Product Review: ClipperCreek HCS-40p EVSE

My i3 charging from the HSC-40p. You can see my older ClipperCreek CS-40 all the way on the left.

When it comes to electric vehicle charging equipment, there’s certainly no shortage of choices. Even though it’s a relatively new market, there are dozens of manufacturers selling products that allow owners to safely and conveniently charge their electric cars. Although this equipment is commonly referred to as a "charger" or "wallbox", the proper term is actually EVSE, which stands for Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment. 

These devices don't actually charge the car; they provide the electricity to do so. That's because the actual charging equipment is built into the car. The EVSE's purpose is to safely deliver the correct amount of electricity to the onboard charging equipment. 

Now that electric cars are beginning to gain momentum in the marketplace, there are a lot of companies jockeying to get a market share of the EVSE business. The vast majority of these companies have been manufacturing and selling EVSEs for less than six years. However, there is one EVSE manufacturer that has more experience than any other company, with roots that go back into the early 1990s, as well as supplying the home charging equipment for the Tesla Roadster. ClipperCreek, has been making EV charging equipment for over twenty years now, and manufactures all of their products in the USA.

I’ve been using ClipperCreek products to charge my electric cars since 2009, as BMW choose ClipperCreek as their partner to provide the charging equipment for the MINI-E Trial Lease Program.  I’ve never had any problems with any of my ClipperCreek equipment and I still use my original CS-40 EVSE that came with my MINI-E.

However, I also have a version of the latest generation of EVSEs from ClipperCreek, an HCS-40p.  The HCS-40 & the HCS 40p can supply 32 amps at 240v, and deliver up to 7.7kW to the vehicle.  The only EVs currently on sale that can accept more than 7.7kW at 240v are the Tesla Models S & X, and the Mercedes B250e (which uses a Tesla-made onboard charger). So the HCS-40 line of EVSEs is more than powerful enough for the vast majority of today’s electric vehicles. 

For instance, my 2014 BMW i3 can only accept up to 7.2kW, and the rest of BMW’s line of PHEVs, including the i8, the X5-40e, the 330e, the 530e and the 740e, are all limited to a maximum of charging at 3.7kW. This is because plug in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) have smaller batteries than full electric cars do, and thus charge quicker and don’t require such high speed charging.

ClipperCreek uses high quality connectors with a rubberized grip for added comfort when plugging in.

However, if you do want more power, for instance to future-proof your garage, ClipperCreek has you covered. They also sell the HCS-50 & HCS-50p, which both deliver 40amps of power, which translates to a maximum of 9.6kW. The HCS-60 steps up the delivery to 48 amps and a full 11.5kW. For the ultimate in home EV charging, the CS-100 can deliver 80 amps to the vehicle, which is a whopping 19.2kW.  This power delivery rivals the speed that some of the lower-powered DC Fast chargers, but currently only Tesla vehicles can accept such high a level of power from a level 2, 240v EVSE. I believe that's going to change in the coming years, and many EVs will come standard with higher power level 2 charging capabilities of at least 9.6kW.

I received my HCS-40p about a year ago and it’s lived up to the reputation that past ClipperCreek products have earned.  Made from airline-grade plastics they are probably the toughest EVSEs on the market. 

The HCS line comes in both hard-wired and plug-in models. The plug-in offerings are distinguishable by the “p” at the end of the model name. If it has the “p”, than it’s the plug in version. You can order the plug-in versions with either a NEMA 14-50 or NEMA 6-50 plug.  Therefore, you can have your electrician install the 240v you choose before you even buy the EVSE. 

Two screws & it's done!

Personally I prefer having the plug in option, which is why I got the HCS-40p. It’s a little more expensive, ($589 compared to $565 for the HSC-40) but it offers the flexibility of easy installation – you simply screw it into the wall and plug it in. Having the plug also means it’s not permanently installed in one place.  If the need arises, you can unplug it, remove the two screws and relocate it. This can also work very well if you need to take the unit to a second location, like a summer house. All you need to do is install the outlet in the second location and just take the unit there when you need to.

I test electric vehicle charging equipment and review new products, so you can see how the HCS-40 compares in size to many other EVSE options available today in the picture below. It is one of the larger packages available today, and the body of the unit is used for cable management, you simply wrap the cable around it. There is a separate connector holster included that you can locate where it’s most convenient, as well as a lock and key so you can deter someone from unplugging your car.

My "Power Wall"

ClipperCreek has an extensive list of electric vehicle charging equipment and probably offer more options than any other company. All of their Level 2, 240v EVSEs come standard with a 25 foot cable, which is optional on the products of many of their competitors. Many EVSE purchasers don't consider the cable length when they buy one. I think some may assume they all are a standard length, but that's not true. Some EVSEs come standard with a 15 or 18 foot cable, and that may come up short in certain circumstances. With a standard 25 foot cable, you are pretty much assured you can reach any point in your garage, and even outside the garage if you park close enough. 

BMW ChargeNow EVgo Expansion Underway In U.S.

BMW continues to make news with regards to electric vehicle infrastructure and customer charging programs. Coming off yesterday’s Nissan partnership news, today BMW has announced the expansion of their ChargeNow by EVgo program.

