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Electrify America Issues

27K views 119 replies 29 participants last post by  SeattleCat 
#1 ·
Received from Volvo:

Dear _, we hope you are enjoying your XC40 Recharge.

Your new all electric vehicle is compatible with over 80% of all public charging stations nationwide. To ensure a hassle-free charging experience, we have conducted extensive testing with many public charging providers including ChargePoint, Electrify America and EVGo.

It has been brought to our attention that there are some charging compatibility challenges between the XC40 Recharge and some DC fast chargers on the Electrify America network. We are actively working with Electrify America and our Volvo engineers to resolve these issues and improve your charging experience. If you anticipate using an Electrify America charger for road trip or regular charging, we encourage you to contact Electrify America’s customer support in advance at 1-833-632-2778. Their team can provide quick support to help identify your best charging options. Volvo Car and Electrify America expect to have the issues resolved by July.
Has anyone had issues? Can you say what type of charger they are having issues. I was looking forward to using Electrify America because they are rolling out some 150kW chargers in my area.
 
#3 ·
From the link it looks as if the problem is related to the Signet chargers. It seems to be hard to find information on the chargers at a site, but here are drawings of the different brands of chargers they use (in order Signet, Efacec, BTC Power and ABB source: VW's Electrify America unveils 4 different ultra-fast charging stations for its massive network - Electrek)


When comparing to the photos from plugshare (PlugShare - Find Electric Vehicle Charging Locations Near You) it appears the new ones going in near me are ABB.
 
#7 ·
I wonder what the problem is? Because of this thread, I called EA and they said the charger in Frisco was a Signet device, and would not work with the XC40. During a test drive on Friday I did a test charge there, and charged from 49% to 51% without issue. It was doing 87kw when I stopped it. I found it oddly comforting to see the miles getting packed on so quickly.

However, I also tried a ChargePoint L2 charger a few blocks over, and the XC40 refused the charge, with the drivers display going red and simply stating Charging Error. 🤷
 
#8 ·
Is there anyway to find out where signet chargers are used. The electrify America app does not seem to specify the charger model. Would be nice to know before one gets there with a low potential difference remaining.
 
#9 ·
You have a few options:
1- call EA and they will tell you if the route planned includes Signet chargers
2- you can use PlugShare app/site and rely on the photos (visually they do look unique)
3- ask here if anyone lives nearby/local to scout them out (and send photos, like above)
That said there is supposed to be a fix in place that will supposedly be rolled out this summer to fix. Fingers crossed!
 
#10 · (Edited)
First time today visiting a DC fast charger - and it happend to be Electrify America. Worked fine - went from 60% to 90% in just under 30 minutes. The charger was labeled as 150KW - but it maxed out at only 46 KW.

I thought our P8s supported up to 150KW on a DC charger? Or does the max charging rate setting (currently set to 48KW EDIT: should say 48 AMPS, see correction below) apply to both AC and DC?

At Target store in Lynwood, WA:
676
 
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#11 ·
Normally, if the RSOC is high, battery charging speed decrease.
Since you start charging from the 60%, I think it's not too bed.

First time today visiting a DC fast charger - and it happend to be Electrify America. Worked fine - went from 60% to 90% in just under 30 minutes. The charger was labeled as 150KW - but it maxed out at only 46 KW. I thought our P8s supported up to 150KW on a DC charger?

At Target store in Lynwood, WA:
View attachment 676
 
#18 ·
For those of you whom have had the “unlucky” experience of SIGNET chargers on the ElectrifyAmerica network, but have had no other choice to charge elsewhere, what have you done? I’m just trying to get a feel here because we have 2x upcoming trips (both starting in Cleveland, Ohio — one goes down to Tennessee the other over to West Virginia).

Some of the “stops” have alternate charging but they are only 50kW max. Some of them have quite literally NO other DC fast options Except for the EA stations, which are clearly SIGNET based on the PlugShare photos. I’m fine with calling EA to get it resolved — but will that work? Meaning if I get there, plug in, does not work, am I correct to assume calling EA they can remotely get it to work somehow?

Just trying to figure out these plans ahead of time — first trip is just A few weeks away.
 
#20 ·
I was able to charge at an EA charger without issues, believe this is Signet based on photos.
That looks like an ABB to me. The Signet is rounded at the top and does not have the green bezel inside the arch.

For those of you whom have had the “unlucky” experience of SIGNET chargers on the ElectrifyAmerica network, but have had no other choice to charge elsewhere, what have you done?
There are some tips above in the thread. I think that learning to identify the Signet chargers from the photo is the best bet. The signet chargers have the charging handles on the front (eliminates Efacec), facing forward not at an angle (eliminates BTC Power) with nothing between them (eliminates ABB.)

