Level 2 charging current

The Prius Plug-in is only 12A at 240V AFAIK. So, up to 2.9 kWatts. EDIT: See posts below re: 3.3 kW.

However, personally I would just install wiring sufficient for a 50A circuit, for a 32A Level 2 charger (7.7 kW). They are not much more expensive than the 20A models, and would future proof your install.

eg. ClipperCreek | EV Charging Stations | EVSE | Electric Vehicle Charging

The 48A units (60A circuit) are considerably more expensive.

 

The PiP has a 3.3 kW on-board charger. 3,300 watts divided by 240 volts = 13.75 amps. The gauge of wire needed to charge at 120v or 240v is the same; a dedicated 15 amp circuit, which would be 14 awg copper NM-B wire. Ampacity Charts

I modified a Leaf EVSE unit for $20 to do level 2 charging. The PiP EVSE can be modified to do level 2 charging also, but I don't have any instructions to accomplish this, and it costs about $260 to send it in to a guy that can do the mod.

I decided to pull 6 awg wire and install a 50 amp breaker for my level 2 outlet; just to future-proof the garage for when I get a full EV. It doesn't cost a whole lot more, so that is what I'd recommend.

 

OK, but people have been reporting they're only getting about 2.9 kW of power draw. Has anyone actually reported a 13.75A current draw?

 

I see now that 3.3 kW is listed on some sites, but then I see posts like these:

Prius Plug-in L2 charging current | PriusChat

Yes is kind of depressing seeing the Chargepoint charger reporting 2.27Kw on my PiP, while reporting 3.2Kw on the Leaf sitting next to it

 

I'm no electrician, but I was told that you shouldn't use more than 80% of a rated circuit's capacity. So that would mean at 13.75 Amps, 15 Amp wiring is NOT sufficient. You would need 17.2A wiring which doesn't exist, so that means you would need 20A wiring.

However, if the PiP really does limit it to 12A or less (as posts here suggest), then that would mean 15A wiring could be sufficient.

Experts, feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

BTW, if you don't want to install 40A or 50A wiring, and only want something to support the PiP, then 20A would still be recommended, since even the lower power Level 2 chargers out there usually need 20A wiring. In fact, I believe Toyota's recommended Leviton unit is a 16A unit that requires 20A wiring.

 

I'm not an electrician either, so I don't know what code calls for, but it can easily be looked up. 80% of max rated load sounds like something I've read before.

I've read that the PiP has a 3.3 kW charger, but perhaps it's limited to lower rates to prevent it from over-using 15 amp circuits. I've measured 1.4 kW while level 1 charging, which is 11.6 amps. Although I don't have a meter for 240v, I assume the charger also draws 11.6 amps from 240v which would be 2.8 kW.

I'm not too disappointed about the Prius not delivering a full 3.3kW because it's probably gentler on the battery to slow it down a bit. We're still getting 85% of the rated 3.3kWh.

 

At work, we have Chargepoint L2 EVSEs and per the Chargepoint techs that came out, our voltage is 208 volts, which does reduce the max wattage some (most?) cars can draw.

IIRC, I've seen the PiPs at draw only ~2.1 kW. On the same EVSEs @ work I've seen:
- '11 and '12 Leafs draw ~3.7 to 3.8 kW (these have 3.3 kW OBCs)
- Chevy Volts draw only ~3.1 kW
- my '13 Leaf SV (has 6 kW OBC) and another '13+ Leafs w/6 kW OBCs: ~5.7 to 6.0 kW

I've seen charging graphs (not from my work) showing '13 Leafs at 240 volt line voltage drawing ~6.6 kW. (There's some sloppiness about what wattage automakers list for a car's on-board charger. Some decide to go by what it can pull from the wall, while others do it by what makes it to the battery. Sometimes, automakers aren't even consistent with themselves (e.g. Nissan).)

One should really go by what's required by the EVSE in question. Example: If you install a 208/240 volt 30 amp EVSE, you're going to need a 40 amp circuit. You don't want to install a 30 amp EVSE on something less, plug in a PiP and say all is well. What happens if you plug in a car that does draw 30 amps?

 

I am a newbee, and have a stupid question.
>>>>>>How do i post a frikin new thread?lol
I need to know if anyone else has had there original 12v battery leak out in the battery compartment? I thought it was supposed to be a AGM, which is not supposed to leak?
And will this battery work for my 2011 Prius?------
Bosch Premium Performance Battery Group Size 51
Part # 51-440BAGM SKU: 647478
Thanks

 

Is this any help? My UK EVSE.

 

i used 12 ga. romex and 20 amp breaker. no issues.

 

PiP is rated to take max 12A on 240V. 12A x 240V = 2.88KW maximum. But in practice, it takes more like 10A, or 2.4KW. Whenever I've looked at a public EVSE with power readout, it never shows more than about 2.2-2.3KW. In no way does it have a 3.3KW charger.

 

I guess they may have kept it the same (in practice) as the portable UK EVSE. Ian's OEM portable charger is 240V 10A.

 

As I understand it from what's been explained before, on L2 it lowers the amps that it draws... so while it might draw 12 amps on L1, it might only draw 10 amps on L2.

 

I do not know from where you guys take the 3.3 kW number.
The answer is in post #13 by lanlanlanlan - 10 amps make it 2.4 kW max.
When charging, the Multi-Information Display shows the charging power when switching to ON mode, I have never seen more than 1.9 kW (my voltage is 230V), OK this may be net power to the battery without charging losses and 1.9 displayed could be anything between 1.9 and 1.99 kW

 

Right. The display in the car is showing what is going into the battery. The 10-amp number is from the wall. It is 10 amps, whether 120V or 240V, so the power is doubled when charging at 240V compared to 120V. 240V Chargepoint chargers regularly show about 2.26KW, which is again "from the wall", showing real close to 10 amps.

 

No, from the wall on 120 V, it's 12 amps. Or actually about 11.6 amps by my measurements - a little under 1400 Watts. (10 amps would only be 1200 Watts or less.)