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.
Ping!.....................
That’s weird. I put gas in my car and it started right up during the recent freezing weather.
As Rush would say...
“I told you so.”
Reminds me of my first car, a Triumph Spitfire. Mostly the latter part, viz. getting a ride back home.
And we all know what happened to British Leyland.
Several years ago, we were camping at -7. A couple of the cars froze and wouldn’t start. A quick jump start and off we went.
Just saying
Notice that the article focused on Tesla, when the problem affects ANY electric vehicle.
The Left has been after Musk ever since he acquired Twitter.
Although I think it’s a design flaw that a vehicle which has presumably been driven for a while has batteries which are too cold to charge.
My gas powered car started right up too!
boo hoo.
I don’t see how Domenick Nati has a valid complaint with Tesla. He is simply complaining about the science or maybe the physics in electric batteries. They simply do not like very cold weather nor very hot weather.
Hmm, Does that mean Domenick Nati is denying science?
In the 70s, a friend of mine had a Triumph Spitfire. When he could drive it, it was a lot of fun! But....yeah, he wasn’t able to drive it often. British electronics.
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