Quick update, seems the Starbies in Nampa, Idaho, has commissioned their volvo-branded charging poles. I have not actually visited the store yet. No excuses, it's all of a fifteen minute drive. This is a press release, apparently from STarbucks HQ and does not include anything tangible about the Nampa store, no photos or video. Nampa Starbucks EV Chargers

 

ChargePoint not looking good today. CEO and CFO gone

https://finance.yahoo.com/amphtml/news/ev-charging-company-chargepoint-plunges-133424964.html

You can tell - these two awesome looking new chargers from ChargePoint/Entergy failed on me Friday (got me going with a remote charge up to 60% and than failed) with both units down on Sunday evening at 8p. Absolutely horrible! This is right off I55S/N in Ridgeland, Mississippi. When I tapped my iPhone to use my ChargePoint mobile app, it wouldn’t even recognize it. 😅

 

It is aweful when they fail.
I was at a low soc when I went to a chargepoint. Good news one of the 3 chargers worked.

Bad news it was one that peaked at 9 miles an hour. Troughed at 3

Had to find a way on the way home. Don’t understand why chargers in the middle of nowhere exist that can go as low as 3-9 miles an hour!!

A shame there is not a tax penalty or other such punishment for your chargers being down more than for a short period of time.

Still one day we will have competition and then maybe we will get to gas station levels of functionality.

 

Re. iCEing, Tow trucks are good.

 

Related news from PILOT, a company with hundreds of truck stop/travel plazas across the country (but just try to find out where the 17 EV sites are located):

Pilot Travel Centers LLC, General Motors and EVgo Make Convenient, Accessible Charging a Reality with Opening of First Stations in Coast-to-Coast EV Charging Network

/PRNewswire/ -- Pilot Travel Centers LLC, General Motors (NYSE: GM) and EVgo Inc. (NASDAQ: EVGO) today announced the opening of the first 17 locations of their...

www.prnewswire.com

 

Where are these so called high speed chargers going to be located??


By the end of 2023, it is expected that at least 25 Pilot and Flying J travel centers will feature EV fast charging, with approximately 200 locations targeted by the end of 2024. In total, the network will include up to 2,000 high-power fast charging stalls at up to 500 Pilot and Flying J travel centers across the U.S., connecting urban and rural communities. Expansion sites for this network have been strategically selected for continued electrification of highly traveled corridors in every corner of the nation.

 

1 million EVs sold in the USA - alas, where are the chargers to keep up with this demand? There are, but not too many!

What Slowdown? America Crosses The 1 Million EVs Sold Mark In 2023

New data shows that the electric car market is healthy, despite what you may have been hearing.

insideevs.com

 

Most charging needs to be L2 at home or work. Cheap and slow.

 

I picked on for my city, Baltimore, and close to the highway. This site, https://www.tesla.com/findus/location/supercharger/baltimoremdmchenrysupercharger, 72 kW (max) each, 8 superchargers, hasn't peaked at more than 500 kW in sum as far back as I can tell (2+ years). It is located in the middle of several stores, a Courtyard Marriott, some offices, and a grocery store, so there is a lot of other immediate local load diversification (to the transformer) to allow for this.

I looked at some Pilots close to the highway in Maryland as well - there isn't as much immediately next to them, and the instantaneous demands at the small one is 100 kW (Perryville) and 225 kW (Elkton). Those are big differences in electrical capacity requirements (transformers, electric wiring service, site voltage, regional topography). And the tariff they'll be placed on by the utilities.

You want huge capacity abilities for dozens, you can put a ton of them next to steel mills. Certainly being dramatic in that case, but think about where you are siting the chargers if you want immediate connection without long lead times and cost. Best house in the best neighborhood at the lowest price...something has to give.

 

https://www.tesla.com/findus/location/supercharger/KettlemanCityCAsupercharger

 

I’d be happy with anything that has more than one or two working at a station of 6.

 

Well, when you get access to Superchargers next year, you will usually get 6/6 or 16/16 or 55/55 working. It does seem EA is getting better and I found a site near I-95 in NJ with 10 (!) stalls though 2 are down right now. Of course, there are a crapload of high count Superchargers in NJ, too.

