Any experiences using Shell free charging?

[JeffKeryk]

This is how it computes in my brain. The folks who charge at home love their EV . The people I see at the Tesla charging station don't look like they are having a kumbaya moment. Just an observation.

Maybe ask them. Teslas customer satisfaction is off the charts. I don't know much about other EV makes. The Bolt owners I know love their cars as well. Of course, EVs are not for everyone or every use case. No car is.

I rarely charge on the road, but if owners didn't like it, they would probably get another car, right?

 

[Torrid]

I guess you don't get the irony and take things personal. I didn't complain, may be just not a fan of freeloaders.

So you don’t have anything positive to add to the conversation. Got it.

 

[y_p_w]

I tried one of the ones I posted a photo of. Shell has no real-time updates available for it, and one of them has a Clipper Creek unit, but with an Enphase sticker on the connector. The clip on the J1772 connector was broken but it still held on. It's not locked in anyways. It started charging as soon as it was connected, although the instructions on the wall said something about starting through the Shell app. So these were operating more like a basic unit that doesn't really log anything.

 

[mclasser]

I tried it at a couple of locations with my Lyriq. Worked but was pretty slow. The charge progress on the app also wasn't accurate. Wouldn't rely on it when on a road trip but fine for a (free!) top off while out shopping or having lunch.

 

[Brons2]

I understand US is opening more coal mines to boost electricity production, ok, let's burn more coal to pretend electric cars are clean.

The carbon intensity of the grid in the Rocky Mountain region is pretty bad. Texas' grid is much cleaner, 30% renewable and most carbon based production is gas, which is less carbon intensive than coal.

 

[Brons2]

This is how it computes in my brain. The folks who charge at home love their EV . The people I see at the Tesla charging station don't look like they are having a kumbaya moment. Just an observation.

Just took my Lightning to South Padre for spring break, all DCFC at Tesla Superchargers and the truck was ready every time before the kids were. If it looked like I wasn't having a kumbaya moment, it was because of other people's screaming kids at the McDonalds play place.

 

[y_p_w]

I tried it at a couple of locations with my Lyriq. Worked but was pretty slow. The charge progress on the app also wasn't accurate. Wouldn't rely on it when on a road trip but fine for a (free!) top off while out shopping or having lunch.

I never saw any charge progress (just time connected and current power) on the app, but that could be from charging a Tesla with an adapter. Charge progress was easy enough to check on the Tesla app though.

I was out and about and was in one place where I thought maybe I could charge during lunch at a free Shell Recharge station. Went back later and saw the same cars plugged in when I went back for dinner. Apparently with the free ones, there are no idle fees and no incentive for people to move once the two hours are up. I can certainly understand in a movie theater parking lot where maybe they'll be there maybe 3 hours tops, but these were clearly there in the same parking spots for at least 5-6 hours. I've read some EV message forums where it's believed that people who work near these things use them as parking spots and get angry if anyone asks them to unplug or move. The whole idea of charging etiquette (move when you're done) seems to be lost on some people.

 

[y_p_w]

I've been playing around with these and have been trying to figure out the etiquette. The setups can be different depending on the location like back to back where the cable of either is typically long enough to reach either EV space. I've found an empty EV space, but then notice that another vehicle was using the back-to-back one next to the space, but there was another one across that wasn't being used. I figured I'd try to use it but there were some problems. But then the driver was done and I hooked it up and was able to start a charge.

My last time was a bit odd. Saw 2 of 2 (in different places) at the site were available in the Shell app, but when I got there both had EVs parked there. One was clearly plugged in, and was likely plugged in way longer than the maximum 2 hours (where the charging is cut off) since it was still there when I was done. The other was an EV that was just parked in the space. Not sure why. It had a few broken windows covered with plastic and was driveable (saw it move). But it wasn't plugged in and if the driver just wanted to park, there were a lot of other parking spaces. I kind of played around with the cable to see how it could reach my charging port and figured out I could back-in next to this not-charging EV and get the connector to reach. So I plugged it in, got the charging started via the app, and I was charging.

