4 Year Anniversary

 4 years, 132 posts, over 100 site visits/reviews.

Not sure what I expected 4 years ago when I started this journey, but I have sure have covered the road trips, charging site reviews, and even a little bit of in depth EV Charging News.

Since I started with Elektra, she is still going strong putting in excellent commuter duty and putting up with Michigan winters remarkably well. 

Those that have followed know that Voltron is also now part of the fleet and he continues to shine in the road trip roll.

Looking ahead to the next 4 years, I hope that the charging infrastructure will continue to grow and I will have an equal number of new sites to visit and review.  I have already started some video news content and the site reviews may go video in the future.

Thank you to all that have checked the site over the last 4 years, and I hope to keep providing valuable content for years to come.

Marathon – Plainwell

Introduction

This is a site review from my trip to cover updates to the I-94 east/west corridor.  Site visits on November 8, 2024.

Business/Location Name	Marathon/Admiral
Address	1149 M-89, Plainwell, MI 49080
Network	Red E Charge
Station Details	One 160kW Dual Port EVSE
Cost	$0.50/kWh + $0.50 Session fee

The Marathon/Admiral in Plainwell, MI station was the 10th charging stop on my trip to check out added charging options along the I-94 corridor. This gas station just off the highway makes for a decent travel stop.  (This station opened in April 2024).  

Accessibility

This station is placed in the back corner of the parking lot for this convenience store.  Located 0.1 miles from US-131 exit 49, this gas station is at the northwest corner of the intersection with M-89.  The spots are marked for EV charging only.  No pull thru options here for anyone pulling a trailer, but parking spaces are wide enough to enable this if only one vehicle charging.

Amenities

Very limited amenities at this site.

Dining options include: Starbucks, Wendy’s, Burger King, McDonald’s

Shopping options include: None

Car-related services (windshield cleaning, air):  Marathon gas station at this location

Concentration

This is a single Red E Charge Autel MaxiCharger capable of outputting power to both connectors at the same time.  This station is the pull/back into configuration, easy charging with Elektra’s front port location or when backing in with Voltron to charge.  The number of stations here matches the expected need for supporting travel on this route.

Location

I am happy to see that the Detroit based Red E Charge continues to invest in charging throughout the state.  This site supports the west site of MI in the Douglas area.  At about 195 miles to Detroit and 145 miles to Chicago, this offers a coastal stop

50 Mile Radius:

150 to 200 Mile Range Estimate:

Speed

This Autel MaxiCharger is a step up from the ChargePoint CPE 250 units populated for destination charging. The rated 180kW is achieved by using the air-cooled cables in boost mode to provide up to 400 A for short periods of time to match the charging curves of many vehicles.  Higher voltage vehicles should be able to take advantage of the output power from these units.  The onsite 300 kVA transformer supports this unit and could support an expansion to one more in the future.

    

Summary

Built for expansion, it is good to see electric vehicle mobility supported by continually expanding infrastructure.  This site is on par with many of the other Red E Charge sites I reviewed this year. I was amused because at the time of my visit the gas pumps at this gas station were all marked off and non-functional.  I would have been able to ‘gas’ up at this location, but normal gas cars would not have been able to do the same.

I didn’t charge at this location, having just charged up at the previous site and planning to charge at the next.

What I paid for this stop: (I did not charge at this site)

Total Cost: 

Total kWh: 

Time: 

Average Charge Speed: 

Cost per kWh: 

Total Score (Max 44)	Score	Accessibility	Amenities	Usability
24	C	6	5	13

Questions or Comments:

dantheevman@gmail.com

Exxon – Wayland

Introduction

This is a site review from my trip to cover updates to the I-94 east/west corridor.  Site visits on November 8, 2024.

Business/Location Name	Exxon
Address	1331 142nd Ave, Wayland, MI 49348
Network	Non-Networked (Wevo)
Station Details	2 Stations (Each at 200kW total, can be shared between CCS1 and J3400)
Cost	$0.45/kWh

The Exxon in Wayland, MI station was the 9th charging stop on my trip to check out added charging options along the I-94 corridor and beyond.  I was excited to try out another site with this new hardware to see if the connection would be easier.  Seeing a help number clearly listed on the charger, in place of a pretty, but unhelpful wrap, was a good sign.  (This station opened in September 2024).  

Accessibility

This Wayland Exxon site is at US-131 exit 68.  The site is less than 0.2 miles from the exit to the west.  This site enables quick on and off the highway charging stops.  The EVSE placement is set up for side parking at each cable when sharing, but this also allows for easier pull thru of the site for those pulling a trailer.

