ChuckJ Posted August 28, 2013 at 06:10 PM Report Share Posted August 28, 2013 at 06:10 PM Has anyone used this charger for their Energi? Amazon has it for $845 and it seems like it has some good features. ChuckJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markb Posted September 2, 2013 at 11:52 PM Report Share Posted September 2, 2013 at 11:52 PM I have one and am very happy with it. Here's why I bought it: 1) compact configuration, the cord wraps around the unit, 2) longer 20 foot cord than most units means I can reach a car on either side or our carport, 3) since we have a carport the unit is somewhat exposed to the outside environment so I like having a NEMA 4 enclosure. 4) I also liked the delay timer but discovered when I got my Energi (I had the charging station installed before it came) that I could use the Value Charge feature of the car to force the charging into Georgia Power's lowest rate period (11PM - 7AM -- 1.3 cents/KW hour). I've been using it for six weeks now without a problem. Would recommend it to anyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChuckJ Posted September 3, 2013 at 01:05 AM Author Report Share Posted September 3, 2013 at 01:05 AM Thanks, Mark ChuckJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChuckJ Posted September 21, 2013 at 12:58 AM Author Report Share Posted September 21, 2013 at 12:58 AM Installed my Siemens VC30BLKB 30-Amp Bottom Fed VersiCharge Electric Vehicle Charger today and so far, it's working great. Tomorrow will be the first opportunity to see the length of time it takes to fully charge the car. ChuckJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeblow231 Posted September 21, 2013 at 09:48 AM Report Share Posted September 21, 2013 at 09:48 AM I just ordered one. Getting it installed on Thursday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChuckJ Posted September 22, 2013 at 12:41 PM Author Report Share Posted September 22, 2013 at 12:41 PM I had 3 miles left showing in the car when I got back from going out to dinner. I plugged it in and 1hr and 42min later it was fully charged! I think it's meeting its spec nicely. I paid $845 on Amazon prime and it was delivered two days later with no shipping charge. ChuckJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeblow231 Posted October 4, 2013 at 08:50 PM Report Share Posted October 4, 2013 at 08:50 PM I got mine all wired up and plugged in the car and then nothing. It seems my charger is a dud. Green light says it has power. When I plug it into the car the car acts like it is thinking about charging but the charger never starts. Siemens return process looks like it will take weeks so I think I'll just deal with Amazon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphy Posted October 4, 2013 at 09:05 PM Report Share Posted October 4, 2013 at 09:05 PM Did you turn the charger on and let it complete its startup sequence before it was connected to the car?If you connected it to the car first and then applied the power that is a cold start and is mandated to randomly wait up to 15 minutes before starting to charge.This is so after a utility power failure all of the chargers in the system don't try to start at the same time and overload the utility. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeblow231 Posted October 4, 2013 at 09:45 PM Report Share Posted October 4, 2013 at 09:45 PM I've tried several times since it was powered up. Same thing every time. I went by the dealer and plugged in there just to make sure it wasn't a level 2 versus level 1 issue with the car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChuckJ Posted October 5, 2013 at 01:11 PM Author Report Share Posted October 5, 2013 at 01:11 PM Amazon is usually a very easy return process, are they giving you trouble? ChuckJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeblow231 Posted October 8, 2013 at 01:13 AM Report Share Posted October 8, 2013 at 01:13 AM I probably should have just returned it with Amazon because they have the back-fed one for $50 less now. I called Siemens about the problem to make sure I wasn't doing something wrong and ended up in their replacement process. Actually it turns to be a fairly quick turnaround. The replacement is supposed to be here tomorrow. Their first email just had a date for pickup of the faulty unit and didn't say much about the replacement. I was worried I was going to have to wait for them to receive the faulty unit before sending out the replacement but that wasn't the case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeblow231 Posted October 8, 2013 at 11:39 PM Report Share Posted October 8, 2013 at 11:39 PM Replacement is wired up and charging away. Nice and fast. Dag 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChuckJ Posted October 10, 2013 at 02:15 AM Author Report Share Posted October 10, 2013 at 02:15 AM Replacement is wired up and charging away. Nice and fast.Congratulations! This makes to car sooooo much more useful and fun. ChuckJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JesseDiaz Posted October 30, 2013 at 05:20 AM Report Share Posted October 30, 2013 at 05:20 AM I got my Siemens today..install was easy..I already had an electrician install a 240v before I received the chargerI love it so far ( got it for $799 on amazon ). The only thing I cant figure out is: at 1:50 minutes into the charge, my battery in the fusion was at 95%. The charger still showed CHARGING after 2:45 minutes and the car said in was 100% charged...the CHARGING light did not turn off until after 3 hours and 20 minutes....that's 1:30 minutes more for 5%.Is this typical for a 240v charge? ( this was my first 240 charge ) Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphy Posted October 30, 2013 at 08:48 AM Report Share Posted October 30, 2013 at 08:48 AM After it finishes charging the HVB it then charges the 12 volt battery if it needs charging. Apparently your 12 volt battery was very low. