Essay by Eric Worrall
h/t observa; “Everyone should have one”
‘Everyone should have one’: This hack could save arguments at the charger
Story by Zane DobieArguments about overstaying at an EV charger could soon be over with this Tesla owner’s invention.
Waiting to use an electric car charger when another vehicle occupying it has long finished topping up is a major bugbear for many owners – which is why Tesla has come up with a solution to fix it.
That fix, it seems, is as simple as a photo of a laminated piece of paper with an “estimated charging completion time” and the owner’s contact number on it. Who knew it was that easy?
Sharing a picture on the Tesla La Kopi Singapore Facebook group after discovering the sign at a public charger, a user wrote, “This is such a great idea! Hang a note on your car to inform anyone when you expect to be done with charging. Bravo to you!”.
The idea gained a lot of support in the comments section.
“Everyone should have one,” said one user.
“The car dealer should include this during car delivery,” said another.
…
Can you be fined for overstaying on an EV charger?
Over the past year, some charger suppliers have begun charging an ‘idle fee’ based on how long your car is left plugged in when it’s fully charged.
Telsa charges $0.50 per minute that you leave your car plugged in beyond your set charging parameters. This fee increases to $1 per minute when all other chargers are occupied.
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Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-au/technology/general/everyone-should-have-one-this-hack-could-save-arguments-at-the-charger/ar-AA1yg4qP
I don’t know what to say to this. Putting a sign up doesn’t help you get your vehicle charged any faster.
Perhaps the problem they are trying to solve is preventing charger rage vandalism. Having a contact person to shout abuse at might reduce the risk of someone kicking dents into your expensive EV.
How long before someone notes that you’ve overstayed your forecast and gives you a polite call to remind you to move on.
Note, I might have spelt rude incorrectly.
And what if your battery or the charger drop back to a slower rate than the initial forecast. Are you allowed to stay on longer or do you have to go to the back of the queue?
Telsa charges $0.50 per minute that you leave your car plugged in beyond your set charging parameters. This fee increases to $1 per minute when all other chargers are occupied.
Looks like a winner. Maybe double it every 5 minutes.
Perhaps this should be credited to the next person in line.
Perhaps this should be credited to the next person in line.
I regard BEVs as a combination of a toy and virtue signaling.
I suggest the installation a lot of mirrors at charging stations to allow the virtue signalers time and space to preen.
Perhaps something like a Sonic or A/W Drive In with Chargers. Sit and eat while you wait to recharge
There is only so much you can eat. Maybe change it for a good bed where you and your partner can rest while recharging.
Or an attachment that lets them smell their own farts more efficiently.
Gilded Golfcarts
I think they are conceptionally a good idea for local transportation. They are very quick too.
I have big dislike for batteries that incorporate lithium. Lithium is a dangerous neurotoxin that, as far as I have heard, cannot be efficiently or economically reclaimed. There is also the external combustion problem that releases a toxic cloud and heavy metals into the ground water when they get damaged/explode.
EVs of all types with lithium batteries are a terrible idea.
There are also considerable problems associated with lithium mining.
The UK National Engineering Policy centre published a ‘Critical Minerals Report’ in October 2024 which estimated lithium needs for the UK
“Total requirements for UK market for EV’s up to 2040 is 268,000 tonnes requiring the mining of 438 million tonnes of rock”
They noted that leakage from mine tailing ponds in Northern China had resulted in groundwater contamination which destroyed local agriculture and led to the evacuation and resettlement of many villages. “Such pollution impact can last for decades or centuries”
Lithium, the gift that keeps giving – for those that wish to decrease the population of life on the planet.
I have the answer. Yes you should be charged if you leave your car plugged in after it’s charged, $50 the first time and $100 each time after that. However the fine shouldn’t go to the government rather to a pool of gas stations so they can lower the price of gas for the rest of us.
Another thing could work as well. Alter the charging software so that the charging port automatically locks the charger cable in place when first plugged in AND automatically unlocks it when the battery is full.
If your car is full before you return someone else could still use the charging cable
If it stretches far enough.
As the batteries age, there will be reduced range that the EV can travel.
Charging times will be and longer and more frequent, due to advancing battery age
So it will require more charging stations for the same amount of EV’s on the road.
More people standing around and waiting and waiting.
The easiest solution for EV charger queue rage is to buy an ICE.
Agreed. We just dont seem to have these issues at the gas stationss.
“Call this number”
Only to discover the phone’s battery has run out and switched off.
Or the Tesla owner won’t answer the call since you are not in their contact list. LOL
I like the idea of paying forward to the next in line Tesla some fee for every minute
of being tardy.
btw did Tesla ever come up with a rational way for the car queue to physically line up
for the next available charger? [I’ve heard stories…]
I think that if Trump stops banning ICE vehicles then EVs will die a natural death. Problem solved.
I can’t see many lady drivers giving out their mobile numbers willy nilly.
Worse: Plugshare shows an EV charging station at the local Whole Foods. It was removed a year or two ago and not replaced and according to the people at Whole Foods there are no plans to replace it.
Lots of gas stations nearby.
A problem I intend never to have.
Would a better solution be an automated SMS message from the charger saying “ready in 10” or similar?
And here I thought EV’s were going to be so cheap and easy because you can just plug them in to your house at night.
Now you’re paying $1.00 a minute for absolutely nothing.
No worries. The price of electricity will go up and up and up.
I am still waiting for the first commercial EV airliner and the associated inflight recharging plane.
“inflight recharging plane.”
Which is also electric, which requires another inflight recharging plane, which is also electric… turtles all the way down.
Easy peasy!
Instead of tray tables, bike pedals will drop down from the seat in front of you when ever
in-flight recharging is needed.
The really hard part is getting both aisles to pedal at the same speed.
Remember the early (sophomoric) claims the passenger size EVs would eventually have solar cells covering their upper surfaces so they they could be recharging when parked and while being driven, during daylight hours that is?
Now, extend that to passenger airplanes. Easy, peasy.
Let’s do as in Africa if you take a train.
Departure: Tomorrow
EV’s has nothing but flaws.
Just one of those issues that will never bother me.
“This hack could save arguments at the charger”
It’s not a hack. Can we stop the abuse of language?
The implication of the contact clipboard is that the person overstaying their charging time will care squat if they get a “courtesy call” from another EV driver waiting in line to charge their own EV.
Get real!
The obvious solution, already done part-way at Tesla Supercharging stations, it to keep increasing the cost for “overstays” past full charge—say, up to $10 per minute—until the problem becomes non-existent.
No clipboard or cell phones needed, just a clearly posted sign informing all drivers pulling into the charging stall of these payment terms.