Getting ready to lease a 21 Kona

couple of things:

Yes - full zero-to-100% is about 48 hours. So.... assuming you can get 12+ hours per day, you can get about a quarter charge via the 120v granny charger. That's quite a bit more than the 20 miles of daily use, so you'll be net positive and fully charged by the end of the week.

and if you have an existing stove plug, you might be able to use a level 2 charger (possibly with a heavy duty nema 14-50 extension cord) by moving your stove out of the way and plugging in

I also thought long and hard about combining two of my different phase kitchen plugs (120v on 20 amp breakers, but even regular 15 amp plugs would probably work) with heavy duty extension cords and an "combiner" EV Doubler 120 from EV Doctor. DISCLAIMER: this does work, but there are some risks, usual "i am not responsible for your actions" disclaimers apply. My Kona charger is one of the supported 120v/240v switching units, and the doubler would let it pull 2.8kwh instead of the usual 1.4kwh, which would cut the charging time in half. I thought long and hard about doing this, because for my usual use case it would be more than sufficient. In the end, as it does not work with GFI outlets in my garage, and two extension cords through my kitchen and garage doors would not be sustainable, and because there was a rebate, I installed a Level 2 charger which doesn't really get used all that much.

I am still considering buying or building a doubler to put into the trunk.

m

 

20 miles a day should be handled easily with level 1, that's about 4 hours. There are portable chargers (example Mustart, search Amazon) with optional level 2 attachments if you can access your dryer or stove outlets. In a pinch you can locate a nearby fast charger, they seem to be everywhere unless you live in a remote location. Also if you haven't engaged an electrician yet, the Better Business Bureau website is pretty good for locating one, many specialize in charge unit installations.

 

Given the amount of electricity involved, when purchasing an EVSE I would stick to high quality brands with longer warranties and safety certifications. There is a lot of cheap Chinese junk out there. I know two EV owners who bought Mustart units that failed within a year and were blown off by Mustart when they tried to make warranty claims. Look at the negative reviews on Amazon.

 

My two cents - I had a Mustart for 2 years and liked it a lot. About a month ago it started to get hot near the plug, nearly 160 degrees reading on my temp gun. I emailed customer support which immediately responded with a request for more information, and within one week I had a brand new upgraded full replacement, no return of the old unit required. I know some people had less than stellar experiences, but I certainly can't complain with mine. 5 star review from this customer.

 

Our first EVSE was a Mustart, and after a while it occasionally smelled like an electrical fire although it seemed to be working fine. When we contacted Mustart amazingly we were told there was nothing they would do for us so long as it was working correctly. Ended up throwing it in the electronics bin at the recycling center as we were afraid to use it. IMO a safety certification should be mandatory on equipment like this.

 

I do nearly all my charging at home and have never used anything but a plain ole wall socket. If it's only going to be driven 20 miles a day, that's all you need. If I plug in for 12 hours overnight I get about 54 miles worth. I drive pretty gently and average about 4.6 mi/kwh, but even if you have a lead foot and use more energy, an overnight charge should still give you over 40 miles. My advice is to save your money.

 

Get the Level 2 when you can. It is nice to be able to charge fully at home when you drive elsewhere. I just ordered a 48A Wallbox Pulsar Plus. They are available online. Many top brands like Juice Box and ChargePoint are not. You only need a 30 to 32 Amp charger for the Kona, but 48A is better for the next gen of EVs like the Ioniq 5.

 

Even then, full overnight is full overnight. 77kwh zero to full @ 7.4kwh 32amps isn't very long either.

 

All depends on your daily milage. Home 120v is fine if you average 40-50 miles/d, more than that best to get level 2. As mentioned, level 2 chargers fairly ubiquitous now.

 

Before you buy EVSE and have it installed, consider if you will have two vehicles and one EVSE or three vehicles and two EVSE. This has been my case. Charge rate becomes a factor when you need to charge one vehicle in the evening and a second at night.

 

Anyone considering a Mustart should be interested in the attached thread. Not saying the failure rate is anywhere close to 100% (there are definitely some satisfied owners), but I for one would not take the risk:

https://www.insideevsforum.com/community/index.php?threads/charge-port-damage-no-warranty-didnt-use-kia-factory-approved-charger.11783/#post-144729

 

Typical molded-on plugs, even on supposedly "high power" equipment, are usually garbage. If they"re getting
notably warm now, that will only get worse as the internal attachments slowly loosen under further applied
heat and contacting parts oxidizing more. The right answer is to slice that crap off and put a decent spec-grade
head on the thing, with real screw terminals you can tighten properly and heavier-duty current-carrying parts,
that you can also open back up later and inspect.

It also pays to keep plugs and sockets clean with periodic application of contact cleaner. If the action of
plugging in and out feels like it has a lot of grinding friction, time to refresh that. Part of my "road kit" is a
spray can of DeOxit, which can even be used on public charger heads and benefit subsequent users too.

_H*

 

Anyone looking to purchase a Mustart charger, beware. I purchased a 2021 Toyota Rav4 Prime XSE which comes with a "converter" (?) in it that allows the battery to fully charge in 2.5 hours (the regular Rav4 takes 5 hours to charge on level 2). I used the Mustart level 2 charger for about 3 months. At first it worked fine, but as it got colder out, it was getting harder to insert and remove the charger. The, after 3 months of use, I went to remove the charger only to find that one of the plastic prongs that surrounded one of the terminals actually melted to the car charger port, meaning I could no longer charge the battery. Took it into Toyota and of course they say that noting was wrong with the car side (even though they were surprised that this could happen without the card registering any codes). It cost $700 to replace the port! now I'm dealing with Mustart AND Toyota, but neither appear to want to help (Toyota says that they only recommend Toyota parts, so because in used a third-party charger nothin would be covered under warranty.....BUT THEY DON'T MAKE A LEVEL 2 CHARGE! total catch-22. I don't know if the issue was with the charger OR with the car (because the car has the 6.6 KWH charger addon (factory) that allows the car to charge in 2.5 hours.

 

I don't know if it's fair to blame the Mustart, I doubt it (or any level 2 portable for that matter) is designed to handle that kind of current. Something tells me your dealer was remiss in not recommending the appropriate charger.

 

Well, that there is the catch-22. At both the dealership AND on the phone with Toyota, (1) Toyota does not make a charger (2) Toyota does not recommend a brand of charger (however if you checkout Leviton, they say that they are recommended by Toyota, but Toyota did not tell me that. Also, the 40 amp level 2 charger from Leviton cost about $1500 - a ridiculous price) (3) Toyota will not warranty a repair to your car if they feel that it may have been caused by a third party piece of equipment (even though you have no choice but to use a third party charger since they don’t make one). Catch-22.