Status of Blink EVSE's at the Lodge at Torrey Pines

[JPVLeaf]

Could someone in the vicinity of the Lodge at Torrey Pines please confirm the status of the two units on the upper level (Level 4), i.e., if you can get them to charge your Leaf? During my visit there today (8/7/11), I was not able to get either to charge my car. In the process of trying to get a charge, I had rebooted both units as I had read this might be a fix. Afterward both indicated they were ready to charge, my timers were turned off, the '2' blue light lit up, but when the J1772 was inserted the blue light would go off, the car would 'click' once, and then 'not charging' would appear on the Blink screen.

I'd love to know whether if it's the units that are not functioning properly, or something on my/my car's end that was causing it to not take a charge. I should note that at the time, the car had entered in 'low battery' mode (5 off ramp) and then '---' mode (parking structure). Any info would be greatly appreciated. TIA.

BTW, fwiw, the car did take a charge on 120v.

 

[TonyWilliams]

I should note that at the time, the car had entered in 'low battery' mode (5 off ramp) and then '---' mode (parking structure). Any info would be greatly appreciated. TIA.

BTW, fwiw, the car did take a charge on 120v.

That really sucks !!! I hope you get enough juice (at maybe 4-5 miles per hour) with the 120v to motor out of there.

So, from the moment you hit "Low Battery", you should have a total of 15 miles for careful around-town driving. Plus, whatever you're pumping in now.

Where is it that you want to go? Or are you staying there for the night?

BTW, those Blinks at TP are residential units. Try calling the Blink folks to see if there's something they can do.

 

[JPVLeaf]

Yes, I would agree with 'sucky'. :roll:

Throughout the trip, I was fairing fine with 10-20 mile 'cushion' between remaining miles, and estimated range. Having a daily 60+ mi. commute, I was feeling pretty comfortable with how the car was performing in terms of mi/bar. In fact, I found my numbers to were matching your Range Chart, also all consistent with what I find during my normal commute. I drove a consistent, conservative 60-63 mph throughout. It handled the 'hills' along the 5 predictably. So much so that I felt less 'range anxiety' when I got off at Exit 34 (Del Mar Hts) than when I left home.

However, long story short, what messed me up was the 'mega-hill' just north of the Lodge along N. Torrey Pines Rd. I missed that in the planning. Ironically, I had picked that route to gain some off-freeway miles. BUT, I did not know about that mega-hill (450 ft climb in 1.5 mi, 5-6% grade?). My theory is it was this hill that 'did me in' as it occurred at the end of my trip (no corresp. downhill), and towards the end of the battery capacity. The algorithm put me into low batt->very low->turtle in a very accelerated manner. This would be opposite to hitting this point while cruising on the freeway. Anyways, that's my theory. But, I still don't have an answer as to the Blink units and why I couldn't take a charge. Those things are puzzling me at this point.

Just in case, or perhaps in frustration, I went through the menu screens to send Blink a msg about these units. Funny that the lobby folks were not very aware of these units. She very helpful and sympathetic, however suggested that perhaps it was because I needed a card (RFID) or a C/C to operate them.

 

[rhover]

I should note that at the time, the car had entered in 'low battery' mode (5 off ramp) and then '---' mode (parking structure). Any info would be greatly appreciated. TIA.

BTW, fwiw, the car did take a charge on 120v.

That really sucks !!! I hope you get enough juice (at maybe 4-5 miles per hour) with the 120v to motor out of there.

So, from the moment you hit "Low Battery", you should have a total of 15 miles for careful around-town driving. Plus, whatever you're pumping in now.

Where is it that you want to go? Or are you staying there for the night?

BTW, those Blinks at TP are residential units. Try calling the Blink folks to see if there's something they can do.

I remember seeing a week or two ago at the Blink website:
http://www.blinknetwork.com/locator.html

that the 3 Blink EVSE at Torrey Pines Lodge were listed as "offline", not "available" or "in-use". I wondered if that was accurate information or not. I guess it was. I've used the one by the handicapped parking space once, just to see if it worked, but the Torrey Pines Lodge is close enough to home (and my EVSE) that I would seldom need to go there again for a charge.