 

You guys are going off into what could be a fascinating thread all about real world situations. I worked for an electric utility for four decades. Civilians do not understand the demands on infrastructure, zoning, right of way, or even how long it takes to acquire high capacity transformers and switching.

 

Sure. Maybe someone can explain how Tesla built its network so fast and so powerful given these (seemingly insurmountable ?) roadblocks.

 

But one needs to care about Tesla. I do not. If possible, I care even less about the Musk character. Only thing that matters to me is future access to the branded poles, for which I will gladly pay whatever they wish to charge me to charge.

 

I did. As others here are as well. His network is heavily built in ideal areas with spare capacity (see the details I posted above as an example area). Smart on them as opposed to people building a traditional fueling stations. BUT Tesla also, for the most part, has people who embrace new tech and are willing to try new stuff. Getting people who are stuck in their ways to "fuel up" somewhere besides their local BP, Shell, Wawa will take a new mindset. And if you want to target the traditional mindset, then you'll need to wait for the grid to catch up and pay dearly for it.

I also believe some key folks at Tesla didn't understand rate design. They made charging free for Tesla owners for a long time. They seemed to think the cost to fill up would be the conventional all in resi rate of 7-15c, but it is extremely different for this sort of need. It could have been a brilliant business plan (start free and roll that back over time) or it could have been a huge miscalculation as they took heavy losses. Tesla's network fueling costs are vastly different even within the same utility let alone the same regional power grid.

Heheh. So you're saying tech wonks cannot add? Naw, like any company burning speculative capital, they had an entire department of highly skilled and well-paid accountants. Like any company accustomed to burning other people's money, they probably paid no attention to their accountants, instead choosing to believe in their quants.

Shoot. Dammit. Sorry. I really don't care about Tesla and I've simply got to stop getting into this diversion from the original topic of this thread: the Starbucks/Volvo Denver-Seattle corridor. Can you folks knock it off and start another Tesla conspiracy thread?

Don’t you mean utility conspiracy? 😁

 

The company I worked at for forty years stopped their previously acceptable clandestine activities in the 1980s when it became clear to the accountants those old methods were starting to skew the cost/benefit/risk algorithm toward the possibility of jail time. Dammit. Did it again! I've got to stop getting dragged into this thread!

 

Really happy to see more Pilot/Flying J stations get chargers, they're usually well located near exits and way better than the standard "find a Walmart somewhere not too far off the road that happens to have EA". Hopefully they have enough chargers. On the way back from Fresno there's a Love's with EVConnect which is similarly situated and is a great place to charge (and usually pretty empty), but only has 1 350kW charger so if it's not empty it's a big pain.

 

Trying to keep this thread on topic!

The entire Denver-Salt Lake City-Boise-Seattle Starbucks/Volvo corridor has been completely built-out and is ready for all CCS and ChadeMo EVs. You can now drive 1400 miles and expect to pull into a functioning and available charger every 100 miles or so.

"Newsweek was invited by the companies to be among the first to test the network from tip to tail during a 1,400-mile roadtrip last week, ahead of its official opening."

Newsweek reporter Eileen Falkenberg-Hull and three partners drove the whole route from Denver to Seattle in two Volvo Recharge units. Here is her article: Newseweek: Starbucks/Volvo corridor road trip

 

Absolutely love this update! Some key points I captured from reviewing this article are below. I’d like to see a similar network built out from Colorado going east around the I40 East bound corridor into Washington DC (as an example)!

