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Idea for charging at CHAdeMO and CSS/SAE stations...

9.1K views 12 replies 12 participants last post by  jz820  
#1 ·
I drive a 2012 volt, which gives me only 30 miles/charge. So I use plugshare and other apps to find chargers near me wherever I go to avoid using gas. Problem is, the J-1772 plug is ALWAYS the most popular! At the mall there are so many non-chargepoint chargers (like EVgo and Blink) that at best have only 1 or 2 J-1772 plugs (always taken) and TONS of level 3 plugs like CHAdeMO, CSS and SAE (always vacant). Even cars that can take lvl 3s (Leafs and Teslas) often steal the J-1772s, which drives me crazy because I can't charge my volt with level 3... Or can I?...

So I did a little research... There's no such thing as a CHAdeMO–J-1772 adapter (as far as I know), BUT there ARE adapters that allow Teslas to charge at CHAdeMO CSS/SAE combo chargers. AND there's also the TeslaTap, which converts the standard Tesla plug to J-1772...

My question is, would it be possible to make a DIY adapter by first converting CHAdeMO to the tesla plug using Tesla's adapter, and then converting tesla to J-1772 using the TeslaTap (from amazon.com)? It would be an expensive bulky contraption, but I will do anything to be able to put a few extra battery miles on my volt from a CHAdeMO or SAE charger in a pinch.

Let me know what you think! I am very curious if other volt owners have had this same problem and what solutions you have come up with.
 
#2 ·
Have you did the math on that? You are missing the point of the Volt.

Leave the L3 DC chargers for BEVs.
 
#3 ·
No, you can't use a CCS or CHAdeMO charging station, even with an adapter, to charge your 2012 Volt (or any Volt.) Your Volt is designed to charge at 120V or 208/240V. The CCS and CHAdeMO charging stations are providing ~400V DC; the Volt was not designed for DC fast charging. The Bolt does come with the ability to charge using 120V, 208/240V and CCS DC fast charging.
 
#5 ·
Technical issues aside, this plan has both social and fiscal problems. Take the cost of your adapter and weigh it against the cost difference of just using gas. Would you ever hit the break even point? Also, think about how pissed, and I'm only speaking for myself here, you get when a charging station is ICE'd. I think it would be a much bigger douche move to take up a fast charger with a Volt, that the person driving a BEV actually needs.
 
#6 ·
Yes you are seeing more and more BEV's using the free L2 low power chargers while the Supercharger, CADdeMO, CCS chargers remain vacant because they are free (usually) and the fast chargers cost and because the BEVs don't really need the charge because they have plenty of range for local driving. That's the way it is. No point in paying three times the residential rate for electricity if you don't really need it.
 
#7 ·
Before you invest more time and money trying to enable your 2012 Volt to be charged at an L3 level charging station, take some time to investigate the per kWh price you would pay for charging your Volt from the electricity available at those L3 charging stations.

The cost of charging is related to the cost of the equipment that makes that level of charging possible. If the prices at the "vacant" L3 charging stations you see were as inexpensive as at the L2 stations, they would be the BEVs' charging stations of choice.
 
#9 ·
That varies widely depending on the specific charging station you are using. Many are either free or included at no additional cost after you pay for the parking you would need anyway. Obviously that is cheaper than gas. Where there is a cost for charging, the rates and rate methods vary. They could be either higher or lower, but in general they tend to be more expensive than gas, sometimes way more expensive. This is due in part to the relatively slow charging rate of the Volt. It doesn't get good value when charging fees are based on the time you are connected.
 
#13 ·
I've had similar thoughts, even though there only two or three ties a year I drive far enough for it to be a factor. Still, I would like at least to see some L2s along the Interstates, I've only seen DCFCs. With the million dollars of equipment in those sheds, EVgo or ElectrifyAmerica could certainly install a step-down transformer and provide a J1772 "nozzle".
In my little corner of the world, there are very few "public" L2 chargers. There are a handful in parking structures here and there, but mostly they're on private property for the more-or-less exclusive use of staff and clients. And a few at dealerships who give you a dirty look if you're not driving their make. And the few that are available are usual being used by Teslas.
Even though I understand the impracticality of it, I'd still like such an adapter to exist.