We Charge On A Kempower DC Fast Charger In America For The First Time!

[@MYJ61]

I loved how fast the handshake was. It really couldn’t have been smoother if they tried. This type of reliability is what is needed to convince people of the viability of EV’s as an ice replacement.

[@davefroman4700]

Yeah but 50kw is not adequate. It is for a Bolt or a Leaf because that is all they can handle. But is a Tesla or Mach E you would be sitting there for over an hour just to get to 80%.

[@Superman-xr1oh]

​​​@@davefroman4700 It’s one of the first Kempower stations in the US. It's probably more for testing than anything.

[@Todunsoetan]

I love seeing 50kw chargers at places you tend spend about an hour at. 7kw almost useless for that amount of time. HPC's draw lots of traffic, increase battery wear and its rude to just leave you car there unattended. 50kw are very underrated in this aspect I think

[@Todunsoetan]

Also I have a 500e. So I can almost use 50kw chargers on road trips, they're life savers when all the HPCs are either broken/occupied

[@BrastenSager]

Agreed. Tesla's been building 72kw "urban superchargers" around my area and it's perfect for exactly this situation.

[@LouRaX]

@@Todunsoetan but the bigger battery 500e still wastes time on 50kw since you only get 46 kw out and could draw over 80kw

[@MichaelEricMenk]

​@@LouRaXthe origin post was about 50kW DC as destination chargers. Kempower is perfect for DC destination chargers. You can have 200kW on four stalls, and all are guaranteed 50kW, or even 8 stalls with only guarantee 25kW depending how long a typical customer stays. If you are alone, you get 200kW. Destination charging is about getting power while you are parked, not being parked in order to get power.

[@Todunsoetan]

@@LouRaX yeah Ik and don't get me wrong it does add about 10 to 15 mins when charging to 80%, but opposed to no charging its always a life saver on road trips. Happened to me lit last week all the fast chargers were down and went to a 50kw round the corner.

[@gregpochet4812]

I like that term "Hostage situation" for when the app requires funds.

[@Dive-Bar-Casanova]

Kia EV6 fee leaves us bitter.

[@be236]

I think Blink charging network does the same. I think they require to hold about $20 in your account before you can charge on their units, even those set to "free" mode.

[@tomm5936]

Funny how excited you are that it works. I live in Denmark where this is normal.

[@kenhiett5266]

We have areas the size of Denmark with reliable charging. The Tesla supercharging network alone is fast, reliable, and absolutely massive by comparison. Imagine having reliable charging across all of Europe, including the poorer rural areas. That's the equivalent challenge to EV charging in the U.S.

[@TuomasLeone]

@@kenhiett5266 Of course, Europe has a comparable Supercharger network, with many more open to all EVs. Europe also has multiple other networks across many countries, street side level 2 charging is not rare, and of course all on one standard that's been in place for years.

[@kenhiett5266]

​@@TuomasLeone I travel extensively and don't have a problem finding reliable charging in the larger cities I visit frequently. It's the rural areas that it's questionable and I'd rather be looking for a charger in the middle of the U.S. than trying to find one in one of the poorer rural European countries.

[@Sandra-vr9tm]

​@@TuomasLeone The Tesla charging network in America is twice that of what they currently have in Europe.

[@fjalics]

Kempower has a reputation for being reliable. So does Tesla, but I don't like monopolies. A broken charger is worse than no charger. The US has a problem with broken chargers, so of course we want stuff that works reliably. We also need a lot more chargers.

[@DblOSmith]

Yes! Plug in, tap card. No app, no fuss. That's the way it should be. Fantastic.

[@rickpellicciotti]

For what it’s worth, Range USA is an outstanding gun store and range. Knowledgeable staff, friendly and clean. Thanks for these videos. Keep up the good work!

[@mckissick55]

Wow that is awesome, super small and easy to use. These should be all over the place.

[@jlujan4]

god I can't wait until they're everywhere

[@joejones3434]

It's not obvious on the screen, but if you tap the battery itself in the middle of the screen it will change to a graph showing the charge curve for the session. You can also see this with the QR code (if that is displayed).

[@graham2890]

Can't wait to see these all over the place. KemPower and Flo are the vendors I am most excited about.