The ChargeNow by EVgo program was initiated by BMW in November of 2015, and was active in 25 ChargeNow DC Fast EVgo metro markets. The expansion now includes the entire national network of DC Fast charging station in 33 states covering more than 50 metro areas. BMW claims that the now-expanded network will be accessible for over 92% of new i3 owners. There are a number of different options and aspects of the ChargeNow EVgo program, including two years of unlimited, free DC Fast charge access to BMW i3 owners that purchased or leased a new i3 from November 1st, 2015 onward.  

From the press release:

ChargeNow by EVgo no-cost and specially priced public charging

programs - exclusively for BMW i and iPerformance drivers - now

available in more than 50 metro areas across the U.S.

   * ChargeNow by EVgo provides no cost and low cost public charging

      access programs designed for BMW i and BMW iPerformance owners

      across the entire EVgo network– now including charging stations in 33

      states.

   * This expansion enables more than 92 percent of new BMW i3 drivers to

      enroll in ChargeNow DC Fast for 2 years of no-cost charging. Owners

      of Certified Pre-Owned BMW i3 and i8 vehicles can enroll for 1 year of

      no-cost charging at EVgo stations.

   * Drivers can easily enroll at www.ChargeNowUSA.com using their

      ChargeNow card, for access to the nearly 670 EVgo DC Fast charging

      stations, plus Level 2 chargers, now available across the country.

 “The pace at which we have been making charging infrastructure partnership announcements recently shows that BMW continues to aggressively pursue the company’s commitment to our e-mobility customers, with our steadfast support for growing the public charging infrastructure across the U.S.,” commented Cliff Fietzek, Manager Connected eMobility at BMW of North America, LLC. 

“Using their ChargeNow card, our BMW i3, i8, and iPerformance drivers now have access to the entire EVgo charging network. By supporting the continued growth of publicly available DC Fast charging across the U.S., BMW is helping more drivers make the switch to an e-mobility lifestyle with confidence.”

 

The EVgo DC Fast charge network now includes 668 Fast charge stations. That number will soon exceed 700 with the 50 additional stations that will be installed as part of the BMW/Nissan partnership.

The EVgo network currently consists of 668 dual-port (CHAdeMO & Combo) 50kW DC Fast charge stations and will soon increase by another 50 with the BMW / Nissan partnership that was announced yesterday. BMW had previously partnered with Volkswagen and ChargePoint to install roughly 100 DC Fast Charge stations for the East Coast & West Coast Express Charging Corridors which were completed in 2016 and has expressed the willingness to partner with any OEM willing to invest in EV charging infrastructure.

BMW's ChargeForward Initiative Seeks Participants

Do you live in the San Francisco Bay Area and drive a BMW i3, i8, X540e, 330e or 740e? If so, would you like to get paid to participate in BMW i's award winning ChargeForward initiative, while helping to shape the future of electric vehicle charging?

BMW is seeking 250 individuals to participate in the second phase of the ChargeForward initiative, which will last approximately 24 months. The first phase of the program is now complete, and volunteers are needed for the second phase, which begins in January, 2017. This phase includes vehicle to grid managed charging, and stationary energy storage systems which utilize repurposed MINI-E battery packs. Back in 2015, this program won the ESNA Innovation Award for EV Battery 2nd Life Energy Storage System.

From the Charge Forward website:

The second phase of ChargeForward, from January 2017 through December 2018, is expected to demonstrate expanded benefits of charging optimization through management of both current and projected future charging events (in contrast to single charging event management). This approach offers utilities and grid operators even greater flexibility in assigning vehicle charging load to times and locations where it is most needed. ChargeForward returns some of the resultant savings to customers as a way to reduce the total cost of EV ownership.

Participants will be compensated for their involvement, and can earn up to $900 for their effort. Here's how the compensation will be awarded:

· $300 paid early 2017 soon after launch

· Up to $300 paid in early 2018. The exact amount will vary, based on individual participation in managed charging (The fewer times a participant “opts out” to begin charging immediately, the better) and participation in any related research like focus groups and questionnaires that are part of the program.

· Up to $300 more in early 2019, once the program is complete.

It's encouraging to see BMW investing time and money in vehicle to grid (V2G) and EV battery 2nd life use. This is further proof BMW is really serious about the future of electric vehicles. I encourage anyone eligible to inquire about participating in the program. Why wait for the future of EV charging when can help shape it today?

Can BMW Fend Off The Charge of the Tesla Model 3? Part 1

Two years ago a wrote I post suggesting that Tesla and BMW would eventually face off.  That's clearly going to happen with the launch of Tesla's Model 3.

We’ve all seen upcoming products being described with buzzwords like “revolutionary” and “disruptive” that later translate into something much less successful after the public actually gets a chance to experience them. I can remember the hype leading up to the launch of Dean Kamen’s Segway back in 2001 when Amazon’s founder Jeff Bezos boldly predicted, “Cities would be built around (it).” 

While the Segway has enjoyed some success, it never really penetrated the market much beyond specialized uses, like transportation for police departments, guided tours, and theme parks. On the other side of the coin we can look at what the evolution of the cellular phone has done for communication, and what the digital camera has done for photography and the film industry. Both products revolutionized their respective industries and left titans in bankruptcy before they even saw it coming. Electric cars have the potential to do the same thing to the auto industry, and we may just be on the precipice of such an event.

