Maybe a foolish question, but from what I understand the charger is built into the car, then why on earth does the cable cost so much? Am I missing something here, I'm just glad I was able to pickup a fair priced used one.
It is NOT the cable, is the full charger wand assembly. The connector is a proprietary device registered under patents and was under development for a longest time, also has certifications from NEC. Is a norm standard for electrical vehicular charging.
+1 to @mrbigh. I think the Toyota one is grossly over priced, but it is much more than just a cable. There is quite a bit of circuitry in that little box. I see the Leaf charger for sale on line for a much more reasonable price.
charger wand assembly? idk, there's a couple bucks worth or electronics in the brick, and the plug is worth about 10. the cable is a high quality spec, and at 25', likely the most expensive part. that being said, it's simply supply and demand. we've watched prices drop dramatically since pip was introduced, and now, the chinese have just entered the game.
The charging cable is over-priced, but maybe not by that much. True, there is nothing magic about the cable or the connector. Being generous, I’d allow up to $50 for the cable, and another $50 for the connector, and maybe $50 labor to wire all the ends together and into the brick. For comparison, a 1200 watt power supply for a computer costs $170 and it’s not weatherproof. The Prius brick generates, what, 1500 watts? It’s weatherproof, and it has to handle all the heat safely without a fan, so I’d add another $250 just for the brick for a grand total of $400. One thing’s for sure, if my charger ever stopped working I would not hesitate to bring it to a first-class electronics shop before I paid Toyota.
