The car will not charge at the station — and the winter range drop
Most failures at a charging station are not a fault of the car. And in winter range drops by a third — plan with that reserve.
Symptoms
- The station errors out right after plugging in
- The cable stays locked in the socket
- It charges, but at very low power
- Range drops sharply in the cold
Try another charge point first. A large share of failures come from the station or the app, not from the car. End the session, wait a minute, plug in again — if it fails again, try the next unit or a different operator.
The cable is locked and will not come out. That is normal protection while current is flowing. End the session from the screen or the app, then lock and unlock the car. Every model also has a mechanical emergency release — usually a cord under the bonnet or in the boot.
It charges slowly instead of fast. With a cold pack the power is limited until the cells warm up; the same happens above 80 percent and with a hot pack after a long drive. This is protection, not a fault.
In winter range drops by about a third. A cold battery delivers less and the heating draws a lot. Plan to charge at 20 percent rather than 5 — the winter reserve is smaller than the trip computer suggests.
When it becomes a job for roadside assistance: when the car charges at no station at all, when it will not move after charging, or when you have run out of charge outside town. We transport the car to a workshop or to a working station.
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