Allow for a time window of 15 minutes or so before the scheduled charge by time for preconditioning

Hi there.

Just jumping on this thread as I think it also applies to me.

I'm new to evs and have just embarked ev lite with a ford kuga phev. Ovo installed a zappi glo last week. (V 5.780 i think)I can't get preconditioning to work at all. I'd like to try and tweak the charger to allow preconditioning but ovo has taken over the charger and many functions myenergy say to help with the situation just aren't accessible even on the desktop version of myenergy. You really need to be some sort of techy wizard to work with all this stuff. 

Any answers and suggestions you get through AI just send you in circles and none work. Can anyone help? Anyone with a Ford Kuga Phev and a Zappi Glo have any solutions or suggestions? Please not "add 5%" to your charge. It just doesnt work. I'm keen to get this resolved as not preconditioning from my reading is bad for the battery and wastes energy. Even if done on "shore". It's also not good enough that it needs to be done via urgent charge. To be honest that didn't appear to work either as the charger just kept going even after a precondition had taken place and was completed.

Thanjsvfor anyones help in advance

Jonny.

Hey ​@Jonny Early,

You really shouldn't need to adjust the charger for preconditioning; it should all be handled through the vehicle itself, as I understand it. When you try to precondition the car while it's charging, do you get any error or warning messages?

I wouldn’t say preconditioning is bad for your battery at all! In fact, it can actually be really helpful. Think about it: when a vehicle starts from a cold state, it has to warm up to reach its best performance. By preconditioning the battery before you hit the road, you're getting it ready for the trip ahead. I totally get that there are different opinions out there, so it's understandable that you might have been given different information. 

You can call and speak directly with our OVO Charge Anytime team on 0330 175 9678 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm) or email ovocharge@ovo.com. They can also help triage the issues for you while you’re on the phone in real time if that helps. 

Hi Chris.

Thanks for getting back to me. 

I want to pre condition the battery because it IS good for the battery. I get that.

My problem seems to arise from some sort of conflict between the Ford App and Ovo and maybe Myenergy too.

I'll give the number you provided a phone.

Many thanks.👍

Ford no longer has an integration with OVO - it’s probably not that.

Hi again ​@Chris_OVO.

I forgot to answer your question about error messages. The simple answer is, sometimes. I had a "charging error" message on the Ford App yesterday but it's not consistent. Sometimes it just doesnt work and sometimes it works but doesn't shut off.

Thanks also ​@Blastoise186 . I've read about Ford being discontinued with Ovo. I bought the zappi glo so I could get the charge anytime tariff through it rather than ovo having to talk to my car.

I guess I'll keep persevering and if I get any luck I'll let folks know if I find a solution. 

Cheers folks.

Hey ​@Jonny Early,

We'd love to hear what the Charge Anytime team suggests once you reach out to them! They should have some great tips and troubleshooting steps to help point you in the right direction. And if you happen to discover a solution on your own, please share it with us! Your fix could really help others facing similar challenges. Thank you!

Hi ​@Chris_OVO.

I'll keep in touch.

I have a feeling the problem may be with a setting in the Zappi Glo charger.  I can't get access to make changes as OVOs Charge Anytime tariff takes over the charger and reduces my ability to make changes to the setup. I've raised a ticket with Myenergy as I believe their engineers can make the necessary changed for me allowing energy to be released for pre-conditioning. I'll let you know how I get on.👍

Hey ​@Jonny Early,

That's awesome to hear you’ve found a workaround to keep you moving for now! I really hope Myenergi can help you figure out that last piece to get everything working just the way you want. It would be great if they could also offer some tips on how to tweak your current setup to make things more manageable.

Keep us posted!