[@vikramdias5496]

I have seen the Flo chargers at Six Flags theme park in Atlanta, Georgia and they look nice 👍 😃

[@MichaelEricMenk]

15:45: Yes, Kempower can split on one post (Kempower calls them satellites) . One power unit can power two different despensers, and you can have 16 satellites connected to one charger. (source Kempower brochure)

[@JonathanHarvell]

I live in North Carolina, where they're putting a site. So excited.

[@joetacchino4470]

"That's how it should be". Words to live by in the EV world.

[@danjmcs]

Nothing to do at a station THAT WORKS i'd be happy to chill and read, listen to a podcast, etc, hehe. Thanks guys, love seeing these reviews of the new chargers that we'll hopefully start to see more of.

[@PeterLunn1of1]

Charged my ID.3 on one of those Kempower chargers in the UK last week 150Kw capable, got around 80Kw charging speed, looked identical. 8x chargers in a row, A43 Pear Tree interchange near the pub and a costa coffee drive through, great location.

[@Lynyrd_Evnyrd]

It warms my heart as a Gun/EV guy ❤

[@JamesKirk1988]

I dream of a USA with two primary fast charging situations: 1. 50-75kW DC fast chargers all over city centers and places that you'd want to go hang out for 2 to 4 hours. 2. 250kw+ DC Fast chargers all along the Interstate and Primary Highway Corridors AC Chargers belong at Destinations that you go for 4+ hours, ie: Parking Garages, Hotels, Theme Parks, Museums, Airports, etc. Then fair, easy, and consistent pricing. Faster chargers should cost more, slower chargers should cost less. In a world where this happens across our country, owning an EV would be so convenient, everyone would want one!

[@vikramdias5496]

Awesome review, Kyle! Can't wait to see these chargers across America! :)

[@TuomasLeone]

Torille! Finnish products getting the attention today. 🇫🇮

[@mikashki]

Kempower chargers are all over the place here in Finland, run by multiple charging operators/networks. Nice, compact, reliable chargers and I particularly like the remote monitoring that you can activate and follow how the charging goes. So once the charging session starts, the charger screen shows a QR code that you can scan with your phone and it loads a charging information page in the phone's web browser, so you can follow charging progress in realtime. Very handy if you go off to eat or whatever during charging, and can come back on time when the charging is completing. Doesn't look like this particular unit or the operator is probiding that QR code monitoring feature.

[@dennislyons3095]

We have a 2017 Bolt. It is a great car except for road tripping due to the slower DC charge rates. We use it a lot (4 mi/kw) instead of the R1T (@2mi/kw). For the occasional road trip to visit relatives, we have used the Bolt. For trips over 100 mi each way, we take the R1T.

[@MiguelSanchez-bu7hd]

I used the Kempower unit in Albert Lea, MN and it was great. Extremely quick handshake and very responsive screens. Hope to see many more of them

[@skyemalcolm]

What are the specs on that unit? Straight 400 v or does it have an 800 v spec? And what are the kW stated and the handle/cable specs on it?

[@Hybridog]

So here in Austin it will be 105º F or higher for the next three days or so. How would a Kempower equipment cabinet fare in direct sunlight with these temperatures?

[@danjmcs]

118 in Phoenix on this past Saturday and very few of the public chargers are in covered areas in AZ, so i was curious as well & thankfully I had no problem charging at an EVGo station that afternoon. I wanted to test it for the same reason with the higher temps I had communication issues with a station where i was charging, but it was a known prior issue i was seeing if they had resolved, not heat related.

[@4rwayner7]

Most electrical equipment I’ve used is rated for close to 200 degrees F so other than the cables air/air at 100+ should be ok. I routinely encounter cables at around 135 even just being heated by the sun.

[@BensEcoAdvntr]

Glad it worked for you. I went there a month ago in my Bolt EUV and the credit card reader was offline. Failed RYC since I am not downloading yet another app just to charge once on a road trip.

[@wolfman9999999]

CCS was optional on the Bolt through 2020. We had to ensure ours had it before we would sign on the dotted line.

[@zachnilsson4682]

I've also had a brand new Bolt EUV as a rental from Budget. I really like the Bolt! I was very surprised by the quality in the short time I had it.

