2022 Bolt EUV Initial impressions

When are you going to look for free to you level 2 charging?

 

You don't have to look any farther than apps like plugshare or chargepount. Why waste time driving around. Problem is these are usually hogged by the various skin flints / cheap skates / & freeloaders. Yeah, present company included.
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Great to hear it! It's really a fantastic car, and I'm really glad I got mine too.

 

LOL, never. i only charge at home. i bought it for fun, not to save money. if i wanted to save money, i would have kept my pip and had the engine replaced

 

Well I am bummed today. I measured the voltage drop in the two public garage 120 volt outlets I use. Too much drop, but if I hadn’t bought the watt meter I would never have known and not been bummed today. Like 10 volts drop, or more. I don’t drive around looking for them, I have a Chargepoint acct. these were just by accident as I park there often anyway. They seem to work, maybe I will still use them. It means the circuits are not in good shape or the outlets. I know every outlet in my area very well by now, started in 2017.
Maybe this is off topic but I thought quite interesting:

https://www.macheforum.com/site/threads/how-to-test-if-an-120v-outlet-is-safe-for-charging.16909/

But isn’t it fun to grab free charging? Especially when you can pull 6.7 kw or so. Your point is good, new cars are not usually money savers these days. I think the same thing, but there are safety features and not breaking down on a road somewhere is as likely. Now I am thinking things over about buying the Prime, even if used.

 

It is also free to hit my thumb with a hammer.
Similar to @bisco I see no need to charge when out and about. Unless I am on a trip.

 

There used to be a free charger at Whole Foods and I would plug in my pip if it was available, but I never really saw it as fun.
Funny, people used to park there in gassers and stick the evse under the hood, because it was at the entrance to the store.

we’re never anywhere long enough to put a decent charge in the bolt , and I have no idea if there are any free chargers left around here

 

This has been discussed previously. Voltage drop occurs often when there are large loads on the various businesses' circuits. Some that are pulling off of 208v will only have 202v available for example.
That's why they call it 110-120 & 220-240 ..... it varies - & and doesn't have to represent faulty wiring.
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I think the article was about testing the actual outlet and wiring when applying the specific ev load. Like mine it tested 120 and it dropped to 108 when I plugged evse in.
It looks like the evse I used reduces the load due to lower voltage, like the Ford evse.
Very easy to test using a kill o watt device.
I’m pretty sure 110-220 and 120-240 refer to the utility company’s supply standards for the area, not voltage drop due to loads. This is without load.
https://www.macheforum.com/site/threads/how-to-test-if-an-120v-outlet-is-safe-for-charging.16909/

Not fun like in laughing and enjoying, fun said with a bit of sarcasm. Ok this isn’t saying, it’s writing, that’s the problem.
Around here electricity is 30-40 cents per kwh. 60 kwh is $18-24.

 

yep, 40 cents here too. next stop: solar panels

 

More importantly, 40A is the largest breaker allowed for #8 wire, and 32A is the largest continuous load allowed on a 40A breaker. If you wanted to use the 50A outlet for something actually drawing 50A, or for something like an EVSE continuously drawing 40A, you would need #6 wire.

So, good job putting a 40A breaker on it, even if it sounds like you were considering a bigger breaker. Hopefully you mean that you intended to put both a 50A breaker and #6 wire, to allow the 50A outlet to support 50A.

Your installation is safe. But I'd still label the outlet with the fact that it's on a 40A breaker, so that no future owner plugs a 50A load in, keeps tripping the 40A breaker, and replaces the breaker with a 50A (maybe in a new box).

 

More importantly, 40A is the largest breaker allowed for #8 wire, and 32A is the largest continuous load allowed on a 40A breaker. If you wanted to use the 50A outlet for something actually drawing 50A, or for something like an EVSE continuously drawing 40A, you would need #6 wire.

So, good job putting a 40A breaker on it, even if it sounds like you were considering a bigger breaker. Hopefully you mean that you intended to put both a 50A breaker and #6 wire, to allow the 50A outlet to support 50A.

Your installation is safe. But I'd still label the outlet with the fact that it's on a 40A breaker, so that no future owner plugs a 50A load in, keeps tripping the 40A breaker, and replaces the breaker with a 50A (maybe in a new box).

 

Keep an eye out on Electrify America chargers, A lot of times they're free for holidays or if there's an issue with one or two of their chargers, they'll have the other ones free.

 

very few in the greater boston area, and none where i travel to

 

I just got Bolt number three. Well actually, my niece picked it up for me.

 

i just finished day 6 of driving. 105 miles, and still 175 on the guess-o-meter from the dealers initial charge. at this rate, i'll be charging every 2 weeks or so to 80%

i put my recycling bins in the hatch today. definitely 3-4" shorter than the prius, i would love to see them add a few inches to the next bolt.
or even better, put in a sliding back seat like the prius v.

 

Do you have an idea of how much it cost you in charging?

 

In today's mail, I received the filled out form from the dealer and I didn't even ask for it.

 

good dealer! i also agrivated them into the chevy form, some on bolt.org say you need it. the irs info is clear as mud