Powerpass, free charging?

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kodedjay
Posts: 37
Joined: Wed Dec 08, 2021 2:40 pm

Post by kodedjay »

Hi guys, I can buy a Powerpass subscription for free charging. I guess this is not actually free charging but instead I will only get charged to charge the car and not any additional service fees on top which is what has happened to me previously.

I just wanted to check on here whether this is the case if anyone has any experience with powerpass charging points around the UK.

There is one very local to my house which is 150 kW, so very fast charging which is great. I guess this will be okay to use for my Skoda Enyaq IV 60? I’m not sure of the battery size on my car but I guess using 150 kW to charge will still be okay?

Goaty
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Joined: Sat May 22, 2021 3:27 pm

Post by Goaty »

Hi,

There appears to be different levels of PowerPass subscription; with my Enyaq, because I had it spec’d with 125kW charging, the PowerPass option I was able to choose, includes one year’s free subscription. This however doesn’t mean free charging, but what I have been able to get with the PowerPass, is Ionity at 25p instead of 69p per kWh. I was sent a PowerPass card, which works like a contactless payment card & automatically bills my PowerPass account.

Admittedly I haven’t needed to use it for over a month so I don’t know if these rates are still valid, given the current energy price increases etc.

By the way, you can use a higher rated charger than your car can draw. Assuming it’s not equipped with the higher charging rate option, it’ll only draw up to 50kW/h current and won’t be overloaded by the 150kW potential of the charge station 👍
iV80 Loft, Black, 21” Betria, 125kW, Climate Plus, Asst Drive Basic. Tethered PodPoint. Ordered May 2021. Delivered Nov 2021. Regrettably returned Jan 2024 (Company car. Changed jobs).
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Susans Dad
Posts: 150
Joined: Mon Jul 26, 2021 1:53 pm
Location: Northern Ireland

Post by Susans Dad »

Glad you have your Powerpass card Goaty, I'm still trying to access them to have my card delivered. The App is not user friendly here and despite many emails, I am no further forward. There seems to be glitches in their system. However, I will persevere and be a nuisance ha ha.
Ordered 21 July 2021 - Enyaq iv 80 , Artic Silver, 21 Betria wheels, Light & view pack +, Infotainment pack +, Assisted drive pack +, Comfort seat pack +, Parking +, Climate pack +, Driving sport pack, Pan roof & now 125kW fast charge
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RichR
Posts: 1918
Joined: Thu Mar 11, 2021 11:53 am
Location: South end of North Yorkshire

Post by RichR »

Generally you wouldn't use a rapid charger within about 100 miles of your house, as even with discounted Ionity using Powerpass it's still more expensive than charging at home (though some electricity supplier daytime tariffs are close!). But it can be useful to know where one is should you forget to charge one night and need a lot of charge in a hurry.

Remember it's only free from the subscription fee for one year from the date you register. After that year the price goes back up from 25p to 69p per kWh. I don't expect to be anywhere near an Ionity charger until probably March. So there's no point me registering yet.
Enyaq iV 80 Sportline, Energy Blue, Assisted Drive Plus, Infotainment Plus, Convenience Plus, Comfort Seat Plus, Transport Pack, Heat Pump, ME3.2, Built Nov 2021.
kodedjay
Posts: 37
Joined: Wed Dec 08, 2021 2:40 pm

Post by kodedjay »

thanks guys - how can I check if my car is able to charge at 150 kw - is this in the settings somewhere? - and if not, is it easy to get it changed to charge at this speed?
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RichR
Posts: 1918
Joined: Thu Mar 11, 2021 11:53 am
Location: South end of North Yorkshire

Post by RichR »

No Enyaq will charge at 150kW. The maximum is either 50, 100, or 125kW depending on what was ordered.

However EV batteries do not charge at a flat rate. The battery management system will control how much power is fed to the battery, so it'll only take what it can safely handle. Think of it like your household mains sockets - they can supply 3.2kW if necessary, but if you plug in a phone charger, it'll only take 5W.

When the battery is warm and very low (<20%) you'll get the highest rate. But as it starts to fill up, the rate goes down. By the time you get to 50% even if the car is capable of 125kW, it'll only be charging at about 100kW. By the time you get to 80% it'll drop to about 50kW maximum - if that. Once you get over 80% it plummets to under 10kW quite quickly - which is why it's poor etiquette to charge over 80% on public chargers. You'll be preventing others from using it for very little extra charge. The way to get short charging stops is to take the battery as low as you dare, then only charge it up to as much as you need to get to the next stop - perhaps only 50%.
Enyaq iV 80 Sportline, Energy Blue, Assisted Drive Plus, Infotainment Plus, Convenience Plus, Comfort Seat Plus, Transport Pack, Heat Pump, ME3.2, Built Nov 2021.
kodedjay
Posts: 37
Joined: Wed Dec 08, 2021 2:40 pm

Post by kodedjay »

Really good to know, thank you very much.
Helijock
Posts: 66
Joined: Mon Aug 23, 2021 3:48 pm

Post by Helijock »

Susans Dad wrote: Thu Dec 30, 2021 12:23 pm Glad you have your Powerpass card Goaty, I'm still trying to access them to have my card delivered. The App is not user friendly here and despite many emails, I am no further forward. There seems to be glitches in their system. However, I will persevere and be a nuisance ha ha.
I applied on line, entered my VIN and other details and within 5 days I had my card. Used it a number of times on my way from Scotland to Norfolk and back.
Ordered June 21. Race Blue, Suit, 19" Proteus wheels, 100kw charging, Heat Pump, Comfort seat plus, Climate package plus, Transport pack, Drive Sport basic, Assisted Drive basic, Parking basic. Then I ran out of money!
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Susans Dad
Posts: 150
Joined: Mon Jul 26, 2021 1:53 pm
Location: Northern Ireland

Post by Susans Dad »

Cheers Helijock, I'll give it another try
Ordered 21 July 2021 - Enyaq iv 80 , Artic Silver, 21 Betria wheels, Light & view pack +, Infotainment pack +, Assisted drive pack +, Comfort seat pack +, Parking +, Climate pack +, Driving sport pack, Pan roof & now 125kW fast charge
Jonph
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Dec 31, 2021 4:02 pm

Post by Jonph »

I am still a bit confused! Is the only “free” pass the one with the very high kWh rates or should I have been offered one of the packages with a monthly fee free for the 1st year?
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