1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Using the Primes 120v Charger at 240 Volts, Cost $20 !!!

Discussion in 'Prime Plug-in Charging' started by Rob43, Mar 16, 2019.

  1. Rob43

    Rob43 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2014
    1,373
    1,044
    0
    Location:
    VA, BMW Race Car, BMW R1200R, BMW 330Ci, Ford F350
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    Carsten Steeberg, the OP of the thread that started All of this (Thank You Carsten) from the stickied thread "Standard Prius Prime Charger (G9060-47130) supporting 240V" now has over 400 Days of 240v charging on his Toyota OE charger.

    I & all the others doing this have 0% concerns about it, It works flawlessly....


    Rob43
     
    Madsman and Carsten Steenberg like this.
  2. bruceha_2000

    bruceha_2000 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 2, 2004
    3,054
    301
    19
    Location:
    Northwest VT
    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    I used the contact page on evupgrade:

    "There is plenty of discussion on the PriusChat Prius Prime threads regarding
    the ability of the OEM portable L1 EVSE cord with a 110V plug to be run on
    220V with no modification of the EVSE. Have you looked into the PP EVSE and
    do you know if the internals can run on 220V? It seems to me that if it
    can, Toyota should sell a 220V end pigtail that can be swapped with the
    provided 110V end pigtail. Shouldn't be an expensive thing. If they don't do
    it, perhaps you want to. It seems a huge waste of money to have to buy
    an L2 "charging station" with a lot of extra stuff you don't need or a
    separate portable L2 charger similar to the provided L1 portable cord (I see
    Walmart sells one for $240) if all it really needs is a different pigtail."


    This is the reply:

    "The unit has a multi voltage power supply but there are other components not rated safely for 240V and using an adapter from 240V to 120V is a hazard.

    Regards,
    Mark
    EVSE Upgrade
    [email protected]
    509-651-8000
    "
     
    Arctic_White likes this.
  3. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2015
    10,958
    8,836
    0
    Location:
    New England
    Vehicle:
    Other Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Thanks for showing us this mod. Saving a few hundred $ for L2 EVSE is one thing if you already have 240V outlet you can utilize. In my case, putting whole new 240v outlet and upgrade all wires and main board breakers, the total cost of entire project ellipses the saving on EVSE. At that point as might as buy a brand new L2 EVSE. But that probably won't happen with just one PRIME. I will tackle that project if and when I buy next PHEV or BEV with much bigger battery.
     
  4. Rob43

    Rob43 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2014
    1,373
    1,044
    0
    Location:
    VA, BMW Race Car, BMW R1200R, BMW 330Ci, Ford F350
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Prime Advanced

    LOL, (The Sky is Falling The Sky Is Falling....Save Yourselves)

    Of course that's what they'd say....



    Rob43

    PS, That actually made me laugh, I'd say the same thing if my Profit margin was about to take a major hit !
     
  5. Rob43

    Rob43 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2014
    1,373
    1,044
    0
    Location:
    VA, BMW Race Car, BMW R1200R, BMW 330Ci, Ford F350
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    Actually, there is an inexpensive way to do this in your situation. Send me a PM if you'd like to know more.


    Rob43
     
    Honda888 likes this.
  6. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 12, 2018
    6,688
    6,375
    1
    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius c
    Model:
    Two
    The only thing I don't like about Rob43's setup is that he's got something that looks like an ordinary 120V outlet on the end of that cable, but it isn't a 120V circuit. The wiring work is beautiful, and it looks like great gear.

    To add a constructive clarification, I would have approached this by replacing the charger brick inlet plug with a NEMA 6-15 220V plug. Then I would have made up a very similar converter cable, different only on the car end. A NEMA 6-20R receptacle would be instantly identifiable as "not a normal outlet" and provide inherent safety. From my brief search just now, this would still cost around $60 to do.

    I do get the point about not wanting to mess with the stock charger part vs. devaluing it in the eyes of a future owner, but those things don't cost that much; if it were me I'd probably want an extra one in the trunk anyway.
     