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JesseDiaz Posted October 30, 2013 at 05:33 PM Report Share Posted October 30, 2013 at 05:33 PM Thanks Murphy.....although it would seem realy odd if it was that low since I just got the car less than 2 weeks ago...Since it seems like it powered the 12v too, would it be logical to say that my next charge should be alot less since by 12v was just charged the night before? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphy Posted October 30, 2013 at 06:25 PM Report Share Posted October 30, 2013 at 06:25 PM It depends. If you sit in the car going through all of the goodies without it being in RUN mode it will drain the 12 volt battery.Using the global window down/up function has 4 (5 if you have a moon roof) motors running at the same time.There are many systems running off of the 12 volt battery.The 12 volt battery is not a full size battery. Unfortunately Ford has not published the specifications for the battery other than 390 CCA which is totally meaningless in this car since it doesn't have a starter motor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChuckJ Posted October 31, 2013 at 12:01 AM Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2013 at 12:01 AM Unfortunately Ford has not published the specifications for the battery other than 390 CCA which is totally meaningless in this car since it doesn't have a starter motor.Yep, it seems like we should be using a deep charge marine battery. ChuckJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JesseDiaz Posted October 31, 2013 at 02:24 PM Report Share Posted October 31, 2013 at 02:24 PM THanks Murphy.....FYI, my second charge with my new Siemens 240v charger only took 1hr 40 minutes to charge to 100% ( from a totally depleted battery ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chancelperry Posted November 23, 2013 at 11:41 PM Report Share Posted November 23, 2013 at 11:41 PM I have one and am very happy with it. Here's why I bought it: 1) compact configuration, the cord wraps around the unit, 2) longer 20 foot cord than most units means I can reach a car on either side or our carport, 3) since we have a carport the unit is somewhat exposed to the outside environment so I like having a NEMA 4 enclosure. 4) I also liked the delay timer but discovered when I got my Energi (I had the charging station installed before it came) that I could use the Value Charge feature of the car to force the charging into Georgia Power's lowest rate period (11PM - 7AM -- 1.3 cents/KW hour). I've been using it for six weeks now without a problem. Would recommend it to anyone.I just installed this one two days ago and it charges very quickly, but as a consequence, it no longer charges up to the 20 miles that the 120v charged to. It will only go as high as 17 miles or 18 miles at the most. Is this normal since its only quick charging it? Turn on the heater and you're down to 13 miles before you start your commute. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphy Posted November 24, 2013 at 12:50 AM Report Share Posted November 24, 2013 at 12:50 AM Most likely it's the cold weather reducing the capacity of the battery. In the summer I was consistently getting 27. Now it's only getting to 21. Level 2 charger in both cases. jeff_h 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hardp Posted November 25, 2013 at 03:25 PM Report Share Posted November 25, 2013 at 03:25 PM (edited) What is the difference, if any,.between the Siemens VC30BLKB 30-Amp Bottom Fed VersiCharge Electric Vehicle Charger and a 240V charger. And, also, I plug in my car to the 120V charger every evening when I get home from work and it's fully-charged the next morning. Is there any reason I should spring for the 240v charger other than for a quicker charge? Edited November 25, 2013 at 03:27 PM by Hardp Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hardp Posted November 25, 2013 at 03:28 PM Report Share Posted November 25, 2013 at 03:28 PM Last Q for now. the Owner's Manual says you can't use an extension cord with the charger. Is that an absolute rule? What if I use a very heavy duty cord? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphy Posted November 25, 2013 at 04:39 PM Report Share Posted November 25, 2013 at 04:39 PM Last Q for now. the Owner's Manual says you can't use an extension cord with the charger. Is that an absolute rule? What if I use a very heavy duty cord?The problem is that most long extension cords are 16 gauge wire to minimize the copper. That is good for about 7.5 amps. With the 120 volt charger going as high as 15 amps you need at least a 12 gauge extension cord and 10 gauge would be better. I have tested a 14 gauge 50 foot extension cord laying on the ground and stretched to its full length. The cable gets warm which means all of the wasted power isn't going into the battery. That means it will take longer and cost more to charge the battery. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphy Posted November 25, 2013 at 04:43 PM Report Share Posted November 25, 2013 at 04:43 PM What is the difference, if any,.between the Siemens VC30BLKB 30-Amp Bottom Fed VersiCharge Electric Vehicle Charger and a 240V charger. And, also, I plug in my car to the 120V charger every evening when I get home from work and it's fully-charged the next morning. Is there any reason I should spring for the 240v charger other than for a quicker charge? Charging at 240 volts is way quicker (usually 2 hours for me) and is more efficient. I am retired and sometimes make multiple trips during the day so my 240 volt charger gets a lot of use. Preconditioning (heat or cooling) works much better with the 240 volt charger. There is also a 30% tax credit on the installation of a 240 volt charger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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