Supercharger neglect: Shape up, Tesla

[sperkin]

If your info is accurate and it takes six weeks, the problem is going to get really severe. I understand that Tesla is juggling a lot of balls but they are risking their most distinctive advantage over competing car manufacturers. Talk to a Leaf owner about the frustration of dealing with broken chargers. I am sure more than a few have dumped their Leafs and purchased Teslas largely for the Supercharger network. If it gets a reputation for being unreliable, Tesla will have blown it big time.

Telsa still has the largest charger in the world. They just can't upkeep or build more than they sell cars.

It's always 4 to 5 cars deep and takes about 45min to get a spot in LA. What sucks is you get a spot that only charges at 35kw. 2 chargers broken here and 3 are charging at 35kw. Only 5 charges at 75kw.

When all chargers worked and not too many Model 3s were sold.

 

[SoManyM3s]

About 10% of the times I have to change stalls due to either a slow or not working Charger.

 

[toolman335]

Speaking of Leaf owners, are you guys saying that non-Tesla specific chargers are down a lot too?
Sorry for what you guys are experiencing. I can't imagine having to wait for one and having it charge slowly.

 

[Az_Rael]

On my last road trip to Phoenix I noticed more broken chargers than I did the last time I drove thru (over a year ago). Luckily no congestion, so I was always able to try a different spot. The worst ones are the ones that fire up OK but only charge at a super low kW rate. That takes longer to figure out it’s not working right vs the ones that just won’t charge.

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

If those stalls are not repaired by Thanksgiving week, there will be a lot of angry owners out there.

There is also another thread floating around that has addressed this issue.

Tesla really needs to improve in this area. The suggestion above to show a broken or malfunctioning stall is a good start. The conditions of the stalls should be apparent on the touchscreen as we approach, and we definitely need a way to report stalls that are out of order from the touchscreen, or phone app, and not through some generic email (I don't have email when away from home).

First world problems I suppose, but definitely would not bring my Tesla on a holiday weekend. All chargers were pretty empty today from SD to Sedona...but...

-Skipped Yuma because the charge screen said it had limited service and it did not seem great from reading about it here. Meant very non-optimal charging in El Centro (had to charge to 95% to arrive Gila Bend with 10%)

This charger was limited to 120kW in Gila Bend (I know, not that big a deal).
The screen in the car said there were 2 people there (show 4 after I arrived and after I moved stalls) - but it was only me. I checked all the chargers - all the lights were on.

This charger in Cordes Lakes was limited to 74kW. No one else on that stall or nearby. Moved closer to a car at the far end and immediately got 145kW.

It would be good to have more detailed info available in the app. And an easy way to report the exact problem right on the map screen.

I anticipate driving back Sunday will be very rough. Too many people in San Diego with Model 3. Will report back soon!

 

[NoMoGas]

Did you report the inoperative pedestals to Tesla?

Naaaa people just complain on the forums.

People SHOULD call Tesla. Fastest way to get em fixed is to let them know they're broken.

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

Naaaa people just complain on the forums.

People SHOULD call Tesla. Fastest way to get em fixed is to let them know they're broken.

Makes sense when you are on a road trip and you have better things to do... Should detect you quickly unplugged and moved and ask whether there was something wrong.
Also now that I think about it, obviously Tesla already knows about all the malfunctions and exactly what they are (except for chargers with things stuck in them so they never get used - and they even know about that!) so there is really no need for any reporting at all! I’m pretty sure it does not even require a neural net to figure out all the failure modes.

 

[NoMoGas]

Makes sense when you are on a road trip and you have better things to do... Should detect you quickly unplugged and moved and ask whether there was something wrong.
Also now that I think about it, obviously Tesla already knows about all the malfunctions and exactly what they are (except for chargers with things stuck in them so they never get used - and they even know about that!) so there is really no need for any reporting at all! I’m pretty sure it does not even require a neural net to figure out all the failure modes.

When you have other things to do? You're literally sitting for 30 minutes charging. Perfect time to call em for 5 minutes.

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

You're literally sitting for 30 minutes charging.

That is not how my road trips have gone so far, I have been pretty busy with other things. I don’t spend any significant time sitting in the car. Unplug and go.

Sometimes there might be time. My larger point though is that there is absolutely no need - Tesla already has all the information about exactly what the status is of every single Supercharger. They know exactly what they can put out, and whether they work at all. They don’t need our help!

I would assume they are not fixing them rapidly because that would cost more money than they are willing to spend. But it could also be incompetence, meaning they are not using their information - perhaps more likely.

 

[cpa]

I would assume they are not fixing them rapidly because that would cost more money than they are willing to spend. But it could also be incompetence, meaning they are not using their information - perhaps more likely.

Probably both.

 

[dgatwood]

View attachment 475266

The Mountain View supercharger was completely empty tonight. I actually stopped my car in the middle of the entrance road to get out and take a picture.

Of course, that's probably because half the stalls don't work correctly. 2A/2B are coned off. 6A/6B and 5A/5B have at least a couple of chargers not running (low charge speed). 4A/4B is working normally (I'm charging right now). My money is not on 1A/1B or 3A/3B being healthy, because they weren't last week.

So don't hope for an empty supercharger. You might just get one.

 

[scottf200]

Naaaa people just complain on the forums.
People SHOULD call Tesla. Fastest way to get em fixed is to let them know they're broken.

I've done this recently for London, KY.

Do you REALIZE that when calling the actually waiting to talk to human repeated message STATEs that if you are calling to report a supercharger probem that they are automatically reported?!? The message states that. Still I stayed on and when I talked to someone they confirmed that and told me the day that it was scheduled for service.

 

[Zybane]

Emails are so very easy to ignore. If you really want to do something about this, you need to call the roadside assistance number. Every time.

SCAMERICA business practices have made this the norm. If a company isn't going to be receiving money from you in regards to the topic, 95% of the time the email is ignored.

 

[NoMoGas]

I've done this recently for London, KY.

Do you REALIZE that when calling the actually waiting to talk to human repeated message STATEs that if you are calling to report a supercharger probem that they are automatically reported?!? The message states that. Still I stayed on and when I talked to someone they confirmed that and told me the day that it was scheduled for service.

I do realize that and they really need to update the maps or I will assume they don't know. If they get enough calls, they'll fix that

 

[Wennfred]

Long Trips? Limited SC on your planned road trip, Plan B, CHAdeMO Adapter. 50KW is better then Zero KW.

Fred