• Charging isn't free. Activating charging via the ChargePoint app proved to be a lesson in patience and tolerance but using the ChargePoint card in my Apple Wallet, linked to a credit card, worked like a charm every time.
• ChargePoint and Volvo's in-house, real-time station monitor were able to ensure that the charging stations were operational ahead of our arrival. It's an experience that the companies intend to replicate. Volvo has taken ownership for the operation of the stations.
• Only one of the stations ever got close to the maximum charging rate, with most of them hovering at the 120 kilowatt mark. Time of day, vehicle state of charge, grid performance, weather and other factors can affect how quickly an electric car battery charges.
• The Starbucks stations are labeled as "Electric Vehicle Charging Preferred" via on-pavement paint marketings. Customers who aren't charging are able to use the spaces, meaning that some BEV drivers who need to charge may find themselves being "ICE'd out", a phrase used to describe when internal combustion engine vehicles take up BEV charging spaces.
• Utilizing hotels with charging stations, all unaffiliated with Volvo and Starbucks, was a key to the success of this journey and something that BEV drivers should consider while they're planning their road trips. An eight to 10-hour stay at a hotel is more than enough to charge up a BEV under traditional Level 2 (240-volt) charging station conditions as long as you don't arrive empty.
• In theory, we should have been able to arrive at our charging stop, a traditional ChargePoint location in Price, Utah, with around 17 percent charge remaining. The terrain, speed and winds dropped our predicted arrival state of charge to 6 percent.
• Parking at the 60-kilowatt ChargePoint chargers with such a low state of charge was a lesson in the charging reality many users face. The charger estimated that we would need to spend three hours charging to get to 100 percent. Volvo recommended we get to at least 55 percent to make the next Starbucks stop, in Provo.
• There were hundreds of fail point possibilities during the trip. Timing, weather, charge station operation, safety, and vehicle operation issues among them. Remarkably, none of them occurred.
• By placing charging stations 100 miles apart along the route, Volvo and Starbucks have done one two things that Interstate 10 was unable to do when we drove a Kia EV6 from Disneyland to Disney World earlier this year, provide reliable intervals of charging that don't stretch the vehicle's abilities and install chargers at well-illuminated and safe locations.

 

This relative bit is from another article at NEWSWEEK. I guess we wait to hear the official announcments from Starbcks and Volvo to know what's reallky going on and what we can expect as customers/owners of Recharge units.

In May of 2022 Volvo said it would start installing DC fast chargers at Starbucks coffee stores across the Pacific Northwest. Stores are now starting to pop up along the 1,350-mile route from Seattle to Denver. So far 50 have been installed at 15 locations, situated about 100 miles apart from each other. Volvo notes that its XC40 and C40 Recharge models would regain 110 miles in 15 minutes at one of the stations.

The ChargePoint branded stations will be available to reserve through Volvo's integrated Google setup in the navigation app while other drivers using a standard CCS1 or CHAdeMO receptacle can use the ChargePoint smartphone app. The route also passes through several Federal Opportunity Zones bringing charging access to neighborhoods that previously didn't have it.

Newsweek on new EV infrastructure

 

It’s official!

Watt's For Brunch? Volvo Opens EV Charging Stations At Starbucks | Carscoops

The network of Volvo's chargers stretches along a route between the Denver area and Seattle

www.carscoops.com

Volvo & Starbucks EV Charging | Volvo Car USA

Learn about the collaboration between Starbucks and Volvo to establish the first public EV charging network at Starbucks US stores.

www.volvocars.com

 

FYI: It’s 200 miles between the towns of Twin Falls ID and Uintah UT. and I’ve told Volvo several times the town in Utah is UINTAH, not Unitah, as it appears on their silly maps.

 

Thanks for sharing. Where was this all the years I spent lot of time driving around to Starbucks? I can see this being a worthwhile perk for Volvo drivers. Although at nearly $5 for plain ol' drip coffee here in Chicagoland, I'm now just making it at home.

 

I went skiing today and took the opportunity to check on the Silverthorne and Idaho Springs charging stations.

The Silverthorne station is fully operational. FWIW, It's about seven blocks off I-70, and six blocks from the Starbucks. The chargers say 200kWh but I only got 84kWh at 32%. I paid $0.45/kWh.

The Idaho Springs station does exist but it's not operational yet. It's on the backside of Starbucks by Clear Creek.

Of course there's nothing special about these chargers unless Volvo follows through with their promise that 'drivers of Volvo Cars will get the added benefit of having access to these stations at no charge or at preferential rates.' I'm not seeing any of that yet.

 

Of course there's nothing special about these chargers unless Volvo follows through with their promise that 'drivers of Volvo Cars will get the added benefit of having access to these stations at no charge or at preferential rates.' I'm not seeing any of that yet.

