Jolt EV charging network

[Sir Surfalot]

Why anyone would want to reserve a Jolt charger is a mystery though.

At Mona Vale, where the parking is a bit manic (understatement) and there are two Jolt chargers within about 50m of each other, I use them basically to get a parking spot while I do a bit of shopping. For about $2 (first 7kWh free, then $0.42/kWh after that) a 20-30 minute charge easy parking spot where they are otherwise hard to come by is good value

Outside of that scenario, I agree with you. In a dual motor Tesla with a cold battery the Jolt charger isn’t really much faster than my 3-phase HPWC at home. Also the recent software change in the car to show the “gross” energy from the charger rather than the “nett” that is making it in to the battery is unhelpful for Jolt’s 25kW DC chargers too, as it shows (say) 21kW BUT only 11-12kW is making it into the battery until it gets up to the (unnecessarily high) DC charging temperature.

 

[BenT]

Jolt now up to 24 sites in Adelaide. 3 sites recently added in Norwood council region. Interestingly listed as NOR001, NOR003 and NOR004. This would suggest there should be a NOR002 coming.

 

[doggy1]

The wording is a little ambiguous. However, it is possible 2022.36.6 changes/fixes the car heating the battery when on low powered chargers such as JOLT. Just wondering if anyone has had a chance to see if things are improved (versus pulling 22kW of which up to 11kW goes into battery heating). The problem was still there when I tried using 2022.36.2. Quote below:

"Improved Charging Efficiency​

During DC fast charging, the thermal system controls have been optimized for each charging stations power capability, improving both charging and on-route battery preconditioning efficiency. This results in faster charge times and reduced energy costs.

This change was actually first reported as an undocumented extra in 2022.36. The release notes now formalise the change."

 

[moa999]

Given the recent changes to what's shown in the car (now net kW) guess we will need someone with an OBD reader to tell us.

 

[moa999]

The larger Jolt skin appears to be blocking the footpath, and appears council has now blocked everything.

PlugShare - EV Charging Station Map - Find a place to charge

Find EV charging stations with PlugShare, the most complete map of electric vehicle charging stations in the world!Charging tips reviews and photos from the EV community.

www.plugshare.com

 

[doggy1]

Given the recent changes to what's shown in the car (now net kW) guess we will need someone with an OBD reader to tell us.

Good point. I have one and will try to test it out as soon as I can. Actually, they changed it from Nett to Gross...which is why it is no longer easy to tell..

 

[cafz]

Given the recent changes to what's shown in the car (now net kW) guess we will need someone with an OBD reader to tell us.

The "km/h" charging figure still refer just to what's going into the battery, if you know the conversion rate.

 

[doggy1]

Good point. I have one and will try to test it out as soon as I can.

I tried to do this today at Mona Vale, Sydney.
First JOLT I visited had a LEAF parked there. No-one in attendance. No cables connected. No charging.
Second JOLT I visited was "Offline" and the App said I should start the charging session manually. Could not find any way to do it. Tried scanning. Disconnecting and connecting the car. Tried reading the HELP file. Nothing relevant. After 10mins of fiddling and retrying I gave up.

 

[doggy1]

1. JOLT said that the offline message is misleading. Charger was actually broken. They are fixing the message. They are also removing the message about manually starting because that is incorrect.

2. Just got

2022.40.4.1​

But now, the release notes say that the optimised charging depending upon charger capabilities is NOT relevant for Australia!
A bit like reading speed signs outside built up areas also not turned on for Australia.
Grrrr

 

[moa999]

That's a shame. Hopefully we get that functionality soon then.

Jolt is now at 19 station in Sydney, and 24 in Adelaide.

 

[doggy1]

My screen notes for 2022.40.4.1 said that the release contained the improvements even though release notes elsewhere say (not for Australia).

So I tried it out early this morning. The result is that nothing has changed and from a gross 23kW as reported by JOLT and the car, only 12-13kW was going into the battery, which was being madly heated. Info from OBD2/CANBUS

So, we can stay in the "Land of Wait Awhile" for a little (or a lot) longer.........

 

[scully]

 

[moa999]

Note you don't have to scan a barcode with the app.

Click location swipe up, select CCS2.

Start charging.

 

[Anubis]

The larger Jolt skin appears to be blocking the footpath, and appears council has now blocked everything.

PlugShare - EV Charging Station Map - Find a place to charge

Find EV charging stations with PlugShare, the most complete map of electric vehicle charging stations in the world!Charging tips reviews and photos from the EV community.

www.plugshare.com

Drove past the Jolt Mons St (West Ryde) site yesterday, and the charger infrastructure is completely gone. No sign of it or fencing.
It is also missing from Jolt's app and Plugshare.