For the past few years, many people have wondered which side of history Tesla Motors will be on in ten or twenty years. Will Tesla revolutionize the automobile and lead the charge to electrification, or will they be a forgotten footnote like so many other companies that have tried to do something special and failed? The auto industry is probably the toughest one to penetrate, proven by the fact that the last American automobile manufacturer to succeed was Chrysler Motors, which started in 1924. Since then, every volume auto manufacturer that started in the US has failed, except for Tesla. 

People camped out in lines many hours before the Tesla stores opened for Model 3 reservations on March 31st

It’s worth noting that Tesla has yet to turn a profit, and in fact is losing hundreds of millions of dollars every year. So they haven’t really “made it” just yet, in fact they still have a way to go. However the prospects of that happening just got much better, better than even the most optimistic Tesla analyst had even imagined. One week after opening the reservation process for Telsa’s next offering, the Model 3, Elon Musk and company had received over 325,000 reservations. By the end of the second week, reservations were at about 400,000.

Reservation holders eagerly plunked down a $1,000 (refundable) deposit to be one of the first to own the car Tesla has been talking about since their inception. This is the electric car from Tesla that is supposed to be affordable (under $30,000 after incentives), have a long range (over 200 miles per charge) can recharge quickly (at one of thousands of Supercharger stations) and is also desirable (fun, fast & stylish). Some Tesla stores had people lining up hours before the 10:00 am opening on March 31st, with hundreds of people waiting to reserve a vehicle that they hadn’t yet seen, didn’t know the exact price, or exactly when it would be available. It wasn’t until 8:30 pm that day that Tesla actually revealed the vehicle and since then reservations have continued to come in at an unrelenting pace. 

Tesla has announced the base Model 3 will start at $35,000, and Musk has said he expects the average Model 3 to sell for roughly $42,000 with options. Personally, I expect the average Model 3 sale to be closer to $50,000, because I'm sure most will want Supercharging (likely not included in the base price), plus expensive options like a larger battery, dual motors, and at least a few other optional goodies. Even if we use Elon's prediction of $42,000 per vehicle, if all of the current reservations were to convert into actual deliveries, that would add up to $16,800,000,000 in sales in just about two weeks. Of course that won’t happen, and many reservations for one reason or another won’t convert. Even if only 50% (about what I expect) actually wait it out and order the vehicle, that’s over eight billion dollars in sales in the first couple weeks. The automobile industry has never seen anything like this. It’s more like the hysteria created over the next iPhone than it is about any previous new car offering. 

  

The lines at Short Hills Mall stretched from the Tesla store all the way out into the parking lot!

I arrived at the Mall at Short Hills, in Short Hills, New Jersey at 9:30 am on the day reservations opened and was shocked to see the line stretch across half of the mall, down a corridor and out of the building. I expected a couple dozen people, but there were 200 to 300 there people at that point, a half hour before the reservation process opened up. I met a friend and current Tesla owner Michael Thwaite there, and he had just walked along the line of people waiting, asking them if they currently drive an EV or if they had owned one in the past. The results of his informal survey were that about 90% of the people waiting didn’t currently drive an EV, and the Model 3 will be their first car with a plug. 

So these weren’t hardened EV supporters; the vast majority of people there were new to electric cars, and still they were willing to wait for hours on line for a car they won’t actually get for roughly two years. So does it mean that Tesla has made it? Certainly not, they still have a lot of work in front of them. They still need to get their battery factory, the Gigafactory in Nevada open and churning out millions of battery cells. They still need to retool their Nummi plant in Fremont, California for the high production Model 3 line and then scale up like they never have before. 

A recent picture of Tesla's Gigafactory under construction outside Reno, Nevada. Photo credit: Above Reno

Many industry insiders will still say they won’t be able to do it, that this will be the challenge that Tesla cannot meet and if they fail to produce a high quality vehicle in large volume it will be their undoing. The funny thing about that is I’ve been hearing this for five years now. I’ve talked with executives from just about every major OEM, and as recent as only a few years ago nobody even gave Tesla a chance. They laughed at the Supercharger network and how Tesla would need to spend hundreds of millions to build and maintain it. Tesla now has over 3,600 Supercharger stations worldwide and expects to have over 7,000 by the end of 2017. This network is unrivaled in the industry. Every other automobile manufacturer is either hoping EV infrastructure matures, or is just mildly getting involved by subsidizing regional infrastructure projects.  However, they aren't willing to commit to own or manage the stations as Tesla does to ensure that the stations are strategically located and operational when customers need them.

The Supercharger network is only one example of something the industry has been saying Tesla can’t do. Another example is the direct sales model. While Tesla has had difficulty in some states because of archaic dealer franchise laws, they are still selling their cars throughout most of the US without issue. This is something many thought wouldn’t be possible. Then there are the sales of the Model S, Tesla’s first volume offering which has been available for a little over three years now. Many people were doubtful it could compete with the large luxury sedans it would be priced against, cars like the Mercedes S Class, the BMW 7-Series, Audi A7 and the Lexus LS. After all, these vehicles have had decades to build a following of brand loyal enthusiasts. How many people would be willing to plunk down $80,000 to $130,000 for a car from a new manufacturer with no company history, dealerships or in many cases service centers within driving distance?

Well, the Model S hasn’t just been competitive in this class, it is dominating it. Comparing 2014 and 2015 US sales in this class, Tesla had a 51% increase from 16,689 vehicles to 25,202. During that same period, sales for every single competitor in this segment were down, while the total for the entire segment remained about the same. The Model S didn’t necessarily bring new buyers to the segment; instead it took sales from the established competition already there.

