While we’ve had no problems with Electrify America stations elsewhere, their Coso Junction station continues to give us trouble. Fortunately, there’s now a Caltrans’ station at the rest area nearby so there’s some redundancy.
We’re wary of that EA station after our experience there in the summer of 2020. See Electrify America EV Charging Payment SNAFU.
Coso Junction is an important charge stop on US 395 up the East Side of the Sierra Nevada. We non-Tesla EV drivers are thankful that EA put a station there, but it needs to work reliably for us to depend on it.
On Wednesday 28 July we did get our charge but it took longer than it needed. The first kiosk was dispensing only 40 kW to our Bolt that was capable of taking 55 kW. I unwisely disconnected and move to the next kiosk. It didn’t work at all and that was a bad sign. So I moved to the third one and it dispensed only 30 kW. By now I’d wasted a good 10-15 minutes futzing around so I just bit the bullet and charged for the amount we needed to drive to Horseshoe Meadows at 10,000 feet and return.
On the return trip I didn’t even bother stopping at the EA station and pulled up to the single kiosk at the Caltrans rest stop. By now it was a good 104 F (40 C)—a relatively cool day on the Mojave Desert. Yet the Caltrans station was easy to use and started charging at 43 kW immediately. It was a welcome contrast to the EA station.
A few days EA took the station offline. They returned the station to service the next day.
There are no services or shade at EA’s Coso Junction station. The gas station that was there has been leveled and they’ve started construction on a new building. When that will be completed is unknown.
EA needs to up its game if it’s to appeal to drivers when there’s a choice of charging stops as now at Coso Junction.