[@SamuraiTacos1]

awesome roll it out everywhere i loved how snappy the ui is

[@PierreSimonsson]

if the site has enogh power suply it is verry easy to upgrade that kempower site to 150 KW for example you just att 4 more 25 kw modules. But you know that allreaddy Kyle.

[@e-redj]

They don’t seem to have their backend up and running in the US yet. There was no QR code shown so you can take the charge session with you without the need of an app.

[@daviidfm923]

Listening to you try and say Ypsilanti so many times is like nails on a chalkboard for us metro detroiters😂😂😂😂😂

[@jasonblair4057]

Nice to see a proper ccs charger in North America. These should work well in the cold weather too.

[@dugintexas7908]

Hi Kyle, DCFC was options on some models of the Bolt until 2021. It was standard after that.

[@photogravity]

Yes, that is correct... I think DCFC might have been standard on the Bolt Premier in 2020, but not on the Bolt LT. I can't remember, but I purchased a 2021 because it was standard across the board and they were selling them at crazy low prices to clear the lots for the 2022 model.

[@andreverville9492]

Charged on one in Rivière-du-Loup, QC, Canada. Recent installation that was free because in test mode for the excellent "circuit Électrique" network. There are 4 pods, not yet shown on their app's map.

[@mcrkon]

'Plug & Charge' is how it should be. Also, looks like a cool cable management.

[@K-ph1qe]

Finally, a charge point company that builds reliable chargers, with point of sales payments that works. Great Video!!

[@theprimechuck]

There is a unit in Albert Lea MN, there I90 amd I35 meet. Its at a TA location and shares a parking lot with a tesla chargers. It was a great experience when there was a wait at the tesla chargers. With share with the neighboring post.

[@MrUled]

You can hit the info button on the display to show more stats and the charging curve

[@thetechq]

I rented a Bolt EUV. It was a great car other than charging. It was slow, and given that I did a multi state road trip it almost doubled the time. That said, shooting at a well managed range is stress relieving and might help reduce road rage and make EV charging speed less of an issue. “Charge it up and rent a lane while charging.”

[@rosmarin2438]

Yes a range pass is def necessary when driving the most outdated EV being sold today Good riddance to the Bolt and May it never be produced again

[@NoInfoFound]

Sadly, shooting at a poorly managed EV charging station will not be too far away. Charge Rage.

[@ninj4geek]

I just drove 1500+ miles to move across the country in my 17 Bolt. Charging speed was fine. Just planned food and rest breaks around charging stops. Drive ~90 mins, charge 20-30 mins. Worked out especially well with wife+kid+dog in car. Never went above 60% if I could help it. There *were* a couple legs through Oklahoma that I did have to charge to 100% to barely make it, those were long stops but 2/20 stops isn't bad. Plus it was a one-time trip so whatever. Not worth spending 3x-5x the money on a super duper fast charging car to me. I have patience. Plus 99.9% of my driving is in town.

[@XToXiCSQUIERLX]

​@ninj4geek Same. I have a 22 Bolt EUV and have found by the time I get fast food and eat it I'm already ready to leave. I thought the charging speed would be a problem but if I had super fast charging now I'd be unplugging and moving my car before I was ready to leave lol

[@rosmarin2438]

@@ninj4geeku really expect us to believe you did 90 minutes of Highway speed driving on 16-18kWh? 🤣

[@BremboT]

Wow. Never thought I'd see Kyle behind a Bolt. We live in crazy times.

[@rosmarin2438]

He is kind of a masochist when it comes to EV’s He towed a leaf with a Rivian bro

[@josefmaxwell2541]

@@rosmarin2438 Now we need it the other way around.

[@Yanquetino]

When all EVs transition to NACS, all stations (including Superchargers) need to adopt cable solutions similar to Kempower's. It's one thing to have a standard plug, but a different kettle of fish to accommodate the charge port locations on different EVs.

[@205rider8]

Manufacturers should place the charging ports on the left rear or right front.

[@Yanquetino]

@@205rider8 Riiiiight. Just wait for it. On the horizon. Any day now. It's coming. 🤪

[@Phoen1x883]

@@205rider8 Unfortunately, "should" doesn't matter in the real world. Superchargers that open to all vehicles will either have new cable management systems or they will have non-Tesla EVs blocking extra spots.