Love to know the facts behind what happen to it.
Disappointing if it was removed due to being a "pedestrian hazard".

 

[mathewparet@gm]

At Mona Vale, where the parking is a bit manic (understatement) and there are two Jolt chargers within about 50m of each other, I use them basically to get a parking spot while I do a bit of shopping. For about $2 (first 7kWh free, then $0.42/kWh after that) a 20-30 minute charge easy parking spot where they are otherwise hard to come by is good value

Outside of that scenario, I agree with you. In a dual motor Tesla with a cold battery the Jolt charger isn’t really much faster than my 3-phase HPWC at home. Also the recent software change in the car to show the “gross” energy from the charger rather than the “nett” that is making it in to the battery is unhelpful for Jolt’s 25kW DC chargers too, as it shows (say) 21kW BUT only 11-12kW is making it into the battery until it gets up to the (unnecessarily high) DC charging temperature.

Nice way of blocking someone who actually might have needed the juice.Thats poor Etiquette.

 

[Sir Surfalot]

Nice way of blocking someone who actually might have needed the juice.Thats poor Etiquette.

C’mon, who is to say who “needs“ it more? I am usually charging from 40something percent to about 60%, not like I’m not charging or already at 90+%.

I’m usually there around 7am, always check in to PlugShare (take a look in PlugShare to confirm what I I’m saying on both counts if you like), and would move if anyone messaged me in PlugShare or tapped on the window of the car if I happened to be sitting in it.

Just when SHOULDN‘T I charge there do you think?

 

[mathewparet@gm]

C’mon, who is to say who “needs“ it more? I am usually charging from 40something percent to about 60%, not like I’m not charging or already at 90+%.

I’m usually there around 7am, always check in to PlugShare (take a look in PlugShare to confirm what I I’m saying on both counts if you like), and would move if anyone messaged me in PlugShare or tapped on the window of the car if I happened to be sitting in it.

Just when SHOULDN‘T I charge there do you think?

Well if you do that it's good. Some people just don't care. They just park there jus for parking.

Part of my concern is that I don't have home charging. But I've ordered a Tesla and I plan to depend on destination chargers and private Charing options in the Northern Beaches for daily use. I know it isn't ideal, but I want to support EV movement and I think not having an option to charge shouldn't stop someone from buying a Tesla. So I hired one for a week to see how to live without charging options (during a vacation in Byron Bay) and found that it could work. So now I've ordered my Y and am awaiting my VIN.

 

[Sir Surfalot]

So now I've ordered my Y and am awaiting my VIN.

Great, congratulations! Hopefully you won’t have too long to wait.

What you’ll likely find is the Northern Beaches are still something of a charging desert. The two Jolt chargers in Mona Vale are good but pretty slow. Fortunately Tesla has just in the last few weeks fixed a bad behaviour which really compromised the charging speed/efficiency when charging at a “slow fast charger” like the 25kW Jolt ones, such that the charging sessions were often less than 75% efficient (because of the battery being heated to the same speed as if you were at a 120, 250 or 350kW DC charger), so using a Jolt charger with a Tesla has just become significantly better.

Jolt had a burst of new chargers rolled out in the Northern Beaches LGA 6-12 months ago, but it seems to have slowed up since then. They are by far the most plentiful though, so have a look in their phone app if you haven’t already.

Off-topic for this thread but there are two new-ish 50kW Evie network chargers in the Belrose SupaCentre carpark too. Unfortunately that carpark is only open quite limited hours but otherwise they are a good option if you are using Mona Vale Rd. Outside of that it’s pretty much a handful of AC chargers or finding a power point.

 

[Sir Surfalot]

I just opened the Jolt app, to see if the charger in the Mona Vale Library carpark has been fixed yet(*) and got a pop-up saying that their rate is going up to $0.46/kWh (after the first free 7kWh/day) from 27-Jan-23. This is an increase from the current $0.42/kWh, in turn an increase from their launch price of $0.40/kWh.

(*) The app says it is working now; definitely wasn’t up to a couple of hours ago. If I have to go to the shops tomorrow morning I’ll go to Mona Vale and see; that charger has had a really bad run lately reliability-wise.

 

[moa999]

Also got the message..

And confirm that my 7kWh daily free plan, has been rolled to a January 2024 expiry.

Not overly concerned about the increase. My average rate with Jolt is pretty low.