Free?? Hahahahahahaha! Right.

 

After looking over the route on Plugshare and ABRP, there are two huge gaps where the corporate monkeys failed to provide adequate charging so the ignorant Volvo or Starbucks fan could get caught stranded in the middle of freakin' nowhere. Westbound distances are based on the STarbies locations, not city locations: 1) The gap between Grand Junction CO to Provo UT is 245 miles which will require a stop at another network or overnight at a Level 2; 2) The gap between Uintah UT and Twin Falls ID is 210 miles, a real pucker although there are two DCFC stations along the highway; and 3) The gap between Nampa ID and La Grande OR is 160 miles. All of the rest of the Starbies are 75-130 miles apart, all the way from Denver to Seattle.

I'm planning to drive form Boise ID to Colorado Springs CO along this route, maybe as soon as this spring. I'd be overnighting twince along the way but stopping at every Starbies just to see the chargers and to top off.

 

I see these have no canopies. Oh why not? I did a road trip from the Bay Area to Olympia and got caught standing in the rain for 15 minutes trying to get an EVgo station working with the guy on the phone. In another spot the only available slot faced the rising sun and the reflection made the screen unreadable. Gas stations have canopies; EV stations should too.

 

And toilets and other things please. At least many EAs are near Walmarts but sometimes they are near no toilets … there might be a I have to pee theme here

 

The canopies could be used for solar collectors. Several companies are building battery storage for conventional chargers that are supplmented by solar..

 

I am curious how much power could a 4 bay canopy of solar panels collect in ideal conditions?

 

I am curious how much power could a 4 bay canopy of solar panels collect in ideal conditions?

Not much - I suspect

Standard parking space is 9x20
Standard (residential, I don't know commercial) solar panel is 3.25x5.5.
Standard solar panel output per hour is 300-400 watts depending on the panel.

If you figure you could fit 12 panels per stall times 4 stalls you get 48 panels per site generating 14.4kW to 19.2kW per hour.
So a highly efficient solar panel setup on a really sunny day would only provide 115kW of energy in a really sunny location.
Approximately.
Or about one batteries worth.

And you're only generating that during peak sunlight conditions:

Sun Hours Map: How Many Sun Hours Do You Get?

Check out this sun hours map from Unbound Solar to see how many peak sun hours you get in your specific zip code. Learn how this affects solar panels.

unboundsolar.com

Solar panels
You need massive a massive area with a lot of panels to generate a usable amount of energy. At least for electric cars.

115 kWh per day adds up fast. Sure, it’s not going to power all the cars using the site, but it’s significant. People are building solar canopies because they end up making money, probably assisted by the federal/state/local tax credits/rebates.

 

Not much. Most of the commercial solar-enhanced EV chargers are L2s in remote locations, often off-grid. A solar canopy on an EV station would probably charge some batteries for other, far lower demand functions like a trash compactor, LED lighting, security camera backup power.

 

I disagree. 10 of these give 1 MWh a day. We need to put solar everywhere.

 

"They" is a collaboration between Volvo, Starbies, and ChargePoint (although CP has remained silent, claiming no credit for their participation). I have assumed, perhpas naively, that each of the installations was properly engineered based on the (economically) available electricity supply and space for the switching gear and transformer footprints. For instance, the La Grande OR site is equipped with 4x62kW units, each has a Chademo and a 1772 plug, total eight cables, but only four parking spaces. There seemed to be plenty of room for larger supply-side gear but you'd need to know who to ask to find out if the local transmission had the capacity for larger chargers.

 

Volvo has taken ownership for maintenance of these chargers, so I am just guessing that it could be the oncall Volvo tech support for this infrastructure that could be asked the “charger capacity question”! However not sure if they will share this information. Time will tell though!

 

Idaho Springs, CO is now online. Four 62.5kW stations.

 

Pulled up the station via the “ChargeHub” app and it displays online, charging cost is .45c/kWh.

However, this station does not show up on the ChargePoint app as yet.

 

It has a weird location tag in the ChargePoint app- it’s at the far east of Idaho Springs so if you scroll over there it pops up.