Every single vehicle in the segment experienced an abrupt sales decline in 2015 while Model S sales increased by 51%

So what does this mean? First, don’t bet against Tesla. Tesla has been beating the odds all along. Despite being told they can’t do it, they just keep plugging along (pun intended), winning awards and accolades, extending their proprietary network of high-speed chargers and building a fervently loyal following. Musk has repeatedly said the Model 3 will compete head on with the BMW 3-Series. The 3-Series has been the benchmark for the entry level, premium sport sedan market for decades. It’s the king of the hill in that segment and BMW’s bread & butter. BMW sells about 100,000 of them per year in the US - and it's the only car in the class to eclipse the 100k mark per year, domestically.  Now think back to the 400,000 Model 3 reservations Tesla accepted in two weeks. Even if half of those reservations cancel, the Model 3 will not only outsell the benchmark of its class it its first year, but it will likely sell more than double its closest competitor in the segment. That's provided Tesla can scale up to meet demand of course, and while it's unlikely that they will have the capacity to make 200,000 Model 3s in the first year, they will be severely cutting into the sales of competing cars in this segment. 

If the Model 3 does to this segment what the Model S did to the competitors in its segment, the shock waves will be felt through the entire industry.  Who's to say Tesla won't do it again in the other segments? The Model 3 looks to be a formidable competitor so the only answer is for the competition to also step it up. The established OEMs must bring exciting, long range and affordable electric vehicles to market or they risk being the next Polaroid or Kodak. No, they aren't too big to fail, and yes, it can happen. It's impossible for the premium brand automakers to disregard Tesla any more; to do so would be corporate suicide. In fact, last week Daimler held their annual shareholders meeting in Berlin, and no less than four times they were asked by concerned shareholders why they didn't have an answer for Tesla.

However, before we crown Tesla the new champion of the auto industry, we need to realize the other OEMs haven't exactly been sitting on their hands for the past half a decade. They have all, to some degree or another, been working on electric vehicle programs, and they all have the resources to get up to speed quickly. BMW is probably positioned better than any other premium brand, as they have poured billions into the sub brand BMW i, which already has the BMW i3 & BMW i8. But as good as the i3 is today, it won't be good enough to compete head to head with the Model 3 in 2018 unless BMW were to triple the current range and also reduce the current cost, neither of which is likely to happen.

An artist's rendering of the rumored BMW i5

So is BMW the walking dead without an answer for the Model 3? No, not even close, but they do have a lot of work to do. Now that Musk has showed his hand they know where they need to be in 2 to 3 years. In part two of this post I'll lay out my plan for BMW, which will ensure they aren't left behind and wondering, "How'd that happen?" I'll discuss my recommendations for BMW's entire plug in strategy, from the next generation i3 to the iPerformance PHEV line. However the real weapon will be the rumored (upcoming) i5. If BMW has any chance of retaining many the customers who plan to turn in their 3-Series for the Model 3 when it's available, the i5 will be what keeps them from defecting to Tesla, and in part two I'll design the car they need to bring to market sometime in 2018 to keep them relevant in this segment.

Now realize in the time it took you to read this article Tesla has likely accepted about 100 more Model 3 reservations. Sometimes I wonder if the legacy OEMs really understand what's happening here.

EV Charge Ports: The Quest For The Ultimate Location

Like all of GM's plug in vehicles, the charge port on the upcoming Chevy Bolt is located on the front left side of the vehicle. Did GM get this right?

Over the past six years I've interviewed and had discussions with electric vehicle product managers from just about every company selling EVs today, and a few that will be selling EVs in the near future. One of the more interesting topics I've found has been the subject of where they've decided to locate the charge port, and how they came to that decision.

For example, last month at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, I sat down with Daimler's manager of electric motors and power electronics, Franz Neitfeld to discuss Daimler's current plug in Hybrid offerings, and where they are going in the future. When I brought up the topic of the unusual charge port location that Mercedes is using on all of their PHEVs, he told me they gave this much consideration, and after doing so they decided the right corner of the rear bumper was the ideal location. He went on to explain that the majority of the cars they sell are to left hand drive markets, and when a driver of a left hand drive car pulls into the garage they usually leave more room to the right side of the vehicle, so as to make sure they don't hit anything on that side as they pull in. So they concluded the placement of the EVSE would be best on the right side wall of the garage, where the customer can easily plug in. Also, by placing the charge port there, the customer would be able to walk back around the car and into the house without the cable being in their way. I think the assumption that most Mercedes owners have a private garage for their cars, since it is a premium brand, played a role in this decision making. 

The entire line of Mercedes PHEVs have the charge port located on the right corner of the rear bumper

That's the first time I've heard anyone give me that reasoning for their charge port location. Clearly, there really is no consensus among the OEMs as to where the best place is, with just about everyone finding their own unique place, with their own unique reasoning for why they placed it there. This can't be the best practice. There has to be a location which suits the majority of the people who drive EVs better than the other locations, right? 