All of the chargers are white with an arch that has a green interior, however the Signet's arch is unique that it is equal thickness with nothing protruding into the empty space. You are going to see much less green than the BTC or ABB on a straight on photo. The Efacec is the easiest to distinguish because it has handles on the side like a gas pump.
 
#22 ·
@Stephen Cerruti while I appreciate you were helping to clarify the post BEFORE mine, your reply actually provided ZERO response to my actual questions although you ALSO quoted me. Perhaps I need to reword it here. Because, unlike some on these forums— this is not my first rodeo. So let’s try this again—

FIRST… I’ve owned 85 cars. 1/3rd of them have been electric, 12 have been Tesla, including a Roadster. SECOND, I’ve charged at ElectifyAmerica stations before using my Audi eTron SUV, with great success. THIRD, I’ve already used PlugShare to identify that the chargers on my route(s) in the coming months are 99% SIGNET with one ABB along the way. FOURTH, I’m fully aware and have been for many months about the Polestar2/XC40 issues with the chargers, long before anyone on YouTube was posting about this, because of my line of work, and otherwise EV connections. FIFTH, I’m aware of a certain EV cannonball run, where they had EA visit chargers and/or called ahead, to resolve their issues (good friend was one of the 3x on that trip)

WITH THAT SAID….
For those of you who actually own a XC40 and have to charge at a SIGNET unit on the EA network … how have you managed to get it resolve? Am I correct that a phone call to EA and they can remotely override the issue (which I believe stems from an over-amperage and then a safety precaution cancellation of charge) — or have you not even been able to charge even with a call to EA? Thanks in advance.
 
#23 · (Edited)
@Stephen Cerruti while I appreciate you were helping to clarify the post BEFORE mine, your reply actually provided ZERO response to my actual questions although you ALSO quoted me. Perhaps I need to reword it here. Because, unlike some on these forums— this is not my first rodeo. So let’s try this again—
what’s with the attitude? if you’re so smart,
i’m sure you can figure out how to call EA or even drive to a station and see what works for your car. stephen doesn’t owe you a response.

if you knew about these issue long before anyone else why did you get an xc40? you sure you don’t want to be back in a tesla?
 
#25 ·
PS: Stephen doesn’t OWE me anything, I never said he did. I simply pointed out that I wasn’t asking for which chargers are SIGNET — i know which ones are — I’ve been charging at DC fast chargers longer than prob 99.9% of the people on these forums, and I’ve been involved in the setup of many EA stations (they are a customer of mine; well, ABB is anyhow). My response was to help OTHERS — isn’t that the point of this forum? It was already well covered earlier in this thread and on these forums on how to identify the SIGNET — that wasn’t my query. I had wanted to know if anyone had successfully charged at a SIGNET charger and if so, by what means. As I charged today successfully, at a SIGNET charger in a 300-mile less-than-1-week-old XC40 P8 — I’m done and happy with the results. But, based on your reply, clearly my findings aren’t worthy of sharing here.
 
#26 ·
@arijaycomet - I appreciate you're posts. Please don't hold back on sharing useful information.

FWIW, I test charged a demo P8 at a Signet charger - EA had told me ahead of time that it was Signet charger and wouldn't work, but it charged fine - at least for the five minutes I was there. 87kw at 50% SoC.
 
#32 ·
EA had told me ahead of time that it was Signet charger and wouldn't work, but it charged fine - at least for the five minutes I was there. 87kw at 50% SoC.
In this case I used the 350kw Signet charger, and used the EA app (under an active EA account) to start the session. So using the app might be part of the key.
 
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#29 ·
Did you happen to take note who the manufacturer of this charging station was at BoA? Normally the name is on a metal plate mounted to the side of the tower, listing other specs (part numbers, amperage output, etc). I'd be curious to know and confirm that it was a SIGNET charger since that is the troublesome one for the XC40 (and Polestar 2).

@arijaycomet - I appreciate you're posts. Please don't hold back on sharing useful information.
FWIW, I test charged a demo P8 at a Signet charger - EA had told me ahead of time that it was Signet charger and wouldn't work, but it charged fine - at least for the five minutes I was there. 87kw at 50% SoC.
Ok -- so here goes -- So like Jon's post above, I called EA when I tried to charge after 2x attempts to not get it working. Based on some heavy reading and research I've done here and elsewhere, the most tried-and-true success rate for people has been the 150kW units for whatever reason. I don't have a direct contact to anyone at EA that is upper tier support but having owned a Porsche Taycan, and Audi eTron SUV, and now the XC40 -- I've had thousands of miles of driving that includes about a dozen different EA stations. (and chatting w/other owners).

