Posted on 12/29/2022 6:22:51 AM PST by Red Badger
The story of an electric car charging problem in the dead of winter experienced by a Virginia radio show host went viral this week, once again highlighting the major issues with owning an EV.
Domenick Nati, who hosts a radio show focused on celebrities and movie stars, took to his social media accounts on Christmas Eve to voice his frustration that his Tesla was refusing to take a charge during the frigid winter weather that fell across the country last week, showing more limitations for EVs.
The problem forced him to cancel all his Christmas plans. But it could have been much worse.
The 44-year-old host posted his video showing that his Tesla Model S would not begin charging even when plugged into a supercharger station.
With temperatures hitting below 20 degrees, Nati told his fans that he first tried to charge the car with his home charger, but when that didn’t work he drove over to a supercharge station. And still no luck.
Sure enough, when Nati plugged the car into the supercharger station, he got a message that said that the battery could not charge until it was warmed up by the charging station. But two hours later, he was still getting the same “Battery is heating — keep charge cable inserted” message.
“I have no other vehicle, so I decided to see if it just needed more time. Hours went by, and with only 19 miles left to empty, I chose to leave the car plugged in and get a ride back to my house,” Nati said according to the Washington Examiner.
He went several days with the problem and also could not get any Tesla service personnel on the phone during the time to help him. Ultimately, he had to cancel all his holiday plans because he had no way to travel.
“Since I posted the video, a lot of people have mentioned having the same issue,” Nati told FOX Business Network on Sunday.
“Some fellow Tesla owners have even messaged me to see if I have found a solution,” Nati added. “Unfortunately, my answer is no.”
It is well known that electric vehicles have problems charging in cold weather and that driving distances are also severely cut down due to the cold. That is why most EVs have battery-warming devices to allow charging in frigid weather.
And, as Electrek noted, it appears that Nati had a particular problem with his car that is not normal operating conditions.
But even if that is the case — that Nati’s car was malfunctioning and there was not a problem with charging merely because it was cold out — the fact that he could not get any service was also a major problem.
The Virginia radio host is not the only one to experience problems related to the frigid weather and how it impacts their Teslas. Another Tesla owner recently posted a video showing that his car charging port and doors could not be opened because they were frozen shut.
With regular, gas-powered cars, there are multiple ways to get help, even over a holiday. But EVs are still new enough that few local shops can service them. And if an EV owner can’t get phone support in an emergency, that is a serious problem.
Nati could have been facing life-threatening conditions in that frigid weather as he sat stranded at a charging station. After all, over the same few days, a driver was found dead from exposure to the elements as she sat stranded in her car in Buffalo, New York. And dozens more have died across the country due to this brutal cold snap.
Any kind of vehicle can have problems in our freezing winters, granted. But EVs have several endemic challenges that need to be addressed, if not by the technology, then at least by the services manufacturers and dealerships offer car owners.
I’m trying to locate the u-toob video I saw day before yesterday that chronicles the mass failure of EV charging stations. The video shows how none of the newest generation chargers could achieve the “handshake” with the vehicles necessary to begin the charging session. This was apparently temperature related and highlighted a failure to anticipate abnormal weather conditions.
I’ll post it to this thread if I find it.
A winner the old supporting the new.
I watched a youtube video the other day researching to make a reply to this story on a different thread. An EV enthusiast dropped off his Model 3 at a supercharger and let it sit for 2 days in sub 0F temperatures. When he decided to charge it, the super charger station had several cars charging at -10F. The first stall he tried, the power connector wouldn’t latch so he pulled into a different stall. It took his model 3 about 45 minutes or so to warmup the battery before it would take a charge. The model 3 battery is warmed up by waste heat from one of the motors. The car in this story is a model S which has a direct battery heater. I am more inclined to think the problem is operator error, but a malfunction is certainly possible.
I hear it’s why brits drink warm beer. Lucas made refrigerators, too.
I miss the big thumper, so I have a 2015 Suzuki DR650SE. When the snow melts, I will be installing the Warp9 super moto wheel set. At 66, I'm done with the rugged offroad riding. The supermoto wheels will have tubeless street tires. A fun bike that gets 55 MPG on regular gas. Electric start instead doing the compression release "dance".
Liberal ‘elties’ can afford to have an EV to virtue signal with because they also own internal combustion vehicle to use when they need reliable transportation.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muw22wTePqQ
Gumballs: Immigrants by the numbers.
Oh God. Me too. Fun as heck when it ran, but what a piece of shiite. Blew every single valve on the engine coasting downhill, not even under load.
We did it twice!.........The problem was a PLASTIC cog used for the overhead cam. It would slip and boom, you were dead in the water.
Replaced with a METAL cog and no problem, at least not that problem..........
On the second time, I decided to rebuild the engine, new rings, bearings, etc.
That’s when I discovered that the pistons were installed BACKWARDS, with the valve depressions on the wrong side!.......................
But was about as reliable as Jim Lankford.
There’s a saying. “Know why the Brits drink warm beer?” “No. Why?” “Cause their refrigerators are made by Lucas.”
You see, this is why I enjoy FR and return to it year after year.
There are always people on here who are more knowledgable about some subject than I am, and I learn something nearly every day, so thank you to both of you.
Once in a great while, I get to return the favor on this.
I have a background in Chemistry, so the claim they wouldn’t charge at all was suspicious to me. I just assumed it would be slower.
A design flaw is possible. It costs more money to produce products that operate in wide temperature ranges. In a former life, I use to build research equipment. The cost of the chips were double if not more to operate in harsh conditions. I can see a pointy head boss telling the manufacturing crew to get the equipment out the door..
Here’s the one you mention and another - both recent......
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Yja871G4eA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fq0RAjJ1PKQ
Do you know about British headlight switches? They have 3 positions...off, flicker, and dim.
“Go EV and you give up a lot of freedom...”
That’s the whole idea.
Then there is a chance of going to jail if you rent a Hertz.
He needs a nice wood stove beneath the car’s battery.
Physics should be outlawed.
Current lithium ion batteries can not be charged below freezing and will not discharge below zero. But at least as you freeze to death stuck in a non moving ev, you can stay warm knowing you are saving the planet.
The second one is the one I originally saw. Thanks for finding and posting them!
Not that I'm aware of
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