GO TO-U Enhances the Charging Experience

Electric vehicle (EV) owners often ask why their cars aren't charging at the full power capacity advertised by the station. This discrepancy can be attributed to several factors, including both the electric vehicles and the charging stations themselves.

In the GO TO-U app, each charging station typically displays its maximum power capacity—the highest output it can deliver. However, this doesn't guarantee that an EV will receive this full capacity. Firstly, the EV's own charging system may have a lower maximum power limit (e.g., the vehicle supports 90 kW while the station can provide 120 kW). Secondly, charging power may be limited by high or low temperatures within the battery's cooling system. We have previously discussed these influencing factors in detail.

Another crucial factor is the distribution of charging power among multiple vehicles charging simultaneously at the same station. For instance, consider a charging station with a total power capacity of 160 kW, equipped with two connectors: CCS Combo 2 and GB/T DC. The 160 kW is the maximum for the entire station, not per connector. If a vehicle using the CCS Combo 2 connector begins charging while the GB/T DC connector is free, the driver can expect the full 160 kW. However, if a second vehicle arrives and starts charging using the GB/T DC connector, the maximum power is split between both vehicles, with each receiving 80 kW.

The more connectors a station has, the more the maximum power is divided when multiple vehicles charge simultaneously. For example, if a station provides 160 kW and has four connectors, and all four are in use, each vehicle would receive up to 40 kW, assuming the station's inverters distribute power in 40 kW increments. Charging stations can have various power levels: 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, and 80 kW. These scenarios are typical for fast charging stations, making the charging process more efficient.

To make the app even more user-friendly and the process clearer, we've added a "minimum-maximum" range to the displayed maximum power. This means if a station's maximum power is 160 kW, a single vehicle can receive the full 160 kW. However, if two vehicles charge simultaneously, each will receive up to 80 kW.

Additionally, some chargers allow a single EV to charge at maximum power. These are marked as "VIP" stations. When you reserve a VIP station, the entire station is reserved for you, regardless of the number of connectors, ensuring that no other vehicle will connect and thus preventing power distribution losses.

"Our app provides all the advantages for efficient time planning for electric vehicle drivers. In addition to reserving and setting the duration of a charging session, you can see the maximum power of the charging station and how it can vary due to distribution, how many kilowatts will be consumed during the charging session, and more. If, for example, you don't want to deal with power distribution during charging, which, by the way, is very difficult to predict (the neighboring connector can become occupied at any moment), you can reserve the entire charging station.

The VIP service guarantees full charging power specifically for your car, as other connectors will not be available for use at this time," says GO TO-U Co-Founder and CPO Lena Artemenko.

These updates are just a few of the improvements we've made to our app. We've also expanded the interface on the connector selection screen. Now, you can see not only the estimated charging cost and time but also the estimated energy consumption. The overall design has been refined for greater ease of use.

We also want to highlight our ongoing GO TO-U loyalty program: take a selfie check-in while charging and exchange the bonuses you receive (6 bonuses at stations marked "diamond," 4 bonuses at those without) for GO TO-U branded merchandise or coupons for various services from our partners.

Enhance your charging experience with GO TO-U! Our app now provides access to over 400,000 EV chargers across 130,000 handpicked places in 66 countries worldwide.

About GO TO-U

GO TO-U was founded in 2017 to accelerate transport decarbonization by making the experience of driving and charging electric vehicles simpler, more comfortable, and more accessible. At GO TO-U we put users at the center of GO TO-U software solutions for EV charging management and operations so we can create a seamless experience for both charge point operators and drivers.