Third-party mobile chargers now under $200!

[generaltso]

That all depends: Does the adapter tell the EVSE how much current it can handle? I would suspect so (unless it detects 120V or 240V).

Which adapter are you referring to?

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[JamieGeek]

Which adapter are you referring to?

The Ford portable EVSE that comes with the car. It has adapters for 14-50 and standard 120V.

Does the adapter have some mechanism to indicate to the EVSE which adapter is in place (perhaps a small memory chip with a 1-wire interface or a calibrated resistor). If it does the EVSE can adjust the reported amount of current it tells the car.

 

[generaltso]

The Ford portable EVSE that comes with the car. It has adapters for 14-50 and standard 120V.

Does the adapter have some mechanism to indicate to the EVSE which adapter is in place (perhaps a small memory chip with a 1-wire interface or a calibrated resistor). If it does the EVSE can adjust the reported amount of current it tells the car.

Yes, it will limit the EVSE to 32 amps when using the 14-50 plug. But if you then use an external adapter to plug the 14-50 plug into a 14-30 outlet, it won't adjust to a lower amperage to prevent tripping the 30 amp breaker.

 

[mr_raider]

Does the Mach E allow you to set the charge current manually from within the vehicle config?

For my Volt I can set it to 8a or 12a when using the 120v charger

 

[JamieGeek]

Yes, it will limit the EVSE to 32 amps when using the 14-50 plug. But if you then use an external adapter to plug the 14-50 plug into a 14-30 outlet, it won't adjust to a lower amperage to prevent tripping the 30 amp breaker.

You're missing the point: If Ford made additional adapters; not talking about adding our own on top of the ones there (although if you knew how the Ford EVSE worked you might be able to roll your own).

Does the Mach E allow you to set the charge current manually from within the vehicle config?

For my Volt I can set it to 8a or 12a when using the 120v charger

Nothing in the owner's manual about that so I'm guessing: No.

 

[generaltso]

Does the Mach E allow you to set the charge current manually from within the vehicle config?

For my Volt I can set it to 8a or 12a when using the 120v charger

No, it cannot (currently).

 

[generaltso]

You're missing the point: If Ford made additional adapters; not talking about adding our own on top of the ones there (although if you knew how the Ford EVSE worked you might be able to roll your own).

Oh, sorry, I didn't understand what you were saying. We know the Ford EVSE has the ability to change the voltage and amperage based on which included adapter is attached. So I think it's safe to assume that if they offer additional adapters (like a 14-30), it will automatically drop the amperage accordingly.

 

[TheVirtualTim]

These sub-$200 are probably not targeted toward owners of BEV cars. They are more practical for PHEV cars with small batteries.

For example, a Ford C-Max Energi only has a 7.6 kWh battery ... vs. a Mach-E extended range 98.8 kwH battery (with 88 usable).

These are 120v chargers at 16 amps (meant for 20 amp DEDICATED breakers -- emphasis on "dedicated" because nothing else should run on that circuit while the charger is running as the charger itself is already pulling 80% of the breaker's capacity ... which is the maximum draw for any extended period of time).

If you compare this to the included Ford Mobile Charger (which can pull 32 amps at 240 volts) these are half the amperage ... but also half the voltage ... so really it's 1/4 of the charging rate (amps x volts = watts). These will add maybe 3-4 miles of range per hour of charging.

3-4 hours of range per hour is fine on a PHEV vehicle with a small battery that is only meant to offer 20-25 miles of range before the ICE kicks in. But these will take a few days to charge a BEV with a large battery. This is why I'd caution anyone thinking of getting one to consider how much charging would be needed to keep up with your car usage.

 

[dbsb3233]

If you compare this to the included Ford Mobile Charger (which can pull 32 amps at 240 volts) these are half the amperage ... but also half the voltage ... so really it's 1/4 of the charging rate (amps x volts = watts). These will add maybe 3-4 miles of range per hour of charging.

Some indications are that the amperage for 120V is actually 1/4th (8A), thus 1/8th the charging power/speed vs the 240V 32A.

 

[GoGoGadgetMachE]

Ummmm....if she *really* cared for you, wouldn't she have already asked you which EVSE you would like her to to install for you? ?

since I'd end up being the one to pay for it anyway I'm not sure this is the best line of discussion for me

 

[GoGoGadgetMachE]

These sub-$200 are probably not targeted toward owners of BEV cars. They are more practical for PHEV cars with small batteries.

tbf I own a PHEV right now

that said as I said earlier I think there's a place even for "3 mi/hr"

I'm not saying this is the best answer for everyone or all cases, just that it has a place.

 

[GoGoGadgetMachE]

Oh, sorry, I didn't understand what you were saying. We know the Ford EVSE has the ability to change the voltage and amperage based on which included adapter is attached. So I think it's safe to assume that if they offer additional adapters (like a 14-30), it will automatically drop the amperage accordingly.

Is that a safe assumption? it seems like a safer assumption that it detects the voltage and assumes current. We'd almost have to cut open one of the pigtails to see if there's anything more than pass-through wiring in them (and I'm not going to do that ).

 

[zhackwyatt]

If they have a 240V dryer plug you're good to go.

@solarmoo900 Just for more clarification... most dryers are NEMA 14-30 I think, whereas oven outlets, and the included Ford Mobile charger are 14-50. There are a lot of chargers out there that are compatible with the dryer.

 

[generaltso]

Is that a safe assumption? it seems like a safer assumption that it detects the voltage and assumes current. We'd almost have to cut open one of the pigtails to see if there's anything more than pass-through wiring in them (and I'm not going to do that ).

Yes, I think it's a safe assumption that IF Ford ends up offering a 14-30 plug, it will automatically step down the amperage. There's no way it could just detect 240v and assume 32A. If it did, it would pop the breaker on a 14-30 plug every time and they'd end up with a lot of returns of the shiny new (hypothetical) 14-30 plug.

 

[IL_Vet]

Can you explain this a bit more? I'm a newb to all of this but have been looking for a charging setup for my parents house (they don't want to install a charger but have normal plugs in the garage) so would this be faster than the cord included with the car?

Hey Chicago.


Will your parental units allow a temporary or non-fixed charging station? Or, are you allowed to install a 14-50R outlet (oven-type outlet) in the garage on a 50A circuit breaker?

I installed a temporary charging station two years ago because I was planning to build a larger garage. It is fairly easy once you have the the garage wired for a 14-50 outlet on a 30A to 50A circuit breaker. Once you have the outlet, you could simply plug an EVSE ("charging station") like ChargePoint Home Flex into the outlet or build a temporary structure to mount and hardwire an EVSE.

Here are photos of the temporary charging station that I devised in 2017. It worked for me but I got bored and never enhanced the station.

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