MG ZS EV Owner shame on you

[Kayged]

Others have confirmed that they have done this, so it must be possible.
It may of course depend on the type of car and/or the type of charger.

It makes sense on a tethered charger, that once it is no longer charging the car, it unlocks the plug. Exactly how this works in the comms/protocol I have no idea; can the charger command the car to unlock, does it rely on the car deciding to just unlock once it is no longer charging......????

The only way to test this is to sit on a charger once fully charged, a practice that we all agree is inconsiderate at best. If I get an opportunity I will almost fully charge at home and then vist a rapid charger and remain with the car in case somebody needs it before the experiment is complete. See if the tethered cable can be removed when charged to max. Of course we could always ask the various providers, may be a lot simpler lol.

 

[Rex]

Had a great away day at football today. Planned charging from East Lothian to Aberdeen.
Stopped at Forfar 50kwDC charge free and parked in Bon Accord shopping centre and got free charge in Aberdeen(£6) parking.
On way back stopped at Forfar for a top up.
High winds affected my range and Edinburgh city bypass closed at Hillend. Pulled off at Hermiston with 18 miles remaining.
Only to find another mg ZS EV identical to mine parked with the 50kw ccs plugged in with nobody in it.
It’s bad when we get iced but I thought MG owners would know better.
Shame on you!
Took me an extra 1 1/2 hours to get home
Has anyone else had this problem?
Do we post pics of the culprits ?
Maybe this will embarrass them to stop being so selfish!

As we would say in Australia just not cricket.
Happened to me , where there ended up me, and another MG zs ev owner were both waiting for someone to come back to take off their Nissan leaf.
That was an extra half hour, not as bad as what you had to put up with, and they were not an MG owner. The leaf driver had gone up into the town shopping, their car was fully charged when we got there.

 

[Dan Sun]

This is what we usually do in China, to avoid inconvenience to others:
at the corner of the front window, we always put a card, with our mobile phone number written on. in case of we occupied others parking space, people can call the phone number to remind us to come and move.
in case you do not want to left you real phone numbers on the card, you can order an 2D barcode instead, it will show a call forward phone number.
in Thailand, car owners will release their hand brake. anyone can move the car (push) if needed. I think it is somehow little risk.

 

[JodyS21]

The only way to test this is to sit on a charger once fully charged, a practice that we all agree is inconsiderate at best. If I get an opportunity I will almost fully charge at home and then vist a rapid charger and remain with the car in case somebody needs it before the experiment is complete. See if the tethered cable can be removed when charged to max. Of course we could always ask the various providers, may be a lot simpler lol.

That would be good to test out if our ZS allows it to be removed.
Maybe I’ll make a new post asking any folk that have done it, what car they unplugged from & what type of charger it was on.

 

[ging353]

Had a great away day at football today. Planned charging from East Lothian to Aberdeen.
Stopped at Forfar 50kwDC charge free and parked in Bon Accord shopping centre and got free charge in Aberdeen(£6) parking.
On way back stopped at Forfar for a top up.
High winds affected my range and Edinburgh city bypass closed at Hillend. Pulled off at Hermiston with 18 miles remaining.
Only to find another mg ZS EV identical to mine parked with the 50kw ccs plugged in with nobody in it.
It’s bad when we get iced but I thought MG owners would know better.
Shame on you!
Took me an extra 1 1/2 hours to get home
Has anyone else had this problem?
Do we post pics of the culprits ?
Maybe this will embarrass them to stop being so selfish!

I always leave mine while it's charging in Morrisons and go for a coffee and a cake. Does that make me a naughty boy?

 

[Delboy102000]

I wouldn't leave my car plugged in to a rapid charger at a park and ride, a 7kW maybe, depending on how long I'm going to be, but not a rapid.
To me, 7kW chargers are destination chargers and rapids are for topping up. At a park and ride, on a rapid charger, you should either top up when you get there, staying with the car and then park the car in a normal parking space, or park in a normal space when you arrive and then top up when you come back, before you leave.

Agreed with all of above, but when pulling into a Bp wild bean forecourt I see nothing wrong with putting on charge, then leaving the car for ten minutes toilet break and getting a coffee.
After all you wouldn’t stop charging just because somebody else shows up would you, and the charge % is clear to see and how long it has been going

 

[Delboy102000]

That would be good to test out if our ZS allows it to be removed.
Maybe I’ll make a new post asking any folk that have done it, what car they unplugged from & what type of charger it was on.

