Ford's 'charge angels' will ensure all faulty EV chargers across US are fixed
Ford Motor Company is deploying ‘charge angels’ all across the US who will test the automaker's EV charging points for any possible faults or defects and get them fixed. The deployed employees will drive around the country in specially-equipped Ford Mustang Mach Es and test out chargers in areas where customers complain of facing issues.
Ford’s general manager of battery electric vehicles, Darren Palmer, told Auto News that these Mustangs will drive down to areas where connected vehicle data and social media posts reveal customers are having problems with charging their vehicles. “All they'll do all day long is go and check (chargers) to see where they fail and why," Palmer said.
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He added that there are a lot of charging plugs out there but some of them are quite old, thus the quality degrades over time and they aren't reliable to use anymore. “Over 99.5 percent of customers go into a charger and get a charge. We’re pleased about that. But a number less than that get a charge the first time they charge," Palmer added.
The automaker will refer to these employees as ‘Charge Angels’ and the first set of these angels are expected to start their work by the end of this year. However, Ford is still finalizing the details and logistics of this initiative.
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Ford aims to make its charging network as reliable as possible before the launch of its all-electric F-150 Lightning pickup truck next year, Auto News reported. Palmer added that the company doesn’t want its F-150 Lightning customers with heavy load on the truck's back or on large trailers to keep hovering from charger to charger before they find the one that works.
The automaker's customers have access to 63,000 chargers across the US from Electrify America, ChargePoint, and other stations.
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