Enel X Way (Juicebox) leaving USA/Canada markets

  • Thread starter Thread starter NorCalPete
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NorCalPete

NorCalPete

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Customer support for Juicebox EVSEs (chargers) has ended as of today. Enel X Way is abandoning the USA/Canadian markets. Their app and servers will cease operations on October 11. More info is available here. Unfortunately, this is going to cripple some functions of my charger (scheduling, charge history, etc.).

I don't know if I'll be able to access any smart functions after the cutoff date -- currently, it is set to charge only during non-peak PGE times. I may have to disable that schedule now (while I still can), and start managing the scheduling via the Honda software instead. This is disappointing.
 
This is why I hate IOT connected smart devices. As soon as the company goes belly up… all the smart functions magically disappear and are gone forever. It really sucks that there’s no way to have a localized system for scheduling. I’m in the market for a Level 2 charger and I’ll certainly be avoiding this brand.
 
I agree with you about avoiding IOT devices that lack any means of local control. When I bought the Juicebox six years ago, I couldn't find any smart EVSEs with that capability. Hopefully, there are some out there now. If I end up buying a Ramcharger, I may get a second EVSE to increase our home-charging options.
 
NorCalPete said:
If I end up buying a Ramcharger, I may get a second EVSE to increase our home-charging options.
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Just a thought while your shopping,
if the Ramcharger uses the J3400 connector, would you need a second EVSE anyway? Or use an adapter?
I don’t recall any mention in the videos about the type of connector Stellantis plans to use.
 
Landshark said:
Just a thought while your shopping,
if the Ramcharger uses the J3400 connector, would you need a second EVSE anyway? Or use an adapter?
Click to expand...

A second EVSE would be to allow two vehicles to charge at the same time. With four very active drivers in my home, our vehicles get fairly heavy use at times. I can imagine scenarios where two EVSEs might be useful. All of this is speculative at this point -- I'll wait until the need actually arises before buying a second one.
 
NorCalPete said:
A second EVSE would be to allow two vehicles to charge at the same time. With four very active drivers in my home, our vehicles get fairly heavy use at times. I can imagine scenarios where two EVSEs might be useful. All of this is speculative at this point -- I'll wait until the need actually arises before buying a second one.
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I understand the need. My original comment was about compatibility rather than necessity. We had planned on sharing the J1772 L2 EVSE with the Jeep and Ramcharger. However, if the Ramcharger uses a J3400 connector, I’ll most likely just get a second EVSE with a J3400.
 
In cases where you have two Stellantis vehicles, one will always be under a do-not-charge warning, so one charger is probably fine.
 
Steven B said:
In cases where you have two Stellantis vehicles, one will always be under a do-not-charge warning, so one charger is probably fine.
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Will one always be under said warning if I have 2 EVSE’s on 2 separate circuits?

For some, it might not be “fine” if 2 vehicles can’t be charged at the same time.
 
Landshark said:
My original comment was about compatibility rather than necessity.
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The compatibility aspect of your question slipped by me -- a good reminder for me to not post when I'm tired! If the Ramcharger has a J3400, I'm not sure what I'll select for the second EVSE (which would be connected via its own circuit). My goals would be flexibility (all vehicles can use both EVSEs) and future-proofing, if possible. In some ways, this feels like VHS vs Betamax again (a reference that maybe only "old-timers" will understand without googling it first). Hopefully, the connector-wars will have a clear winner by the time I need that second EVSE. Worse-case scenario, I can get adapters to solve those quandaries.
 
Steven B said:
In cases where you have two Stellantis vehicles, one will always be under a do-not-charge warning, so one charger is probably fine.
Click to expand...

Landshark said:
Will one always be under said warning if I have 2 EVSE’s on 2 separate circuits?

For some, it might not be “fine” if 2 vehicles can’t be charged at the same time.
Click to expand...

I got the impression that Steven B was joking about Stellantis quality and warnings against charging the car itself :)

On Enel-X, this is really a garbage move by a garbage company -- this isn't a small innovative startup running out of money and having no choice but to shut down and abandon; it's a large corporation that already made negative changes locking out and taking more "cloud" control of the devices deciding to abandon it with no notice.

I bought one 5 months ago with a utility rebate that covered most of the cost, so not a total loss for a "dumb" device (which was not what the utility intended). Fortunately, it's a 32-amp model as that was the rebate limit, so at least I don't have to worry about resetting current limits in the future. Losing the scheduling and tracking features that were inherent parts of the device specs hurts a lot.

I'm considering writing to their claims administrator once the app/features stop working, asking to return the device for a full refund as it is under warranty and no longer works as sold. Probably won't succeed but worth a try. Their wording is very weasely -- it's not clear if there's a corporation that's actually going through legal bankruptcy, or if they just want to try to wash their hands of it and hope people just don't notice.
 
JCA said:
I got the impression that Steven B was joking about Stellantis quality and warnings against charging the car itself :)
Click to expand...

