Chargepoint Express Plus: First true Tesla Supercharger competitor 400KW

[mspohr]

In the future im sure that you could pay a convenience fee to not have to wait for a charger. The two biggest problems is that its a universal charger and i doubt the Trump administration is going to spend the money from VW on electric car charging infrastructure. So im guessing most of these are going to be installed by the private sector and the states.

The California Republic is in charge of most of the VW money.

 

[mspohr]

They would be making more money if they dropped their rates to something more reasonable, even if it is considerably more expensive than what we pay at home.

I have said many times that at home I pay $0.17/kWh and would pay double that for the convenience and the availability of a charging spot.

As much as I'd like to, I can't very well drop an extension cord from the 32nd floor of my apartment building to the street. so I have no choice but to use a public charger. but i draw the line at $0.35/kWh -- I estimate that at roughly $0.25/kWh, gas becomes the cheaper option (even in NYC where gas is PRICEY) but i would pay more b/c it is a privilege to drive electric. but $0.49/kWh? they are shooting themselves in the foot.

I maintain that they would get more use out of the chargers if their rates were more reasonable.



This is a fair point. although it is not so simple. the actual per kWh rate in most commercial buildings in NYC is closer to $0.05/kWh -- where things get screwed up, is the "demand" charges. commercial spaces are known for using a lot more power than residential spaces, so they get a better rate per kWh, but then they get slammed with demand charges, which is a fee for having a ton of power readily available at any given time.

That said, most NYC garages are not running tons of power tools all day long -- unless you count that aging, dusty Pentium 2 machine the attendants use to play minesweeper on during their downtime -- so again, i maintain that my $0.17/kWh rate that I would pay if I could charge at home is MORE than whatever the commercial garage in my building and in the buildings around me pay for power.

$0.49/kWh is price gouging.

For a 20 MPG car equivalent to the Tesla, gas at $3.00 costs 0.15 a mile. About the same as electricity at 0.45 kWh.

 

[McRat]

The California Republic is in charge of most of the VW money.

That perhaps is even less safe than having Exxon in charge. Let's see how much ends up diverted for pet projects and hiring.

 

[bxr140]

The California Republic is in charge of most of the VW money.

That's fantastic news. Few entities have more balls when it comes to progressive policies.

 

[TexasEV]

That's fantastic news. Few entities have more balls when it comes to progressive policies.

Or wasteful spending.

 

[mspohr]

That perhaps is even less safe than having Exxon in charge. Let's see how much ends up diverted for pet projects and hiring.

Well, it looks like VW is actually in charge of spending the money (subject to the court order).
VW Subsidiary To Carry Out $2 Billion ZEV And Awareness Programs - HybridCars.com

Also, this is interesting:
Part of the settlement will be launching the “Green City” program in a California city to pilot future concept vehicles and mobility services. These may include a zero emission shuttle service, a carsharing program using electric vehicles, or a ZEV transit program.

Green City would be part of the California settlement, where $800 million of the $2 billion portion of the overall settlement will be invested in California.

 

[bxr140]

Or wasteful spending.

Don't confuse lack of apparent short term ROI with lack of long term sociopolitical benefit.

 

[McRat]

Well, it looks like VW is actually in charge of spending the money (subject to the court order).
VW Subsidiary To Carry Out $2 Billion ZEV And Awareness Programs - HybridCars.com

Also, this is interesting:
Part of the settlement will be launching the “Green City” program in a California city to pilot future concept vehicles and mobility services. These may include a zero emission shuttle service, a carsharing program using electric vehicles, or a ZEV transit program.

Green City would be part of the California settlement, where $800 million of the $2 billion portion of the overall settlement will be invested in California.

We don't need a green city. We need EV infrastructure and incentives to promote EV adoption, not for a rich suburb, but for the whole state.

 

[RubberToe]

We don't need a green city. We need EV infrastructure and incentives to promote EV adoption, not for a rich suburb, but for the whole state.

Being discussed in some detail in this thread:

VW Fallout: $2.0 Billion for ZEV Infrastructure Buildout

 

[Galve2000]

If you feel you're being "ripped off", please don't use these services.

I generally do not use these services unless it is an absolute emergency. And my point is that I am not alone in this behavior. I am, one suspects, part of a sizable cohort of BEV owners who feel paid EVSE stations are a rip off.

OTOH I have found that as Level 2 EVSEs have sprouted in various places, they are generally free to use, which is nice.

 

[TonyWilliams]

I generally do not use these services unless it is an absolute emergency. And my point is that I am not alone in this behavior. I am, one suspects, part of a sizable cohort of BEV owners who feel paid EVSE stations are a rip off.

OTOH I have found that as Level 2 EVSEs have sprouted in various places, they are generally free to use, which is nice.

I'm well aware of what I dubbed long ago the "Just-Drive-The-Prius(tm)" crowd. Somehow, your transportation energy should be provided by somebody else, or you'll just drive the gasoline car.

My answer is, "please do".

 

[EV-lutioin]

To be honest it looks like it is still a concept. This was unveiled at a trade show... are any of them are actually in service?

 

[miimura]

To be honest it looks like it is still a concept. This was unveiled at a trade show... are any of them are actually in service?

IIRC, at the unveiling they said units would be available for installation in July.