I would have thought that touching somebody else’s car without permission is illegal and also should damage occur in consequence you would be liable

 

[Dodger]

I always leave mine while it's charging in Morrisons and go for a coffee and a cake. Does that make me a naughty boy?

Yes, cakes make you fat!

 

[weedavemac]

I always leave mine while it's charging in Morrisons and go for a coffee and a cake. Does that make me a naughty boy?

no

 

[Tim Green]

I haven’t tried it on a rapid charger, but with the granny I think you can only remove the plug when you press unlock on the key fob?

 

[Bazzer44]

Sometimes when finished charging and unlocked mine is a devil to take the cable out lol
Anyone is welcome to try when this happens , contact details on here please , must be willing to travel

 

[DuracellBunny]

Had a great away day at football today. Planned charging from East Lothian to Aberdeen.
Stopped at Forfar 50kwDC charge free and parked in Bon Accord shopping centre and got free charge in Aberdeen(£6) parking.
On way back stopped at Forfar for a top up.
High winds affected my range and Edinburgh city bypass closed at Hillend. Pulled off at Hermiston with 18 miles remaining.
Only to find another mg ZS EV identical to mine parked with the 50kw ccs plugged in with nobody in it.
It’s bad when we get iced but I thought MG owners would know better.
Shame on you!
Took me an extra 1 1/2 hours to get home
Has anyone else had this problem?
Do we post pics of the culprits ?
Maybe this will embarrass them to stop being so selfish!

But was that ZS charging at the time?

 

[DuracellBunny]

It was a park and ride with toilets locked up as far as I could see. There are no facilities nearby. The mg badge was not lit. Looked like it had left.
9pm on a cold rainy Saturday night.
Maybe the owner was walking their dig?
I’ve had my car a year and done 27k miles.
Most of my friends don’t want to change over to electric and issues like this shows why.
Just very frustrating and selfish.

My MG5 badge does not light on while charging

 

[Terry2]

Someone unplugged me once, as a new hybrid owner at the time, and I had no problem with it whatsoever. I had fully charged and he needed to charge, so fair enough. In fact I was suitably embarrassed and thereafter made sure to revisit the car park and move the car to another spot to free up the charge point once I was finished. I really do think that at the very least car park/charge point owners should have the right to issue penalties to those cars occupying a charging point place AND NOT PLUGGED IN. So this applies to both ICE cars and EVs. I am increasingly seeing EV owners use EV charging spaces as a dedicated EV parking space. Of 4 Source London spaces in a street in Canary Wharf the other day, two were taken up by EVs not plugged in at all. It's this kind of disgrace that needs to be dealt with. It might be that penalty notice signs might help to address this problem. It is also the case that some EV owners do park up and don't bother to move long long after charging has stopped. I have seen this happen with some cars for most of the day. This is part of EV etiquette being ignored. Maybe the chargepoint owners should issue fixed charges of £10 per hour, or something, one hour after charging has stopped but the car remains plugged in.

 

[Dr Dave]

Actually the real problem is that the charging infrastructure is extremely poor and cannot cope with the current number of electric vehicles. With more people buying, and being encouraged to buy, pure electric and hybrids the situation will get much worse. I only use my MG EV if I can complete my round trip and return home with no need for an interim charge (it is a bonus if I find a free charger to top up from). For longer journeys I use my ICE vehicle. It is very clear that the rate of improving the charging infrastructure will not keep pace with the increase in electric vehicles on the road therefore over the next decade the situation will get much worse.

 

[WalkingBootWeather]

Agreed. More chargers and faster charging will be a big help. In the meantime while infrastructure is limited, as a community we ought to try to use it efficiently. If you are plugging in and killing time by taking a walk or lingering over a coffee and cake just because charging is free then you are part of the problem. As soon as tariff is at a similar price to home charging (or higher) then most of the worst behaviours stop and drivers tend to take just what they need to get to their destination (plus a bit of continency).

I'm not convinced by the arguments in favour of registering details on apps or leaving contact details on display. Some people use this as justification to stay as long as they want until they get a prompt, and I for one would never call and claim my need was higher than someone else's.

