https://autoweek.com/article/car-reviews/long-term-2018-nissan-leaf-next-level-charging Long-Term 2018 Nissan Leaf SL update: A Level 3 charge? August 17, 2018 Bradley Iger
[images / Bradley Iger https://autoweek.com/sites/default/files/styles/gen-1200-675/public/071a1210.jpg?itok=41T_Xrmx While most Leaf owners charge their cars with a 240-volt Level 2 line, our man Iger found a fast-charging Level 3 outlet and plugged in. It took about 15 minutes to go from a 50% state of charge to 80%. Due to the laws of physics and chemistry, the process starts to slow down once the battery charge hits about 80%. But Iger estimated that you could charge the Leaf’s battery from almost flat to completely full in less than an hour, or to 80% full in about 30 minutes https://autoweek.com/sites/default/files/styles/gen-738-415/public/nissanleaf20_0.jpg?itok=aT7YOvve https://autoweek.com/sites/default/files/styles/gen-738-415/public/nissanleaf28.jpg?itok=VJiCjqye https://autoweek.com/sites/default/files/styles/gen-738-415/public/nissanleaf34.jpg?itok=-0dWt55E https://autoweek.com/sites/default/files/styles/gen-738-415/public/nissanleaf4.jpg?itok=QgYeZOBo https://autoweek.com/sites/default/files/styles/gen-738-415/public/071A1187.JPG?itok=ZhPKi2LY Caltech's Level 3 charger Level 3 charging is fast, but the charging units themselves are expensive. Photo by Bradley Iger https://autoweek.com/sites/default/files/styles/gen-738-415/public/nissan-leaf_napa-valley41_0.jpg?itok=6W2PTQD1 ] Putting juice in our Leaf teaches that Level 3 is better than Level 1, but not as affordable When I took temporary possession of Autoweek’s long-term Nissan Leaf tester, I had a lot of questions. While I’ve had seat time in a number of EVs over the past few years, this would be my first experience actually living with one for an extended amount of time. A substantial part of that acclimation involves an understanding of how an EV’s source of fuel differs from that of an internal-combustion vehicle, and as I quickly discovered, there’s more to it than just keeping an eye on the range meter. When I brought the Leaf home the battery showed a charge of about 50 percent, or roughly 75 miles of range. After that the car sat, unplugged, for roughly a week while I was out of town. The next time I hopped in the car the charge readout was unchanged, but when I got on the road, I watched in silent horror as the range began to plummet, rapidly dropping from 70 miles to less than 30 over the course of a ten-mile drive. Concerned that I would be stranded somewhere for an extended amount of time during one of the hottest summers on record here in LA, I aborted the mission, headed back home, and plugged the car in. Range anxiety is real, y’all. Car Reviews 2018 Nissan Leaf I realized that I needed to look at the Leaf more like a mobile device than a car. Generally the amount of gasoline that you have in a fuel tank remains the same from one week to the next in an ICE vehicle that sits, but like any gadget with a lithium-ion battery, the Leaf’s charge does not remain the same indefinitely. After recharging the car using a traditional 120-volt outlet – a process that took about a day and a half – I began looking at the fast charging options in my area. Most electric car chargers are what is known as Level 2. They come with a plug standardized by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) that fits all EVs and recharges their batteries with 240 volts of electricity. All electric cars sold in America come standard with a Level 2 charge cable and plug. Almost all of the cables handle only 120-volt recharging, but the Leaf now offers a cable capable of handling 240 volts that you can plug into a household 240-volt socket. So good For Nissan! But even though I had the cable, I didn't have a household 240-volt socket. And I wanted more and faster charging. The next step up from Level 2 is what is known as, you guessed it, Level 3, which is much faster. While Level 2 uses common AC electricity at 240 volts, Level 3 uses DC curent at over 400 volts. This Leaf is an SL, which comes standard with both Level 2 and Level 3 charging ports. I wanted to find a Level 3 DC fast-charging station specifically, so I fired up the ChargeHub app on my phone and perused the map for locations in my area. I was surprised to discover that among the few that were within a