Low Cost Charging out of whack

[ReadyPlayerOne]

I know it's a wild and crazy idea, but how about a system that does not use a server? How about simply telling the car when your low-cost window is and that's that? Why involve the Internet at all........

If you do this IN the car via the I-drive menus, that's exactly what happens...you do NOT need the app and therefore the internet. Being able to do it from remote is more convenient, but you're dealing with not only the internet via a cellphone connection, but also a server that then talks to the car. Some places have better cellphone coverage than others which is a fact of life. Moving my car a few feet can make the difference of making a connection or not where I live. The thing will only retry so many times before it gives up.

I've only set mine manually in the car and the low-cost charging didn't work reliably. That said, after 3wks in the shop I'm getting it back with new software downloaded from Germany (not distributed to US dealers yet) so we'll see how that goes...

 

[psquare]

It's laughable that you can't understand other i3 owners could be experiencing problems with their cars.

Well, I am pleased I can contribute to some amusement here. We may need all the laughs we can get.

Feel free to post about any off-peak charge issues you have and I am more than happy to help out.

 

[psquare]

How could these issues not be a BMW problem? It is a BMW car running BMW software. If the BMW engineers chose to implement a system that required a perfect internet connection and perfect response from BMW servers to function properly that is their choice. They are still responsible for the fact that it was perhaps not the best way to implement low cost charging.

Back of the net!

I've just taken your example and complained to Apple for their poor iPhone implementation, because I can't always get a signal when travelling through the british countryside.

 

[psquare]

If you do this IN the car via the I-drive menus, that's exactly what happens...you do NOT need the app and therefore the internet. Being able to do it from remote is more convenient, but you're dealing with not only the internet via a cellphone connection, but also a server that then talks to the car. Some places have better cellphone coverage than others which is a fact of life. Moving my car a few feet can make the difference of making a connection or not where I live. The thing will only retry so many times before it gives up.

In my case (and I so far forgot to mention this) I have an added complication, because my EVSE connects and disconnects from a mobile phone network when I switch it on/off using a key. You might have guessed it: my mobile phone network connection for the EVSE SIM card provider is also not good in my area. I've therefore simply stopped switching the EVSE off and on with the key. This has also resulted in a far more reliable off-peak charge.