Good etiquette to my mind, is plug in if you need to, go and 'freshen up' or get refreshments by all means, but return within 45mins or before car reaches 80%. If nobody waiting then continue charging as long as you like. If someone is waiting then let them know your intentions but be courteous and move on as soon as you are able.

 

[Dr Dave]

Agreed. More chargers and faster charging will be a big help. In the meantime while infrastructure is limited, as a community we ought to try to use it efficiently. If you are plugging in and killing time by taking a walk or lingering over a coffee and cake just because charging is free then you are part of the problem. As soon as tariff is at a similar price to home charging (or higher) then most of the worst behaviours stop and drivers tend to take just what they need to get to their destination (plus a bit of continency).

I'm not convinced by the arguments in favour of registering details on apps or leaving contact details on display. Some people use this as justification to stay as long as they want until they get a prompt, and I for one would never call and claim my need was higher than someone else's.

Good etiquette to my mind, is plug in if you need to, go and 'freshen up' or get refreshments by all means, but return within 45mins or before car reaches 80%. If nobody waiting then continue charging as long as you like. If someone is waiting then let them know your intentions but be courteous and move on as soon as you are able.

It will equalise eventually. As more electric vehicles are purchased and the infrastructure cannot cope the inconvenienced masses will sell their vehicles and return to ice cars. Relying on human nature to regulate courteous behaviour won't happen. Systems whereby financial penalties for overstaying might have a better effect. Until petrol stations are forced to put in the same number of electric chargers as pumps (petrol and diesel) little progress will be made.

 

[WalkingBootWeather]

It will equalise eventually. As more electric vehicles are purchased and the infrastructure cannot cope the inconvenienced masses will sell their vehicles and return to ice cars. Relying on human nature to regulate courteous behaviour won't happen. Systems whereby financial penalties for overstaying might have a better effect. Until petrol stations are forced to put in the same number of electric chargers as pumps (petrol and diesel) little progress will be made.

Maybe. Unfortunately the people that are most inconvenienced and hence likely to give up on EVs are those that don't have home charging, or who regularly need rapids because they are travelling beyond their car's range. These people generally just want to get a reliable charge and then got on with their lives.

I know people who have a perfectly good home charger but will make special journey's just to get a free charge or will jump on a charger to get a 'better parking spot'. They may even return home and have their tea while their car is charging. They are not inconvenienced, but add to congestion and jump on chargers whenever they can whether needed or not.

I agree that relying on human nature is folly. Sensible tariffs and enforcement measures are the only way to keep chargers free for those that truly need them.

Not sure petrol stations are the answer though. Their interests are conflicted, and most people would rather stop somewhere where they can use the facilities, get a decent cup of Joe and a sandwich, without fossil fumes and heavy traffic to contend with.

 

[weedavemac]

Agreed. More chargers and faster charging will be a big help. In the meantime while infrastructure is limited, as a community we ought to try to use it efficiently. If you are plugging in and killing time by taking a walk or lingering over a coffee and cake just because charging is free then you are part of the problem. As soon as tariff is at a similar price to home charging (or higher) then most of the worst behaviours stop and drivers tend to take just what they need to get to their destination (plus a bit of continency).

I'm not convinced by the arguments in favour of registering details on apps or leaving contact details on display. Some people use this as justification to stay as long as they want until they get a prompt, and I for one would never call and claim my need was higher than someone else's.

Good etiquette to my mind, is plug in if you need to, go and 'freshen up' or get refreshments by all means, but return within 45mins or before car reaches 80%. If nobody waiting then continue charging as long as you like. If someone is waiting then let them know your intentions but be courteous and move on as soon as you are able.

Why 80%? What happens if you need more?

 

[WalkingBootWeather]

Why 80%? What happens if you need more?

So you know someone is waiting and can explain your intentions. If you genuinely need a few minutes longer I doubt anyone would mind. The worst experiences I have had have been waiting for over an hour for a car to vacate a charger and not knowing if they will return in another 10 mins or 10 hours.

From an efficiency point of view it is better for driver A to move on at 80%ish and make a second stop to 'splash and dash', than to hang on to 90%+ and making someone else wait when they could be charging at a faster rate.