    Arctic_White likes this.
  7. Rob43

    Rob43 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2014
    1,373
    1,044
    0
    Location:
    VA, BMW Race Car, BMW R1200R, BMW 330Ci, Ford F350
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    That's correct, the end of my conversion extension cord "Looks" like a standard 120v outlet, but it's not.

    So "if" anyone were to plug a standard 120v device into my plug, it would quickly Kill that device. So besides labeling the end of my conversion cord with a warning tag, I mounted it up HIGH on my wall so nobody can get to it. My Toyota OE (Brick) charger is plugged in at ceiling level & then extends downward for safety reasons.

    Like all things in life: Some Common Sense Must Be Applied.


    Rob43
     
    GoodOldBob likes this.
  8. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 28, 2016
    11,490
    14,095
    0
    Location:
    Tampa, FL
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Rarest commodity on the planet and they call it "common." :ROFLMAO:

    I'd be a little nervous about a cord that long being used that way, but it does appear that you've taken precautions.
     
    GoodOldBob and Arctic_White like this.
  9. bruceha_2000

    bruceha_2000 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 2, 2004
    3,054
    301
    19
    Location:
    Northwest VT
    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    Perhaps but they do not have a "solution/product" for the Prime, (for Toyota) only the PIP & RAV 4. I don't see where his answer has anything to do with his company's profits. Since the Prime is now in its 4th year, if there was a profit to be made in modifying the charging cable, I would think they would already be doing it.

    Given you can buy a Duosida L2 Charger for about the same as they charge to modify a PIP EVSE (and far less than the conversion for some other vehicles), I can't see any reason to send them my cable even if they did offer the service. Might as well have 2 cords for the price of 1, one of which can be used at both voltages since the Duosida includes a 240V-110V pigtail.
     
    Arctic_White likes this.
  10. Rob43

    Rob43 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2014
    1,373
    1,044
    0
    Location:
    VA, BMW Race Car, BMW R1200R, BMW 330Ci, Ford F350
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    You're right, there's nothing common about common sense...;)

    I called Southwire Co. about what wiring I was planning on using, Southwire said a 10 AWG SOOW 600v cord was way overkill for a 25 ft application, but if I wanted "piece of mind", that's the one to buy.


    Rob43
     
    jerrymildred and bruceha_2000 like this.
  11. Rob43

    Rob43 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2014
    1,373
    1,044
    0
    Location:
    VA, BMW Race Car, BMW R1200R, BMW 330Ci, Ford F350
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Prime Advanced

    Lol, again with your Debbie Downer-ism....

    Even if someone were to purchase one of the cheapest ~$150 dollar L2 Ebaby chargers, that would still cost about ~$125 dollars more than a short ~$25 conversion cord.

    Roughly speaking: ~$125 dollars @ ~0.11 cents a kilowatt = 5000 plus miles of Prius Prime driving. I'll take the Free 5000 + miles.



    Rob43
     
  12. bruceha_2000

    bruceha_2000 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 2, 2004
    3,054
    301
    19
    Location:
    Northwest VT
    Vehicle:
    2018 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    Not trying to be a "Debbie Downer" but since there were plenty of questions about the actual guts of the EVSE being capable of handling 240V here and in Carsten Steeberg's thread, I figured it was worthwhile to ask someone who might actually KNOW if it was. And since I got a response, it seemed a good idea to let others who have asked the question see the answer. The response wasn't specific as to what parts are not rated for 240V and even if it were I probably wouldn't understand the potential ramifications of running 240V through them. Maybe they are fine for a few hours, more than enough to charge a Prime, but would fry with continuous use over many hours. Maybe they have just never been tested at 240V so no one knows if they could potentially handle 240V continuous for a decade.

    I hope you never have any problems with your conversion cord and if others choose to make their own conversion cord, I hope they never have problems either. Apparently Carsten has been using something similar with no ill effects for quite some time and I've not seen any posts saying someone tried it and fried anything. That suggests that while it would be a good idea to be watchful for potential problems, they aren't likely to occur.
     
