Charging bays - a bit hit and miss?

[Dirty Sanchez]

Well, I'm 1000 miles and a month into my running of an i3. So far I love the car but am yet to be convinced with the general reliability and upkeep of the charging points I've used. Thankfully I have the Rex version which has got me out of a spot of bother on longer journeys.

It seems to me that there is a general lack of interest / funding of charging points which means a fair number don't work as they should. Does anybody else find this?

Also, I pitched up at my normal bay today to find a Merc 350e plugged in. At which point does a hybrid become an EV? I thought they charged their battery from the engine? Is it acceptable to be plugging one in at an EV parking bay? Seems to be a bit of a grey area and one I'm uncertain about. I asked the council and got an indifferent shrug from their parking dept too!

[Dirty Sanchez]

I get your point but I'm not sure I see it like that. The C350e has a petrol engine to drive the wheels and recharge the battery, with the battery cutting in at low speeds to cut emmissions and fuel consumption. The i3 has a range extender, yes it is a petrol engine but a generator to power the battery when it's flat. It doesnt charge the battery, it just provides the power to keep the car moving. For me It's a get you out of the st fallback when you reach your intended charging point and it's not working. Unlike the Merc I can't charge my battery if I don't plug in.

REALIST123 said:

Dirty Sanchez said:

Well, I'm 1000 miles and a month into my running of an i3. So far I love the car but am yet to be convinced with the general reliability and upkeep of the charging points I've used. Thankfully I have the Rex version which has got me out of a spot of bother on longer journeys.

It seems to me that there is a general lack of interest / funding of charging points which means a fair number don't work as they should. Does anybody else find this?

Also, I pitched up at my normal bay today to find a Merc 350e plugged in. At which point does a hybrid become an EV? I thought they charged their battery from the engine? Is it acceptable to be plugging one in at an EV parking bay? Seems to be a bit of a grey area and one I'm uncertain about. I asked the council and got an indifferent shrug from their parking dept too!

They're both Hybrids, why shouldn't the 350e use the charging point? And doesn't the i3 charge it's battery from the engine?

[Dirty Sanchez]

Interesting comments. I can't say I disagree really. Interesting to get a view on things from other users. Would I do the same if I had a Merc and the chance to park and charge for free? Def yes. So that's kind of why I've also taken the view of first come first served. I try and aim for the one slow charge point on the basis that it takes a working day to fully charge. If I don't need to charge it then I park on a residential street or multi storey like everyone else. I'm trying to play fair but it takes everybody else to do the same. When I ordered the car in Sept I never saw a a single car plugged in ever in any of the four bays near work. Now it's snooze you loose all of a sudden! Time to expand the network assuming the funding is there to do so.