Public chargers issue

[Taurus_D]

Hi all, I am new to this forum so kindly excuse any 'out of etiquette' posts or comments.
I was wondering if anyone has recently been facing issues using non-Tesla public chargers? I seem to be consistently getting 'unable to charge....unit nor powered' error and it take a few tries before I can get some (not all) chargers to work. Am I doing something wrong: I connect the cable, swipe my CYC RFID card and press start. The unit says it is performing checks but then nothing happens and I get the error message. Tesla have tested my car and say that there is nothing wrong. Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.

 

[Alistairuk]

What type of chargers?

CCS: Generally I'm fine although there is one near me I use occasionally which randomly decides "car is not ready" and the car says "charger is not ready" - no amount of faffing around with it gets it to work when it decides to do this, yet a few days later / earlier it works fine!

For untethered I have found the best way is to: connect your cable to the car, then connect your cable to the charger, then swipe your card. (If you can't plug into the charger without swiping the card first then obviously you need to swipe the card first)... this works all the time. I had random issues with some chargers when I was plugging into the charger and then the car - no idea why - it would work some times, others it just errored and you end up faffing around trying to get it to work.

Only other things to suggest: check your cable is fully inserted into the car and especially the charger socket - sometimes it can stick on the way in... If you have an option try a different cable (can you borrow one - maybe your cable has an intermittent fault), and of course some chargers (much like printers) are just pains in the ass.

 

[Rustybkts]

I had this problem last year when in Scotland. No problem using Tesla SC to get there but around the north I had an awful experience of non Tesla Rapids.
Most just said CCS comms error although I also had two with display faults and without a touch screen they can't be told to start charging! A simple button is all it takes. Touch screens don't like sunlight or don't these designers know that. Push buttons could always be there as a backup anyway.
My trip wasn't spoiled as I was booking hotels with destination charging or available 13A sockets which worked well.

 

[Alan J]

What type of chargers?

CCS: Generally I'm fine although there is one near me I use occasionally which randomly decides "car is not ready" and the car says "charger is not ready" - no amount of faffing around with it gets it to work when it decides to do this, yet a few days later / earlier it works fine!

For untethered I have found the best way is to: connect your cable to the car, then connect your cable to the charger, then swipe your card. (If you can't plug into the charger without swiping the card first then obviously you need to swipe the card first)... this works all the time. I had random issues with some chargers when I was plugging into the charger and then the car - no idea why - it would work some times, others it just errored and you end up faffing around trying to get it to work.

Only other things to suggest: check your cable is fully inserted into the car and especially the charger socket - sometimes it can stick on the way in... If you have an option try a different cable (can you borrow one - maybe your cable has an intermittent fault), and of course some chargers (much like printers) are just pains in the ass.

Personally I find connecting the cable to the car , swiping the RFID Card and then connecting the cable to the charger when prompted works best using Chargeplace Scotland so CYC Network and Card on Type 2 Charger. I do find the odd CCS Charger can be tempremental but usually a second attempt works or if I have to I switch to Type 2 if available.

 

[fancealot]

Welcome to the forum!

Ah public charging networks aen't they rubbish!!

CYC network chargers at times aren't the best, and depending where you are (see the recent changes to charge Scotland thread) they are not on the network. Faults are rarely repaired as CYC and land owners don't take responsibility to repair broken chargers.

I've found with my CYC points that I use regularly i've had to learn to plug cable in to car, swipe card, plug cable in charge point then leave it to connect even though the screen will say swipe card again (which ends charge cycle!!!) 90% of the time I can get a charge!

 

[Taurus_D]

What type of chargers?

CCS: Generally I'm fine although there is one near me I use occasionally which randomly decides "car is not ready" and the car says "charger is not ready" - no amount of faffing around with it gets it to work when it decides to do this, yet a few days later / earlier it works fine!

For untethered I have found the best way is to: connect your cable to the car, then connect your cable to the charger, then swipe your card. (If you can't plug into the charger without swiping the card first then obviously you need to swipe the card first)... this works all the time. I had random issues with some chargers when I was plugging into the charger and then the car - no idea why - it would work some times, others it just errored and you end up faffing around trying to get it to work.

Only other things to suggest: check your cable is fully inserted into the car and especially the charger socket - sometimes it can stick on the way in... If you have an option try a different cable (can you borrow one - maybe your cable has an intermittent fault), and of course some chargers (much like printers) are just pains in the ass.

Thanks. Ive tried both, tethered CCS and my own (Tesla) type 2. Tesla actually advised me to swipe my card first! I suppose I need to try different combinations; its just annoying. But thanks for the advice.

 

[Taurus_D]

Personally I find connecting the cable to the car , swiping the RFID Card and then connecting the cable to the charger when prompted works best using Chargeplace Scotland so CYC Network and Card on Type 2 Charger. I do find the odd CCS Charger can be tempremental but usually a second attempt works or if I have to I switch to Type 2 if available.

Thanks, Ill give that a go.

 

[Taurus_D]

Welcome to the forum!

Ah public charging networks aen't they rubbish!!