[@jaken005]

In Europe Kempower had chargers where each post can have two cables, either CCS2 or ChaDeMo. A similar thing could be done in the US with CCS1 and NACS

[@MrTheHobb]

Tap the battery icon on the post and it shows the charge curve while charging usually.

[@Sahkoautoseparempiauto]

Kempower FTW!

[@mikefleming8675]

Can’t wait to see your Bolt video you teased when you yelled up at Mary in the GM tower

[@markae0]

That fast charger needs some tin and sealant on the bottom to keep animals and insects out. Bizarre installer attention to finishing details.

[@muskrat3291]

You mentioned that Kempower has a site at a mine. I believe they are working with Epiroc, a manufacturer of BEV mining equipment. I would love to see a story on the electrification of the mining industry.

[@eb1888.]

These units should have a NACS cable.

[@TuomasLeone]

Kempower is working through the technical details on the NACS standard now. As the SAE hasn't yet finalized the rules it might be a while still. Also if this unit was a replacement for another the site operator may have been incentived to keep the same connectors on it. In anycase there are two Tesla Superchargers nearby, although I don't know if they are open to non-Teslas at this time.

[@4rwayner7]

Unnecessary until and if a significant number of non-Tesla vehicles have the NACS connection. Tesla can buy an adapter to use CCS already.

[@Wised1000]

Thankfully, DC fast chargers, particularly 50 KW are popping up like toadstools. Thank you "Bidenomics". My latest experience with multiple DC chargers aside from old badly maintained EA ones, has been very good, plug swipe (APP or RF card) and go. Totally seamless. On EA the promised "plug and go" for Mercedes has been the exception rather than the rule. My area is going to inaugurate 9 brand new, latest model EA, ultra fast chargers soon, we will see how that works out. As to 50 KW chargers, our local Cadillac dealer put up an ABB 50KW. I don't know if its air cooled or not, but it is almost silent too, however, it doesn't have a slim cabinet.

[@concinnus]

@50kW: passively aircooled cable: definitely passively aircooled AC⚡DC conversion: definitely not (losses >1kW)

[@brendykes1202]

The location is perfect for locals getting regular range time. Murica!

[@thewaterboy2013]

Zef is pretty big in the midwest, and most of their stations are older 50kw units. Their reliability is pretty medicore in my experience so hopefully this kempower partnership revamps that.

[@davidbaker9943]

Can’t wait for the video “Kyle eats breakfast” 🤣

[@thayne559]

The screen definitely needs dark mode at night time. I wonder how air cooled will hold up in Arizona?

[@wolfman9999999]

If I was local, I'd like this. I could plug in and let the car charge while I shot up some money in the range. In travel, I'm with you guys, location is poor. Still at least it's there if the local EA is dead.

[@thegreeneyej]

50kw is perfect for that business, and many similar businesses that want the “benefits “ of a DCFC with out the huge cost. Not every vehicle can take 150 kw (or more), but they will get all they can from that Kempower station. It was amazingly fast to start charging with the Credit card reader.

[@dennislyon5412]

We do have another local charger provider called Red e Charge, with several locations around Michigan. I recently stopped at their location in Grayling, MI, and since I have an account and app with them, on this particular day, I simply plugged the car in, and the charger somehow knew my car (I wasn’t expecting that) so almost instantly started charging without presenting an app or card. Plug and play on CCS? Go Red e Charge!

[@stp147]

2017-2021 Bolt EVs had optional CCS ports and it is not able to be retrofitted after the fact. If it does not have a CCS port it will only charge Level 2 from an AC source.

[@michaelhack2184]

Air cooled in Michigan works, how would it work in AZ at 117 F

[@thesoundsmith]

I hope they continue support for Chademo, our Kias are relatively short range (90 miles Soul and 26 mi Niro Hybrid.) Having said taht, I am concerned about that opening at the base of the charger. Snow and rain WILL get to the underside of a high-voltage device. All they needed was a bag of instant concrete to block the hole avoid the issue.

[@NoInfoFound]

13:03 "...being able to just come up ... and start charging quickly .. even with tesla it is not that easy..." hmmm....