Maybe I’ll get the joke after getting a second Stellantis vehicle. Although, they’ll be charging on separate circuits. With luck my experience will at least live up to the standards we’ve all grown accustomed to with Honda. (Possible joke)
 
DisgruntledSanta said:
Possibly related: Sounds like there were some fires associated with their residential chargers and an investigation was opening up.
https://www.seattletimes.com/busine...icebox-residential-electric-vehicle-chargers/
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I can attest to this...

We had a JuiceBox for nearly 6 years (since purchasing the Clarity in 2018). Around a month ago it burned out. I opened the unit and found that it had literally caught on fire (internally). The connection of the heavy 240V line to the relay board had apparently degraded over time causing it to overheat and burn. You can see the soot all over the inside of the unit as a result of the burned wire insulation in the photo below. Fortunately, the JuiceBox enclosure was all metal so the 'fire' was contained. I believe most EVSE's now have plastic enclosures so there may be more of a risk for a fire like this to escape.

Here are a couple of photos of the damage:

upload_2024-10-10_7-33-0.webp


upload_2024-10-10_7-33-22.webp

Interestingly, while the 240V wire / screw terminal burned completely off of the relay board, all of the other electronics survived. It was happily running on WiFi and communicating with the EnelX mothership after this happened.

I purchased an Autel MaxiCharger as a replacement (also a smart IOT device that depends on a cloud server). But, the Autel does support OCPP which means that it is theoretically possible to use it with a 3rd party server other than Autel's. The MaxiCharger appears to be well constructed (although it does have a plastic case).
 
MrFixit said:
I can attest to this...

We had a JuiceBox for nearly 6 years (since purchasing the Clarity in 2018). Around a month ago it burned out. I opened the unit and found that it had literally caught on fire (internally). The connection of the heavy 240V line to the relay board had apparently degraded over time causing it to overheat and burn. You can see the soot all over the inside of the unit as a result of the burned wire insulation in the photo below. Fortunately, the JuiceBox enclosure was all metal so the 'fire' was contained. I believe most EVSE's now have plastic enclosures so there may be more of a risk for a fire like this to escape.

Here are a couple of photos of the damage:

View attachment 23383


View attachment 23384

Interestingly, while the 240V wire / screw terminal burned completely off of the relay board, all of the other electronics survived. It was happily running on WiFi and communicating with the EnelX mothership after this happened.

I purchased an Autel MaxiCharger as a replacement (also a smart IOT device that depends on a cloud server). But, the Autel does support OCPP which means that it is theoretically possible to use it with a 3rd party server other than Autel's. The MaxiCharger appears to be well constructed (although it does have a plastic case).
Click to expand...
Yikes! Thanks for sharing the photos. I wonder if any EVSE use aluminum wires internally, posing a fire risk? One can only hope the plastic housing many chargers are made from are fire resistant.
 
Thanks for this post MrFixit. Based on your experience, I'll be opening up my Juicebox this weekend to check for problems.
 
NorCalPete said:
Thanks for this post MrFixit. Based on your experience, I'll be opening up my Juicebox this weekend to check for problems.
Click to expand...

You probably know that the most important thing is to insure that the 4 large wires going to the relay board (2 red and 2 black) are tight. With the thermal cycles, I think they have a tendency to loosen over time and that is a big problem with the heavy currents involved. I probably could have prevented this had I thought to check them. In my case, I was OK for almost 6 years, but I think the straw that broke the camel's back was the fact that we got an EV around a year ago, and with the larger HV battery, my charging cycle times had increased substantially..

BTW - You can purchase a replacement relay board on eBay for around $60. But given the extent of the damage, plus the fact that we didn't want to be out of service for long, I decided to go with the new unit.
 
I'll report back on what I find in my Juicebox this weekend. I'll be checking that all connections are still tight throughout that 50A circuit. While I'm at it, I'll check my 30A (welder), 30A (RV shore power - 120V), and 40A (air compressor) circuits to make sure they're tight too! I installed all of them and always triple-check connections but, as you noted, thermal cycling does a great job loosening them up.
 
Today Enel X Way sent out this emailed update:

Enel X Way said:
Enel X Way USA continues to engage with a third-party firm to manage the closure of the business on October 11, 2024. After further technical evaluation, the firm has entered into an agreement with the current provider to continue to operate the EV charging software in the US and Canada for an extended period. This interim measure will enable the firm to seek a long-term solution for the EV charging platform, with the ultimate goal of maintaining operational continuity for Enel X Way USA customers. While JuiceBox products will continue to operate with software connectivity after October 11, 2024, customer service will not be available during this interim period. The third-party firm will manage claims and communication with stakeholders after October 11, 2024. For more information, please visit: www.LiquidAP.com/currentprojects/juicebox

Enel X Way-related questions and claims should be directed to www.juiceboxnorthamerica.com.
Click to expand...
So maybe the Juicebox will remain "smart" into the future (or at least for a bit longer).
 
JCA said:
I got the impression that Steven B was joking about Stellantis quality and warnings against charging the car itself :)
Click to expand...

Yes, I had just read that they had recalled all their 4xe units, informing owners to drain the battery and do not charge.
 
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