CYC network chargers at times aren't the best, and depending where you are (see the recent changes to charge Scotland thread) they are not on the network. Faults are rarely repaired as CYC and land owners don't take responsibility to repair broken chargers.

I've found with my CYC points that I use regularly i've had to learn to plug cable in to car, swipe card, plug cable in charge point then leave it to connect even though the screen will say swipe card again (which ends charge cycle!!!) 90% of the time I can get a charge!

Thanks, Ill try that. What about tethered chargers (CCS), would you connect first or swipe first?

 

[Alan J]

Thanks, Ill try that. What about tethered chargers (CCS), would you connect first or swipe first?

Swipe first because you usually need to choose between CCS, Chademo or Type 2 on the Multiheaded Chargers.

 

[Taurus_D]

Swipe first because you usually need to choose between CCS, Chademo or Type 2 on the Multiheaded Chargers.

Thanks, will give that a go.

 

[Rustybkts]

These swipe first, swipe last, swipe twice, plug in the car first, plug in the car second advices as recommended above are really the crux of the matter.

Software needs to allow for any or all of these options. Just look at how Supechargers just work. Swiping before or afterwards should only concern unlocking the plug and have nothing to do with handshaking.

The developers need to spend a week with users and get out of the office a bit more!

 

[Taurus_D]

These swipe first, swipe last, swipe twice, plug in the car first, plug in the car second advices as recommended above are really the crux of the matter.

Software needs to allow for any or all of these options. Just look at how Supechargers just work. Swiping before or afterwards should only concern unlocking the plug and have nothing to do with handshaking.

The developers need to spend a week with users and get out of the office a bit more!

Absolutely, it should be straightforward. It might be a way to deter Tesla owners from using these chargers and stick to more expensive tesla SC.

 

[MrBadger]

I connect the cable, swipe my CYC RFID card and press start.

You don't say where you are trying to use your CYC card. Not sure if this thread is relevant.

Chargeplace Scotland CYC

As I am heading up to Scotland quite soon I thought I would register with CYC and Chargeplace Scotland just to cover myself. Has anyone signed up to these as for some reason just setting up payment details and card has been impossible as their site seems to be in a loop?.I called them 3 times...

teslamotorsclub.com

 

[Taurus_D]

You don't say where you are trying to use your CYC card. Not sure if this thread is relevant.

Chargeplace Scotland CYC

As I am heading up to Scotland quite soon I thought I would register with CYC and Chargeplace Scotland just to cover myself. Has anyone signed up to these as for some reason just setting up payment details and card has been impossible as their site seems to be in a loop?.I called them 3 times...

teslamotorsclub.com

Scotland, particularly Glasgow and also Edinburgh.

Btw, thanks for pointing me to that post.

 

[NewbieT]

Absolutely, it should be straightforward. It might be a way to deter Tesla owners from using these chargers and stick to more expensive tesla SC.

I see the point you are trying to make but Tesla SuCs are actually cheaper than most other providers of comparable services (i.e. 100kW+ CCS chargers).

CCS 100kW+ Ultra Rapid League Table

Prices after recent increases look to be as follows. Apologies I didn’t add scores for reliability, cleanliness, UX or customer service. Prices June 2021

teslamotorsclub.com

Note that you also pay for DC delivered to the car on SuCs and not AC delivered to the charger (= 5-10% difference).

Comparing the cost for a 7kW socket with a 250kW V3 SuC is like comparing a Ford Fiesta vs a Tesla M3. You can get free 7kW PodPoint charging at Tesco’s. If you want reliable quick on route charging, use an SuC.

 

[Taurus_D]

I see the point you are trying to make but Tesla SuCs are actually cheaper than most other providers of comparable services (i.e. 100kW+ CCS chargers).

CCS 100kW+ Ultra Rapid League Table

Prices after recent increases look to be as follows. Apologies I didn’t add scores for reliability, cleanliness, UX or customer service. Prices June 2021

teslamotorsclub.com

Note that you also pay for DC delivered to the car on SuCs and not AC delivered to the charger (= 5-10% difference).

Comparing the cost for a 7kW socket with a 250kW V3 SuC is like comparing a Ford Fiesta vs a Tesla M3. You can get free 7kW PodPoint charging at Tesco’s. If you want reliable quick on route charging, use an SuC.

Fair point. However, couple of fast chargers that I use around here are free

 

[Adopado]

Fair point. However, couple of fast chargers that I use around here are free

Did I read that you are in Scotland? If you change your TMC location to "Scotland" people may realise that there's a possibility that you have some free CPS "rapid" chargers available locally. (DC chargers are usually termed "rapid" ... "fast" chargers include 7kW so are actually not particularly fast in the greater scheme of things ... just fast compared to a UMC with a 3 pin plug.)

 

[init6]

Scotland, particularly Glasgow and also Edinburgh.

Btw, thanks for pointing me to that post.

I've rarely had a problem charging in Glasgow.

Also, with respect to swiping connecting etc, I would follow the instructions on the each charger. I've found a few of the older ones like to do things in a different order. Anderston car park springs to mind for be particularly obtuse about the correct order.