Amenities

Dining options include: None

Shopping options include: J & H Family Stores

Car-related services (windshield cleaning, air): Exxon gas station

Concentration

This site is supported by two charging units.  Each unit has one CCS1 connector and one J3400 connector, potentially these can be used at the same time.  The 2 stations are placed apart from each other on the edge of the gas station parking lot.  There is a combination of perpendicular and parallel parking spots.  I connected to unit 2 with the parallel parking spots that would also work well if pulling a trailer.  Charger 1 has the more popular perpendicular parking configuration.

Location

This site directly supports US-131 north and south travel.  Just 18 miles south of Grand Rapids and 34 miles north of Kalamazoo, this offers another potential mid-point between those 2 cities.  At 180 miles to Chicago, or Detroit, depending on destination or origin this might be a reasonable travel stop on those routes.

50 Mile Loop:

100 to 150 Mile Range Estimate:

Speed

This site is using C6AM-150 made by XCharge.  This compact charger is rated at 200kW power output and has 300A rated cables.  This means that 800V architecture vehicles will be able to take advantage of the 200kW, and 400V cars will be able to get close to 120kW charging power.  The site is fed from a pad mounted transformer; the 500kVA unit has the power to have both units at this site outputting 200kW each with power to spare.

Summary

A much better experience than my first stop with this type of station.  Although, here on Charger 2, I did suspect the CCS connector latch, but it did connect and release correctly.  Other than a questionable looking connector lock, the session went smoothly.  I certainly didn’t set any charging speed records, but an average speed of 117 kW is not bad, and like what I would have averaged on a ChargePoint CPE250 shared charger.

What I paid for this stop:

Total Cost: $7.66

Total kWh: 15.64kWh

Time: 8 minutes

Average Charge Speed: 117.3kW (Calculated)

Cost per kWh: $0.49 (Calculated)

Total Score (Max 44)	Score	Accessibility	Amenities	Usability
27	B	7	4	16

Questions or Comments:
dantheevman@gmail.com

Dunes View Kwik Shop – Saugatuck

Introduction

This is a site review from my trip to cover updates to the I-94 east/west corridor.  Site visits on November 8, 2024.

Business/Location Name	Dunes View Kwik Shop
Address	6397 Blue Star Hwy, Saugatuck, MI 49453
Network	Red E Charge
Station Details	One 180kW Dual Port EVSE
Cost	$0.49/kWh + $0.30 Session fee

The Dunes View Kwik Shop in Saugatuck, MI station was the 8th charging stop on my trip to check out added charging options along the I-94 corridor. This gas station just off the highway makes for a decent travel stop.  (This station opened in July 2024).  

Accessibility

This station is placed on the edge of the parking lot for this convenience store.  Located 0.3 miles from I-196 exit 41, directly on the Blue Star Highway.  The spots are marked for EV charging only.  No pull thru options here for anyone pulling a trailer, but parking spaces are wide enough to enable this if only one vehicle charging.

Amenities

Very limited amenities at this site.

Dining options include: Burger King

Shopping options include: Dunes View Kwik Shop

Car-related services (windshield cleaning, air):  BP gas station at this location

Concentration

This is a single Red E Charge Autel MaxiCharger capable of outputting power to both connectors at the same time.  This station is the pull/back into configuration, easy charging with Elektra’s front port location or when backing in with Voltron to charge.  This is a good destination site for charging at this destination area location.

Location

I am happy to see that the Detroit based Red E Charge continues to invest in charging throughout the state.  This site supports the west site of MI in the Douglas area.  At about 195 miles to Detroit and 145 miles to Chicago, this offers a costal stop

50 Mile Radius:

150 to 200 Mile Range Estimate:

Speed

This Autel MaxiCharger is a step up from the ChargePoint CPE 250 units populated for destination charging. The rated 180kW is achieved by using the air-cooled cables in boost mode to provide up to 400 A for short periods of time to match the charging curves of many vehicles.  Higher voltage vehicles should be able to take advantage of the output power from these units.  The onsite 300 kVA transformer supports this unit and could support an expansion to one more in the future.

    

Summary

Built for expansion, it is good to see electric vehicle mobility supported by continually expanding infrastructure.  This site is on par with many of the other Red E Charge sites I reviewed this year. I am surprised to see how this small destination location has grown from 2 stalls to 6 stalls in just a couple years.

What I paid for this stop: (I did not charge at this site)

Total Cost: 

Total kWh: 

Time: 

Average Charge Speed: 

Cost per kWh: 

Total Score (Max 44)	Score	Accessibility	Amenities	Usability
23	C	5	5	13

Questions or Comments:

dantheevman@gmail.com