Mischief behind the wheel is one of the most deeply rooted Spanish traditions. On many occasions, when looking for parking, anything goes: spaces reserved for people with disabilities, in double rows, on the sidewalk… Surely we have all sinned at some point. But someone has played the game and has not hesitated to share it on social networks. The Instagram profile @locuracing has shared a video in which he parks his Mercedes-Benz CLA in a space reserved for charging electric vehicles. Where is the trick? To do so, he has put his mind to it and designed a charger with a 3D printer.
Let’s go in parts. First of all, electric stations are not places to just park, but to recharge. Each city council drafts its own ordinance to regulate the use of these facilities, which are usually found in public spaces such as shopping centers or industrial estates. These charging points are still quite rare in our country today, primarily due to the fact that electric cars continue to be a minority in Spain’s vehicle fleet. But this is also the whiting that bites its tail. For most users, charging stations are the only means of guaranteeing the autonomy of their vehicle, and finding another place to recharge the battery may be impossible over many kilometers of our geography.
Secondly, this Mercedes model does not have an electric version, although it does have a plug-in hybrid. In any case, the rear spoiler and the “AMG” sticker that appears on the upper part of the front window reveal this CLA as a combustion vehicle. This user has used his ingenuity to spread the possibilities of parking in these spaces reserved for electric cars all over the place. To do this, it has recreated a charging adapter to ‘connect’ the cable with the gas tank and simulate charging. Although it has managed to appear to be an electric vehicle, the truth is that anyone who approaches will be able to see that this is not the case due to the inactivity of the charging screen and the lack of lights around the socket. In addition, leaving the gas tank open poses a potential danger, since someone who really needs to use that charging point could sabotage it.
Finally, it is presumed that the municipal ordinance includes a prohibition on parking in this type of spaces reserved for charging electric cars, so in these cases it is enough to call the police to remove the vehicle and impose a penalty. sanction. Despite everything, there are still people who, in order to get their way, are willing to face fines with this type of uncivil and unethical attitudes.