$700 adapter option

[SiaBani]

Hello everyone,

I'm picking up a grey B-class on Friday. My salesperson, although a great guy, clearly hasn't sold many electric vehicles and doesn't seem to know much about the car. He states that there's a $700 optional part to order in order to be able to charge with @ 240w. Is this an adapter so that you can simply plug the car into a standard 240 outlet? They don't have it in stock and they'd have to order.

I've been trying to find this "option" online, or learn more about it, but can't seem to find anything. I know QuickChargePower is releasing the JAMP that sounds pretty good, but that the JESLA works as is, etc. Then we have the option of installing a 240 charging station as another option. I have to wire a 240 to my driveway anyway, so trying to determine the best route. I suppose it makes more sense to have a portable solution to utilize a 208-240 outlet where I go, but curious to see how many bought this option, or just bought aftermarket (and what).

Thanks in advance.

 

[sendler2112]

I would rather wire a standard electric 240v plug than to have your charge station hard wired so you can take it with you if you want. The electrician will charge you a lot less if you just tell him you want an outlet for a welder. Then you can just buy an electric range cord for the charge station.

 

[Anonymous]

Google search AV Turbo Cord. Think this might be what your dealer is talking about.

 

[bcurious]

Hello everyone,

I'm picking up a grey B-class on Friday. My salesperson, although a great guy, clearly hasn't sold many electric vehicles and doesn't seem to know much about the car. He states that there's a $700 optional part to order in order to be able to charge with @ 240w. Is this an adapter so that you can simply plug the car into a standard 240 outlet? They don't have it in stock and they'd have to order.

I've been trying to find this "option" online, or learn more about it, but can't seem to find anything. I know QuickChargePower is releasing the JAMP that sounds pretty good, but that the JESLA works as is, etc. Then we have the option of installing a 240 charging station as another option. I have to wire a 240 to my driveway anyway, so trying to determine the best route. I suppose it makes more sense to have a portable solution to utilize a 208-240 outlet where I go, but curious to see how many bought this option, or just bought aftermarket (and what).

Thanks in advance.

The salesperson is probably offering to sell you an EVSE (Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment) unit, or "charger," from another manufacturer as a way of saving you the effort of investigating that purchase yourself. The vehicle already is able to charge from a 240 volt supply via any available EVSE, and $700 is not an unusual price for an EVSE. You can buy it yourself using the references available here and elsewhere online if you like. The optional part is an auxiliary sale, I suspect, not something that is installed on the vehicle. Since you are speaking of having some electrical work performed in order to prepare for charging your B-class, perhaps you have the time to investigate the available EVSEs available and make your own purchase rather than buying one from the salesperson.

 

[GlennD]

Search for Clipper Creek EVSEs. They are well regarded and they have a variety of sizes. The car follows the J1772 spec so you do not have to use a 40A EVSE. The car charges at the limitation indicated by the pilot signal.

I charge my B Class at 32A on a 40A breaker with my OpenEVSE. With 100A service I can not justify the 50A circuit (40A is 80% of 50A). 32A charges my car over night just fine.

 

[wtzouris]

I did install a 50 amp circuit ( 50 amp breaker with 6 gauge wire) so that I could charge with my Jesla at the full 40 Amp rate. I used to use a Bosch 30 Amp charger but this is 30% faster which is great when you do lots of short / long errands from home. Plus you can take the Jesla with you and it is cheaper for the electrician to just install an outlet. Between the Jesla and the emergency charger that comes with the car you have everything you need. Unless you also want a J1772 extension cord ( JLong).

 

[SiaBani]

Guys - thanks for all the feedback.

I got the dealer to forward me a service bulletin of sorts. Basically, they're offering this and def not at $700!

http://www.pluginnow.com/content/keba-basic

It's the Keba basic, which is basically a wall mounted charging "station."

I agree. Tony W. from Quickcharger responded to an inquiry of mine last night and I think the JESLA makes a lot more sense. I've talked to my electrician and given I have a 200A panel, I should be good with a 50A wall outlet and a portable JESLA.

Any other thoughts or options to consider instead of the JESLA?

 

[SiaBani]

GasNoMas - why Turbocord vs Jesla vs all the others out there? Any feedback would be appreciated. (Is there a thread on this already? I don't think I saw it)

 

[TonyWilliams]

GasNoMas - why Turbocord vs Jesla vs all the others out there? Any feedback would be appreciated. (Is there a thread on this already? I don't think I saw it)

Turbocord is LESS than half the charging speed of JESLA (variable 12, 16, 24 or 40 amps) or JAMP JR model 40-50 (40 amps only)

Your Mercedes B-Class ED has a 40 amp onboard charger.

From the Turbocord website: 12 amps at 120 volts (optional) or 16 amps at 240 volts.

It's perfectly fine to charge as slow as you want; there are lots of slower charge units on the market.