Every car charger website seems to give slightly different information and has varying completeness regarding available chargers. Is there a best site to use to locate chargers and learn their status?

 

[JPVLeaf]

that the 3 Blink EVSE at Torrey Pines Lodge were listed as "offline", not "available" or "in-use". I wondered if that was accurate information or not.

Hmmm. That's very interesting. I had asked one of the workers if they had seen them in use recently, and they said "Yes" as recently late this past week. They all appeared functional, as in "Ready to Plug-in", or some such, including after being rebooted.

Also, odd that the website lists them as being at 'Evans Hotel' though the address is for the L@TP. Perhaps the 'offline' is in reference to them being non-networked models?

 

[lonndoggie]

I remember seeing a week or two ago at the Blink website:
http://www.blinknetwork.com/locator.html

that the 3 Blink EVSE at Torrey Pines Lodge were listed as "offline", not "available" or "in-use". I wondered if that was accurate information or not.

I think it is, because when I went there a while back to check them out, I had to reboot one. After I did, I checked the status screen, and it indicated no network--and thus, not able to report status (and, as noted above, these are residential units). After the reboot, it started charging just fine.

I'd posted a while ago about my co-worker who followed me in his new Leaf up the "killer hill", so he could charge there. He left his plugged in all day and when he came back, it was fully charged, ready to go.

Bummer if one or more has now gone bad. Hey, the one I had in my garage needed to be replaced, too, so it's not hard to believe. Sorry you had to be the one to find it out of commission on your big trip, JPVLeaf.

 

[JPVLeaf]

After the reboot, it started charging just fine.

Ah. A successful reboot. Yours or someone else's post here was the reason why I thought to do it in the first place

I'd posted a while ago about my co-worker who followed me in his new Leaf up the "killer hill", so he could charge there.

His 'killer hill' is probably the same as my 'mega hill'. :x For some reason, I associated any references to 'hills' in previous posts with those I remember on the 5 (i.e., the one just north of Del Mar Hts. was a good one), but not a major deal for the Leaf as it turned out and not like 'Mr. mega hill'.

Thankfully, at least the low bat->VLB->turtle did not occur on a busy roadway. And, I did make it to the TP parking structure. So, the good news is that the Leaf did successfully make the trip. I just couldn't get a charge from the darned Blinks. So, had to resort to Plan D ... or was that Plan E? :x

 

[z0ner]

So sorry this happened to you. I made a similar trip on Thursday, going to downtown SD. I had thought about stopping at Torrey Pines but instead charged up at Mossy Ocaeanside. I hope you didn't have to wait too long

 

[DarkStar]

You should really just call Blink when you have an issue since they're the ones responsible for making sure the stations are functional. I had a problem with a Coulomb Chargepoint last week and called the support number and they verified the issue with the EVSE while I was on the phone with them, then gave me a call a couple hours later letting me know the parts were ordered and would be replaced within the next day.

 

[TonyWilliams]

How many miles total, from 100% to Turtle?

 

[JPVLeaf]

So sorry this happened to you. I made a similar trip on Thursday, going to downtown SD. I had thought about stopping at Torrey Pines but instead charged up at Mossy Ocaeanside. I hope you didn't have to wait too long

Thanks, z0ner. Thankfully, it all worked out in the end. It was a good learning experience.
Ha. I learned I don't like flirting with the low-battery zone.
Looks like that was a good move on your part. Stick with what works.

 

[JPVLeaf]

You should really just call Blink when you have an issue since they're the ones responsible for making sure the stations are functional. I had a problem with a Coulomb Chargepoint last week and called the support number and they verified the issue with the EVSE while I was on the phone with them, then gave me a call a couple hours later letting me know the parts were ordered and would be replaced within the next day.

I reported both Blink units on the upper level through their onscreen help menu. As it was a Sunday, this was as far as I got. Don't know about Blink, but I agree that Coulomb has been responsive to inquiries, and their ChargePoints have worked flawlessly for me.

