Superchargers super-slow

[David99]

I have been reading through many messages here and it is really hard to figure out if someone had a reduced charge rate or if it was just normal tapering or even pairing. Saying the charge rate dropped to 63kW without the battery percentage at this very moment and the battery type could be normal or it could be a reduced charge rate.
I understand that most people use Superchargers only sporadically and don't keep exact logs. So without a reference what is a normal charge curve and what is not is impossible to say.

 

[ReddyLeaf]

....I didn't need to SC but the road in front of my home was flooded due to high tide and I figured I'd wait for the water to go down rather than damage my car. So it was more about killing time then SCing....

OK, you win the best reason to allow locals to charge and give them a break!

 

[Sparky]

I sent the following case to Tesla last week after a service center Seattle visit. They are escalating the case to engineering. I took pictures of the charge screens to corroborate this:

..."

That's a helpful list of things for Tesla to pull from the logs if they can. I have called them from the SC a few times and they usually can take a look while I'm hooked up. Perhaps you've tried this also?
Yesterday (Memorial Day crunch) I was charging at Harris Ranch. On 3B, no one on 3A. S 85, 15% SOC and it initially shot up to 110kW before dropping down to 48kW after about 5 mins. It was 90 degs outside so I checked the handle and it was pretty hot.
Swapped to stall 5A (no one on 5B) and it was smooth sailing. So, I called Tesla while I was charging just to give them a heads up about the hot handle on 3B. They just said "thanks, we'll look into it". I guess it would have been more helpful if I'd stayed on that spot and called them so they could get a temp reading but needed to get back on the road.

 

[ikjadoon]

Degraded superchargers are a continuing problem • r/teslamotors

Not to bump unnecessarily, but this issue still seems to be occurring often enough. How are other people's Supercharger stops working out now that we're in August?

Still frustrating Tesla hasn't been able to progress to automating these repair requests; 40kW at 10% SoC without sharing at 80F.

 

[hpartsch]

In the last month, I've done so much stall switching it's been comical. Hopefully, Tesla get's this mess figured out soon. It's been at both old and new superchargers. Outside temperatures also have varied significantly. I've called Tesla almost every time and unfortunately, the responses I get are not the most confidence inspiring.

 

[navinsiri]

Same discussion here: charging slow at Superchargers

Seems like the charging cable and handle are the issue. They get too hot while supercharging and will reduce charge rate. Someone said tesla has been installing new revised cables that have solved the issue.

 

[Mattzilla]

Tesla engineer told me that my charge rates were so low because my car was being throttled due to excessive DCFC use. I told him I have under 100 DCFC sessions and asked for the number before throttling begins. He wouldn't give it to me. So now I plan an extra 20-30 minutes at each Supercharging session. It's really thwarted my enthusiasm for road trips, that's for sure, and has forced me to use my wife's ICE to ensure hard time frames are met without question. Unfortunate that I have to use an ICE sometimes now, but Tesla has left me no choice really.

 

[dknisely]

I have under 10 total DCFC sessions in 4400 miles, and have absolutely noticed that SC rates for my 75 (nee 60) have dropped precipitously. In my last service visit, I asked them to check, and they said the car is fine. I am only getting about ~55 kW briefly, dropping to 39-40 kW for steady state, whether starting from 10, 20, 30, or 40 percent range. When I got the car in 12/2016, I was getting 85+ kW every time. Because the rate is so low, it really doesn't reduce much during the session. 5 SCs; several stalls, and almost no other cars at the sites, and never paired.

 

[hill]

In the last month, I've done so much stall switching it's been comical. Hopefully, Tesla get's this mess figured out soon .............

it's horrible having to be on the road between 4am & 4:45am, however it makes for great supercharging. No matter how many times I need to switch stalls, all the rest are invariably empty. no way possible to do that on the way home at 2 pm. you'd wonder, "is it the stall?" Is it the car? is it because of the car right next to me?" five switcheroo's is my record - out of 12 stalls. but as it's been stated many times, it's still the best thing going. running a supercharger at 60kWh's beats a CHAdeMO 50kWh.

.

 

[Mattzilla]

it's horrible having to be on the road between 4am & 4:45am, however it makes for great supercharging. No matter how many times I need to switch stalls, all the rest are invariably empty. no way possible to do that on the way home at 2 pm. you'd wonder, "is it the stall?" Is it the car? is it because of the car right next to me?" five switcheroo's is my record - out of 12 stalls. but as it's been stated many times, it's still the best thing going. running a supercharger at 60kWh's beats a CHAdeMO 50kWh.

.

That's true, but with a Chademo at least I know exactly what I'm getting each time. There is no guessing game or gamble involved. Just consistent charge rates. Makes planning easier. And for the record I tend to hover around 50kW on Superchargers, so it's about Chademo speed anyway.