First off -- I had to LOL at what the EA lady on the phone said -- she said that most of the support staff are aware of the Polestar 2 issue and that their boiler plate response is to "go find an alternate charger" -- or to put it another way, they know there is a problem, they have ZERO timeline for a fix/resolve, and can offer no help. She said that nothing was in their database for the XC40, but when I explained that our 78kWh dual motor platform was the same underpinnings, she said it would likely follow suit. That said, the deeper dive here is that for whatever reason, there are 2 "fixes" that sometimes seem to help.

Her first suggestion was that she reboot the system, but her second suggestion that sometimes, for odd reasons, works -- is to activate the charge session from the app instead of RFID card / credit card. I could not get the latter started/working -- but after a reboot to a 150kW terminal, and my XC40 at around 50% SOC -- we did successfully get a session going. Activation occurred with my Apple Watch as the RFID signal sender (NFC? whatever you call it). It peaked at around 100 kW which based on the SOC made sense, and after adding about 20% energy into the car we were ready to leave.

Again there is ZERO guidance here from the tech support team, and ZERO knowledge as to when this will be shared. However, in talking to a local friend here in Cleveland, Ohio, that has a Polestar 2 -- his feedback was that the most recent PS2 update has done wonders to fix these problems. But it seems that we XC40 owners are "one step behind" with the PS2 updates, such as phone-as-key feature isn't unlocked for us, etc. So does this mean that the Volvo fix for the charging is coming? Hard to say--

My suggestion(s) moving forward then are---
1- start at a 150kW station
2- if it doesn't work, call support, ask them to reboot the system
3- wait for the time (top right corner) of the EA station to sync/be correct
4- start a session there after on said 150kW (not 350kW) station, and hope it works!

For the record, this was the Mansfield, Ohio EA station (Walmart 5471 - Mansfield, OH - 2485 Possum Run Rd Mansfield, OH 44903) that this occurred.
 
#33 ·
I always use the app as I have not got the card yet. It has worked consistently at high speed since I called a couple of days ago and they did the start from their end. They also said they would look into the logs a d see why it was failing when I launched from my app.


The way it failed ( spun up got faster and faster then disconnected when it went to hit the account to start payment ) makes me think there is a bug where if you start the transaction sometimes the guid you get is either only temporarily valid or gets corrupted and when the actual start of billing happens it fails and terminates the session.


On the good news. As it was charging fast as it bailed I got 5% for free as it never got to the actual billing stage but had delivered power. I pointed this out to tech support to help motivate them to fix it sonic just works :p though charging via logging in and physically connecting 100 times would be … yeah just no :p
 
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#34 ·
I know this will sound negative but after reading this and several other blogs about electric vehicles and traveling am I ever glad I bought an XC40 T5 with a gas engine. I just want to go when I want to and not worry about planning my stops and wondering about charging stations and if they will work etc. I think the electric option is fine for a commuter where you drive similar routes each day but I go on trips with my wife, sometimes in very remote areas in Utah and Wyoming. An electric vehicle for me just won't work, maybe someday but not now. I think we are about 5 years away from a practical electric battery pack. Perhaps the new Glass battery will change things enough to make up for the inconvenience of electric vehicles as they are today. It is interesting that Volvo and Mercedes just went into a joint venture on a hydrogen fuel-cell manufacturing plant for larger trucks. They came to the conclusion that there was not enough electrical capacity available to let electric vehicles work for trucks etc. for some years and that battery power was not going to work due to this. They are betting that for electric to work the vehicle need to produce its own power due to the constraints on available electrical capacity for the foreseeable future.
 
#35 ·
Nothing wrong with feeling not ready.
I love my P8. My range anxiety is almost gone but I do not drive to the middle of nowhere. I remember on a road trip seeing a sign saying no gas station for 240 miles and no turns for a 100 (approx). I remember looking down and thinking phew I am full. I imagine that little leg will not be getting electric coverage for a while …

I would love to see a dynamic map showing where in America you can go and back from with different Evs. Via A color coded map.

You can do this one trip at a time with the ABRP app which is very useful. But I am sure their are places not get to able. Then again a lot of America is not get to able by any form of car if one wanted to argue :) compared to England America has an insane amount of space.


Did you try ABRPing your journey in Utah? Part of why I got an ev is I am getting back in to photography and the thought of driving into the wilds to enjoy photographing nature made me sad at the thought of spewing exhaust whilst doing it :(

Good luck and enjoy your adventures.
 
