CCS chargers now at Bolt EV (Chevrolet) dealerships!!!

[SeanNelson]

Please collect enough information to make the entry useful, e.g., :
- where exactly is the station (for example, "on the front left side of the building {when facing the building}")
- open hours (for example, "only available when dealership is open, and only if not in use by the dealer")
- any limitations (for example, "only for people driving Chevy vehicles")

AND the CHARGING RATE. "CCS" covers a lot of different charging rates, I find it extremely annoying that some PlugShare entries don't mention whether it's a 24KW charger, a 50KW one, or whatever - it makes a big difference.

 

[SparkE]

Please collect enough information to make the entry useful, e.g., :
- where exactly is the station (for example, "on the front left side of the building {when facing the building}")
- open hours (for example, "only available when dealership is open, and only if not in use by the dealer")
- any limitations (for example, "only for people driving Chevy vehicles")

AND the CHARGING RATE. "CCS" covers a lot of different charging rates, I find it extremely annoying that some PlugShare entries don't mention whether it's a 24KW charger, a 50KW one, or whatever - it makes a big difference.

Yes, that bothers me as well - I always 'fix' the description on those when I can, adding the charging rate.

 

[GetOffYourGas]

If I may play devil's advocate here - I would encourage people to add chargers even if they don't know all of these details.

Yes, confirm it is available (and not just for Chevys for example). But if you leave an available/working charger off PlugShare simply because you don't know the charge rate, then it may go unnoticed for a while. At least some of the onus falls on the PlugShare user to find these things out. As long as you don't lie (e.g. marking it as a 100kW station when you really don't know), it *should* be clear to the user that the charge rate is unknown. No offense Sean, but wouldn't you rather know the station exists and then have to find out the charge rate yourself (e.g. by making a quick phone call) than not know about it in the first place? I know I would. The beauty of PlugShare is that future users can then update the listing to add more of that information as it becomes known.

 

[SeanNelson]

No offense Sean, but wouldn't you rather know the station exists and then have to find out the charge rate yourself (e.g. by making a quick phone call) than not know about it in the first place?

Certainly, the existence of the station and the fact that it's CCS is primary. But the charging rate is a close, close second. What I'm saying is: if you take the time to put the station into PlugShare, then for heaven's sake include the charging rate! And if you end up having to phone someone to find the charging rate, then update PlugShare to include it!

I would love to see PlugShare treat the charging rate as a primary data item instead of something that just gets slapped into the description. That way you'd be able to filter which stations are shown based on a minimum charging rate.

 

[GetOffYourGas]

I guess our opinions differ in who is responsible for finding that information. Also, I'm not sure that charge rate is a "close, close second". I would say that availability (e.g. hours of operation, who is allowed to use it, recent working/broken status) is a close second. Charge rate is third or fourth.

But that may be because I haven't been spoiled with ANY chargers close enough to use. I'm looking at it from the perspective of "I wish there were any DC chargers along my route" rather than "I wish there were faster DC chargers along my route"

I would love to see PlugShare treat the charging rate as a primary data item instead of something that just gets slapped into the description. That way you'd be able to filter which stations are shown based on a minimum charging rate.

This much I agree with 100%

 

[SparkE]

My pet peeve are people who use a charger, add a comment complaining that the charger is "only the slow, 24 kW type" ... and then do NOT update the description with the info !!!!

 

[user 667]

Have you ever notice how Tesla Superchargers and evGO stations seem to just pop up like magic in PlugShare? Well Tesla and evGO are partners with PlugShare but GM is not. It's no wonder we have to fight PlugShare to get every single CCS charger at the Bolt EV dealership listed in PlugShare.

I'm in a fight right now with PlugShare because PlugShare lists the Tesla Superchargers as public. We have to list Nissan, BMW, GM, etc. dealerships that only allow their own customers to charge as "restricted" but Tesla SuperChargers are probably the most restrictive charging stations of all because not only can the Superchargers only be used by Tesla vehicles, Tesla refuses to install chargers, like L2 or even Tesla S, that can be used by any other make EVs. If we want the CCS chargers at Bolt EV dealerships listed on PlugShare we are going to have to list them ourselves because nobody else is going to list the Bolt EV dealerships.

 

[user 667]

... Tesla SuperChargers are probably the most restrictive charging stations of all ...

As long as PlugShare refuses to list Tesla SuperChargers as "restricted" I am going to be extremely reluctant to list Bolt EV dealerships with CCS chargers as "restrictive" even if they only let GM EV owners CCS charge.

