[dohsma]

I got myself a Runway Red GT-Line AWD on Friday and promptly went on Amazon to get a Level 1 charging cable. I bought the Lectron Level 1 cable and I am having issues with it. I plug the charger in to the wall and all the indicator lights come one. I plug the charger into the car and the car tells me "starting to charge". I go to sit in the driver seat and the charging screen comes up and before the time estimates can pop up the screen just turns black and it stops charging (after about 10 seconds). I have used a DC fast charger successfully, and I used the Level 1 charger from my Brother in law's Pacifica hybrid. Anyone else have any issues like this? Did I just get a bad cable?

I have electricians coming out this week for quotes on Level 2 charging, but I want to have a level 1 available for emergency situations/visiting family.

 

[jesmu84]

I got myself a Runway Red GT-Line AWD on Friday and promptly went on Amazon to get a Level 1 charging cable. I bought the Lectron Level 1 cable and I am having issues with it. I plug the charger in to the wall and all the indicator lights come one. I plug the charger into the car and the car tells me "starting to charge". I go to sit in the driver seat and the charging screen comes up and before the time estimates can pop up the screen just turns black and it stops charging (after about 10 seconds). I have used a DC fast charger successfully, and I used the Level 1 charger from my Brother in law's Pacifica hybrid. Anyone else have any issues like this? Did I just get a bad cable?

I have electricians coming out this week for quotes on Level 2 charging, but I want to have a level 1 available for emergency situations/visiting family.

You need to change the "current" setting to "reduced" or "minimum"

 

[dohsma]

You need to change the "current" setting to "reduced" or "minimum"

Thank you for the suggestion, I believe I did change that setting but I can't remember if I did reduced or minimum (I believe there were 3 levels? and I picked the middle one). Should I put it to the lowest setting? Will that affect performance when using a level 2 or DC Rapid Charger?

 

[jesmu84]

Thank you for the suggestion, I believe I did change that setting but I can't remember if I did reduced or minimum (I believe there were 3 levels? and I picked the middle one). Should I put it to the lowest setting? Will that affect performance when using a level 2 or DC Rapid Charger?

You need to put it on whatever level will allow you to charge.

The setting applies to all AC charging - that includes level 2

 

[dohsma]

Thanks again for the suggestion, I set it to the minimum level and all seems to be working well now. I am getting a 1.0kW charging speed. I assume this is normal for trickle charge?

 

[pss]

Maybe a tip to save you money when the electricians come out. Ask them to just install a circuit with 50 amps, 240 volts and ending in a NEMA 14-50 plug. If in your garage, it could be placed almost anywhere that is cheaper. If you wanted it in a specific place the labor could be a lot more. There are UL listed 30, 50 and even 75 foot NEMA 14-50 extension cords that provide great flexibility. My charger is on a Lowe's utility cart with a cord wrap for both the extension cord and the 20 foot charger cord. Lets me move the car to many different spots to charge.

 

[dohsma]

Maybe a tip to save you money when the electricians come out. Ask them to just install a circuit with 50 amps, 240 volts and ending in a NEMA 14-50 plug. If in your garage, it could be placed almost anywhere that is cheaper. If you wanted it in a specific place the labor could be a lot more. There are UL listed 30, 50 and even 75 foot NEMA 14-50 extension cords that provide great flexibility. My charger is on a Lowe's utility cart with a cord wrap for both the extension cord and the 20 foot charger cord. Lets me move the car to many different spots to charge.

This is a great tip! What if anything would I gain by having the charger hardwired vs 14-50 receptacle?

 

[pss]

A hard wired circuit with a hard wired charger would allow you to install a 60 amp circuit instead of 50, purchase a 48 amp hard wired charger and charge at the maximum Level 2 that the car can handle. At 40 amps in a 50 amp circuit you are little below the maximum the car can receive and so charging takes a little longer whether you are hardwired or on a NEMA 14-50 plug.
But if your hard wired charger breaks, you need to call the electrician to come and remove it safely to send in for repair. On a plug, if it breaks, just unplug, send in for repair and in the meantime get an inexpensive backup spare like a portable one from Amazon.

 

[dohsma]

A hard wired circuit with a hard wired charger would allow you to install a 60 amp circuit instead of 50, purchase a 48 amp hard wired charger and charge at the maximum Level 2 that the car can handle. At 40 amps in a 50 amp circuit you are little below the maximum the car can receive and so charging takes a little longer whether you are hardwired or on a NEMA 14-50 plug.
But if your hard wired charger breaks, you need to call the electrician to come and remove it safely to send in for repair. On a plug, if it breaks, just unplug, send in for repair and in the meantime get an inexpensive backup spare like a portable one from Amazon.

