PLEASE HELP! Home Charging Options for Prius Prime

They don't say. It's through the Safety Connect service so you might find it in the fine print somewhere.

 

Lee Jay is correct, they don't say. It works well though. The only way I could activate my Entune service was to press the button in the car and have a conversation with the guy in the other end. The Connect service is provided for 3 years. Not sure what happens after that.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

this was standard on the advanced pip, so you might get more info from seasoned users over there.

 

About an extension cord...

Toyota says don't use one. Of course, too many people might try a skinny zip cord extension, snip off the ground pin, anything dumb, and blame Toyota. We use a 25' 12-3 extension cord with no problem. I'd feel OK with 50' on a good 12-3 cord with clean tight pins. For outside, find a way to keep rain, dew,snow, dog pee, off the connection between the cords.

 

There are adapters, but if the portable EVSE that came with the car is working right, it will tell the car charger that it can only draw the 120v/12amp it is rated for, and not charge any faster. If it isn't working right, too much power will be drawn, over heat the wire, and possibly lead to a fire.

 

Can't speak to the Prime solution per se but my Energi uses a built in 2g modem for its telematics services. Unfortunately 2g is being shuttered across the USA by the end of the year (IIRC) so Ford is now updating us to 3g modems for free.

 

I dont think so.
If the EVSE is rated for 120V only (like the stock one) plugging it into 240V source can (and probably will) damage it.
In any case, the voltage that is reported by the EVSE to the car charger is the line voltage it is connected to.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

agreed. i don't think the oem evse is designed to steps down 240 to 120v. i suspect you'll get a bzzzt, smoke and possibly fire.

 

It is higher amperage that requires thicker wires, not higher voltage, but I had not considered that the electronics might not be able to handle a 240V source and get fired. Can't rule out a fire, but that is more likely with drawing more amperage than the cable can support.

If the electronics aren't fired, the 240V will allow faster charging than 120V, but slower than an EVSE that could supply 16amps at 240V.

 

This is interesting

DIY Tesla 240V Charging | Quick220 Review | Tesla Motors Club

Opinions ?

 

That looks incredibly impractical.

I have two circuits in my garage. One is on the wall and is connected to a GFCI source. The other is on the ceiling for the garage door openers and is not connected to a GFCI source. Both are on the same leg so this device wouldn't work at all for me.

If you happen to have two separate circuits available locally and they are on different legs, you are the exception, not the rule. Most people will be lucky to have just one.

 

Same goes for "on the road" opportunity charging, chances to find two outlets at the hotel garage which are on separate legs and are closeby and both w/o gfci, are very slim.
Also, this devise needs L2 EVSE. The Prime's stock is L1

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

I plan to call the company to find out if they will send me a tester cheaply to scope out my garage before I buy.
In addition to the above comments, I don't like the idea of multiple cables snaking around to outlets as a long term solution.

So perhaps not terribly practical, but creative and perhaps worth considering if a more standard 240v installation is for some reason really expensive.

 

We are using a regular 120vac outlet in our carport. It works great!

Dealership said if I wanted to get a 240vac outlet wired there then we could get a cord to work for that too.

 

correct.

 

My input is that I cannot justify the need or price for fast charging at home... Much more likely to fast charge (if available) at some station away from home.

BTW, and sorry if I missed reading it, but why recharge the EV from the car charger while parked or driving? What is the need for doing this and thus building in the option? Thanks

 

I don't have one yet, but my opinion is to avoid future warm up cycles. If you have a warm engine and a dead battery, and you know you'll have some future short trips without the ability to charge, it might be best to charge up while the engine is already operating and warm than to suffer multiple warm up cycles.

Another time is if you know you have a long hard climb coming up and you want to make sure you have plenty of battery power available for the climb.

 

Recharging while driving (known as "Charge Mode") can be handy on long trips, especially if a plug won't be available at your destination.

 

I don't expect to ever use the option.

 

Charge Mode is going to cost you gas (lower mpg while charging). You aren't getting free EV for nothing. So how does this play to one's advantage: 1). Going up a steep hill with EV and ICE. 2). Avoiding one warm-up cycle the next day if you aren't able to charge at a station and can do all that days driving under 22 miles? 3). Anything else?

BTW, on my old pip I no longer have, I never once was aware of getting 11 miles EV out of it but was always closer to 8 or 9 miles. There was something significant I never latched on to to getting 11 miles. I wonder if the Prime will doom me to 18 miles instead of 22 EV miles? It will be interesting how this works out.