Magic Dock Success!

[bsclywilly]

@Jonathan S. you'll be pleased to hear this news then: https://electrek.co/2023/10/17/bmw-...ev-brands-enabling-tesla-supercharger-access/

I wasn't sure if this pre-heat battery voice command was some running joke but I'd love to see evidence of it. Sadly it didn't work for me. I thought I saw on some recent Porsche update saying they would allow manual entry of charger destinations? Anyone recall that? That could be the way to initiate preconditioning on command.

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[Jonathan S.]

I'm not sure whether to tell my wife that her i4 will indeed gain access to ~12,000 Tesla V3 250kW Superchargers in early ... 2025.

 

[bsclywilly]

I'm not sure whether to tell my wife that her i4 will indeed gain access to ~12,000 Tesla V3 250kW Superchargers in early ... 2025.

I assumed that was when BMW would have NACS charge ports but perhaps an adapter would arrive earlier with the rest of the brands next spring?

 

[Jonathan S.]

At first I was (optimistically) think that too.
But then I was directed to the Hyundai announcement that was explicit on the wait until 2025 for adapter access.

Perhaps the penalty for not capitulating immediately to Tesla's terms is that access will be delayed.
So 2026 for the Taycan! Would be painful charging in the mid double-digits at a typically dysfunctional EA station when the Tesla Supercharger station in the same parking lot has not only Teslas but also almost every other EV model.

Or perhaps Elon will just tell his software developers to open up the Supercharger network to everyone. Given that the Tesla app already allows that for the Magic Dock stations, the billing capability is already in place. (I even get to view a cute little pdf-style invoice in my account.)

 

[daveo4EV]

it's worth noting - the supercharger network is not static - it seems to still be growing - I would expect Tesla to continue growing it in 2024 and 2025 - the number of location for supercharger sites including those with permits and under construction is impressive in my opinion…

this is a useful site for anyone that wants to see for themselves what is existing and what's coming - it shows both current sites and those planned/upcoming

https://supercharge.info/map

this app is equally useful

https://apps.apple.com/app/id1056496235

the informaiton is crowd sourced and therefore subject error - but I would guess most of it (greater than 98%) is accurate

one flaw I do know of it does not list superchargers at race tracks or other restricted locations - for example: buttonwillow, ca, laguna seca, and thunderhill all have superchargers, but those locations are not shown by this site

in any case - the supercharger network is impressive in scope and reliability and simple makes the other guys look ridiculous…I consult the app a few times a month just to see what's happened and what is up coming…

 

[satchurator]

At the Brewster NY Magic Dock, I pulled straight in, wasn’t close enough. Tried again, still not close enough.

I’ve MagicDock charged at the Brewster NY location. It was as seamless as described by you and @DerekS. The cables are damn short indeed. I was able to go nose-in by raising my suspension and carefully moving forward to clear the curb. A curious German Tesla owner helped spot the clearance. Definitely a better experience with pull-through or pull-alongside spots.

 

[satchurator]

Remember you can say ‘Hey Porsche, preheat the battery’ - one option if you know you’re headed to a SC not in the Nav.

It is so very hard to believe this (but I hope it’s true) - how would this exist as a voice control feature without a corresponding control in the PCM? I expect someone will have an opportunity to verify soon!

 

[satchurator]

@Jonathan S. you'll be pleased to hear this news then: https://electrek.co/2023/10/17/bmw-...ev-brands-enabling-tesla-supercharger-access/

I wasn't sure if this pre-heat battery voice command was some running joke but I'd love to see evidence of it. Sadly it didn't work for me. I thought I saw on some recent Porsche update saying they would allow manual entry of charger destinations? Anyone recall that? That could be the way to initiate preconditioning on command.

I was just wondering if there might be a workaround for this: can charging locations be searched for via Google from the PCM Nav, and might a Tesla MagicDock location’s POI be considered a valid EV charging location by the PCM? Need to try that tomorrow…

 

[WasserGKuehlt]

Hmm, not convinced this is a command. More likely to adjust cabin temp etc which in turn uses more energy which in turn heats the battery due to the natural chemical reaction.

