Charging with 240

[firemedichunter]

May seem like a dumb question but I couldn't find the answer anywhere else. I have not purchased my Focus EV yet.

When I utilize the 240v charger that I will be purchasing do I have to make any modifications to the car itself? Are the plugs the same for 120 and 240 on the car end of the wire? If so, the car can just sense that it is receiving 240 instead of 120 and vice versa?

Thanks!!

 

[hybridbear]

No mods. The car can tell. The connector to the car is the J1772 standard. Any 120V or 240V charger than follows that standard will work.

 

[mcowger]

No mods. The car can tell. The connector to the car is the J1772 standard. Any 120V or 240V charger than follows that standard will work.

Just to provide a little more nerdy detail (as I just finished building my L2 15kW charger)...there are 5 pins if you look closely at the connector.

The 3 big central ones are Hot, Hot/Neutral (depending on if you connect to 240 or 120), Ground. Voltage can be easily detected by the car from these three.

The 2 smaller ones are Pilot and Proximity.

The Pilot line has different wave forms on it to indicate to the car the amount of current its capable of delivering, based on what the EVSE (charger) is capable of....and that how it communicates to the vehicle how fast it can pull power.

(the proximity pin is rarely used or even connected).

 

[FF_rox]

mcowger- You built a 15kw charger? Do tell.

 

[jmueller065]

A self-built 15kW charger: Sounds like you picked up the Juicebox kit.

 

[mcowger]

A self-built 15kW charger: Sounds like you picked up the Juicebox kit.

Ding!

 

[mcowger]

mcowger- You built a 15kw charger? Do tell.

The JuiceBox EVSE. Note that while the box is capable of 15kW, my circuit will only do about 11.8kW (50A circuit) and the car (FFE) will only pull 6.6kW....so its oversized. But it was still way cheaper (by a factor of 3) than any of the 'production' ones (HCS, etc), and will support faster charger whenever we replace this FFE or add another EV.

 

[twscrap]

mcowger- You built a 15kw charger? Do tell.

The JuiceBox EVSE. Note that while the box is capable of 15kW, my circuit will only do about 11.8kW (50A circuit) and the car (FFE) will only pull 6.6kW....so its oversized. But it was still way cheaper (by a factor of 3) than any of the 'production' ones (HCS, etc), and will support faster charger whenever we replace this FFE or add another EV.

To be fair, it's only cheaper by a factor of 3 v. the HCS-40 if you don't get a J1772. Adding even a 12' cord (which is not enough for most people) results in the HCS being less than twice the price, and it comes with a 25' cord. Add the comparable 25' J1772 to the base Juicebox and the prices are even closer.

 

[jmueller065]

Yeah the base 6' cord that comes with the Juicebox is quite limiting.

 

[mcowger]

I got a 12 ft cord, which was plenty for me.

Even with a 24/25ft cord, a 2x price difference is $500, which is no joke.

 

[unplugged]

Yeah the base 6' cord that comes with the Juicebox is quite limiting.

I am not familiar with any cord "that comes with the Juicebox...." According to the website, you select the length of cord. http://www.emotorwerks.com/products/online-store/product/show/44-customizable-juicebox-an-open-source-level-2-15kw-ev-charging-station

And the shortest J1772 cord available is shown as 12', not 6'.

And really, why not buy the smallest, least expensive, quality charger available? The Juicebox is hundreds less than any other brand. I have never had an issue with the brand and carry it on every longer trip. From the 120 V plug at the Getty to the 240 plugs at La Quinta Resort outside of Palm Springs to my folks dryer plug.

Even more important, I am not aware of any portable, sealed water resistant outdoor rated EVSE that produces 30 amps or above. I like the 12' cord because it handily fits into the rear cargo box of the FFE.

 

[jmueller065]

Well ok, whatever the length that came with mine. But I did get it through rather unique circumstances.

Just measured mine: 10' from the bottom of the Juicebox to the vehicle connector.

 

[unplugged]

Just measured mine: 10' from the bottom of the Juicebox to the vehicle connector.

It was rather cheap of them to award you a shortened cord. Last weekend, I had to use every inch of my 12' cord. I went to a casino outside of Palm Springs to fill up before I headed back to Orange County. A base Leaf was charging on the 120v oulet, and I had to plug in to the 240v around the parking garage pillar from the Leaf. Seriously, you take your Leaf somewhere to charge for 10 hours and there is only one EV space? Very rude.