All of Ford's electric vehicles, whether pure BEV or PHEV, have their charge ports on the front left side of the car

A few years ago Ford announced that they had researched this topic and after an extensive study, they decided the front, left side of the vehicle was indeed the ideal place. At the time, Susan Curry, Ford Electrified Vehicle Technology Integration supervisor said: After benchmarking multiple competitive vehicles, we found there wasn't much consistency in charge port location. We wanted to give customers a location that made the most sense for them and would seem as simple as filling up at the gas station." And Mary Smith, Ford Electrified Vehicle Technology Integration supervisor said, "The left front fender location keeps the charge port in sight, before the customer enters or exits the car, for an easy reminder to unplug or recharge. It creates an intuitive placement for owners that also has aesthetic appeal. "It's worth noting that GM also locates the charge ports of all their plug in offerings on the front left side of the vehicle." 

BMW decided to locate the charge port of the i3 on the rear right side of the vehicle

For the i3, BMW's first all electric vehicle, the charge port was positioned on the rear, right side of the vehicle. I asked BMW product managers about this at the vehicle launch ceremony in 2013 and was told that there were two main reasons for the positioning. First, this location made the most sense because the car will be sold all over the world, and in many European countries curbside charging would require the port to be on the left side of the vehicle. It would be too expensive to have different carbon fiber passenger cells made to accommodate different charge port locations so they needed one location for all i3s made. Secondly, having the charge port in the rear of the vehicle, close to the power electronics, meant weight and cost savings. During the development process, i3 engineers would fight to cut every gram of weight they could, and having a three foot long high voltage cable instead of one that was eight feet long made the decision easy. However the charge ports of BMW plug in hybrids are located on the front left side of the vehicle, as they are on Ford and GM vehicles. 

Nissan & Audi chose the front of the vehicle for their charge ports

Other OEMs like Nissan and Audi decided to go front and center, using the center of the front bumper and grill for their charge ports. Initially I was concerned that even a minor bump on the front end would result in a disabled charge port, requiring the vehicle to be immediately serviced. However that hasn't been much of a problem for the Nissan LEAF, the world's best selling pure electric car, so I guess my concerns were unwarranted.

Tesla uses the left rear of the vehicle for their charge ports

Then there's Tesla. All of Tesla's cars have their charge ports on the rear left side of the vehicle. The Roadster's charge port is right behind the driver's side door, but the Model S & Model X have their charge ports integrated into the rear tail light lens, where it wraps around the side of the car. It's undoubtedly an elegant design, but it is the best place for it? Some Tesla owners say it isn't, and it can make plugging in difficult on many public chargers, especially if they are in a parking lot that prohibits backing into the parking space. 

I realize the answer might be a little different for European drivers as compared to electric vehicle owners in the US, because unlike in Europe, the US has very few curbside public charging stations. Here in the US just about all public EVSEs are located in parking lots, not curbside on public streets. There's also the fact that most countries which were once British colonies still have right hand drive so that would impact one's preference. Still, I'd like to pose this question to everyone who has experience driving and charging an EV, and I'd appreciate it if you took a moment to answer the poll below. Once the polling is complete I plan to send the results to my industry contacts. 

BMW EV Infrastructure Discussions from the LA Auto Show: Part 1

A few weeks ago at the LA Auto Show, BMW made news by announcing a partnership with NRG's EVgo to install an additional 500 DC Fast Charge stations in 25 major US markets. The project is called the ChergeNow DC Fast and is actually the second phase of a program started in 2014, which brought 100 DC fast charge stations to select California areas. I was there at the show for Press Preview days, and had the opportunity to sit down with basically all of the top EV infrastructure managers at BMW of North America. Seated at the table were Robert Healey, Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Manager, Idine Ghoreishian, Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Specialist, and Cliff Fietzek, Manager of Connected eMobility.

Even though the news of the ChargeNow DC Fast program had just been released, I wanted to first talk about the East and West Coast Express Charging Corridors. If you remember, this program was announced back in January at NAIAS and the press release stated that approximately 100 stations would be installed in these corridors (Washington, DC to Boston, MA on the East Coast, and San Diego, CA, to Portland, OR, on the West Coast) and it would be completed by the end of 2015. This was a joint venture between BMW, Volkswagen and ChargePoint. ChargePoint is responsible for the installations, and BMW and VW are basically telling them where they want them, and footing the vast majority of the bill. Time is running out and I knew they wouldn't hit the predicted deadline, so I asked the group what happened, and when can we expect it to be done. Here are some quotes from the discussion:

Rob Healey, BMW's top EV infrastructure manager

When asked about why they missed the predicted end of 2015 completion date, Fietzek said: "The business model for ChargePoint changed for this program. Before this they were responding to site hosts that wanted to have a charger installed. Basically the site host would call them, and say they wanted a charger. Now, ChargePoint had to go out and say to property owners, 'I need to put a charger here, because BMW and Volkswagen want me to, do you want to work with us?' This was very different from what they were accustomed to."

50kW DC stations which are part of the
West Coast Express Charging Corridor.
Photo credit: Tony Williams

Ghoreishian added: "Another challenge of placement goes back to our goal of making sure they were no more than 50 miles apart. Seventy five miles just won't work."

I also learned that getting the sites in good locations was more important than just getting them in the ground and meeting a deadline. BMW knew these locations would likely be used for years to come, so it would be worth their while to take the time to make sure they got good locations. In that vein, Healey had this to say: "There is a process in place between BMW and VW; collectively we have the final (site) approval. There were a lot of sites offered to us that we rejected. For instance, we looked at the customer and said, 'Do you want to have your wife go in and charge in this area late at night?' There were sites that we rejected because we didn't think it was a safe place. We want the best sites for our customers, basically."

