I’m new to the Escape PHEV — before this, I had a PHEV Pacifica (and it was a terrible experience). Last week, I drove the car on 0% EV charge for about 5 days while going on a 500-mile work trip. After that, the car stopped accepting any charge at all. I took it to the dealer and they said two things that I’m trying to make sense of:
They implied I shouldn’t use the charger that came with the car for regular charging and that I shouldn’t use it with a standard outlet. They said the charger shorted out and gave me a new one. What’s the recommended charging setup? My electrician says it would cost $3500 to install a better outlet in my garage, which seems too expensive.
They told me that if the EV battery is left at 0% for even a few days, the car battery will die. Is this true? The whole point of choosing a PHEV over a BEV was so that I wouldn’t have to keep it charged. The Pacifica didn’t need charging to keep the car battery alive.
If #2 is true, I might just get an ICE vehicle until charging options improve. I travel for work for several days at a time.
Not sure what crack your dealership is smoking. I drive to Myrtle Beach from Toronto and back and don’t charge the car once while there. The battery is fine and charges as it should. The charger that comes with the car is the one Ford gives. Why would they provide a charger that shorts out? I don’t have a Level 3 charger either; I just charge overnight and it works fine. I think the charger you had just got damaged, but that doesn’t mean these chargers aren’t good.
@Remington
L3 chargers are DC chargers, and it’s unlikely you’d have one. They’re mainly used in commercial setups where fast charging is needed. Level 2 chargers are AC chargers that use 240 volts and are most commonly installed at homes. These chargers can fully charge a typical BEV overnight and take around 3.5 hours to charge the Escape PHEV, compared to the 12-14 hours it takes with a regular 120-volt outlet.
@Gavin
My mistake. I meant Level 2 (240). Level 3 is usually for Teslas if I remember correctly. I only have Level 1 at home and use Level 2 chargers at work.
Remington said: @Gavin
My mistake. I meant Level 2 (240). Level 3 is usually for Teslas if I remember correctly. I only have Level 1 at home and use Level 2 chargers at work.
EVgo, Electrify America, and Shell all have L3 chargers with non-Tesla plugs. They’re big oval ones with the round adapter on top and the oval one underneath.
Remington said: @Gavin
Would you happen to know if the Ford PHEV can use that too? I’ve seen L3 chargers around town.
As far as I know, only one PHEV, the Mitsubishi, can use DC fast charging. The Wrangler, Prius, RAV4, Mazdas, and Escape don’t have the hardware for it. You can check out PlugShare to see what charging stations are available; often, they have a J1772 charger.
@Remington
Thank you. And your car battery doesn’t die if you don’t charge the EV battery? I feel insane but that’s what the dealer is telling me and I’ve found so many conflicting opinions in the forum.
@lilly
No. My battery has been fine. After the South Carolina trip, I went to Northern Ontario for three days and didn’t charge the battery. It’s been fine. I’ve never heard of a battery dying just because the other battery isn’t charged.
@Remington
Everything mentioned above is my experience as well. You might have a bad charger, but it’s not because you shouldn’t use the factory charger. That’s a lot of nonsense from the dealership. The 12v battery in these cars tends to run down or wear out because it’s the smallest and cheapest necessary one. If mine ever dies, I’ll replace it with a much better one. For now, it’s fine. I installed a Level 2 charger and it works great, but the car will only charge about twice as fast compared to the Level 1 charger it came with. When I learned that the car maxes out at 16 amps, I just used the welder outlet I already had, so I didn’t have to install an expensive high-amp one. There’s no point in putting in a super expensive outlet for this car. If you go full electric in a couple of years, then yes, but for this car, it won’t even use most of the power.
We’ve done week-long road trips and never charged the EV battery. It ran strictly in hybrid mode, and the 12V battery never had any issues. That shop is just foolish.
I haven’t had my car long, but my research shows that the Escape has a 14 kWh battery, and it only uses 11 kWh for EV driving, keeping 3 kWh reserved for hybrid mode. So even when the range shows as ‘zero,’ there’s still enough power for the car to run normally in hybrid mode. I’ve also never heard anything about not using the provided charger.
They’re liars! When I first got the car, I left it at 0% charge for weeks while we moved houses. It ran perfectly. I’ve been charging it with a regular 120v outlet for the last 3 years with the factory charger, and have had no issues. It’s probably your 12v battery that’s losing charge, either due to being defective or from phantom drain. By the way, can you share your Pacifica experience?
@Jeffrey
My Pacifica experience was crazy. It died twice in under 18 months. It took more than a month to get the right part each time. Worst customer service ever. Something about a wire harness that caused it to shut down in the middle of…