Vehicle should ignore timer at public charge stations

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mbender

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 21, 2013
Messages
824
Location
The Great California Delta, and environs
Maybe I just haven't developed the appropriate habits because I don't use public Level II stations that much, but it seems to me that if I plug into one (and possibly any "non-Home" unit), it should be assumed that I want to charge the car immediately and until I unplug rather than charge according to any set schedule.

Even if I'm the only one to admit it, I doubt I'm alone in having plugged into a public Level II, and come back an hour or two later only to discover that -- doh! -- the vehicle is waiting for it to be 2 o'clock in the morning, or whatever. I'm aware of the cancel timer button, but shouldn't good software be as "idiot proof" as possible? Any reason why this would NOT be a good default?


And while I'm at it, here's a second issue related to "Home awareness" that I think Nissan should correct: stop asking me if I want to look for nearby charging stations when I hit VLB within a few miles of my Home... No, I don't want to, and I never will!!

</rant>
 
You're right, that really is a tiny feature that would make a big difference. Once you get used to this, it's not a big deal, but if you rarely use public charging stations, it's easy to miss pressing that button.

I do suggest you make it a habit to check if your LEAF is charging with your smartphone using BOTH the LEAF app and the ChargePoint/Blink app, as I've experienced situations where it looked like everything started, but within minutes, the session failed.
 
seconded on both accounts. God I wish the Leaf would ignore charge timers while at home.

Also, yeah, boy have I had blinks tell me I'm full when I'm not. I'm starting to worry if it's my Leaf
 
I got bitten by this as well, a while back. I left my leaf plugged into a L2 charger at the outlet mall. We needed close to a 100% charge to make it to the next QC on the way home but that was okay because we were going to be at the mall for at least a couple of hours. Unfortunately I forgot to disable the timer, which shut off charging when it reached 80%. Very frustrating situation.
 
Don't walk away from a public charger until the lights are flashing correctly to indicate charging is in progress.

I can't count how many times I have received the LBW in my own driveway and as I pull into the garage.

I agree on both counts. But then it is just a basic EV.

My gripe is not having more than two timer settings per day and only two per week.
My stupid $50 home thermostat has more settings.
 
My guess is that Nissan will implement something as more people request it.
For cars with navigation (all Leafs?), linking the timer to GPS should resolve that nicely.
 
That is a great improvement idea and please condsider this related improvement:

During the work week, drivers with long commutes must charge to 100% at home during off-peak hours only. However if the same driver on the same day is able to plug in at work, it is better to charge to only 80% at work, to extend battery life.

Just like you, I already forgot to press the (timer override) button one time. Live and learn.

My better solution, which didn't work, was to set two timers for Mon-Fri, one for home (night, 100%) and one for work (day, 80%). If memory serves, only one timer can be set for any given day.

Too bad, that would have worked great, since if I ever stayed home from work, it would have already been charged and therefore use no daytime power.

Oh well.

:roll:
 
This is actually a feature I love on the Focus. It uses GPS to determine if it's at home, a saved charging location, or an unknown location and chooses to use a "Value Charge" or "Charge Now" mode based on your settings. I can set home to be "Charge Now", work to be "Value Charge" and unknown to be "Charge Now" or any other mixture of those. You can also set this the same way on the Ford website as you would on the car's screen. Unfortunately I don't think Carwings is that well tied-in to the LEAF's internal computer to make that possible. Maybe for the Gen2 LEAF.
 
Devin said:
This is actually a feature I love on the Focus. It uses GPS to determine if it's at home, a saved charging location, or an unknown location and chooses to use a "Value Charge" or "Charge Now" mode based on your settings. I can set home to be "Charge Now", work to be "Value Charge" and unknown to be "Charge Now" or any other mixture of those. You can also set this the same way on the Ford website as you would on the car's screen. Unfortunately I don't think Carwings is that well tied-in to the LEAF's internal computer to make that possible. Maybe for the Gen2 LEAF.

No no no.. The Leaf uses it's GPS to provide truly useful features like making a funny noise when you reach a preset location (from a specific direction no less!)

Automatic charge timers based on location. shyu.
 
Data storage is so expensive we certainly cannot expect to save timer data for multiple locations. :roll:

And yes if I am headed home and using the NAV why search for charging locations as I go the last 100yards to my house?
Then NAV says I am too close to navigate :lol:
 
GregH said:
No no no.. The Leaf uses it's GPS to provide truly useful features like making a funny noise when you reach a preset location (from a specific direction no less!)

Automatic charge timers based on location. shyu.
If it's any consolation, the Ford will do that too. :lol:
 
This is such a non issue. I always check to see if charging started, no big deal. Push the override button and you are done, unless you are so lazy that you can't hit a button for 1 second. No way would I want to relay on something else deciding for me and I would always check regardless.
 
I agree: it would be a non-issue... i.e., for the vehicle to ignore the timer at public charge stations. It's not about laziness, it's about forgetfulness, distraction, and sensible defaults. It wouldn't be "deciding" for you, btw, it would always charge when you plugged in at a public charger. I cannot think of any negative to doing it this way, so why not?

And for anyone who "would check regardless", it is no additional effort -- zero, nada.

It may seem silly, trivial, or a non-issue, but good defaults can save a LOT of time and frustration, especially as the number of EVs increases.
 
The problem with the timer override button is if someone unplugs you and plugs you back in, you won't automatically start charging again.

I love the suggestion to have designated stations where the timers are active (like home) and ignore them everywhere else.
 
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