[@MrAmoRay]

Air cooled charger transformers might not do well in hotter climate locations. Does hot weather have any effect on air cooled chargers?

[@y0uRF4t3]

What is good about it being a 400v system?

[@MrSeveSeve]

Just got back from Norway and saw my first Hongqi E-HS9, is out of spec planning any content on those yet?

[@brady783]

Always cracked me up when people try and over pronounce Ypsilanti. Just say it as the locals do; Ypsi (ip-see) 😂

[@balluhouston4385]

Bolt EUV owner checking in 🫡

[@rosmarin2438]

Stay off my superchargers when they get opened up.

[@rud]

A red letter day!

[@jeremygaal9946]

When is a site coming to Colorado? Would love to experience a smooth charge process like this.

[@TeslaRoadtrips]

i didnt know kempower is from kemppi welding in finland

[@loriallen67]

Ok will it handle triple digit weather for those of us where that’s a more of a reality than single digits?

[@Nebula1701]

4:01 Right by the exit to my Grandparents house xD

[@rvboondocker2559]

I bought my first Tesla in the fall of 2012. There were no superchargers anywhere. I was going to welding shops and campgrounds and any place I could find a dryer plug through a window just to try and get some electricity to drive 350 miles. It’s so much easier these days.

[@deathchopvhs]

Weird times back then eh? I had a Smart ED (Electric Drive) in 2013 as my first E.V. and I would take any plug I could get! I had a bunch of converters :). Funny enough that I missed the Tesla made drive unit / battery of the Smart ED in 2012 that really helped out Tesla's financials in the earlier years.

[@fineartz99]

Adventurously fun.

[@YeOldeTraveller]

Kyle wants the charging stations to be pull-outs on the highway. That charging location is closer to the exit than the SuperCharger in Ann Arbor. The only way for ti to be closer to the highway would be for it have been in the parking lot of the McDonalds you passed on the way in.

[@mobilegamemadness2763]

Quite enjoy your videos, but being from Ann Arbor your pronunciation of Ypsilanti caused me pain, keep making great videos and hope you enjoyed your time in Michigan

[@khariscorbett]

The unit allows for simultaneous charging of two vehicles because the tower can allocate a separate 50kW module to each port.

[@hobbes1069]

HAH! I work a 2nd job at Range USA and I can pretty much describe the inside of the store seeing the outside.

[@JackGirard1]

When do you think we'll see stations ditch the chademo and support CCS and NACS? Will be bad for leaf owners but would be way more useful and profitable for the station owners.

[@drewmcg8613]

Also, I wish the Zef app allowed you to filter for DC fastchargers …..

[@paulo3011]

Looks awesome. However, my experience in the PNW is that it is only a bit above par with how much of the public charging works. The screen interface seems a bit snappier and the handshake seems slightly faster. As an aside, I added a Bolt EUV to my EV stable. After 3 weeks my girlfriend is averaging 4.2 m per kw/h with mostly highway driving. I swore all my life i would never own a GM product. This one impresses me. Can't believe they're cancelling it (although I understand why).

[@Demy26]

🎉🎉🎉

[@sebastiansandvik825]

A video about Kempower chargers, sponsored by Nokian and filmed in Michigan... can it become more Finnish without taking place in Finland? I guess you could have added some sauna, vodka and a knife or two...

[@bluebikerathar]

Nice but 2 remarks. The QR code to monitor the charging session on your phone. And 2nd. Kempower have designed a container to put multiple 150kw chargers with that 50kw grid connection. Using battery storage.

[@amirmoradi9595]

The more competition the better. We need more brands of chargers. This along with Tesla opening to more brands soon will make other brands like EA have to improve their service or die off.

[@Chris_In_Texas]

I always laugh when I see the handle to hold the CCS handle. I don't see my grandmother doing this, she couldn't lift up the handle holding the handle. 👍

[@4rwayner7]

I’m not sure the NACS handle will be so easy to use if it’s on the end of the large 1 1/2” heavy cables. Also, with the heavy cable just hanging on the dc portion of the ccs receptacle on the vehicle will that be adequate. I’ve heard the newest Tesla chargers have larger cables but haven’t seen one.

