Good point, but Chevy decided to take the "cheap" way out (initally trying to save money). In the long run it costs Chevy more $$$$ totry to correct their mistake in producing a more substantial (better quality) cable. Hopefully, Chevy has the new cable U/L. approved and rated. Also the $$$ the P.R. dept. is spending in trying to perform "damage control". The unkown costs is the damage or EROSION already done to the Volts' image and Chevys' reputation - OUCH!!! DBCassidy
GM made a bonehead. No excuses allowed. However, Toyota made a bonehead as well on the 2001 Prius. The initial tires disintegrated slowly in the first 5000 miles. I got the recall on that and while certainly not hard to fix, this was probably due to not keeping up on how your lowest bidder for key parts achieved the lowest bid.
The difference between Toyota and GM is Toyota can withstand the financial (deep pockets of cash reserves) bonehead mistakes and recover. GM. on the other hand does not have the same financial position as Toyota. Unless you want to consider the U.S. taxpayer as part of the GM cash cushion (IE: an additional bailout). DBCassidy
The problem with the original 120V 12A charging cord was not the 16 gauge wire but with the poor connection between the wire and the 120V plug in some units. In addition, the plastic used in the molded plug may not have been up to the job of operating under warm temperatures for long periods of charging over an extended period of regular use. My own original Volt charge cord ran warm to the touch at the plug but not obviously too hot. I charged with it daily for many hours at a time for a year before the plastic on the plug began to show obvious signs of chemically breaking down. I clipped off the original plug and replaced it with a heavy duty plug with the same 16 gauge wire attached with screw terminals. It ran very cool. The new charge cord uses a new plug design and a new plastic sheath on 14 gauge wire but , as noted, the long cable leading to the J1772 plug is 16 gauge. It runs cool and is not a problem. The Volt 240V 16A charge cord available from GM uses 14 gauge wire and also runs cool and only mildly warm when coiled tightly together. Both the 120V and 240V cords are tested by Intertek/ETL (Edison Testing Laboratories) which is a "nationally recognized" testing laboratory (as is UL) and tests many household and commercial electric products for safety. For example, the new Vornado electric room heater I just got was also tested by Intertek/ETL rather than UL. Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratories - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
No, you looked at the wrong column. 2.5mm2 metric wire is slightly smaller than 13 awg so it is roughly comparable to the 14 awg wire used in the 240V 16A charging station accessory available from GM for the Volt in the USA.
I have an extra Battery Charger Cable EVSE 110v - with the black short cable. this is the new updated, not the problem one. i'm selling for $270 shipping included. you can pay via paypal or i do have an eBay auction (price $280 shipping included - higher because to cover the fees) that u can do it via there and feel safer and pay via Paypal. let me know! Chevrolet Volt 2012 EVSE - Battery Charger Cable | eBay
