[jongarusa]

Took a 400 mile drive on Sunday. What should have been a simple three charge trip, became a 5 charge trip, possibly due to the weather. As ever, I have the data to further the discussion.

It's well known that Tesla Superchargers throttle back when hot - do Electrify America chargers have the same issue, and can it be resolved. Do sites need more shade ? In this video, I'll share the data from 5 very different charging experiences, all on the same day. Thanks

You can see all of it, in this short(ish) video

 

[plh]

That info might be useful when choosing which charger to use as well. If you park in a way that your car shades the charger plug you may get better charge rates.

 

[Skirmish]

July 8, my last fast charge, was 115* F. I was pulling 127 kWh from the start and went from 20% to 80% in under 35 min. The chargers face south so the handles were pretty hot to the touch when I started.

 

[Wilsonium]

That info might be useful when choosing which charger to use as well. If you park in a way that your car shades the charger plug you may get better charge rates.

I thought the high cap chargers had liquid cooled hoses. Is this not the case? If not, I can see this being an issue... or if the hose cooling isn't cooling adequately.

 

[Huey52]

Yes, they do have coolant flowing within the cable. Of course combating high ambient heat can be an issue, or just a poorly performing EVSE.

I thought the high cap chargers had liquid cooled hoses. Is this not the case? If not, I can see this being an issue... or if the hose cooling isn't cooling adequately.

 

[mochalatte]

Yes, they do have coolant flowing within the cable.

My Grizzl-e EVSE with its nice thick premium cable gets noticeably warm to the touch running at 10 kW. Little wonder that DC charge stations have to liquid cool the cables.

Another way to think about it: most newer US homes have 200 A main breakers. 80% of that current for continuous power means a house can pull up to 38.4 kW of power. The max I've ever seen for my house is 18 kW when the car was charging and both HVACs were running and my wife was drying clothes. The point is that when an EA charger supplies 350 kW of power, that is more power than 9 houses can draw running at full tilt. So yeah, liquid cooled cables.

 

[jongarusa]

Someone on an other forum posed this, and it makes sense - cooling the cable makes sense, but thats not the same as cooling the head. Even V3 Superchargers benefit from a cooling rag

 

[BlueDH]

Someone on an other forum posed this, and it makes sense - cooling the cable makes sense, but thats not the same as cooling the head. Even V3 Superchargers benefit from a cooling rag

On Saturday, I went to an EA pedestal and on the sunny side, the handle was too hot to touch much less place it in my charging receptacle. Not sure I want to place water near a charging cable or plug.
I then used the opposite side, in the shade. It was cool enough to use and seemed to charge normally.
Outside temp was 82 deg F.

 

[Nai3t]

... Not sure I want to place water near a charging cable or plug.
...

Lol! Then you def don't want to see the inside of a Tesla battery pack!

 

[VW TECHNICIAN]

Liquid cooling cable is there because it is cheaper to make and uses smaller size wires vs non-cooled version....and it is easier to use than non-cooled cable. ... Copper is quite expensive when you go big size.....
But EV side between charging port and battery is heavy size non-cooled Copper wires or aluminum depending on engineering design.
And regarding Male plug on fast DC charger, there are temperature sensors that are used to lower charging energy if temperature hits the threshold...also there are temperature sensors on the charging port that will slow down energy speed if it's hitting temperature threshold. There are also other factors that are checked continuously while charging...resistance....voltage ....communication between charger and EV and etc...it is more complex than what is visible to naked 👁

 

[ericy]

But EV side between charging port and battery is heavy size non-cooled Copper wires or aluminum depending on engineering design.
And regarding Male plug on fast DC charger, there are temperature sensors that are used to lower charging energy if temperature hits the threshold...also there are temperature sensors on the charging port that will slow down energy speed if it's hitting temperature threshold. There are also other factors that are checked continuously while charging...resistance....voltage ....communication between charger and EV and etc...it is more complex than what is visible to naked 👁

If this is the case, I would think that with VAG-COM, that one could monitor the temperatures that are recorded.

 

[jongarusa]

SSo a quick update and youll be pleased to know, no video, I have been doing the rag and water trick, and anecdotally, its been working.

 

[Tinman]

SSo a quick update and youll be pleased to know, no video, I have been doing the rag and water trick, and anecdotally, its been working.

I think I've seen EVDave do that trick on Super Charger cables.

 

[jongarusa]

I think I've seen EVDave do that trick on Super Charger cables.

Yup - Kyle Conner demonstrated it on his Tesla run across the Dakotas in last summer

 

[KB57]

Took a 400 mile drive on Sunday. What should have been a simple three charge trip, became a 5 charge trip, possibly due to the weather. As ever, I have the data to further the discussion.

It's well known that Tesla Superchargers throttle back when hot - do Electrify America chargers have the same issue, and can it be resolved. Do sites need more shade ? In this video, I'll share the data from 5 very different charging experiences, all on the same day. Thanks

You can see all of it, in this short(ish) video

EA has a lot issues that they will hopefully get fixed soon.

 

[BlueDH]

EA has a lot issues that they will hopefully get fixed soon.

I think VW has a lot of issues that they will hopefully get fixed soon 😖.
So now I have to carry a bottle of water and some Costco microfiber towels along with everything else beneath my false floor 🙄.

 

[Skirmish]

I've charged in Vegas at over 110* F multiple times on chargers facing south and west in direct sunlight and pulled full speed. I've never used a wet towel, never had to. I have had charger issues at lower temps but usually could move to another box and get full speed again. It's possible that cars accepting higher speeds could have temp issues with EA like the Superchagers but from my experience it does not happen to the ID.4 at least in temps up to 118* in direct sunlight.