Ford's 'tremendous' charging Network

[AlexMo]

With the lightning and Mach-E spinning up for Ford it appears they are readying a nationwide charging Network but I'm not sure if it would apply to Energi models?

I also notice they're offering for purchasers of the MachE charging at the Volkswagen Electrify America locations. I'm researching this because I have plunked down a hundred bucks on a Ford Lightning pickup which may or may not ever ship, unclear if it will get similar charge benefits.

[AlexMo]

https://www.ford.com/support/how-tos/electric-vehicles/public-charging/where-are-ford-electric-vehicle-charging-stations/ states:

 

"The FordPass Charging Network is the largest public charging network in North America, with over 16,000 charging stations (almost 40,000 plugs) and growing.^"

 

Guess I'm hoping for clarity as to whether any "electric vehicle" can use these 16 000 stations, my dealer states one should always carry a Tesla adapter, wonder if anybody has used one of those on a Fusion Energi at a Tesla "Supercharger" location? Doubt you want to put more than L2 240V@30A through the port, or even can.

 

Also looking for information on apps like "PlugShare" that will allow me to plug in at private homes (seems a bit creepy inviting anybody with an app to your charging station, but that may be the future).

Thanks,

Alex

[AlexMo]

seems like all the stations I have found that offer Free L2 charging are *not* in the FordPass app; also, the ones that are in there are often in Apartment parking lots and are meant for residents only. And although the article above states that some vehicles are going to be able to charge at 150 kw stations (such as are offered free to VW ID4 buyers) at Electrify America stations, not really clear what the costs are currently or are going to be in the future. I've seen everything from 12 to 95 cents per kWh around my neck of the woods; wonder if this may eventually be controlled by state or federal entities, like the gas tax that pays for road maintenance (or not if you own an EV).

[jsamp]

The Energi maxes out at 3.3kW charging... 220V @ 15A no matter what the EVSE can deliver. 

 

You cannot charge at a Supercharger even with an adapter.  You can charge at a Telsa Destination charger with an adapter.  Most fast charge stations are DC only and have Chademo and CCS1 connectors (and/or Tesla connectors), which won't work on the energi.  If they have a J1772 it is a L2 charger which would be limited by the energi to the rate stated in my first line.

[murphy]

The maximum rate for an Energi is 240 volts * 16 amps = 3840 watts.  There is no such thing as 220 volts or 110 volts in the USA.  It has been 240/120 for at least 50 years.

[AlexMo]

Thanks for the clarification on US power standards, @murphy. https://www.digikey.com/en/articles/bringing-evs-into-the-smart-grid-for-stability-and-security this article was written by European authors allegedly (Europe does have 220v standard) and an interesting note in that article is that the J1772 charging interface isn't two-way (able to stop charging when it gets a signal of "full" or "stop" from the vehicle). I could swear though, that several charging stations I took the Energi to recently had a charging indicator that went off when the Fusion HVB was showing full.

 

I also noticed a phenomenon that has bothered me with this car, where the cabin battery (12V) goes down and the dash LCD shows "System turned off to conserve Battery" any time I sit in the car while charging and listen to the audio (Master switch off, but audio switched on). Wonder if this eats the cabin battery? This is a newly replaced battery, and a Titanium trip package, so possibly there is a firmware update (non-SYNC) for this issue? I have noticed there is a 3G->4G recall available for it so I may just have the dealer look into the battery drain problem at the same time. Battery was replaced 6-7 months ago, and was the "low end" (non-AGM) model, if that helps.

[murphy]

When the car is done charging it opens its contactor which removes the load from the EVSE.  The EVSE reacts to this by opening its contactor effectively shutting it down.

 

The 12 volt battery is charged after charging of the HVB is complete.  You will get a notice in the app that charging is complete but when you go to the EVSE the charging light will still be on.  Wait until the EVSE charging light goes out before disconnecting the cable.

[jsamp]

On 11/8/2021 at 2:47 AM, murphy said:

The maximum rate for an Energi is 240 volts * 16 amps = 3840 watts.  There is no such thing as 220 volts or 110 volts in the USA.  It has been 240/120 for at least 50 years.

 

I realize that it is technically 240V.  Where did you get the 3840 watts?  Every spec I've ever seen lists the max charging rate for the Energi at 3.3kW.  So I guess it is 240V 13.75A?

[AlexMo]

I have been dialing around, and got this phone # which is supposed to be "All things EV" at Ford: 800.392.3673. How technical their support there is I am not sure, got the # from the Lightning Marketing team, who seemed to be reasonably non-technical.