Emergency mobile EV charging is what we built VoltRescue around. When an electric car runs out of usable energy, it does not coast to a stop near a gas can the way a car out of fuel might. It slows, warns you, and eventually refuses to drive. At that point you have three options: wait for a tow, push your luck with whatever reserve the car still allows, or have a charge brought to you. We do the third, at any hour, and we tell you the price before anyone drives.
A typical emergency visit adds 25 to 50 miles of range. That is not a full battery and we never pretend otherwise. It is enough, in the large majority of situations, to reach the nearest working fast charger or get home to your own plug, which is the only goal that matters when you are stuck.
- 01
Call and describe where you are
Give dispatch the nearest exit, cross street or landmark, your car make and model, and the battery reading if the screen still shows one.
- 02
We confirm price and head out
You hear the price before we roll. Metro arrivals average 30 to 45 minutes; outlying areas can take up to 90.
- 03
Plug in, add range, get moving
The technician connects to your port, adds 25 to 50 miles of range, and points you to the nearest working charger.
When emergency charging is the right call
Most stranded EVs need electrons, not a tow. If the car is mechanically fine and simply out of usable charge, a mobile charge is usually faster and cheaper than loading it onto a truck. The typical calls we see fall into a handful of patterns, and recognizing yours helps dispatch send the right help.
- Battery at or near zero after a long highway run, a detour, or a range estimate that dropped faster than expected.
- You reached a public charger and it was broken, blocked, occupied with a long queue, or would not start a session.
- The car entered a reduced-power mode and you pulled over before it stopped completely.
- You parked overnight at low charge and a cold morning took the last few miles.
- You are in a parking structure or apartment lot with no working plug and the car will not make it to the nearest station.
Emergency charging is not the right answer when the car shows collision damage, a high-voltage system fault, a coolant leak, or a warning that tells you not to drive. In those cases we will say so and help arrange a flatbed instead of selling you a charge that cannot fix the problem.
Safety while you wait
If you are on a freeway or busy road, your safety comes before the car. Pull as far onto the shoulder as the car allows, turn on hazards, and if you are in or near a live lane, call 911 first. Staying belted in the car is usually safer than standing beside it on a highway shoulder. Once you are safe, call us and describe the location as precisely as you can. A mile marker, exit number or the last sign you passed saves real time.
At night, keep doors locked until you can see a marked VoltRescue vehicle and the technician confirms your name and car. You never need to hand over keys or leave the car unlocked for an emergency charge; we only need access to the charge port, which on most EVs opens from inside the car or with the key fob.
How the charge is delivered
Our technicians carry DC charging equipment and the connectors most US EVs use. Connector and inlet types vary by make, model and year: many current EVs use CCS1, Teslas and a growing number of newer vehicles use the J3400 (NACS) inlet, and the Nissan Leaf uses CHAdeMO for DC. Some combinations need an adapter, and a few older vehicles need specific hardware support before they can accept a DC charge from third-party equipment. That is why dispatch asks for the exact model and year before we roll.
Charging speed during a roadside session depends on the car as much as the equipment. A cold battery accepts energy more slowly, and some vehicles limit DC power when the state of charge is very low. The technician will tell you roughly how long the session should take once the car is connected and reporting.
After we leave
Twenty-five to fifty miles goes further when you drive gently. Keep speeds moderate, use climate control sparingly, and head directly to the charger or home address you named to dispatch. If you are routing to a public fast charger, check that it is working in the station operator's app before you set off, and use your car's built-in navigation where possible so it can precondition the battery.
If the car ran out because of a pattern rather than a one-off, such as a commute that regularly ends at very low charge or no reliable charging at home, ask us about scheduled mobile charging. It is designed to stop the emergency from happening again.
An emergency mobile charge is $175 and adds roughly 25 to 50 miles of range. If your 12-volt battery is also flat, which can stop an EV from waking up at all, a jump-start plus charge is $195. You hear the price on the phone before dispatch, and nothing extra is added for nights or weekends that we have not told you about first.
Towing, lockout, winch-outs and other roadside services are quoted by phone because the work varies. Call for pricing.
Full pricing