 

[user 667]

Just to let you know, we confirmed the operation of one Bolt EV dealership CCS charger today and added the charger to the PlugShare database. Only eleven hundred sixty Bolt EV dealerships to go, Wu-Whu!

 

[SeanNelson]

... Tesla SuperChargers are probably the most restrictive charging stations of all ...

As long as PlugShare refuses to list Tesla SuperChargers as "restricted" I am going to be extremely reluctant to list Bolt EV dealerships with CCS chargers as "restrictive" even if they only let GM EV owners CCS charge.

Tesla chargers have a different plug type. They're not "restricted", they're merely incompatible. Arguing that Tesla Superchargers should be listed as "restricted" would be the same as arguing that CHAdeMO chargers should be so listed. In fact that argument seen from the point of view of a Tesla owner would be that all CCS chargers should be labelled as "restricted".

If you don't want Tesla chargers to show up on PlugShare then just set the filters to show only CCS and J1772 plug types.

 

[user 667]

Arguing that Tesla Superchargers should be listed as "restricted" would be the same as arguing that CHAdeMO chargers should be so listed..

Absolutely not. CHAdeMO is an international standard adopted by multiple auto manufacturers. Tesla supercharging uses a proprietary standard that can only be used by Tesla vehicles. One of the reasons I'm such a huge Bolt EV fan is that I'm so adamantly against Tesla proprietary supercharging.

If you want to argue and support of Tesla supercharging you're in the wrong forum.

 

[GetOffYourGas]

Arguing that Tesla Superchargers should be listed as "restricted" would be the same as arguing that CHAdeMO chargers should be so listed..

Absolutely not. CHAdeMO is an international standard adopted by multiple auto manufacturers. Tesla supercharging uses a proprietary standard that can only be used by Tesla vehicles. One of the reasons I'm such a huge Bolt EV fan is that I'm so adamantly against Tesla proprietary supercharging.

If you want to argue and support of Tesla supercharging you're in the wrong forum.

There was an entire thread dedicated to "who belongs in this forum". Let's not go there again. This should be a place for all viewpoints, not just pro-Bolt or pro-GM.

FWIW, I side more with BoltWanabee here. Tesla / Elon talk a lot about wanting to support the entire EV industry. They say that more competition from OEMs is a good thing. That it validates them. Well, what could validate them more than Bolts charging at their superchargers? I understand the business case for not adding CCS ports to the stations, but it would not be against their mission statement:

Tesla’s mission is to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy

https://www.tesla.com/about

They have already rebranded themselves from a car company (used to be teslamotors.com) to also include energy products (now just tesla.com). It's not a stretch to see them as the Exxon Mobile of the EV fueling world. Really all they would have to do is add CCS / CHAdeMO ports at their superchargers and provide access for all EVs (for a reasonable fee of course).

 

[SeanNelson]

Arguing that Tesla Superchargers should be listed as "restricted" would be the same as arguing that CHAdeMO chargers should be so listed..

Absolutely not. CHAdeMO is an international standard adopted by multiple auto manufacturers. Tesla supercharging uses a proprietary standard that can only be used by Tesla vehicles. One of the reasons I'm such a huge Bolt EV fan is that I'm so adamantly against Tesla proprietary supercharging.

Yeah, I get the proprietary issue, but that's not what I'm talking about here. The reality is that there are three incompatible charging types that have more-or-less similar market share. And PlugShare can already filter by the plug type. So arguing that a Tesla charging station should be labeled as "restricted" just because of the plug type is redundant - you can already tell that your CCS car can't be used there. So what's the point of labeling it "restricted"?

A PlugShare station listed as "Restricted" should be one that isn't freely available to the public, and Tesla owners are part of the "public" we're talking about here. (Note that "freely" in this context has nothing to do with pricing). "Not freely available to the public" might mean that it's behind a locked gate, that it requires you be a member of some organization, or whatever would prevent you from accessing the charger besides the plug type, 'cause that's already accounted for.

 

[Nagorak]

I suspect that Tesla chargers will eventually be open to all, but right now it's a huge selling point that they're not about to give up. At some point they will be enough other chargers that the Tesla advantage won't really matter and then they'll probably try to monetize the stations. That is if Tesla is still around as an independent company which despite the soaring share price I wouldn't say is guaranteed.

 

[SparkE]

And in the past, I haven't noticed PlugShare requiring "restricted" listings for dealerships that only allow that brand's vehicles to charge for free. Their issue (requiring the 'restricted' label) *used to be* if a dealer only let THEIR CUSTOMERS (i.e., people who bought at THEIR location) use the charger.