 

[JPVLeaf]

How many miles total, from 100% to Turtle?

In hindsight, I was pre-turtle. But, the '---' appeared at 71.6 mi. and a GOM range of (blinking) '5'. The last bar had disappeared. Prior to the mega-hill at 70.4 mi., the GOM range was 10 ... seemingly in line with your range chart for 60-63 mph.

 

[JCBNJB]

I have charged there using the first floor space a couple of times. The most recent time I did have to use my Blink RFID card. A guy from the Lodge came out and wanted to be sure I got it to work, and he told me they were in the process of converting them to card use (whatever that means). I suggest calling during business hours. The person I talked to was helpful and knew what was going on.

 

[TonyWilliams]

How many miles total, from 100% to Turtle?

In hindsight, I was pre-turtle. But, the '---' appeared at 71.6 mi. and a GOM range of (blinking) '5'. The last bar had disappeared. Prior to the mega-hill at 70.4 mi., the GOM range was 10 ... seemingly in line with your range chart for 60-63 mph.

Ok, except the chart has little correlation with the GOM, or the "---".

So, 71.6 total for your trip. It seems that you may have had 10 miles left, and perhaps as much as about 15 miles. The important next parameter after the fuel bars is the battery warnings.

Did you get "Low Battery" warning? If so, how far did you go on that?

Did you also get "Very Low" battery warning, about 6-10 miles after the Low Batt warning? If so, how far did you drive on that?

 

[z0ner]

Can anyone (especially a local SD resident) verify that the TP Blinks actually work?

 

[davewill]

OK, I made a little trip over to the Lodge to check out the Blinks (just for you z0ner ). The software has been changed, and they added the logo for where to tap a Blink card to activate. The software isn't the same as that on the Balboa Park units. It wants you to plug in first rather than tap your card first...in fact the screen never does ask you to tap your card. Tapping the card first didn't work, although it would accept the card and seem to authenticate, the charge wouldn't start when I plugged in. Plugging in, then tapping worked...I tried and succeeded with both the upstairs units. The downstairs unit was ICEd, but the screen looked the same.

 

[derkraut]

OK, I made a little trip over to the Lodge to check out the Blinks (just for you z0ner ). The software has been changed, and they added the logo for where to tap a Blink card to activate. The software isn't the same as that on the Balboa Park units. It wants you to plug in first rather than tap your card first...in fact the screen never does ask you to tap your card. Tapping the card first didn't work, although it would accept the card and seem to authenticate, the charge wouldn't start when I plugged in. Plugging in, then tapping worked...I tried and succeeded with both the upstairs units. The downstairs unit was ICEd, but the screen looked the same.

Davewill: I haven't met you; but I'll bet you are a very nice person.

 

[z0ner]

OK, I made a little trip over to the Lodge to check out the Blinks (just for you z0ner ). The software has been changed, and they added the logo for where to tap a Blink card to activate. The software isn't the same as that on the Balboa Park units. It wants you to plug in first rather than tap your card first...in fact the screen never does ask you to tap your card. Tapping the card first didn't work, although it would accept the card and seem to authenticate, the charge wouldn't start when I plugged in. Plugging in, then tapping worked...I tried and succeeded with both the upstairs units. The downstairs unit was ICEd, but the screen looked the same.

Davewill: I haven't met you; but I'll bet you are a very nice person.

Agreed derkraut! Thanks for the report and hoofing it out there davewill. With the serious lack of infrastructure in SD, this is a critical stop for us northerners with the exception of Mossy Nissan - Oceanside.

 

[jcesare]

With the serious lack of infrastructure in SD, this is a critical stop for us northerners with the exception of Mossy Nissan - Oceanside.

Tip for you "northerners." The uphill grade on N. Torrey Pines Road should be avoided. IMO You are better off continuing on I-5 to Genesse Ave, taking a right on North Torrey Pines Road to the Lodge.
BTW I went down the grade once and made it to #1 in the US for regen that day.