  13. Rob43

    Rob43 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2014
    1,373
    1,044
    0
    Location:
    VA, BMW Race Car, BMW R1200R, BMW 330Ci, Ford F350
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    I've been monitoring my progress with a temp gun Before I switched over to 240v, and back n forth between 120v & 240v. While I don't have enough samples yet for my liking:

    There Is NO Temp Difference Between 120v Charging & 240v Charging.


    Rob43
     
    #33 Rob43, Mar 18, 2019
    Last edited: Mar 18, 2019
    bruceha_2000 likes this.
  14. burnout8488

    burnout8488 Member

    Joined:
    Apr 18, 2018
    124
    81
    0
    Location:
    Endwell, NY
    Vehicle:
    Other Electric Vehicle
    Model:
    N/A
    I’ve got two months straight of daily charging on my 240V-adapted Prime charger, for what it’s worth. $9 in parts and I’ve got it safely wired to a NEMA 14-50. :)
     
  15. Rob43

    Rob43 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2014
    1,373
    1,044
    0
    Location:
    VA, BMW Race Car, BMW R1200R, BMW 330Ci, Ford F350
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    Excellent !

    You certainly can't beat $9 dollars worth of parts to make it work, great job. Giving your Prime a full charge in 2.5 hours certainly is satisfying, please keep us up to date.


    Rob43
     
    Arctic_White likes this.
  16. Carsten Steenberg

    Carsten Steenberg Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 9, 2018
    10
    16
    0
    Location:
    Penobscot Maine
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Plug-in Advanced
    Hi Rob,
    I am happy write about my experience
    My Wife and I have now used our standard Prius Prime 120V charger plugged in to our outside "dryer" receptacle (via a converter cable) for over 15 months - charging both the the Prius and my 2017 Volt. This has been a flawless experience. Interesting observation - the Prius charges significantly faster than the Volt!
    I hope this helps
    Carsten
     
    Arctic_White and Rob43 like this.
  17. Rob43

    Rob43 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2014
    1,373
    1,044
    0
    Location:
    VA, BMW Race Car, BMW R1200R, BMW 330Ci, Ford F350
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    Carsten,

    That's just great !

    You now have almost 500 Hours of 120v to 240v charging on your stock Toyota OE charger.


    Rob43

    PS, Thank your wife once again.
     
    Arctic_White likes this.
  18. burnout8488

    burnout8488 Member

    Joined:
    Apr 18, 2018
    124
    81
    0
    Location:
    Endwell, NY
    Vehicle:
    Other Electric Vehicle
    Model:
    N/A
    I plugged my Prime EVSE (on 240V adapter) into my Tesla today to confirm the amperage. It is indeed 12A as rumored in the past!

    My Duosida unit is 16A and did charge my Prime faster. But the Prime's charging estimates do not change whether 12A or 16A.
     

    Attached Files:

    Arctic_White, jerrymildred and Rob43 like this.
  19. Old Bear

    Old Bear Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 15, 2017
    712
    1,048
    20
    Location:
    Boston, Massachusetts USA
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Plug-in Advanced
    Glad you were able to confirm that the Prime EVSE limits the charging current to 12A whether plugged into a 120-volt or a 240-volt supply.

    In a previous post I noted that the function of the electronics in the EVSE is to advise the Prime about how much current the EVSE can deliver. I believe that the Prime uses this information to adjust its demand.

    I'm not sure why the Prime's estimate of remaining time to full charge is the same at 12A from the OEM charger and 16A from your Duosida.One would expect that the difference of 16A being 33% greater than 12A would be enough to affect the Prime's calculation.
     
    Arctic_White and Rob43 like this.
  20. Rob43

    Rob43 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 24, 2014
    1,373
    1,044
    0
    Location:
    VA, BMW Race Car, BMW R1200R, BMW 330Ci, Ford F350
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Prime Advanced
    Teaser project....

    Rob43

    thumbnail_(23)_-_Edited_(1).png