Kiros Posted June 23, 2013 at 06:54 PM Report Share Posted June 23, 2013 at 06:54 PM I just used a Chargepoint charger in the Bellevue Square Mall in Seattle. The L2 charge took around 2 1/2 hours, and cost a little over $5. You see where I'm going here, $5 for 21 miles of electric driving is not going to promote the use of EVs. As I was about to remove the cable a woman that was driving past stopped and asked how much it was to fill up. When I told her, she asked how far can you go then, I then told her 21 miles and she said frowned and said 'oh'. Is it just high here in the Seattle area? That would surprise me as I believe Washington has some of the lowest electric costs in the country. Is this consistent with what others are seeing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russael Posted June 23, 2013 at 08:49 PM Report Share Posted June 23, 2013 at 08:49 PM For the Michigan area, I intentionally poked through a lot of charging stations just to find one that DID make you pay... and I found one in Detroit next to the Ren Cen in a garage that charges up to 6 dollars for usage (2 bucks to plug in plus a dollar an hour up to 6 bucks). NOT worth it. They go by time, not by how much you withdraw, which I think is poor design. Charge 50 cents per KWh if you're greedy... at least then my car won't exceed 3 bucks where a Tesla may wind up costing $43.50. THAT seems fair... not charging me 6 bucks and a Tesla 6 bucks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
http Posted June 23, 2013 at 10:04 PM Report Share Posted June 23, 2013 at 10:04 PM My company uses ChargePoint and charges 50 cents per KWh. Not the best deal around, but still cheaper than gas. There are a bunch of free chargers in the area at malls, groceries and restaurants. The local Trader Joe's just opened an EVgo station. For Level 2 charging, EVgo quoted me an annual fee of $60 for unlimited charging. Since I only know of 2 EVgo chargers in the area, I'm not likely to sign up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhyalus Posted June 23, 2013 at 10:56 PM Report Share Posted June 23, 2013 at 10:56 PM 50 cents per KWh is a lot. If it takes 7 KWh to fill up, that is $3.50 for 21 miles which is less than a gallon of gas will give you in this car. R ctwomey 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flyer Posted June 24, 2013 at 05:24 AM Report Share Posted June 24, 2013 at 05:24 AM Hi, we signed up with Blink in the Portland OR area. They charge $1.00 per hour hook up time at 240 volt. So that would cost 2.50 providing you unhooked right away when charged. So that doesn't seem like an encouragement ot me to refill at charge stations unless they are free. Whenever you drive by a charge station you just don't see cars hooked up. Now when Ford changes the cars over to 400v DC we might have something going then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaggy314 Posted June 24, 2013 at 08:03 PM Report Share Posted June 24, 2013 at 08:03 PM (edited) ChargePoint stations are individually owned. In Austin, the only way to go is the $25 for 6 months unlimited card offered by the city. I think they, CP, recommend either by KWh (< .30) or no more than $1/hour or people won't use them. Most of the City owned stations have the default $2/hour regardless of speed, so unless you get the city card you will not charge there unless you are a seriously desperate EV only car (imagine a 6+ hour L1 charge). I charge myself $1 to use the L2 charger in my garage and the public $2. ;-) Edited June 24, 2013 at 08:04 PM by shaggy314 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
http Posted June 25, 2013 at 01:28 AM Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 at 01:28 AM 50 cents per KWh is a lot. If it takes 7 KWh to fill up, that is $3.50 for 21 miles which is less than a gallon of gas will give you in this car. R Yeah, I know and I've been watching the charges. So far, the maximum charge has been $2.39 for 4.882 KWh and I could've sworn that I rolled in to the garage on hybrid. Maybe not. I've been getting 23-25 miles on a charge, up to 29 if I have the air off and windows open. The way traffic is around here, it's rare when you can crank it up to 55-60 on the beltway, so I get pretty good battery performance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Griff Posted June 25, 2013 at 02:55 AM Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 at 02:55 AM In Maryland, there are very, very few that cost anything to charge. The one I did find, charges $2.00/hr. