If it's 3 am and I'm the only Tesla at a 4 or 8 charger station and take a nap which exceeds my charging time, should I be charged? I mean seriously, what difference does it make if you are the only car there?
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Improving Supercharger Availability $0.40 idle fee
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If it's 3 am and I'm the only Tesla at a 4 or 8 charger station and take a nap which exceeds my charging time, should I be charged? I mean seriously, what difference does it make if you are the only car there?
I understand both the desire, and "fairness" you desire.
However, I think it will make the disincentive work less well, as well as create a headache of epic proportions.
Tesla will start hearing complaints similar to...
"But that never happened where I am from..." (for someone traveling into a SC area that is heavily used from a sparsely busy area)
'There was only one other car when I plugged in!"
"I never used to get charged at SC X..." (in events where a SC gets busier next year)
They need a straight forward rule, applied everywhere.
There is nothing worse than rules that require behavior situationally.
If you want to instill good habits, it must be consistent.
It feel like every day on this planet is a reminder that we're all a-holes, and we have to have laws/fees/etc in place to keep us in check.
Where something as basic as common courtesy for others has to be forced.
Before it was really simple where you moved your car when you could, and if you were tied up (like stuck in a restaurant waiting for the check) it wasn't a big deal.
Now people have to play silly little games like changing the charge limit. Or unplugging when the conditions are too bad to drive. I've been in at superchargers before waiting for weather to get better to continue on (when the rain was ridiculous). I've slept at empty superchargers in the dead of night for a couple hours.
I'm glad I bought the car when I did. Part of the reason was I knew that eventually it wasn't going to be the same thing. So this is kind of a sad shift, but bound to happen at some point.
Where something as basic as common courtesy for others has to be forced.
Before it was really simple where you moved your car when you could, and if you were tied up (like stuck in a restaurant waiting for the check) it wasn't a big deal.
Now people have to play silly little games like changing the charge limit. Or unplugging when the conditions are too bad to drive. I've been in at superchargers before waiting for weather to get better to continue on (when the rain was ridiculous). I've slept at empty superchargers in the dead of night for a couple hours.
I'm glad I bought the car when I did. Part of the reason was I knew that eventually it wasn't going to be the same thing. So this is kind of a sad shift, but bound to happen at some point.
hingisfan
hingisfan_Mark_V
I agree.... If there are 2 or more spots open at the stalls, who cares? If it becomes 1 open spot, app notifies you that idle fees are now on, and you need to move your car when it's done charging, or if car is already done, then it says move within 5 minutes or charges begin. Should work fine, if you want it more aggressive, change it to 3 open spots instead of 2.
This is a good first step. As someone who does not have a smart phone and has zero interest in getting one, though, it is going to be a pain. I've never been at a SC with even 50% usage, so I kind of feel like I am that exact person who is most negatively impacted. I have no way of knowing when I should make space at empty SC locations, but I'll still pay. But some people ruin things for everyone, and I have learned to live with that.
I see two problems for me:
1: I set my home charge percentage pretty low. I have forgotten to set a higher charge rate while on a trip, and come back to an idle car that needs more juice to keep going. Now that will be a costly as well as an irritating failure on my part. Now all of my charges will go to 100% before long distance trips.
2: The last time I used a SC I came back to an idle car with a "charge interrupted" message. I had to restart the charge. I am not sure what happened there, but that one was not my fault, and I would be horked off if I had to pay for a fault not of my making.
I see two problems for me:
1: I set my home charge percentage pretty low. I have forgotten to set a higher charge rate while on a trip, and come back to an idle car that needs more juice to keep going. Now that will be a costly as well as an irritating failure on my part. Now all of my charges will go to 100% before long distance trips.
2: The last time I used a SC I came back to an idle car with a "charge interrupted" message. I had to restart the charge. I am not sure what happened there, but that one was not my fault, and I would be horked off if I had to pay for a fault not of my making.
What if your nap turns into a nice sleep and you don't set an alarm? The stalls all fill up and you missed the text about getting charged. You wake up to an unexpected & expensive nap. Although I want to take a nap & not worry about supercharging, with more cars increasing on the road everyday, I think this was the right move.
KirkNason
Member
Totally agree they need to only apply this fee if SC is full and people are waiting. They need to update the app to indicate # of free chargers b4 arriving and if needed start a queue.
This issue is mostly in dense areas and people use them vs. home charging. When travelling out of major cities many times 1 or 2 charging when 8 or more spots available.
isaax
Follow me on Instagram @izetm3
As a SoCal resident, I approve!
I also think abusers should be punished by experiencing waiting at Harris Ranch when conditions are "ideal"
. (i'm joking)
IMO, the SuperCharger stall is not a parking spot, regardless if nobody else is around. There's a cab service that leaves one of their cars at the Culver City SC overnight! The majority of CA travelers going up, down and across the state only need to be plugged for 10-20mins to get to the next SuperCharger assuming nobody is paired up with you.
In addition to Tesla's blog post regarding the over stay issue, I'm hoping Tesla will also follow up with another blog post or video explaining how to charge effectively on trips for owners to get to their destination faster. Most owners I've met at SuperChargers do not know about "Less is more" when charging and always top off to 100%. I always try to educate them if they are open to listen.
I also think abusers should be punished by experiencing waiting at Harris Ranch when conditions are "ideal"
. (i'm joking)IMO, the SuperCharger stall is not a parking spot, regardless if nobody else is around. There's a cab service that leaves one of their cars at the Culver City SC overnight! The majority of CA travelers going up, down and across the state only need to be plugged for 10-20mins to get to the next SuperCharger assuming nobody is paired up with you.
