America has a charging drawback. It’s fairly widespread to should drive a number of miles off your route, solely to seek out that half the chargers don’t work, and those that do are charging a lot slower than they’re rated to. Now that everybody’s switched to Tesla’s North American Charging Commonplace, that ought to positively make issues simpler, however we will’t depend on Tesla alone to construct chargers. Which is the place Mercedes’ new charging community is available in.
In keeping with Mercedes, the purpose is to have loads of room for automobiles and the choice to cost on both aspect of your car, in addition to lined charging the place attainable and choices reminiscent of meals and loos so you might have one thing to do when you wait in your automobile to cost. So lately, after I obtained my arms on a Mercedes-AMG EQE SUV, I made a decision to danger life and limb, depart the security of Atlanta correct and enterprise out into the suburbs to provide Mercedes’ first branded charging hub a attempt.
Regardless of being situated in Sandy Springs, it actually made first impression. It didn’t really feel crowded with 5 automobiles charging on the identical time, though I do surprise how it could do if 20 drivers all confirmed up without delay. And from what I might inform, each single Cost Level charger was nonetheless in working order, which isn’t saying a lot contemplating they had been simply put in, however should you’ve had a foul charging expertise earlier than, you perceive. Getting the automobile charging was as simple as filling a gasoline automobile. It simply labored.
Because the EQE can solely cost at 170 kW, it couldn’t benefit from the charger’s full functionality, however as soon as it obtained going, I don’t assume it ever dropped beneath 145 kW, which, once more, is spectacular when the bar for charging is in hell. I’d additionally arrived with an eight-percent cost, so if it hadn’t labored, I might have been beginning my search with the clock ticking. Attending to 80 p.c took about 40 minutes, though I stayed a little bit longer as a result of I wished to get again as much as 200 miles of vary earlier than I fled the suburbs for security. You simply can’t belief these OTP-ers, you already know?
This location has a lounge space, in addition to a separate constructing for loos. Within the lounge, you should purchase snacks and drinks, and there are a variety of chairs, couches and tables so that you can use when you go the time. The loos had been additionally clear and well-stocked, though that could be as a result of nobody ever makes use of them. I noticed loads of folks present as much as cost, and each single one among them sat of their automobiles besides to plug and unplug. Perhaps they didn’t know there have been loos accessible? A lot of them had been previous, so I assumed not less than one among them would wish to pee in some unspecified time in the future.
In the event you’re utilizing the Mercedes cost hub like I did to cost your battery a lot of the means, the perfect transfer might be to skip the lounge and go seize some meals at one of many a number of eating places which might be a brief stroll away. No margaritas for you till Mercedes figures out true self-driving, however there’s a Mexican place simply across the nook that’s fairly good by Georgia’s Mexican meals requirements. In the event you’re going to attend for 45 minutes when you scroll in your cellphone, not less than get pleasure from some chips and queso when you’re doing so.
Not like a sure different German automaker that’s constructing its personal charging community, the perfect a part of the Mercedes charging expertise is that it felt like Mercedes actually was attempting to provide its clients and different EV homeowners the charging expertise they deserve. Every little thing labored. It was clear. I obtained out and in with out a single trouble. If each charging hub within the U.S. was like this one, the EV possession expertise could be rather more pleasing.
In fact, not each charging hub goes to have a Taqueria La Parilla across the nook. Some might be in Simon Malls, so you may cost whereas procuring, whereas others might be constructed at Buc-ee’s gasoline stations, the place you’ll be compelled to accept a chopped brisket sandwich as an alternative of chips and queso.
Hopefully, Mercedes can get much more of those charging hubs constructed rapidly and to the identical normal because the one subsequent to its headquarters. In spite of everything, should you’re constructing a charging community, it’s fairly unhealthy advertising for the hub subsequent to your workplace to be soiled or have chargers that don’t work proper, so that you’re going to ensure the flagship location is pretty much as good because it will get.
Will the identical be true of Mercedes chargers at a Buc-ee’s in Texas or even presumably Michigan? That is still to be seen, however based mostly on first impressions, if you need to use a Mercedes charging hub, you’re in all probability going to need to prioritize that one over most of your different choices, particularly since Superchargers are in all probability about to get much more crowded.