I then asked if they thought BMW should finish this program before they start new infrastructure projects, like the NRG EVgo program which had just been announced and Fietzek quickly said: "Different partners, different projects. I'd rather have them running in parallel than waiting for one to finish before starting another. We'll get things done much faster this way."

Cliff Fietzek, Manager of Connected eMobility for BMW of North America, stands in front of the special edition Shadow Sport i3 on display at the LA Auto Show

Finally, I asked that since it's clear the program won't be finished on time, when can we expect the two Express Charging Corridors to be completed, and Healey answered: "Yeah, we're a little delayed. We're now shooting for early spring for completion. We always knew it was going to be tight. We sat with ChargePoint, we talked to the Volkswagen people and said, 'Can we do this in one year?' We knew approximately where we wanted to install the stations, but we still needed to contact the property owners, sign site host agreements, go through permitting and that just took more time than we expected. If you look at the ramp up, we started off slow, but are now really ramping up. We should have about 52 stations active by then end of the year, with another 19 already under construction. We're looking at finishing in late March or April."

Having personally gone through the process of installing a DC fast charger on my property in Montclair, NJ, I know the challenges that can arise during the process. I'll actually be pretty impressed if they do finish by Spring. That would mean that they installed the 100 stations on two coasts in about 15 months, and the company doing all of the site host agreements, permitting and installations never really took on a project like this before. That's really not bad in my opinion.

The DC Fast Charge Station I installed in Montclair, NJ. It's part of the East Coast Express Charging Corridor program

With that progress update on the East and West Coast Express Charging Corridors finished, I turned the discussion to the announcement made just hours before, the national ChargeNow DC Fast expansion. This is actually an expansion of a program started in 2014, when BMW and NRG teamed up to install 100 DC Fast chargers to select California markets. That program was completed earlier this year, and this is the second phase. There will be an additional 500 DC Fast chargers installed in 25 markets around the country.

When I asked about why they chose these specific markets, Healey said, "One of the important points of the expansion of the NRG program is that these 25 markets cover 80% of our current i3 sales. Now, we don't want to forget about the other 20% of our customers; we're working on it, and you'll be hearing from us shortly about how we're filling in the other 20%. It's really a systematic approach."

The 25 markets covered in this second phase of the program are:
 
Atlanta, GA; Austin, TX; Boston, MA; Chicago, IL; Dallas, TX; Denver, CO; Fresno, CA; Houston, TX; Los Angeles, CA; Miami, FL; Monterey, CA; Nashville, TN; New York, NY; Orlando, FL; Philadelphia, PA; Phoenix, AZ; Portland, OR; Raleigh, NC; Sacramento, CA; Salt Lake City, UT; San Diego, CA; San Francisco, CA; Santa Barbara, CA; Seattle, WA and Washington, DC.

Arun Banskota, President and CEO of NRG's EVgo had this to say about the program:

“It is our mission to install the right charging solutions at the right places, and EV drivers have overwhelmingly told us they prefer DC Fast chargers at public spaces. Over the next 24 months EVgo will add reliable DC Fast Combo capability to what is already America’s largest DC Fast charging network. This will be the fastest and most cost effective build out of a new network ever – thanks in large part to our existing infrastructure and committed retail host partners... The only way such a massive expansion is possible is because of the purpose built, and forward looking planning behind the EVgo network...EVgo has installed infrastructure with the ability to efficiently and economically add this new DC Fast Combo standard as the number of electric vehicles have increased. EVgo owns and operates our chargers with long term agreements with premium retail hosts, and is able to provide the level of customer service, reliability, and pricing that will lead to increased EV adoption and high satisfaction among the existing base of EV drivers.”

The deployment rate of these 500 stations is expected to be aggressive. NRG is a very large company with vast resources and plenty of experience with regards to installing infrastructure. After all, they are an electric utility company. Healey told me that they have existing sites that currently have CHAdeMO stations that they'll be adding a Combo (CCS) station to, as well as many other sites already identified and ready to go. He expects to see hundreds of stations completed within the first year and the entire 500 stations in the ground and operational by the end of 2018. He even said that he's being conservative with these predictions based on the lessons learned by the previous programs they worked on, and that it is quite possible that they finish earlier than the mid 2018 prediction.

Since I had over an hour with the team, we covered a lot of infrastructure topics and there's just too much for one post. Check back next week for part two when the discussion turns to BMW's decision to offer free charging, but only for new i3 buyers, the future of DC charging and BMW's long term commitment to EV infrastructure.

BMW i3 Melts Away in House Fire

Believe it or not, this was an i3. Unlike the 328i that was also destroyed in the fire, it's difficult to tell that this pile of burnt material was once a car.

One of two things usually happens when people see an image of an electric vehicle on fire or the remnants of an electric vehicle that had been on fire. If you're an EV supporter, you probably hold your breath and grimace a bit until you can read the article to learn what caused the fire and if anyone was hurt. But for many people who are unfamiliar with electric vehicles, they likely question the safety of EVs. They don't even have to read the article; they just see "EV and fire" together and the unfortunate and uninformed speculation begins.

