QLeo
Established Member
- Joined
- May 17, 2023
- Messages
- 269
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- Location
- Scottish Highlands
- Driving
- MG4 SE LR
I think we have just experienced A Series of Unfortunate Events. but may I ask for the collective wisdom of the forum, please.
On Friday we slow charged the car (SE LR) to full, planning a journey yesterday. We drove about 100 miles, and, as charging closer to home is rather expensive, thought we would try the Pod Point at Tesco in Dingwall. We have used one of these before, though elsewhere, and it worked perfectly. This one would not start. But it appeared to be a fault with the credit card reader, and as we did not need a charge, we decided to continue our journey. We drove on, along a back road we've been meaning to take for years (for viewers in Scotland, the road above the A9 from Dingwall to Evanton, then towards the Struie, then dropping down to Edderton on the little single track and on to Tain). We were having a fine day out.
But as that failed charge was bothering us, we tried the Pod Point in Tain, which we have used before, this time using the app. Again, the car would not charge. Rather than get het up about it, we decided that, as we would want a charge before we got home, we would go to the one in Ardgay. Again, we have used this before. The lights on the port turned green and we went to find a drink nearby. I didn't bother to check the iSmart app, which I normally do, but when we got back to the car, I noticed that the state of charge was 50% on the dot. I could have sworn it was about 53% when we started but can't be sure. I checked the iSmart app, and it showed it was charging at 3.5kW rather than 10x that or more. I phoned Chargeplace Scotland, who thought there was a problem on the unit because a previous person had only got 10kW in 45 minutes.
We knew we'd have enough to get home, but that 50% SOC bothered me. We switched off the aircon (it was hot yesterday) and carried on. About 12-15 miles later, the SOC was STILL at 50% and I started wondering where we could find a mobile signal to call for help. But then it dropped to 49%, the only time I have been happy to see the SOC drop. After that it seemed to behave as I would expect, showing SOC and expected range within expectations.
One other oddity. I had it in ECO mode, and occasionally, when pulling away or accelerating, the power percentage shot up to 70-80%, even on what I thought was a gentle pullaway. I may have been over-sensitive to the power use, but there was something that felt wrong about these occasions.
We got to Lochinver with about 30%, so we went straight to the charger to see if we could finally get a charge. Again, we have used this before, and expected 38-45kW from it. Two things then happened. One was that it started the charge slowly and topped out at about 37kW. The other was that the iSmart app showed it was aiming for 60% rather than the 80% I have come to expect on a fast charger. We stopped it soon after that but once it reached 60%, the charge rate see-sawed between 15kW and 37kW when I would expect it to have been constant, as it had been up to that point.
I will go back tomorrow or during the week to see what the charger does, but there are a few things that I'm concerned about. One is the string of failures. That could be co-incidence, but given the rest of the day, I'm beginning to wonder. The other the fact that the SOC was stuck at 50%. That sounds problematic, but there could be a reason. And finally, why did it only "want" 60% and charge at a lower rate than expected?
Any advice or comment?
On Friday we slow charged the car (SE LR) to full, planning a journey yesterday. We drove about 100 miles, and, as charging closer to home is rather expensive, thought we would try the Pod Point at Tesco in Dingwall. We have used one of these before, though elsewhere, and it worked perfectly. This one would not start. But it appeared to be a fault with the credit card reader, and as we did not need a charge, we decided to continue our journey. We drove on, along a back road we've been meaning to take for years (for viewers in Scotland, the road above the A9 from Dingwall to Evanton, then towards the Struie, then dropping down to Edderton on the little single track and on to Tain). We were having a fine day out.
But as that failed charge was bothering us, we tried the Pod Point in Tain, which we have used before, this time using the app. Again, the car would not charge. Rather than get het up about it, we decided that, as we would want a charge before we got home, we would go to the one in Ardgay. Again, we have used this before. The lights on the port turned green and we went to find a drink nearby. I didn't bother to check the iSmart app, which I normally do, but when we got back to the car, I noticed that the state of charge was 50% on the dot. I could have sworn it was about 53% when we started but can't be sure. I checked the iSmart app, and it showed it was charging at 3.5kW rather than 10x that or more. I phoned Chargeplace Scotland, who thought there was a problem on the unit because a previous person had only got 10kW in 45 minutes.
We knew we'd have enough to get home, but that 50% SOC bothered me. We switched off the aircon (it was hot yesterday) and carried on. About 12-15 miles later, the SOC was STILL at 50% and I started wondering where we could find a mobile signal to call for help. But then it dropped to 49%, the only time I have been happy to see the SOC drop. After that it seemed to behave as I would expect, showing SOC and expected range within expectations.
One other oddity. I had it in ECO mode, and occasionally, when pulling away or accelerating, the power percentage shot up to 70-80%, even on what I thought was a gentle pullaway. I may have been over-sensitive to the power use, but there was something that felt wrong about these occasions.
We got to Lochinver with about 30%, so we went straight to the charger to see if we could finally get a charge. Again, we have used this before, and expected 38-45kW from it. Two things then happened. One was that it started the charge slowly and topped out at about 37kW. The other was that the iSmart app showed it was aiming for 60% rather than the 80% I have come to expect on a fast charger. We stopped it soon after that but once it reached 60%, the charge rate see-sawed between 15kW and 37kW when I would expect it to have been constant, as it had been up to that point.
I will go back tomorrow or during the week to see what the charger does, but there are a few things that I'm concerned about. One is the string of failures. That could be co-incidence, but given the rest of the day, I'm beginning to wonder. The other the fact that the SOC was stuck at 50%. That sounds problematic, but there could be a reason. And finally, why did it only "want" 60% and charge at a lower rate than expected?
Any advice or comment?