That was my exact thought about hardwired vs plug-in, the replacement/damage factor. So it’s theoretically slower but more serviceable

 

[DMiller]

The benefits for a maximum rate charger seem pretty small. The Kia specs say 7h40 min (I believe) for an 11 kW charger; if you charge at 9.6kW, it probably will take 8h30. How often will you be doing a complete charge, and not have that extra 1 hour? Even if you have to interrupt the charge before it gets back to 100%, will you need the full charge that day, or could you wait to finish it later in the day?

 

[tonester]

Thanks again for the suggestion, I set it to the minimum level and all seems to be working well now. I am getting a 1.0kW charging speed. I assume this is normal for trickle charge?

My guess is that you are plugging it into a 15A socket wired into a 15A circuit; nothing wrong with that; however, the issue is--and it's due to no fault of your own or Kia--that the charger is most likely pulling 16A at 120V over that 15A circuit, thus either the Kia charger mechanism and/or the portable charger you're using shuts down to prevent circuit overload. By setting the charger level to minimum you are essentially telling your EV6 to limit charging at a lower current, roughly 9 amps max based on your stating that you are getting a 1 kWh charging speed. Did you try setting it to Reduced (this is the middle setting between Maximum and Minimum) to see if the charger still shuts down? Not that it'll make much of a difference in terms of charging time since even charging at 12A / 120V nets you a 1.44 kWh charging rate--meaning, it'll still take forever to charge.

 

[mnbmwguy]

OP, as noted you need to check your break and how much that line can draw. You want to pull 80% of capacity and it is best to have an adjustable Level 1 charger. My charger allows me to set the draw on it (the charger). Works like a charm and I did not have to set anything in the EV6.

For 240v, I am a big fan of hard wire. Here in Minnesota (and probably everywhere) a hardwire does not require a GFI breaker. Sockets do require them. Those breakers can be fussy at times. Guy doing my install only does EV chargers now and strongly recommends hard wire.

 

[rhplusa]

You said you used the charger from pacifica hybrid.
I have pachy and use the same charger.

The charger is rated as 12A.
If you use it as level1, max output is 1.4kw.
Looks like 1kw is correct.

This charger is 240V capable. It will be 2.8kw with 240V 12A. (Level2)
I am using currently like this, and car shows 2.8kw while charging.

It is slow tho.. but usable. Adding 10miles per hour.

 

[TimBob302]

I got myself a Runway Red GT-Line AWD on Friday and promptly went on Amazon to get a Level 1 charging cable. I bought the Lectron Level 1 cable and I am having issues with it. I plug the charger in to the wall and all the indicator lights come one. I plug the charger into the car and the car tells me "starting to charge". I go to sit in the driver seat and the charging screen comes up and before the time estimates can pop up the screen just turns black and it stops charging (after about 10 seconds). I have used a DC fast charger successfully, and I used the Level 1 charger from my Brother in law's Pacifica hybrid. Anyone else have any issues like this? Did I just get a bad cable?

I have electricians coming out this week for quotes on Level 2 charging, but I want to have a level 1 available for emergency situations/visiting family.

I am having the same problem with a Schumacher level 1/2 charger from Amazon. I got a quote for installing a level 2 power outlet in my garage but it was estimated at $4000 due to the distance for wiring. Everything looks like it is charging but there is no increase in battery % charged. My next step is to test amps on that circuit to make sure there is 16 amps because less could cause a problem.

 

[dohsma]

I am having the same problem with a Schumacher level 1/2 charger from Amazon. I got a quote for installing a level 2 power outlet in my garage but it was estimated at $4000 due to the distance for wiring. Everything looks like it is charging but there is no increase in battery % charged. My next step is to test amps on that circuit to make sure there is 16 amps because less could cause a problem.

Try reducing the charge level in your car to reduced or minimum… minimum did the trick for me it’s just slow. I just had the level 2 installed in my garage and yeah it was expensive

 

[TimBob302]

Try reducing the charge level in your car to reduced or minimum… minimum did the trick for me it’s just slow. I just had the level 2 installed in my garage and yeah it was expensive

Thank you. Yes, that is working but add overnight is tiny so not worthwhile except in an emergency to get to a public charger.

 

[bobthelen]

In order to be eligible for a rebate, are electric company requires that I hard wire the level two charging station. Question: could anyone recommend a level two charger that can be hard wired? Hopefully in the $400 to $500 dollar range? Thanks