Issues at L3 chargers

[Games Benedict]

I have had lots of problems at EV Go. I would say 70% of the time when I plug in it won't work. "Communication Errors". I have had experiences where I needed to move stalls numerous times to get a charge going. I also have had that experience where it finally seems to be going fine and then 15 minutes later it stops. I feel like the only time I have a solid experience charging is when I sit in the car while it charges. I have wondered if when I walk away it somehow turns off the charging? I can not tell if this is a Rivian or EV Go thing. I finally have an appointment at Rivian this month to have them check the system (only took 3 months to get in!).

May have to take the trek out to Barstow once to try the RAN charger.

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[thestvff]

It doesn't seem to matter if I stay with the vehicle or not, the issues appear consistent. My scheduled appointment isn't until mid-March, so I guess we'll see what they say.

Luckily, I don't rely on charging away from home and the home charger is fine.

 

[moondog417]

I agree with others guessing the likely culprit is EA. I've rarely gotten even close to the claimed max rate on their 350kW units, including when starting at <20% SOC. Sometimes it ramps up a bit, sometimes only drops. A few months back I plugged into a 150kW (again, under 20%SOC) and was only pulling 65kW. So after a few minutes I moved to a recently vacated 350kW stall. Even that one stayed pretty low, eventually ramping up to about 100kW. That was one data point only, and usually I can get a consistent 125kW from 150kW stalls. I generally count on getting 125ish and have stopped looking specifically for 350kW availability, but I'll use them when they're free.

 

[Tucker74]

220 kW is the current max rate your Rivian can charge, I’ve seen brief periods over 200 kW on EA 350s, but it usually falls into the +/- 150 kW range up to 80% then drops more.

 

[Mrfeb14th]

My experience echoes many here... EA had upgraded dispensers near me last November and I tried them and would ramp up quickly to 175kw and just as quickly derated to 62kw max. changed stalls and same behavior.. I figured it was some sort of issue with the new dispensers.. Last week went back tot the same EA sight and basically had the same experience but only got up to 145kw (SOC at 22%) before derating to 62kw.

My experience with EVGo has been better. I have had the occasional communication error, but once it starts charging i have had no issues getting over 200kw and the normal charging curve.

 

[FutureTruck]

I'd really be interested to hear if you have failures at the Tesla Magic Dock Superchargers in Arlington if you can make it over there.

I've definitely read on the forums and reddit about Rivian owners have DCFC issues that were fixed by Rivian so hopefully this can be resolved at your service appointment, but wild that you have to wait until Mid March.

 

[emoore]

I agree with others guessing the likely culprit is EA. I've rarely gotten even close to the claimed max rate on their 350kW units, including when starting at <20% SOC. Sometimes it ramps up a bit, sometimes only drops. A few months back I plugged into a 150kW (again, under 20%SOC) and was only pulling 65kW. So after a few minutes I moved to a recently vacated 350kW stall. Even that one stayed pretty low, eventually ramping up to about 100kW. That was one data point only, and usually I can get a consistent 125kW from 150kW stalls. I generally count on getting 125ish and have stopped looking specifically for 350kW availability, but I'll use them when they're free.

Rivian's can't charge at 350 kW so you won't get that speed no matter what. I've seen low 200s for a few minutes and then it usually tapers off (Rivian's doing, not EA) quickly above 50-60%.

 

[Tr4ckD4ys]

I’ve never once seen more than 100kW charge speed with my R1T, no matter how many EA, ChargePoint or EVGo boxes I try. Even with battery temps in the 70s and outside temps in the 60s I never see more than that. SOC also didn’t make a difference since I’ve tried several times in areas between 10%-40%. I brought the vehicle in to service to check out whether it’s *truly* just the crappy charging infrastructure or something with the vehicle.

 

[thestvff]

For anyone interested in a follow-up…

TLDR - Rivian is replacing the battery

I took the R1S in for service in early March so they could look it over. They told me nothing was wrong with it.

We went in a road trip in mid-March. First stop at an EA charger and we ran into the same issue as before. Tried both 350 and 150 Kw chargers, both failed. This time, the car popped repeated warnings saying that charging was unavailable until serviced.

I called Rivian from the EA site and they had me do a hard reboot. I was able to get enough juice to carry on, but had issues for the entire trip.

Rivian got me a service appointment after I got back. Once again they said they couldn’t find anything wrong with the car. I said BS, keep looking, but they insisted it was fine.

I got my vehicle back and drove the battery down, took it to a nearby DCFC and watched it fail again, 5 times in a row.

Called Rivian service again and, after complaining mightily about the Dallas service center and my experience there, they got me an appointment 2 days later. Apparently the lead service tech was able to pull some remote logs from the car before I got there and found errors this time.

They ordered a new battery pack, and it’s being installed now.

We’ll see how it all ends up. I’m hopeful that they can fix it.

Honestly, after all this, the novelty of the brand has worn off considerably. I’m a shareholder, R2 reservation holder, and have directly brought two others to purchase R1’s… but this has been the most frustrating vehicle ownership experience.

I wanted an adventure vehicle to take on road trips, up mountain trails, off-road and camping but I can’t trust it will be usable away from my home.

My wife wants me to trade it in. We’ll see. Prior to the R1S, I was set on a LR Defender or Rang Rover. I know they have issues too though and I’m not looking to repeat this experience.

 

[Tango45]

I'm glad your issue was (potentially) resolved. DCFC charging issues can be hard to diagnose because it involves a 3rd party (the charger company) and your vehicle, both of which can be black boxes to you, to some extent.

For anyone reading this thread for their own charging issues, my advice is to document the heck out of what you're experiencing in pictures and videos. I had a charging issue and it (IMO) really helped that I took videos of the behavior I was observing and pictures of the messages I was seeing on the charger screens. Also, at the advice of a tech who met me at a charger to see the behavior in person, when you encounter an issue, reboot the R1 (hazard and left button on steering wheel), and call Rivian service and tell them to put a timestamp on your ticket. This allows the techs to more easily find the diagnostic data your R1 is sending to them.

The other thing I'll say, regarding your souring on the vehicle/company, the level of support I received was better than I have gotten with any other manufacturer. Between the people on the phone being able to put time stamps on my ticket, help me add videos and pics to my ticket, the tech meeting me at a a charger near my home, and the positive (and apologetic) attitudes I encountered at the service center are a welcome break from... everyone else. Sure, I don't buy McLarens or whatever, but... that has helped. I know it doesn't change the loss in trust/faith that you may be experiencing as a result of this experience, but it's worth considering in the arithmetic.

Good luck and thank you for sharing your experience!

 

[Tucker74]

Sorry to hear about your issues @thestvff , honestly DCFC charging on road trips is the only thing I haven’t loved about my Rivian experience. The vehicle and living with it day to day with at home L2 charging have been fantastic. I’m hoping access to the Tesla network helps, I’ve never seen a Rivian charger in the wild so can’t speak to that network. EA & EVGo just have a lot of issues ? Hope they got you truck sorted out -

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