#40 · (Edited)
Nothing wrong with feeling not ready.
I love my P8. My range anxiety is almost gone but I do not drive to the middle of nowhere. I remember on a road trip seeing a sign saying no gas station for 240 miles and no turns for a 100 (approx). I remember looking down and thinking phew I am full. I imagine that little leg will not be getting electric coverage for a while …

I would love to see a dynamic map showing where in America you can go and back from with different Evs. Via A color coded map.

You can do this one trip at a time with the ABRP app which is very useful. But I am sure their are places not get to able. Then again a lot of America is not get to able by any form of car if one wanted to argue :) compared to England America has an insane amount of space.


Did you try ABRPing your journey in Utah? Part of why I got an ev is I am getting back in to photography and the thought of driving into the wilds to enjoy photographing nature made me sad at the thought of spewing exhaust whilst doing it :(

Good luck and enjoy your adventures.
What most people don't know is how devastating Lithium batteries are to the environment when you consider energy to manufacture, the need of massive amounts of water and pollution of the water and wildlife as well as the other heavy metals required to manufacture batteries. There is also the battery waste associated with spent batteries and the inability to recycle them. There is a lot of talk about battery recycling but it has not proven to be viable as yet. I'm afraid that as EV's begin to expand operations the need for electrical energy will also be increasing which requires fossil fuels, nuclear and coal to produce. No free lunch. This really makes me sad:( as people don't research the impact of electric vehicle carefully and trade one problem for a potentially bigger problem. These mining operations cause so much environmental damage to pristine wilderness.
 
#36 ·
Digging deeper into the XC40/Polestar issues with ElectrifyAmerica -- reading some threads over on the Polestar2 forums -- it seems like EA has pointed the blame at Volvo/Polestar. I've not seen any official data published by either side, but I've seen a lot of users in the Polestar forum say there should be a P2 update down the road to fix this matter. That said, I've also found threads that there is a software update that needs pushed to the EA stations which conflicts the prior statement.

Either way-- should anyone have ANY updates or feedback here let me know. I've reached out again to EA about this matter, even though I was able to successfully charge at a station recently. I may try to hit the nearby SIGNET EA charger (~30 miles away) in the coming days just to "test" it out. But we have a big trip (550 miles each way) planned in a few weeks, that will hit 6+ EA SIGNET stations (well, it would-- but the question is should we even bother?)

Ahh... the joys of having a great charging network for non-Tesla finally, but then owning the one car that cannot use it! Grrrr....
 
#37 ·
it seems like EA has pointed the blame at Volvo/Polestar.
EA has a Center of Excellence in Reston, VA where they invite manufacturers to test EVs with their network. A podcast I listened to said that EV manufacturers often test unrevealed prototypes at the center so much secrecy is involved. It is the manufacturer's responsibility to ensure that their vehicles work with the charging network and EA has provided them a way to do this. Volvo dropped the ball by not testing sufficiently in North America and resolving these issues before they became customer issues.

So, despite where the technical issue lives, the fault lies with Volvo.

It may be (caution pure, unfounded speculation ahead) that Volvo depended too much on their association with ChargePoint and may have been gunshy about testing with EA because of the Volkswagen relationship.
 
#38 ·
Good luck with the upcoming road trip. I was contemplating one this weekend, Seattle to Reno but alas having new internet installed during that time so that got cancelled.

The journey which would take 11.8 hours in an ICE was estimated to take 17.75 in the P8. Partly charge time and partly having to go further to work around a long leg of the more direct trip.

If you or anyone knows of a signet charger near Seattle I will start hitting them to see if they work. Most of the chargers on the trip I planned are EA. I Have not found any 150 charge points or any other companies so far they have all been 50s.

Of course I have only tested 4% of the chargers in Seattle.
 
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#77 ·
I just picked up our P8 last Friday and we love it! All short trips so far. I tried my first charge at the PCC in Ballard (Seattle) and was not successful, I believe both chargers there, named Greta and Ira, are the Signet chargers. I’ll head back later this week and take some pictures to confirm. The chargers were part of the EVgo network.

Good luck with the upcoming road trip. I was contemplating one this weekend, Seattle to Reno but alas having new internet installed during that time so that got cancelled.

The journey which would take 11.8 hours in an ICE was estimated to take 17.75 in the P8. Partly charge time and partly having to go further to work around a long leg of the more direct trip.

If you or anyone knows of a signet charger near Seattle I will start hitting them to see if they work. Most of the chargers on the trip I planned are EA. I Have not found any 150 charge points or any other companies so far they have all been 50s.

Of course I have only tested 4% of the chargers in Seattle.
 