Happy to be proved wrong but 'preheat' command I can see working but specific to the battery not.

I wasn't sure if this pre-heat battery voice command was some running joke but I'd love to see evidence of it. Sadly it didn't work for me.

As I live to serve, and the commute home was slow and boring this evening, I decided to run an experiment. (The decision occurred partway through the slog, and so the data set is missing the "at start" measurements.)

Start of experiment:
time, PST: 16:45 (had to leave earlier today, don't judge)
HV battery temperature (deg Celsius): 19
Ambient temp: 14.5

Experiment:
me: (pushes voice control button) "Preheat the battery"
car: "... I cannot find that command; try again."
me: "Pre-heat. The battery."
car: "... I cannot find that command; try again?"
me: "Pre-heat the high-voltage battery..."
car: "Sorry, I could not understand you."
me: "Fuckoff"

<this marks the end of interactions, but I kept taking samples>

End of experiment:
time: 17:14
HV batt temp: 21
Ambient temp: 12.5

Conclusions: I am conflicted, as the car did not acknowledge the receipt of the command, and yet the battery temperature did rise - 2 deg C over ~20min (so half the target temp and ~10x expected interval, but still..) Note the car emitted an opinion about my intelligibility, but did not explicitly state that no action was taken.

Another observation is that the rise in battery temperature matches exactly the drop in ambient temperature; unfortunately, this is a mere coincidence. The theory is interesting, though, and I'll have to check the calibration of the outside temp sensor.

 

[Jonathan S.]

I’ve MagicDock charged at the Brewster NY location. It was as seamless as described by you and @DerekS. The cables are damn short indeed. I was able to go nose-in by raising my suspension and carefully moving forward to clear the curb. A curious German Tesla owner helped spot the clearance. Definitely a better experience with pull-through or pull-alongside spots.

I was thinking that would work for pulling in ... but then I was worried that the Taycan might lower itself once it was turned off ... or is that only for gravel mode?
Although having the front valance be lowered down onto the curb would be just trivial scratching if not moving. Just have to check that I'm back into the highest setting before pulling out again!

 

[Jonathan S.]

<this marks the end of interactions, but I kept taking samples>

We appreciate your dedication to scientific inquiry.
(As well as the humor of your final interaction with the voice control.)

But seems like the temperature is rising simply because you were continuing to drive?
(I've certainly been noticing that now that my drives start off with cooler temps.)

 

[WasserGKuehlt]

But seems like the temperature is rising simply because you were continuing to drive?
(I've certainly been noticing that now that my drives start off with cooler temps.)

Well, erm, yes, the whole thing was a tongue-in-cheek way to say there's no such thing as pre-heating the battery with voice commands. Unless, you know, one pronounces "battery" the same way as "car".

 

[Jonathan S.]

Well in that case ... we demand a repeat of the experiment, at exactly the same time, on another day with exactly the same weather conditions, but without any voice commands ... and then yet another trial without the same specific voice command but with retaining the cussing, just in case the car is heated up by the driver's frustration at Ms. Porsche (who, btw, has exactly the same disturbingly tense voice as Ms. Audi).

 

[WasserGKuehlt]

Well in that case ... we demand a repeat of the experiment, at exactly the same time, on another day with exactly the same weather conditions, but without any voice commands ... and then yet another trial without the same specific voice command but with retaining the cussing, just in case the car is heated up by the driver's frustration at Ms. Porsche (who, btw, has exactly the same disturbingly tense voice as Ms. Audi).

Okfine. The things I have to do for science.. (mumbles away)

And yes, I absolutely detest the voice of the Porsche PCMs. Today was the second time attempting to use voice control. I think the dislike is mutual, because I'm 0-for-2.

 

[Jonathan S.]

At the least Ms. Porsche's reply was not, "I'm sorry, I'm afraid I can't do that."

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