New EV owner here. We charge at home so I don’t need to use them, but stores nearby have chargers. I tried them to see how they work. They are often broken.

One store has a Volta charger (free!). It worked great the first time; the next time I went it was broken.

Walmart has an Electrify America fast charger. The first time I went, 1 of 3 was not working. The next time I went, 1 of 3 was not working, but it was a different one.

Was I unlucky, or are these charging networks unreliable? Has it been getting better or worse over time?

  • BombOmOm@lemmy.worldEnglish
    141·
    1 year ago

    Unfortunately basically every charging company has decided reliability isn’t important. The exception, Tesla, has the most reliable charging locations by a large margin.

    The good news is most cars will be able to work with Tesla chargers in the next year or so. Not sure what car you have, but look up when they are adding support for your vehicle. Until that happens, your experience is quite common and will continue.

      • PetDinosaurs@lemmy.world
        47·
        1 year ago

        I have yet to see any believable evidence that there is any excessive reliability problems with Tesla cars. And don’t try to cite consumer reports. They lost my business after they wouldn’t stop recommending Samsung products.

        We have lemon laws for a reason. Because lots of cars are lemons. You are just only hearing about it because every car fire or trim problem or excessive repair needs on a Tesla is a news story that you recall. There are many similar phenomena that are at play here. Start with the availability hueristic if you’re interested.

        I’ve seen lots of lemons in my life. My parents car blew a transmission right away. So many car fires on the side of the road, and I bet you don’t even know that Hyundai and Kia owners are being advised to park outside because there’s a high risk of fire. That’s really bad. If your ice catches fire when it’s parked and off, that’s a serious design flaw.