[jdulac]

Do a search. Yes the 2012 defaulted to 12amps. The 2013 - 2015 will default to 8 amps. And no there is no way to default to 12amps.

 

[RoRo]

Don't forget that a 2012 Volt has a 16 kwh battery and the 2015 has a 17.1 kwh. That will increase the charge time.

 

[jdulac]

True but the Volt only uses 65% of the battery so we are talking .65Kwh which should be around an extra 40 minutes.

 

[RoRo]

True but the Volt only uses 65% of the battery so we are talking .65Kwh which should be around an extra 40 minutes.

Good point!

I usually got around 9.6 kwh of battery on my 2012, according to the center display, which was only 60%.

 

[saghost]

True but the Volt only uses 65% of the battery so we are talking .65Kwh which should be around an extra 40 minutes.

Actually, the additional capacity is all in the usable part of the battery based on the way they adjusted the various SoC limits.

Nonetheless, in this case the answer can be found in the new 8 amp default charge rate I believe.

 

[Gary Norton]

For the 2015, unlike the 2012, if you do not set the charging amperage before you plug-in it will only charge at 8 A. It is really easy to raise the charging level from 8 A to 12 A. Press the leaf button, press charging, press level, select 12 A. It takes about five seconds. You can do it any time after you start the car but before you plug it in.

That is the bulk of your additional charging time because you have not been setting it at 12 A and it has defaulted to 8 A every time you charged. There will also be a slightly longer charge time as a result of going from a 16 kW battery to a 17.1 kW battery.

 

[Tom17]

Install a 240 Volt Charger (Level 2) and you will not have to mess with the 8 to 12amp setting every time you charge.

 

[jdulac]

I usually got around 9.6 kwh of battery on my 2012, according to the center display, which was only 60%

They changed the amount of usable battery range to 65% in 2013 I believe. I got 10.8-10.9 most of the time when i use to fully deplete my battery.

 

[Steverino]

the answer can be found in the new 8 amp default charge rate I believe.

This is what I would say as well. The OP likely has the car charging at 8 amps rather than 12. Hence the longer time. The 2012 would also take 12 hours is charged at 8 A, but that car has the default at 12 vs. the newer car's default of 8.

 

[aceinsp]

Just remember when you shut the car off to reset to 12 amp. The system comes up when the car is shut off and least on mine so I never have to hit the leaf button. Simple and quick.

 

[ClarksonCote]

An 8 amp charge should take something more like 16 hours. The OP is likely seeing the effects of the larger upgraded battery found in the 2015's, combined possibly with battery thermal conditioning during the recent colder weather.

 

[Steverino]

An 8 amp charge should take something more like 16 hours. The OP is likely seeing the effects of the larger upgraded battery found in the 2015's, combined possibly with battery thermal conditioning during the recent colder weather.

I looked at the Chevy.com site. You are correct.

Using a 120-volt standard outlet will take approximately 10 hours to charge your Volt at the
12 amp setting, or 16 hours at the 8 amp default setting. Using a 240-volt charging station
will take approximately 4 hours. Charge times will vary with outside temperature.

 

[Yarblek]

It resets to 8A when you take the vehicle out of park so I generally make it a habit to set the charge rate during the trip as long as I don't have any stops planned.

 

[alfon]

Our 2014 Volt has never took more than 4 hours for a complete charge with our Clipper Creek level 2 charger (7.2KW) I know it only draws 3.3 KW.
From dead empty to full, 12 KW, the highest has been 3 hr 50 min.

If you have the room and can buy a 240 volt system buy it, in time you will not regret it.

 

[DonC]

An 8 amp charge should take something more like 16 hours. The OP is likely seeing the effects of the larger upgraded battery found in the 2015's, combined possibly with battery thermal conditioning during the recent colder weather.

I'd go with this. The battery has 7% more capacity. If more of the battery is being used the charging rate may also be dialed down more towards the end. Add in temperature and it would be fairly easy to increase the charging time by 20%.