Luckily, since the recent electric vehicle movement began roughly 6 years ago, there have been very few cases of EV fires, and to my knowledge no one involved has suffered an injury. Other than a couple of incidents involving the defunct Fisker Karma, the causes of EV fires have been mostly a direct result of a severe impact compromising the battery pack. I don't know of any instance where an EV has caught on fire because of a systems failure with the high voltage battery pack or power electronics. In fact, as a comparison a gasoline powered vehicle has a greater chance of having a fire than an EV, statistically speaking.

You can recognize the seat frames, strands of carbon fiber and the optional rear 20" Sport wheel, but not much more

So while I usually don't like to use the words "EV and Fire" in the same story, I found this one particularly interesting and wanted to share it.  For one, I've never seen an i3 after a devastating fire incident, (these are the only pictures of an i3 after a fire that I know of) and two, because of the unique state of the car following the fire. I'd like to first say that thankfully, nobody was hurt in the fire depicted here. Also, neither the car, nor the home charging equipment, had anything to do with the fire. It was an unfortunate accident resulting from a fireworks event for a New Year's Eve celebration last year. Hours after cleaning up the debris from a neighborhood event, a trash can that had ashes from the fireworks ignited. Neighbors had gotten together for the fireworks display and the clean up. There must have been something placed in the trash that wasn't completely extinguished, and after a few hours of smoldering, it unfortunately caught on fire.

A very unfortunate scene 

It's pretty shocking to see how little is left of the i3 after the fire. The plastic body panels and CFRP Life Cell just melted away. Without the steel frame and passenger compartment used in a conventionally built car, there is practically nothing recognizable in the pile of i3 debris after the fire. However once they started cleaning up, they were able to drag the aluminum frame with the battery tray out of the garage with a tow truck. Although you can't tell from the photos, the owner, Tory Johnson told me that the aluminum frame and battery tray were still intact. Tory also said it was interesting to see that while the resin which holds the carbon fiber together had melted away, the actual strands of carbon fiber didn't melt, and were clearly visible after the fire.

The 328i next to the i3 in the garage was also destroyed by the fire, however you can still tell it was once an 328i

It's been over two years since the first i3 was delivered in Germany, and at this time there are about 40,000 i3s in customer hands. It's actually a little surprising that there hasn't been a news story or a picture shared on social media of an i3 that had been involved in a fire after a severe accident, or even one like this, that was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. At least we now know what to expect.

Even after removing the debris and cleaning up the garage floor had clumps of dried CRFP resin where the i3 had basically melted away.

i3 Software Update 15-11-502 Fixes Flaws, Adds Features

Details of the November software update (15-11-502) for the i3 and i8. Click to enlarge or download.

BMW has just rolled out another software update (15-11-502) for the i3 in the North American market. Since the i3 launch, these updates have been coming out about once every six months, and as with previous i3 software updates, they are free of charge. Hopefully this time around BMW dealers know these updates are indeed free. Last year when BMW introduced an i3 software update, for some reason there were some dealers that charged their customers for the service. Once BMW realized what was happening, they reached out to their dealer network to inform them that these i3 updates are indeed free, and they were instructed to refund the money to anyone who was charged for it. If you were one of the people who unfortunately paid for an i3 software and wasn't reimbursed, please contact your dealer and they will refund what you paid.

This new update is a combination of fixing some nagging issues, as well as adding a couple of new features. Below is a detailed description of what the added enhancement and fixes of this update are all about.

Fixes:

"Broken motor mount potential"

There have been a few cases since the i3 has launched, where the left side motor mount has failed.  Basically, this failure is caused by an excessive shock to the driveline, such as a sudden loss of traction or underbody impact, during hard acceleration. For instance, if you get the rear axle airborne (going over the bump while accelerating) while still keeping your foot on the acceleration pedal, the electric motor, without any load, will quickly reach very high speeds - up to 11,000 rpm. When tires hit the ground while the motor is freewheeling at such a speed, the impact force from the drivetrain may compromise motor mount bolt (it's the left side mount in a BEV and possibly both sides in REX). It's obviously bad if this happens, but if you continue driving then extensive damage to high voltage components (EME, KLE) can occur. The 15-11-502 update will reduce the electric motor speed when the rear axle freewheeling situation is detected. 

Picture of a broken motor mount from an i3. Photo credit Roger Klemm

Some i3 owners, upon seeing this line item in the update were concerned that BMW's solution may have been to reduce power in an effort to reduce the strain on the motor mounts. Luckily, that isn't the case. This update is not going to affect motor output or torque during normal driving; only when the car has lost traction and the wheels are spinning without load. 

 
"Low Cost Charging complaints"

This issue concerned the Low Cost Charging feature which allows the owner to set a delayed charging session so they can take advantage of lower cost electricity pricing. There were complaints that for some customers it only worked sporadically, and for others it didn't work at all. This is the kind of feature that many people won't use, but for those who do, it's very important because it can lower the cost of charging their car significantly.


One i3 owner posted a video of his EVSE clicking. This should be solved with the software update.

"Clicking noise from Level 2 charger during charging"

This issue was definitely strange and annoying. When i3 owners set their car to precondition, often it would cause a contactor in the EVSE to open and close every few seconds. It would happen with various brands, including the BMW i branded Wallbox Pure, which was made by Bosch. Depending on the brand of EVSE, the clicking noise would vary from every couple of seconds to clicking once every 15 or 20 seconds. It didn't present any immediate problem, but the contactor would eventually wear out and fail if this were allowed to continue for years unresolved. Besides that, it was really annoying and many customers could hear the clicking noise throughout their house. The video above was made and posted on YouTube by i3 owner, George Betak.

