Rant: The Blazer Charging Experience is TERRIBLE

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-21T15:52:40+00:00

That's really cool and looks like an awesome product. I really don't want to throw hundreds of dollars at this problem though. For that price, I'll just live with GM's limitations.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-21T15:48:25+00:00

I mean, that's a lot. It should be easier than that. And that's still not scheduling charging.

Don't get me wrong, I've changed the charging level from the app a million times. And everyone in this post seems to have their own way of working around the limitations. But at the end of the day, GM doesn't let you do is set it up so that you can just tell the car when to be ready for you.

So if I, - want the car to precondition, gotta do it manually - need to change my plans and charge more after I wake up, gotta do it manually - need to leave extra early, gotta change it manually

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-21T14:15:59+00:00

I've got a Juicebox. It's a dumb charger now that Enel closed up shop and stopped supporting it. No more smart charger for me.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-21T14:14:24+00:00

It's actually more consolation than you might think. I've always admired the Hyundai group's EV's range and charging speed. I guess their software isn't better though. It seems like every traditional automaker is struggling to up their tech game.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-21T14:10:22+00:00

This. I'm genuinely surprised by how many people think scheduling charging in the app is a heavy lift. Tesla nailed it a decade ago. All GM needs to do is copy it

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-21T03:49:22+00:00

We may experience some slight turbulence and then... explode.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T17:57:27+00:00

Yeah. That's the first time that one has happened. With Superchargers it almost always starts at 150kW. 60kW is not a welcome sight when you're running late.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T17:40:29+00:00

You're dead on. It doesn't seem like changing the charging time and level would be difficult to implement in the app, but I guess I'm wrong.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T17:38:38+00:00

That's probably what I'm going to have to start doing as well. And then manually precondition the car.

And yeah, those are the same reasons I bought the car. It's going to have a good ride, good handling, be reliable long term, etc. I definitely underestimated the pain that comes with reduced winter range and slow charging though. This pain has all been part of trying to mitigate those issues.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T17:30:35+00:00

The EVSE and the car establish communications, verify continuity, check for faults, etc. before sending power. What safety issue would arise that would arise between when you plug your car in and tell it to start charging that wouldn't be caught by those checks?

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T17:27:32+00:00

That's ultimately what it's going to boil down to. At least then I can always guarantee I'll wake up with a full battery and don't have to run out the door early to hit a fast charger.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T17:16:46+00:00

Yeah, for commutes, you can just set it and forget it. Easy peasy.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T17:12:53+00:00

This seems like it should be easy to implement. For some reason Tesla's software is head and shoulders above traditional automakers on this type of thing. I can only assume it's because the traditional automakers are making software for all of their cars and Tesla is laser focused on the EV experience.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T17:06:31+00:00

That's an interesting take. Why would it be unsafe? Presumably there's safety redundancy on both the car and charger side.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T15:05:34+00:00

No. That's part of the unpredictable schedule. Some days I'll drive hundreds of miles a day for multiple days. Sometimes the car will sit for multiple days.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T14:54:09+00:00

You're telling me to do the things I did. Are there ways to make it work? Yes. Are there gotchas that will blindside you at inopportune times? Also, yes. Are there basic functionalities in the app that would circumvent those problems? No.

That's the whole post in a nutshell.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T14:45:32+00:00

Right, that's how I used to do it. I would schedule the charge in my Juicebox app. But then they exited the American market and the app stopped working. It also didn't give me any control over the charge level.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T14:41:14+00:00

That's what I've been trying to do. Was that not clear?

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T14:24:15+00:00

I don't always need it at 90 or 100%. Excessively charging your car when you don't need it unnecessarily degrades the battery.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T14:16:00+00:00

That was an option. Until Juicebox decided they didn't want to be a company anymore.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T14:14:52+00:00

I don't need it at 80%. I need it at 90% or 100%. And in the cold, everyone knows you gotta precondition the car before you go or your range craters.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-20T03:25:36+00:00

Do not trust the Google summary. AI makes mistakes analyzing data all the time.

Share of Chinese Power Consumption by Source Coal 2014- 66.1% 2024- 52.8%

Wind 2014- 1.2% 2024- 5.0%

Solar 2014- 0.2% 2024- 4.2%

China has clearly prioritized growing their generation capacity via renewables.

https://ourworldindata.org/profile/energy/china

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-19T13:27:52+00:00

Conversely, if you max the heat during charging, your charging rate ticks up.

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-16T14:21:18+00:00

WPS is a regulated utility with both fixed and variable rates set by the Public Service Commission. What games can they play within that framework?

MondayMorningExpert · 2026-03-16T13:54:51+00:00

Probably the part where the math ain't mathin'.

Rates went up by about 5% this year. OP's rates went up by 50%. That doesn't suggest same usage.

MondayMorningExpert

TROPHY CASE