I needed to rapid charge my wife’s Rivian because it was almost flat and she forgot to plug it in at home last night. So I took it to the brand new Mercedes-Benz Charging Hub in Sandy Springs.

I have to say this really sets the standard for charging stations. Was one of the fastest chargers I have used charging at a peak rate of 500 miles of range per hour.

But what really differentiates it is the fact that it also has a lounge to relax, and enjoy drinks or snacks.

Also I was surprised that I could charge my Rivian for free - I assume because my ChargePoint account is linked to my EQS

 

Now that’s a nice charging hub. Wish they would have them installed before my 2 years of free charging is up, assuming Mercedes includes these as free chargers for 2 years. But in any event it’s nice to see hubs like that coming online.

 

I will try taking my EQS there at some point. I think with the EQS it should do an automatic handshake and start charging without need for manual payment. On the Rivian I used my ChargePoint card as payment but then it was free (I assume due to the 2 free years of ChargePoint that come with the EQS).

 

Was this a typo? Does the Rivian come with two free years of Chargepoint charging?
I am curious if we will get free charging because it’s a Mercedes Hub.
If we get free charging it won’t be because it’s a Chargepoint, because we do not get free charging at Chargepoint locations. We only get two free years of EA

 

Just curious. The chargers each have two "hoses", could you tell if they could charge two EVs or like the EA chargers, only one at a time?

 

Good point. The Rivian does not come with free Charging. The one time I charged the Rivian at the Rivian Adventure Network they charged me.

I don't know why this was free. Seems bizarre.

 

Yes. At one point there was an EQE charging next to me using the second hose on the same charger and it did not affect charging speed at all.

video below explains how they designed it.

 

I know I'm going to sound snobbish but I kind of wish they had kept it exclusive for MB EV owners. I like the reservation system though.

 

I agree.

 

I don't think there are enough MB EVs on the road to make this an exclusive MB station.

Plus, I can see these stations offering sales opportunities for MB. Similar to what Tesla does with using the non-Tesla charging app.

 

Can anyone tell me if this is still free? Stopped today to charge my 2 month old 23 eqs and was charged.

 

That place looks too nice without security. Do you simply just walk inside the lounge or does it require a MB key fob? What are the hours of operation?

 

You just walk inside. No fob needed. I am not sure the hours of operation but I have a feeling it is 24 hours. I have never seen it closed.

As mentioned this is an open charger so anyone can use it, although in my experience the only time I have seen a non Mercedes parked there is when I charged up my wife's Rivian.

 

I plugged in my Mercedes the other day and it did not ask me for a credit card. It did an electronic handshake and began charging. And it is not an EA charger. It's run by Chargepoint, and while I have a Chargepoint app due to my home charger, my Chargepoint account was not charged.

 

Any ideas whether this is free for the EQS owners or if there's an extra step to do to get it for free...

 

I don’t think it’s free. I actually looked and it turns out that it uses your Mercedes Me charging account which is linked to ChargePoint.

 

just last week and i was charged with plug&charge on a 2023 eqs.

 

Right you are right. I have 3 charge point accounts so I was checking the wrong one when I posted that. One of them is linked to Mercedes Me Charge and that one was charged.

TBH It's not a big deal for me. I might use a public charger once every 3 months so it's a small expense.

 

it’s more about the optics. Electrify america is free but not mercedes?

 

Yes that's very strange isn't it.