[@glenngore6609]

OK, so what I am getting from recent videos is that the current standard for DC Fast Charging in the US at Electrify America, Francis, EVGo, ChargePoint, et al is 50 kw. From my experience, the vast majority of EA charging units are throttled at 50 kw, all any ChargePoint unit I have ever been to only puts out 50 and the same can be said from all Francis units I have been to recently. Meanwhile, Tesla Superchargers all put offer 150-250 kw. How is this acceptable for the CCS-capable EV owner? Switching all the EA, Francis, ChargePoint, etc units to the NACS connector will not have any effect on the pitiful charging speeds those units put out, so I do not get the enthusiasm for this change. Or will the capabilities of CCS units ever go higher than 50 kw?

[@briancole1887]

I think the point is that when all US cars are rocking NACS ports these other charging stations won’t be totally obsolete

[@glenngore6609]

@@briancole1887 They will be unless they get their act together with consistent, good charging speeds, I don’t care what type of connector is on the machine. I only have one Tesla Supercharger available in the entire western half of Oklahoma, so it won’t have any effect on where I charge, I will still have to use EA and Francis, so we will see what happens. I charge at home 99% of the time

[@ai4px]

It says a lot that you guys are raving that it just works…. Like it should. 😂

[@jozuafrancis9763]

Did you not see the McDonalds near by? If you were on a road trip could walk over to it

[@MooreOfNick]

I have to use the ZEF app almost every day because that's what my apartment uses...glad to see Kyle complain about the same "preloading" of cash onto the app. Although, I shouldn't complain because I can charge my EV at my apartment building.

[@menotyou1234]

Chem. Power...??

[@kf86]

No. Kempower. From the family name Kemppi.

[@rcguymike]

Just sw twy announced bolt will b gettin redesigned not ended! Tesla needs something all-wheel drive that competes with their low prices 🤞

[@jdmrc93]

I ran to the comments SO FAST after I heard you butcher Ypsilanti but then I saw the edit caption LOL

[@khariscorbett]

Just one correction: you mentioned 25kW bricks, but a single Kempower tower has slots for 4 50kW modules. So, the unit most likely has all 4 installed and cycle between the 4 modules to maintain the life of the unit. Otherwise, thanks for sharing.

[@4rwayner7]

Unfortunate that the Bolt wasn’t asking for more to see if the unit would stay close to 50 for the whole charge. Maybe the average would have stayed close to 50 which would be pretty good.

[@johnpoldo8817]

Kyle, tell me how to get some Kempower DC Fast Chargers installed Naples, FL so OOS Dave and I can charge non-Teslas. Fast charging here is awful and I predict dad will have a Taycan within 3 months.

[@Defianthuman]

I think that its interesting that there is only one charger and dispenser.

[@krkope8277]

Looks like Kempower is the Amdahl of EV charging.

[@BenRabidou]

Man the bar is just so low (not to demean Kempower's work)...A screen that is responsive, cables that are maneuverable and when you plugin it actually charges. Makes me sad at the state of charing in America

[@colbyconner3206]

I would bet that they get away with air cooling by having more efficient AC-DC conversion. Sometimes the answer isn’t to get rid of heat better, it’s to make less of it in the first place.

[@smiithmp]

You should go to Türkiye and use their charging network. Forward thinking and fast. There’s an electric car brand called Togg they made, and with that is a charging network called Trugo. It’s Türkiyes Electrify America if you will. They are great, 350KW, plug in, tap your card and charge in 10-20 minutes!

[@concinnus]

They should be able to dim the screen just with a software update tied to sunrise/sunset data. No need for a hardware sensor.

[@Longsnowsm]

That is how it should be. Roll up, pay, charge. No hassle. Now covered parking, services, trash, bathrooms, windshield washing stuff. Let's stop putting these in the back of some parking lot somewhere. They need to be close to travel corridors. Easy to pull off the road, find a charger close, get it done, and get on the road. What is Kempower's plan? Are they cost competitive? Reliability hopefully will be good. Would be great to know where they are going to be installing these. There are so many stretches of road with limited to know charging even on main travel corridors.

[@esaedvik]

Double Finnish brand hit. Torille \o/