Had plenty of time so I waited the full two hours. Got something to eat and kind of walked around. But then I saw someone approaching the EV with the broken windows. Looked like a homeless guy, so I wasn't sure if it was his car and he was living out of it, but then I realized there was someone else in the car and maybe this guy was just asking for a handout. But eventually the driver of that EV parked in the charging space left, and he said nothing to me. I was monitoring the app and found that it was still charging one 2 hours were up, but maybe a minute it stopped (I could hear a click from the car's charging system). So you can't just leave it there on the premise that 2 hours is not the limit. Don't know if it might be possible to restart it, but I suspect the same account would be locked out for at least a few hours.

But I've noticed cars that might be parked all day at these spaces. Or charging from a space next to them for some reason.

 

[nthach]

It's kind of hard trying to figure out what's what without photos of the site. I know there are new Shell Recharge that look like a gas pump. Different styles, but I think these can be paid with point of sale credit/debit card system.

But then there are the existing ones acquired from Volta.

I saw one location listed that I've seen before that I thought was just some sort of business provided charging system. It has boxes from different suppliers mounted on the columns in a subterranean garage with J1772 connectors. Seemed like an impromptu setup. But then I noticed that they had these big screens on the wall, so I'm thinking it's an old Volta setup.

I looked it up, and found some old photos of it. They had some sort of Volta-branded boxes separate from the advertising display. I guess they might have failed and they just replaced them with something generic.

I used that same one to charge a Prius Prime service loaner. It worked, besides the nearby IKEA it was the only J1772 Level 2 AC charging point I found.

 

[y_p_w]

I used that same one to charge a Prius Prime service loaner. It worked, besides the nearby IKEA it was the only J1772 Level 2 AC charging point I found.

The ones at Berkeley Bowl West? Apparently they're not linked where they have to be started by a registered account holder. Just plug in and they charge after a few seconds. But they still have two of the video ad displays mounted on the columns. My problem is getting there as their garage opens, there might even be cars already charging. Not sure if someone might have just left vehicles there overnight or maybe an employee with access to the gate? I haven't tested if it's really a 2 hour limit. I'm thinking not.

I saw ChargePoint charging at the Emeryville IKEA, and I don't think it's free. I did explore around the parking lot one time and saw some charging infrastructure, but it was for IKEA vehicles, like their electric delivery trucks. I'm guessing they have means to restrict use.

 

[nthach]

The ones at Berkeley Bowl West? Apparently they're not linked where they have to be started by a registered account holder. Just plug in and they charge after a few seconds. But they still have two of the video ad displays mounted on the columns. My problem is getting there as their garage opens, there might even be cars already charging. Not sure if someone might have just left vehicles there overnight or maybe an employee with access to the gate? I haven't tested if it's really a 2 hour limit. I'm thinking not.

I saw ChargePoint charging at the Emeryville IKEA, and I don't think it's free. I did explore around the parking lot one time and saw some charging infrastructure, but it was for IKEA vehicles, like their electric delivery trucks. I'm guessing they have means to restrict use.

I was there for an hour while the car was finishing its charge - I also needed to get groceries. I did go to IKEA first and paid $3.25 to get the battery somewhat charged - it had 0 range but I got it back to 25 miles of range in two hours(I was looking at the ChargePoint app). Had lunch inside, hopped on either the Emeryville shuttle or an AC Transit bus to meet up with a friend for a beer while said Prius Prime was changing. I wasn’t going to aimlessly wander around IKEA.

By the time it was all said and done, I got 40 miles of EV range back. That was quite the afternoon. Yea, yea, it drove like a regular Prius(just quicker since this is the new 5th gen model, Prime models now are just a little over 200hp) with a depleted battery. I feel for these, charging at home is the better deal.