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphy Posted June 25, 2013 at 09:25 AM Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 at 09:25 AM In Maryland, there are very, very few that cost anything to charge. The one I did find, charges $2.00/hr.That is very expensive. It's about 52 cents per KWH which equates to about $17.90 for a gallon of gasoline.No thanks, I'll just burn gasoline at $3.50 per gallon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest drfeltersnatch Posted June 25, 2013 at 03:38 PM Report Share Posted June 25, 2013 at 03:38 PM i figured with ours that i'd only pay for charging if i couldn't find parking. and the most ill pay is $1 an hour. im a member of blink and chargepoint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Energized Posted July 10, 2013 at 02:29 AM Report Share Posted July 10, 2013 at 02:29 AM i figured with ours that i'd only pay for charging if i couldn't find parking. and the most ill pay is $1 an hour. im a member of blink and chargepoint. Agreed, anything more than $1 an hour is more than its worth to me. However, I can see why they would charge more than that given the cost of electricity, hardware and infrastructure investment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fastdriver Posted July 10, 2013 at 09:33 PM Report Share Posted July 10, 2013 at 09:33 PM My employer charges $0.50/kwh and I will not use it. Do these people think we are bad at math? I will very reluctantly accept $1/hr. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rspray Posted July 12, 2013 at 01:08 AM Report Share Posted July 12, 2013 at 01:08 AM My employer has ChargePoint stations at our office in CA. The supposedly charge 0.25 per kWh. My office in MA lets me plug my 120 V convenience cable in and charge for free. I win. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikenmar Posted July 16, 2013 at 07:29 PM Report Share Posted July 16, 2013 at 07:29 PM I tried using one of the L2 chargers at the Market/San Pedro parking garage in downtown San Jose today. It took about 2 hours and 20 mins to fully charge. 6.858 kwh. They charge $1/hr, and I got to the car about 10 mins after it stopped charging, so it cost $2.50. That's about in the same ballpark as the price of gas, so OK, no great shakes, but at least that's gas I'm not using. The sweet part is that in San Jose, you get to park for free if you get the city PHEV permit. That makes it a lot more cost-effective if you don't already have free parking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lokicat Posted July 18, 2013 at 04:09 AM Report Share Posted July 18, 2013 at 04:09 AM While paying more than $1 per hour is more than gas, I will pay a higher premium if I am at a shopping mall where finding a parking spot is difficult. This will come in real handy during christmas. ctwomey 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdoconn Posted September 25, 2013 at 07:02 AM Report Share Posted September 25, 2013 at 07:02 AM Holy crap! $0.50/kW-hr that's like $7/gallon; way more more than gas @ 40MPG. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jelwell Posted September 25, 2013 at 08:58 PM Report Share Posted September 25, 2013 at 08:58 PM My work has the Blink Network. They charge per hour. Unfortunately for Ford Fusion Energi owners that doesn't work out very well. That's because the Energi will take a maximum charge of 3.3KW. Our blink chargers used to get 30amps which provides 6+ KW charging. However they have been cut down to 25amps. Other vehicles can charge at a much faster rate, and when you're paying by the hour that makes a huge difference.Joseph Elwell. FusionEnergi and ctwomey 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SD Diver Posted September 27, 2013 at 08:24 AM Report Share Posted September 27, 2013 at 08:24 AM 3.3 KW? Isn't the battery 7.6 KW? I ask only because I today got my first electric bill since getting my Energi - $350. While I signed over to SDG&E's EVTOU-2 rate plan the day I got the car, they seem to be taking their sweet time in changing my billing. So, instead of paying $0.16/kWh, I paid $0.36/kWh. Called to complain - only to be told that it takes 2 months for the switch to happen. So, the 22 mile range cost me $2.736 (7.6*0.36) - whereas gas would cost me 22/43*3.89, or $1.99 (based on 43 mpg). For now, gas is cheaper, at least in San Diego under Tier 4 (over over 641 kWh/mo). Seems like they want to gouge their customers for two months of higher energy costs for the privilege of owning an EV. Once I finally get the EVTOU-2 plan, it will drop to $1.216 per charge, which is better than gas. Fortunately, there is a shopping center 3 miles away that has a free PEP charging station... SDG&E sucks... