When one refuels a gasoline-powered vehicle, the process is pretty simple. Just go up to the pump, put your card in, fill the car with gasoline, return the nozzle to the pump, then go on your way.
While the process should be equally simple with electric cars, many find that this isn’t actually the case.
Apart from issues like long charge times, EV owners have faced all sorts of problems with trying to recharge their vehicles, such as people unplugging their cars while they’re charging and being unable to use the chargers altogether.
Now, a user on TikTok has the internet talking after revealing his own issue with an EV charger: Simply put, he just can’t get the charger out of his Mercedes.
What went wrong with this Mercedes EV charging?
In a video with over 831,000 views, TikTok user Drew (@infamousxdrew) shows how he has been stuck at an Electrify America charger for around a half hour before the charger will not release from the charging port on the car.
Despite following all of the directions to release the charger, Drew says that the charger won’t budge and won’t charge his Mercedes EV—leaving him stranded in the parking lot.
“This will not come out of my car,” he says, jiggling the charger.
“I’m supposed to be working right now. I’m in my scrubs. I literally just stopped to charge my car,” he adds later in the video.
Not only that, but given that the Mercedes senses that there is a charger attached to it, it will not let him do anything to resolve the situation.
In a follow-up video, Drew reveals that he called a tow truck, which was able to remove the charge cable from the car by opening the emergency release inside of the truck and releasing it from the inside. This occurred three hours after the original video was filmed.
According to Drew, this solution revealed that the problem was with the car, not the charger.
How did Mercedes respond?
In another update video, Drew revealed that he was given a loaner car and that Mercedes was escalating the situation so that it could be promptly resolved.
While some commenters took the original video to mean that Drew did not like his Mercedes, he claims that this isn’t the case.
“Honestly, best company if you ever want to get a car,” he says. “It's just, you know, sometimes with the EVs—and this is not just my EV—my Tesla had problems, my Lexus had problems. Didn't want y’all thinking I was hating on Mercedes, because you know they’ve been treating me nice.”
How often does this happen?
Looking around the internet, it appears that this can occasionally happen to electric vehicles, and each vehicle has its own solution for dealing with the issue.
For example, one internet user claimed that they were able to remove the charger from their Kia Niro EV by “press[ing] unlock-lock 3 times ending on unlock” on their key fob. Others alleged that they solved the problem by contacting the company behind the charger.
As for why this happens, there can be a variety of causes. This ranges from issues with the car itself to problems with the charger. In general, if one finds themselves in this situation, they should try their charger’s specific troubleshooting steps. From there, they can contact the company behind the charge. Or, if necessary, reach out to the auto manufacturer for information.
@infamousxdrew Like HOW?!??? ? on the phone w/ mercedes roadside assistance now ? #electrifyamerica #ev #chargingstation #mercedesbenz #eqs #infamousxdrew #fyp
♬ original sound - drew
Viewers criticize electric vehicles
In the comments section, many users admitted that this was one of the growing pains of the developing EV network.
“Gasoline vehicles would never,” a user wrote.
“I just don’t get the appeal. If I charged my car the way I charge my phone I wouldn’t be going anywhere,” offered another.
“Thanks for posting this. Now I know never to buy an electric car for another 10 years until ya’ll get it together. No thanks,” declared a further TikToker.
The Daily Dot reached out to Drew via email, Electrify America via email, and Mercedes via email.
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