In addition to Tesla's blog post regarding the over stay issue, I'm hoping Tesla will also follow up with another blog post or video explaining how to charge effectively on trips for owners to get to their destination faster. Most owners I've met at SuperChargers do not know about "Less is more" when charging and always top off to 100%. I always try to educate them if they are open to listen.
FarmerDave
Member
IMO the 5 minute grace period is insufficient.
Suppose you are dining alone in a restaurant when the charging complete pops up on your phone. You can't just leave. At a minimum you need to get the check, pay the bill, and walk to the supercharger to unplug and move the car.
A 15 minute grace period (or even 30 minutes) would eliminate the issue and still be effective for the abusers.
Suppose you are dining alone in a restaurant when the charging complete pops up on your phone. You can't just leave. At a minimum you need to get the check, pay the bill, and walk to the supercharger to unplug and move the car.
A 15 minute grace period (or even 30 minutes) would eliminate the issue and still be effective for the abusers.
eyespii
Member
$.40/min while idling is clean and predictable. No need to wonder how long you'll be able to stay in a spot. What if you fall asleep, and 15 minutes later the stalls fill up? Maybe unlikely now, but when the M3 hits, who knows?
Plus, if it's 3a and you're taking a nap in your car, then just wake up, unplug your car, move, and go back to sleep. It will take literally 30 seconds out of your life.
KirkNason
Member
eyespii
Member
I can think of only a few areas in downtown cities that don't even charge $24 a DAY to park, LOL
Tesla bragged about how their superchargers were next to "destinations" such as restaurants and shopping centers and such, well you don't dare go enjoy those "destinations" for fear of being charged $10 or $20 all because there was a line at the bathroom or the checkout counter, or the waitress was slow bringing your check, etc. Kinda takes the fun right out of an "enjoyable trip exploring the destinations the superchargers are located at."
To be fair, with a connected Tesla, you should never be surprised when charging is completed. You can monitor it from your phone and it predicts when it will be complete (extremely accurately). I don't know what else can be done to make it any easier.
After giving it some thought I'm opposed to this for the following reasons.
1.) They never implemented a warning system. I strongly believe that most people are good people especially when they know they're being watched. A warning type system would have deterred most people without having to go to a punitive system
2.) They never did a pilot program to see how effective it would be. Why didn't they do a slow roll out of this where they started with problematic superchargers in Cali.
3.) It discourages the idea of sleeping in your car at in the middle of nowhere america. Why do this when the idea of camper vans is all the rage these days? Why negatively impact someone traveling in Montana for something that is really meant for California? I don't have any issue with someone in their car sleeping. At least they are there if for some weird reason they're still sleeping when a bunch of people pull up.
1.) They never implemented a warning system. I strongly believe that most people are good people especially when they know they're being watched. A warning type system would have deterred most people without having to go to a punitive system
2.) They never did a pilot program to see how effective it would be. Why didn't they do a slow roll out of this where they started with problematic superchargers in Cali.
3.) It discourages the idea of sleeping in your car at in the middle of nowhere america. Why do this when the idea of camper vans is all the rage these days? Why negatively impact someone traveling in Montana for something that is really meant for California? I don't have any issue with someone in their car sleeping. At least they are there if for some weird reason they're still sleeping when a bunch of people pull up.
ElectricTundra
P85D AP1
Good idea when chargers are full. Can't say I'm thrilled about running out of a restaurant in the middle of desert to move my car from a supercharger with 7 empty spaces. Especially when it's -5f outside and the charger is 3 blocks away.
Tesla introduces $0.40/minute idle fee for Superchargers to incentivise owners to move when charging is over
Tesla introduces $0.40/minute idle fee for Superchargers to incentivise owners to move when charging is over
Is no one upset about this?
I've maybe seen another tesla once or twice at a SC. This rule will not effect me, but it should be after SC is full. Easy to monitor.
Also I'm assumeing you can not schedule charging?
Also how will this stop a tesla or any other EV or ice from parking there and not plugging in?
For a hotel for example, I could park there assuring a spot and plug in when I wake up 1.5 hours before check out.
Another problem - can't you just start your climate control once you get an alert from your phone? Hence not having a full charge anymore..
Seems like a rushed plan. Again this doesn't effect me personally in any way. I charge at home 99% of the time.
I've maybe seen another tesla once or twice at a SC. This rule will not effect me, but it should be after SC is full. Easy to monitor.
Also I'm assumeing you can not schedule charging?
Also how will this stop a tesla or any other EV or ice from parking there and not plugging in?
For a hotel for example, I could park there assuring a spot and plug in when I wake up 1.5 hours before check out.
Another problem - can't you just start your climate control once you get an alert from your phone? Hence not having a full charge anymore..
Seems like a rushed plan. Again this doesn't effect me personally in any way. I charge at home 99% of the time.
Ha, I've never actually stopped in Montana for more than a few minutes. Last time I went through was when there was no speed limit. Apparently the locals weren't too happy with my 130mph average speed. Apparently that wasn't the intention of the no speed limit.
This is exactly right. The last SC I used, I had to walk 20 minutes to a decent place to eat. In 6 stops in that location, I have seen a total of 1 Tesla charging, who left before I did. Which of my problems would I be paying to solve, again?
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