PARKED, not charging, blocking a spot. And this is in OR, where we actually have a law against that! Never enforced. very, very frustrating. I've left many notes indicating as such. The actual law spelled out in a printable pdf. I've lost count on the number I've left on offending vehicles. okay, rant over...

In California, most eVgos now have two separate dual-standard (CHAdeMO/CCS) chargers and at least one has 4, so things are improving. Doesn't help for a car with a big battery that needs more than 30 minutes of charge. eVgo has started to build 350kw chargers (even if they're not yet usable by the public).

To Tony: Does the monthly plan not limit you to increments of 30 minutes followed by shut off? That's going to be important for Bolt owners.

[redLEAF]

Bolt will have the CCS frankenplug as a 'quick charge' port option. To date, I see WAY more Chademo DC chargers than the CCS type. A sprinkling of Dual DC chargers (both CCS and Chademo plugs) are popping up in OR and WA. And you still can only use one at a time! Really? And people wonder why EV adoption is hard.

So if a Bolt needs a 90 min "quick charge", and yes, I'm using my air quotes 'cause that ain't fast, then a Leaf or Soul or iMiEV are waiting (all these use Chademo). or looking for the next nearest DC charger. Just my 1.5 cents worth.

PS Yes, I know a Bolt doesn't HAVE to charge to full everytime. a 20 minute session could surely net as much as a Leaf? But do the owners know this? or care they are holding someone up when they have enough to get to their destination. WAY too many times EVs are PARKED, not charging, blocking a spot. And this is in OR, where we actually have a law against that! Never enforced. very, very frustrating. I've left many notes indicating as such. The actual law spelled out in a printable pdf. I've lost count on the number I've left on offending vehicles. okay, rant over...

In California, most eVgos now have two separate dual-standard (CHAdeMO/CCS) chargers and at least one has 4, so things are improving. Doesn't help for a car with a big battery that needs more than 30 minutes of charge. eVgo has started to build 350kw chargers (even if they're not yet usable by the public).

To Tony: Does the monthly plan not limit you to increments of 30 minutes followed by shut off? That's going to be important for Bolt owners.

On a Bolt, Chevy says you'll get about 90 miles in 30 minutes on DC/QC and at least on the few QC stations I used with my LEAF in the NW 'burbs of Chicago in the past; all of them will stop after 30 minutes; you would need to go back and restart each 30 min session (actually all were dual mode where they also had a CCS connection as well) -- their comments on the main info page (link below) says you'll stop long enough to enjoy a cup of coffee --- no real mention of how many sequential sessions would require a full charge (figure 2 full and a partial one) but I'm sure that's not good for battery life -- regarding Tesla, they've tried to position their SC network so you only need 20 to 30 min (partial charging) on your trip but some stations are spread thin enough where you'll need to stay longer (route planning in the car will advise now both how long you'll need and how many stations are in use).

http://www.chevrolet.com/bolt-ev-electric-vehicle.html

[GRA]

On a Bolt, Chevy says you'll get about 90 miles in 30 minutes on DC/QC and at least on the few QC stations I used with my LEAF in the NW 'burbs of Chicago in the past; all of them will stop after 30 minutes; you would need to go back and restart each 30 min session (actually all were dual mode where they also had a CCS connection as well) <snip>

http://www.chevrolet.com/bolt-ev-electric-vehicle.html

The 90 miles in 30 minutes that Chevy quotes is predicated on having at least an 80kW charger, and the currently available eVgos are only 50kW max (44kW real world). As the woman who described her experience driving from San Jose to SoCal and back shows, using eVgo chargers she needed two 30 minute sessions to get to 80%. I know that the Flex plan (in Cal., QC is $4.95 session plus $0.20/minute, or $10.95) stops after 30 minutes; is that what you have, or do you have the On the Go plan ($14.95/month plus $0.10/minute) that Tony has? His post implied that he could go beyond 30 minutes without re-starting, or at least that's how I read it.

[redLEAF]

On a Bolt, Chevy says you'll get about 90 miles in 30 minutes on DC/QC and at least on the few QC stations I used with my LEAF in the NW 'burbs of Chicago in the past; all of them will stop after 30 minutes; you would need to go back and restart each 30 min session (actually all were dual mode where they also had a CCS connection as well) <snip>

http://www.chevrolet.com/bolt-ev-electric-vehicle.html

The 90 miles in 30 minutes that Chevy quotes is predicated on having at least an 80kW charger, and the currently available eVgos are only 50kW max (44kW real world). As the woman who described her experience driving from San Jose to SoCal and back shows, using eVgo chargers she needed two 30 minute sessions to get to 80%. I know that the Flex plan (in Cal., QC is $4.95 session plus $0.20/minute, or $10.95) stops after 30 minutes; is that what you have, or do you have the On the Go plan ($14.95/month plus $0.10/minute) that Tony has? His post implied that he could go beyond 30 minutes without re-starting, or at least that's how I read it.

This was based on the 'no charge to charge' experience -- perhaps EVgo will adjust their plans to better fit the new Bolt's bigger battery but while I was charging you could see the 'max time' limit on their readouts -- I have heard about some experiences from Tesla owners who opted to get a CHAdeMO adapter (opting for a longer charging session) but with all the Superchargers as well as Tesla Destination chargers probably not used much based on the higher cost to charge -- as well as the adapter runs about $450. Each QC operator and station I'm sure has their own protocols on max session duration, etc. My own experience was mixed with some stations working well and others intermittently --- luckily I had alternatives (i.e., an L2 station within driving distance). When/if I get a Tesla Model 3 I doubt I would ever buy an adapter; Chevy Bolt drivers will definitely have to read QC reviews to see what QC chargers are both available and if they're viable for their own use.

https://www.evgo.com/special-offers/nissan-no-charge-charge/

[edatoakrun]

Well, only about six and a half years after my page one post:

...Can Bay area LEAF owners conveniently drive to Reno/Tahoe?

Can SoCal owners recharge on the the way to Las Vegas?

You owners in other states, aren't there logical "early adopter corridors" where L3 would be useful? Are the chargers there, or even in the planning stage?...

A great virtue of EV's is the utility of being able to charge at home, whether you choose level 1 or 2 home charging.

But the greatest drawback of EV's will always be limited range, making the PUBLIC infrastructure crucial.

You can finally drive from the San Francisco Bay area to Reno/Tahoe assuming the either the Colfax/HWY 80 or Pollack Pines/HWY 50 DC stations are working and available:

https://www.plugshare.com/

And the unlikely party that deserves much of the credit:

...As part of its mission to improve energy conservation and promote new energy technologies, Japan’s largest public research and development management organization — New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) — is funding “DRIVETHEARC” project...

https://drivethearc.com/locations/

Good luck to you SoCal residents trying to drive to Las Vegas...