"Various fault codes will set a check engine light (CEL)"

Basically, BMW cleaned up some errors in the code that have caused the check engine light to illuminate when there really wasn't a problem. Phantom check engine light warnings have been an ongoing problem with the i3 REx cars since the launch. The majority of the time when they happened there wasn't anything wrong with the vehicles. Hopefully with the new software update these false warnings will be a thing of the past.

Enhancements:

"Addition of Hospitality Charging Feature"

This is a feature that owners of other electric vehicles will appreciate as much as the i3 owner does. This issue centered around the fact that the i3's connector would lock itself to car if the doors were locked and wouldn't release until the doors were unlocked. On the surface it sounds like a good idea. Nobody wants someone else to be able to unplug their car while it's still charging at a public charging station, right? Well, in in the majority of instances most people don't, but there are exceptions.

The issue of charger sharing dates back to the early days of the recent generation of electric cars in California. Back about a decade ago when GM had the EV1, and Toyota had the first generation RAV4 EV, there were very few electric vehicle charging stations, and the small group of EV drivers took it upon themselves to come up with methods of sharing the few stations available. They would leave notes that would say something like, "You can unplug me anytime after 1:00," or "I'm opportunity charging. If you really need to charge, just unplug me." These charger sharing methods allowed the users to get the most out of the few stations available.

Hospitality Charging in action! These hang tags help make hospitality charging possible and efficient. But that's only if the connector will unlock.

Fast forward to today. There are hundreds of thousands of plug in vehicles on the roads here in the US, and not nearly enough public charging stations, especially in EV hotbeds like California. So charger sharing has continued in many different forms, especially for workplace charging. Often, the number of plug in cars in a workplace parking lot greatly exceeds the number of charging stations they have. So by playing nice, and sharing the chargers, everyone gets their fair time on the plug. However, if the connector is locked to your car, even when the car is finished charging, then the charging station cannot be utilized by the next person.  One electric vehicle owner, realizing the need for them, created hang tags specifically to assist in public charger sharing and now sells them on his website.

Also, if an i3 owner is charging in a public parking lot, they cannot leave a note allowing the next person to unplug them and use the station at a certain time, when they know the car will be finished. BMW fielded many complaints about this issue, and I've even heard people call the i3, "The most hated electric car at the office," because of this. Earlier in the year, when the last i3 software update came out, this issue was addressed, and the cars then unlocked the connector once the vehicle was finished charging. However, for some reason the update only worked on cars with a build date after March of 2015. This update corrects the issue on all i3s built before March, so all the i3s now have Hospitality Charging. This was the first thing I checked when I had the software update, and I have confirmed it does work.

BMW i European Type 2 charging cable. Notice it has connectors on both ends. We don't use cables like this in the US - though I think we should. Personally, I prefer this method of public charging rather than having the cables tethered to the unit as we use here.

However this feature will not be added to European i3s. That is because the majority of public charging stations throughout Europe do not have the charging cable tethered to them as they do in the US. In most European countries, the owner of the car brings the cable which one one end plugs into their car, and the other end plugs into the EVSE. If the connector automatically unlocked, than the cable could be easily stolen. I believe this is the reason all i3s were initially delivered without the Hospitality Charging feature. BMW, being a German based company, was just more in tune with the charging needs of European customers than they were with US customers. However thankfully, they listened to their US customer base and added this feature.

I'm glad BMW added this, but there is one thing about it I'd like to see them improve upon. As it is, you cannot turn off Hospitality Charging. Once the car has finished charging, the connector will unlock, you cannot stop it. I would prefer a setting in iDrive where I can check or uncheck a box that will determine if Hospitality Charging is utilized. I want this for the times I may plug into a basic 120v outlet with my Occasional Use Cable while the vehicle is in a public space. As it is now, once the car finishes charging, the connector will unlock and someone can steal the portable EVSE which is worth a couple hundred dollars. There are ways to lock the OUC to the car, but that means carrying a padlock along with you and taking the time to lock it to your car whenever you use it which is cumbersome and time consuming. Adding the option to iDrive would be the best solution, giving the driver full control over when the connector unlocks or not.

Charge Port Flap Open Warning

Interestingly, this new feature isn't included on the 15-11-502 service bulletin list, but it is indeed part of the new software. I like this feature a lot and am happy to see it now added on the car. There have been many times in my six years of driving electric when I did not realize that I left the charge port open until I arrived at my destination and needed to plug in. Usually that doesn't really present a problem, but it can. In fact, back in 2010 I left the charge port of my MINI-E open while driving home from work one night in a pouring rainstorm. So much water got into the charging socket that even after a couple of days of letting it air out (and even taking a blow dryer to it), I had to take it to the dealer where they replaced the charge port. This new added warning is really appreciated and I believe it should be standard on all electric vehicles.

I'm happy to see BMW updating the software frequently to fix issues, and actively adding features that the customers have asked for - you may remember that last year they added the numeric state of charge and low battery warning after receiving numerous customer requests. Tesla in particular has been praised for how they offer frequent updates, and over the air no less. While the i3 needs a trip to the dealer to perform the update, the fact that they are pushing them out, and frequently, is good news indeed.