There's a BMW dealership near SFO (the airport) that allows BMWs (any BMW, bought anywhere) to charge for free - all others must pay. It's listed in PlugShare.

 

[GetOffYourGas]

I suspect that Tesla chargers will eventually be open to all, but right now it's a huge selling point that they're not about to give up. At some point they will be enough other chargers that the Tesla advantage won't really matter and then they'll probably try to monetize the stations. That is if Tesla is still around as an independent company which despite the soaring share price I wouldn't say is guaranteed.

I'm really hoping that this happens, and that Tesla remains in business for a long time. I wouldn't mind a world in which I had a choice of a Tesla, EVGo, or ChargePoint station. Just like I have a choice of Sunoco, Mobil, or Speedway station for gas. But right now that's just a dream.

 

[Anonymous]

Please explain to us how a non-functioning EVSE still in a box in the corner of a shop is of any benefit to the Bolt driver?

They won't be in boxes long. The CCS chargers were sent to dealerships even before the dealerships received Bolts EVs to sell and service. Dealerships in states that already sell and service Bolt EVs are already installing their CCS chargers and the remaining dealerships are going to be installing their CCS chargers as soon as there are Bolt EVs in their state to sell and service.

They may be in boxes for some time. I spoke to a dealer, the 480V, 3-phase that he needs is nowhere near where he needs to deploy the charger. He may have to tear up a lot of asphalt and also needs the utility to deliver 480V. I wonder how many dealers are in the same boat.

 

[user 667]

They may be in boxes for some time. I spoke to a dealer, the 480V, 3-phase that he needs is nowhere near where he needs to deploy the charger. He may have to tear up a lot of asphalt and also needs the utility to deliver 480V. I wonder how many dealers are in the same boat.

A good contractor can run power like that in a couple of days and running power really doesn't cost that much as long as the power is available at the main distribution panel. But I'm sure many dealers are going to put off the installations until they really need them. For most dealers that won't be until the end of the year when GM does a nation wide rollout of the Bolt EV.

 

[user 667]

Come on guys, step up! I know there are Bolt EV dealerships out there that have CCS chargers up and running but these dealerships are not getting added to PlugShare. I've added a couple of dealerships to PlugShare myself just by calling the dealerships and verifying the CCS charger are operational but with almost twelve hundred Bolt EV dealerships there are far too many for me to track all by myself.

Having these dealerships listed in PlugShare is important to all of us interested in using and promoting the Bolt EV. Having the dealerships listed in PlugShare not only will help Bolt EV owners identity additional charging options, it will encourage prospective Bolt EV buyers. We need to get as many Bolt EV dealerships with functioning CCS chargers listed in PlugShare as we can.

So you have the list of certified Bolt EV dealerships, call a few of them that are not listed in PlugShare and ask the Service Departments if their CCS chargers are operational. If the CCS chargers are operational, list the dealership in PlugShare. If you don't want to or don't know how to list the dealership in PlugShare send the name and city of the dealership to me and I will list the dealership in PlugShare.

 

[sparkyps]

Come on guys, step up! I know there are Bolt EV dealerships out there that have CCS chargers up and running but these dealerships are not getting added to PlugShare. I've added a couple of dealerships to PlugShare myself just by calling the dealerships and verifying the CCS charger are operational but with almost twelve hundred Bolt EV dealerships there are far too many for me to track all by myself.

Having these dealerships listed in PlugShare is important to all of us interested in using and promoting the Bolt EV. Having the dealerships listed in PlugShare not only will help Bolt EV owners identity additional charging options, it will encourage prospective Bolt EV buyers. We need to get as many Bolt EV dealerships with functioning CCS chargers listed in PlugShare as we can.

So you have the list of certified Bolt EV dealerships, call a few of them that are not listed in PlugShare and ask the Service Departments if their CCS chargers are operational. If the CCS chargers are operational, list the dealership in PlugShare. If you don't want to or don't know how to list the dealership in PlugShare send the name and city of the dealership to me and I will list the dealership in PlugShare.

Good idea BoltWanabee, while I doubt hundreds of people will all start calling dealerships asking about their CCS chargers it might be useful to have a way to track who has already been called and what their status is (installed, planning to install, no plans, ...). Perhaps a Google docs spreadsheet to view and a Google docs form for people to enter information for putting in the spreadsheet?

Does anyone have a complete list of the dealerships with address/phone numbers in electronic form?