#39 ·
Ok gents and gals — here is my EA update for the day — pardon the length of this post—

FIRST … went to EA’s web site and submitted a claim ticket asking if they had any info re: Volvo/Polestar issues. I got an email back a few hours later asking me to call into the help line with a direct # that bypassed any menus. I called that toll free number and it rang, put me into a queue, and left me on hold for 5m. So I hung up…

BUT … an hour later, my phone rings, its that toll free # … I recognized it, so I figured heck I’d answer it. Much to my surprise the guy says “we saw a missed call that never got through to an agent from this ph# and wanted to see if you were having charging issues and how we can help” — wow! That is pretty **** good customer service.

SO THEN … I proceed to explain our issues. He was aware of the Polestar 2 problems, but like the prior lady I spoke to a week ago, nobody there even knew a Volvo XC40 existed. He puts me on a brief hold (~3 mins) and comes back. He says at this time the intel he is provided is that they are “working closely with ALL EV manufacturers to create a robust network that works for everyone” — some other lines of BS.

HIS FIX? That we simply just call before we arrive to each station, as we’re arriving to each unique EA charger. They can try to reboot and get things going that way. But, he offered no assurance or confidence that it would work. When I straight asked him if there was a fix, he said not yet. I asked if they could guarantee we’d be able to charge at an EA charger using SIGNET hardware, he said “we’d have to try at that time at that charger; i dont know for sure” — and while he was enthusiastic, his feedback was kind of like my post thus far: wordy, and pointless, with no real data or solution. LOL

BUT !!!!!!!

Tonight after dinner, my wife/daughter/I decided to head up to get ice cream that put us just 10m away from the SIGNET hardware based EA charger in Mentor, Ohio. I had met a local Polestar 2 owner who said he was successful at charging there, and that prompted me to want to give this a try. We arrived at 49% SOC (state of charge) and backed up to station 3 … which happened to be a 350kW station. I had read/heard that starting a session from your APP (rather than the screen) often results in better outcome, so I loaded up the app, plugged the car in first, then told it i was at terminal #3, and swiped-to-start the session all in the EA app. It works flawlessly!

Based on the SOC … we peaked around 103 kW charge (I think it was ~300 mi/hr charging, if you like that bogus metric). We hit 60% SOC after 8 minutes and around $2.45 at which point I stopped charging — because its more than 2x the price per kWh (0.31 there) versus charging at home (0.14kw approx net for total bill after delivery costs).

But the GREAT NEWS is that our P8 charged fine at a 350kW EA SIGNET station. This is just 1 terminal (unit 3 cable 2) — but based on my local Polestar 2 contact’s results he said he’s tried ALL terminals except the “dual” CCS/CHAdeMO one — so that is cool to hear. In a week and half we have a day trip out to MD/WV that takes me through Pittsburgh. There are 2x EA stations there, and the Cranberry one is a SIGNET charger. I don’t NEED to charge there but will make sure to TRY and charge there for sake of data points and feedback here.

My suggestion is :
1- pre-game your EA chargers, see if they are SIGNET
2- if they are, try to NOT touch the screen at all, start charge using your phone/app
3- and then PLEASE share your results here Thanks!

PS: this was the Sheetz#394 station in Mentor, Ohio if anyone cares for more specifics!
 
#41 ·
I researched, here is what I found:


Regarding the second article, this was written by a political action non-profit funded by oil companies who have a financial interest in slowing the inevitable switch to electric vehicles. Institute for Energy Research - DeSmog

That leaves us with your first article. This article has a lot of good information, but if you read carefully it doesn't come out and make any statements about whether the life cycle of EVs is cleaner or dirtier than ICE (spoiler: EVs are cleaner.) Instead it uses a type of sensationalism where it poses a question and then throws a lot of facts that don't actually answer that question.

Here is a much better article on the state of the lithium mining industry: The new 'gold rush' for green lithium

Here is a reputable article on Redwood, a startup focused on the recycling issue: Tesla Cofounder’s Battery Recycling Startup Ties Up With Top U.S. E-Waste Processor

Here are the questions you should be asking:
  • Is an electric vehicle produced today cleaner over its entire life including manufacturing and disposal than an equivalent ICE vehicle?
  • Do electric vehicles or ICE vehicles offer the best path towards stopping or slowing climate change?
  • Can we get to cleanly produced electric vehicles without selling existing technology to consumers?
  • Do consumers currently have more environmentally friendly options?
I believe that when you research these questions the answer is clear.

764

Yes, we should absolutely be concerned about lithium mining, however EV manufactures are very aware that their most vocal customers are buying EVs in part for environmental reasons and are already taking action to address these concerns.
 
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