reasonable radius of my home in Eagle Rock, most were either reported as offline or required special access to the parking garage they are installed in. After a little more investigation I rang up the folks at Caltech, who graciously allowed me access to their DC fast charging system for the day. While Level 2 chargers are a far more common sight around town and are much quicker to charge the Leaf’s battery than a normal [L1] wall outlet, the [L2] process still takes about 4 to 5 hours, so it’s something you’d typically do while at work during the day or overnight at home. Level 3 chargers are an entirely different ballgame, though, and might just be EVs route into mainstream adoption. The Leaf uses the CHAdeMO connector used by Nissan, Kia and Mitsubishi for Level 3 charging, and I was fortunate that when I arrived at Caltech’s DC fast charging station, the sole CHAdeMO “pump” installed there was available. After selecting that connector from the station menu and plugging it into the car, the station whirred to life and began filling the battery with zero fuss. Charge times vary based on a number of different factors, and in this case it took about 15 minutes to go from a 50 percent charge state to 80 percent. Due to the current limitations of battery technology, and the physics of batteries, the process starts to slow down once the battery charge hits about 80 percent. But it’s reasonable to expect that you could charge the Leaf’s battery from almost empty to completely full in less than an hour, or to 80 percent in about half that time. While that’s certainly longer than a few minutes at the gas pump, it’s more like a pit stop for coffee than an overnight process, and we can expect the tech to only get better and cheaper as time goes on. Right now a Level 3 charger that puts 100 miles of range per hour into a car can start at $12,500 for something like a single-cord 24kW ChargePoint CPE-100 unit [ https://www.nationalcarcharging.com/collections/dc-fast-charger/products/chargepoint-cpe-100-dc-fast-charger-ccs-only ]. A ChargePoint CPE-200 [ https://www.nationalcarcharging.com/collections/dc-fast-charger/products/chargepoint-cpe200 ] 50kW unit with two charging lines that’ll add 200 miles of range in a car per hour lists for $35,800. That’s for Level 3 efficiency. Most EV owners opt for Level 2 chargers that will charge an empty EV overnight. Level 2 units start at $429 for something like a Siemens VersiCharge VC30GRYU [ https://www.nationalcarcharging.com/collections/residential/products/siemens-versicharge-vc30gryhw ] wall unit, not counting installation. You can also just plug into the wall at [L1] 120 volts if you have more time or if your range needs are shorter. That’ll cost you only the price of electricity. Car Reviews Gallery: 2018 Nissan Leaf interior By Bradley Iger On Sale: Now Base Price: $30,885 (before rebates) As Tested Price: $38,115 (before rebates) Powertrain: AC synchronous motor, FWD Output: 110 kW at 1 rpm Curb Weight: 3,433 pounds (mfg.) 0-60 MPH: 7.4 seconds Fuel Economy: 151 miles range (mfg.) 112 MPGe (EPA)(EPA City/Hwy/Combined) Observed Fuel Economy: Range has varied from 135 to 163 miles Options: SL Technology Package: Pro PILOT Assist (steering assist, Intelligent Cruise Control w/ full speed range and hold); Automatic Emergency Braking with Pedestrian detection; electric parking brake; intelligent high beam intervention), splash guards, carpeted Pros: Inexpensive autonomous driving tech, quick acceleration, smooth ride Cons: ProPilot isn’t quite perfect, Leaf doesn’t offer enough battery charge information in the last few miles of driving range [© autoweek.com] ... https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=ev%20charger&LH_BIN=1&_sop=15&rt=nc&_udlo=160.00 ebay ev charger L2-3kW EVSE ... https://www.google.com/search?biw=1280&bih=635&tbm=shop&q=ev%20charger&tbs=vw%3Al%2Cmr%3A1%2Cp_ord%3Ap%2Cprice%3A1%2Cppr_min%3A152.00%2Cppr_max%3A goog shopping For EVLN EV-newswire posts use: http://evdl.org/archive/ {brucedp.neocities.org} -- Sent from: http://electric-vehicle-discussion-list.413529.n4.nabble.com/ _______________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE: http://www.evdl.org/help/index.html#usub http://lists.evdl.org/listinfo.cgi/ev-evdl.org Please discuss EV drag racing at NEDRA (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NEDRA)
