General Motors has announced it will switch to plug-and-play technology for its electric cars. From now on it is available for drivers of the Hummer EV, Cadillac Lyriq and Chevy Bolt / EUV (if equipped with the fast charging option) that use EVgo chargers. The service will be expanded in the coming months to include other charging partners in GM’s Ultium Charge 360 program.
You can have an electric car that screams up to 60 mph in 2 seconds and drives 300 miles between charges, but if, when the time comes to plug it in, you have to spend hours looking for that swipe motor that EVsRUs for you sent in the mail or trying to get a customer service representative online because the charger you want to use does not recognize you, the glare on your electric car dream becomes a little discolored.
Tesla was a pioneer in plug-and-load when it rolled out its first Supercharger in 2012. Stop the car, plug in. That’s it. The car and the charger do an electronic handshake and charging starts. Now that free Supercharging is no longer part of the Tesla experience, the cost of each charging session is billed directly on the customer’s credit card registered with the company. Simple, safe and fast. This is how an electric car should charge.
“At its core, this latest iteration of the [EVgo] Auto-load technology is a customer-friendly feature that can save drivers time by simplifying the fast loading experience while maintaining a high level of security and protection, ”says Ivo Steklac, Chief Technology Officer at EVgo. “In partnership with GM, EVgo continues to implement new technology across multiple hardware and software platforms to enhance the charging experience.”
This innovative technology will initially be available for all GM EVs with DC fast charging capability at EVgo stations. After a one-time entry, customers will unlock convenient fast charging on the EVgo network with the charger and car communicating to securely match the vehicle to the driver’s EVgo and GM branded app account, the company says.
To sign up, GM customers must register their vehicle in the GM trademark application (myChevrolet, myGMC, myCadillac), link their EVgo account and activate Plug and Charge in their GM trademark application.
“We want to be the company that makes the EV experience seamless and convenient for everyone,” said Hoss Hassani, GM Vice President of EV Ecosystem. “Our partnership with EVgo on Plug and Charge complements the work already in place with Ultium Charge 360 and is part of our larger effort this year to expand charging infrastructure, access and education.”
Plug & Charge comes to other networks
The Ultium Charge 360 network provides access to more than 100,000 charging points in the US and Canada. According to Are EVs, GM added EVGateway, EVPassport, EVCS and NoodoeEV to the network last year. It also includes ChargePoint, Shell Recharge, FLO, Blink and SemaConnect, recently acquired by Blink. Most of them will be included in the Plug and Charge program in the coming months.
GM says it will invest $ 750 million to ensure the Ultium Charge 360 ecosystem “integrates charging networks, GM vehicle mobile applications and other products and services to simplify the overall charging experience for EV owners, fleets and dealers.”
It is also working with EVgo to install more than 3,250 additional fast chargers in the US by 2025 and is working with its dealers to add more than 40,000 Level 2 AC charging points to local communities across the US and Canada.
Two of the biggest frustrations with driving an electric car are chargers that do not work and that have to carry a bag full of charging system cards wherever they go. If GM can help correct some of those concerns, it will give a big boost to the EV revolution.
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