Third party charging adapters

electriceddy

electriceddy

Moderator
Staff member
Tom made a good video showing the reasons for using approved charging adapters. That is, adapters made by the car manufactures themselves.
It seems the major DC networks are covering for liability issues as surfaced on several EVs recently.
The updated "terms of use" are self-explanatory.

 
electriceddy said:
adapters made by the car manufactures themselves
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I'd think something like UL certification should be the key factor to look for. I know some of the portable EVSEs that have been provided by car manufacturers aren't necessarily all that good, so I doubt any adapters from car manufacturers are somehow special. As with all things best to buy from reputable sources.
 
Puppethead said:
I'd think something like UL certification should be the key factor to look for. I know some of the portable EVSEs that have been provided by car manufacturers aren't necessarily all that good, so I doubt any adapters from car manufacturers are somehow special. As with all things best to buy from reputable sources.
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There are many certification agencies in the U.S. covered by OHSA's nationally recognized testing laboratory (NRTL).
In Canada there are an equal number of approved certification agencies as well.
I guess the whole point Tom, (and the charging networks involved) are trying to make in this video, is to use vehicle manufactured approved adapters as they must conform, while the cheap imports may not. Additionally, some may include a "look alike" accreditation symbol (I have seen this myself on some electrical equipment) which indeed is not approved.
If one chooses to use one of these, even though it may not be recognized by the charger or the vehicle as being un-approved, the liability will fall onto the user for any damages including charger connector repairs and/or vehicle inlet or control repair issues.
 
aamyotte said:
The question I have is how the station will know that a 3rd party adapter is being used and deny the charge session.
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According to Tom in the video, it won’t. The first indication will be a malfunction that causes an arc, a fire, or other damage to the car or charging station. The point is that the user of the third-party adapter will be responsible for the damage.
 
shepdave said:
According to Tom in the video, it won’t. The first indication will be a malfunction that causes an arc, a fire, or other damage to the car or charging station. The point is that the user of the third-party adapter will be responsible for the damage.
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I was hoping there would have been a way to tell and lock out the garbage product from being used. Otherwise if the station is damaged it goes offline until is replaced meaning one less stall for the public to use. Hopefully they would be able to know which person caused the damage and go after them for the repair costs otherwise it will result in user fee increases.
 
There are so many unknown:
  • Aging of vehicle conductors
  • Aging of adapter conductors
  • Aging of station conductors
  • The three plastic pieces thermal and fire properties
It can be solved but I would prefer both the vehicle and stations have at least temperature sensors on power pins with maximum temperature limits. Then the adapters have a maximum temperature limiter. Built in circuit breaker.

Bob Wilson
 
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