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphy Posted September 27, 2013 at 09:00 AM Report Share Posted September 27, 2013 at 09:00 AM The battery is 7.6 kW but the charger in the car is only capable of 3.3 kW so it takes over two hours to charge the battery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russael Posted October 9, 2013 at 04:43 PM Report Share Posted October 9, 2013 at 04:43 PM (edited) I think I found the worst rate for charging at a public charging station. You'd DEFINITELY want to race out there after you get that text alert stating your charge is complete, IF you'd even want to plug in to this thing. When I go to my event at the end of the month over there, I'll just take the regular parking garages. Fortunately one of them has 8 stations that are free. For now. Hope at least 1 will be available. BTW - the blue ring you see is a new feature added for the website (seems to show your driving range now). [image removed to recover some space] Edited July 29, 2014 at 02:07 AM by Russael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apm Posted October 9, 2013 at 05:47 PM Report Share Posted October 9, 2013 at 05:47 PM 3.3 KW? Isn't the battery 7.6 KW? So, the 22 mile range cost me $2.736 (7.6*0.36) - whereas gas would cost me 22/43*3.89, or $1.99 (based on 43 mpg). SDG&E sucks...Although you got your end number about correct, the numbers you are using are not completely accurate... The total battery is 7.6KW, but the EV part of the battery is only 5.4KW. The remaining part is the Hybrid battery. This smaller part of the battery, will never be discharged to 0%, so most of the time your are filling up part of the small battery and the complete big battery. In terms of the actual cost you have to include the electricity used to run the fan to keep the batteries cool while being charge. Someone calculate this waste at about 20% for Level 2 charge and 40% Level 1 charge. So in your case above (assuming a completely empty small and big batteries) your actual cost will be 7.6 * 1.2 or 1*4 * your electricity rate or $3.28 for Level 2 or $3.83 for Level 1. But I argue that most of the time you only charge the big battery, therefore the actual number is closer to $2.33 for Level 2 or $2.72 for Level 1. My fully discharged big battery charges in 5:50 minutes using the Level 1 charger that came with the car. Regards,APM ctwomey 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SD Diver Posted October 9, 2013 at 07:29 PM Report Share Posted October 9, 2013 at 07:29 PM Thanks APM. Since my post, I have had a L2 charger installed and SDG&E has moved me to the EVTOU2 plan. So, my midnight-5am rate is $.16. Unfortunately, being hardwired, I can't readily measure the electrical use per charge (nor do I know of a 240 "kill-a-watt". Got home last night in EV+ mode, with EV at 0 and "hybrid" at about 1/3 full. Charged in 2 hours, 10 minutes. If I use your numbers above, and assumed that it fully charges the hybrid battery (which I am not sure of) I probably used 1.0 * 5.4 + .67 * 1.2, or 6.2 kW. Cost would be 6.2*1.2*.16 or $1.19. Much better... Assuming just the 5.4 kW, it would be $1.04. ctwomey 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphy Posted October 9, 2013 at 08:49 PM Report Share Posted October 9, 2013 at 08:49 PM This is the meter that I use. http://www.ekmmetering.com/ekm-metering-products/electric-meters-kwh-meters/basic-kwh-meter-100a-120-240-volt-3-wire-60hz-ekm-25ids.html Hint: If you get one have it mounted at eye level. Stooping down to read it gets old in a hurry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctwomey Posted December 8, 2013 at 08:15 AM Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 at 08:15 AM This is one of the few places I have seen discussion of three batteries (energi, hybrid, and 14v). Very helpful. When I bought I was under the impression that the energy batteri was relatively standalone: it didn't regenerate, that was only for the hybrid. Similarly, one might wonder whether the plug in system (designed for the Fusion Energi alone) charged the hybrid battery. I'd love to hear the smart gals and guys on that one. The 14v is a bit clearer; it charges after the main (energi?) battery is full. user "amp" thanks for opening up this facet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Russael Posted December 8, 2013 at 03:49 PM Report Share Posted December 8, 2013 at 03:49 PM There is actually only 1 big battery, but it operates in 2 modes - Energi and Hybrid. The battery is 7.6kwh, and I believe it allocates ~5.5KWh to plain discharge use and uses an additional 1.4kwh of that to run the car in hybrid mode. If you arrive home with a completely discharged big battery and have it almost depleted for hybrid mode too, you'll see over 6KWh of energy used to recharge that battery according to MyFordMobile. If you're going down a long stretch of downhill road, and because battery capacity is much higher in the Energi than it is in the Hybrid, it can actually come out of hybrid mode and go back in to Energi mode since it has the available storage. And yes, the 12V battery charges once the car completes charging the big battery. It's usually only a quick top off since the car uses a DC to DC converter to run all of the accessories while you're driving it around. ctwomey 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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