 

[apacheguy]

I have under 10 total DCFC sessions in 4400 miles, and have absolutely noticed that SC rates for my 75 (nee 60) have dropped precipitously. In my last service visit, I asked them to check, and they said the car is fine. I am only getting about ~55 kW briefly, dropping to 39-40 kW for steady state, whether starting from 10, 20, 30, or 40 percent range. When I got the car in 12/2016, I was getting 85+ kW every time. Because the rate is so low, it really doesn't reduce much during the session. 5 SCs; several stalls, and almost no other cars at the sites, and never paired.

All folks that have reported a permanent reduction in charge rate have only seen their peak rates reduced by ~20%. IMO, something other than the DC charge counter is affecting your vehicle.

 

[Colby Boles]

In the last month, I've done so much stall switching it's been comical. Hopefully, Tesla get's this mess figured out soon. It's been at both old and new superchargers. Outside temperatures also have varied significantly. I've called Tesla almost every time and unfortunately, the responses I get are not the most confidence inspiring.

Same here. Other owners watching me change chargers two or three times must think I'm crazy, but even yesterday I switched from a stall giving me only 24kW to another that did 104kW with a battery that was around 18%. Given a decent number of open stalls, I always seem to get significantly better results if I move when the charging power seems low. So I'm thinking it must be dead charger modules or hot charging cables, not limits for the car or a hot battery. It seems silly to have to jump around like this, but it's worth it to cut your charging time by a factor of two or more. I wasn't doing this even 6 months ago.

 

[dknisely]

All folks that have reported a permanent reduction in charge rate have only seen their peak rates reduced by ~20%. IMO, something other than the DC charge counter is affecting your vehicle.

I believe the SCs are throttling, in general, at least in the Pacific Northwest area. There are too many similar reports. Another possibility is that recent loads have further throttled DC charging rates for technical or business reasons.

 

[hpartsch]

Same here. Other owners watching me change chargers two or three times must think I'm crazy, but even yesterday I switched from a stall giving me only 24kW to another that did 104kW with a battery that was around 18%. Given a decent number of open stalls, I always seem to get significantly better results if I move when the charging power seems low. So I'm thinking it must be dead charger modules or hot charging cables, not limits for the car or a hot battery. It seems silly to have to jump around like this, but it's worth it to cut your charging time by a factor of two or more. I wasn't doing this even 6 months ago.

I agree. It is odd that others I've encountered don't seem to switch stalls. I'm at least going to try and find a better charger. I know how they are supposed to work and get frustrated when they don't work right. It's unfortunate that the last few occurrences I've had people in my car who never been in a Tesla before. After they experienced this charging mess, both individuals stopped raving about the car during the ride back. Can't say I blame them, I hyped up the quick charging experience and it was far from what was expected.

 

[Colby Boles]

I believe the SCs are throttling, in general, at least in the Pacific Northwest area. There are too many similar reports. Another possibility is that recent loads have further throttled DC charging rates for technical or business reasons.

This make sense to me in that I have been experiencing this issue at so many different locations recently, but the fact that I can get such varied charging rates with different stalls at one location seems more like hardware issues than some centrally controlled limiting. It's as if many of the charging modules are starting to die off en masse. I certainly wouldn't expect one of these modules to have the same lifetime in a supercharger as it does be being on-board and servicing a single vehicle at home.

 

[ikjadoon]

Two more this week, with 5 more people confirming in the comments:

PSA: Charlotte Supercharger Crippled • r/teslamotors
Tesla Supercharging Speeds Problems • r/teslamotors

@JonMc

Is this on the radar? Why can't these be dealt with proactively, as not everyone knows to report these (especially new owners)?

 

[Kutu]

I've been getting Supercharger rates, up and down I-95, at or below 60 KW for the last few months; yesterday afternoon I got a solid 110-112 kw at the Kingsland SC. With about 40 miles of range and the outside temp just below 90°. That is the best I've seen 6 months.

 

[K-MTG]

Will this be an issue for resell value?

 

[hill]

resale rates may change only if the maintenance continues to get worse on superchargers. That said, a couple days ago, we pulled into the Santa Ana SC location. There were maybe 3 spots empty & another fellow just pulling out. I quickly followed into this person's spot presuming it must be good. When I hooked up, it wouldn't lock / RED lighted. I only then noticed the fellow had merely moved out & down a few spots. Sadly, he didn't bother to tell me the spot was broken as I got out to hook up. That's the kind of person that wouldn't bother to hold the door as someone enters right before you. You got to love the community spirit..

we only needed about 15 minutes to get where we were going, but during that time every stall filled up. I notified two people that pulled into the completely broken stall, but of course, out of desperation they found it necessary to try it anyway. what a mess things are becoming in some locations, during some times of the day.
.

 

[Trunk Gap]

Whats DCFC? Light reading tells me that if I continuously supercharge or chademo, that it actually throttles back?

Ive probably used superchargers 12x in the time ive owned the car, over a year. Never chademo. I couldnt get more than 60kw/hr this weekend, 4 stops. Really lame. When I first got the car it was super fast, triple digits, now Im lucky to get 60. Regardless of stall. On one I had 20!