DC Fast Chargers you can use with the e-Golf

I thought it might be useful to have a thread that shows the different kinds of DC Fast Charger that can be used with the e-Golf and provide some notes about them. I am in California, so I will naturally contribute what is familiar around here. I will try to maintain this first post with current information and will add whatever other users want from around the world.

ABB
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Terra 53 Series - 50kW - 120A Max DC - C (CCS), J (CHAdeMO), G (43kW Type-2), T (22kW Type-2), Z (GB/T China)
Most common configuration is CJ (CCS + CHAdeMO). C, CT, CJG, Z are also available. The CJG is more common in Europe where the G type connection is labeled "Fast AC", but it is useless for the e-Golf. Datasheet.



Terra 23 Series - 25kW (more to come...)

BMW
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BMW i Fast Charger - 24kW - 60A DC Max - CCS connector only
also ChargePoint Express 100

http://www.bmwicharging.com/BMWiDCFastCharger
I previously heard a company name that made the BMW i Fast Charger and the ChargePoint Express 100 for those brands. I can't recall the name and a quick search did not find it.



BTC Power (Broadband TelCom Power Inc.)
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Two models, 25kW and 50kW, dual standard CCS+CHAdeMO. Notable because they can run off 208Y120V commercial power even up to 50kW.

http://www.btcpower.com/products-and-applications/EV-Fast-Charger/



Efacec
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QC-45 - 45kW Continuous, 50kW Peak - 120A Max DC - Three configurations in USA - CCS, CHAdemo, CCS+CHAdeMO. It is available as a monolithic station or as a remote charging cabinet plus pedestal. There are different configurations available for Europe with 9 permutations of CCS, CHAdeMO, AC22, and AC43. US Datasheet and EU Datasheet.



Signet
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http://www.gptechnology.com/signet



Tritium Veefil
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Product page
http://tritium.com.au/products/veefil/



also ChargePoint Express 200


http://www.chargepoint.com/express/

Valent Power
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http://www.valentpower.com/chargers/

this one was a duplicate. removed.

miimura said:

BMW
-----
BMW i Fast Charger - 24kW - 60A DC Max - CCS connector only
also ChargePoint Express 100

http://www.bmwicharging.com/BMWiDCFastCharger
I previously heard a company name that made the BMW i Fast Charger and the ChargePoint Express 100 for those brands. I can't recall the name and a quick search did not find it.

Click to expand...

I just charged at the BMW mountain view DC fast charger that ChargePoint has listed as their ONLY SAE DC fast charger up here in northern california, and it does only output 10kW instead of the advertised 24kW which already is a far cry from the 50kW the ABB chargers from NRG EVGO could output. So instead of having my 80% charge in 20 minutes, I had to take a 45 minute walk and still be only so meagerly charged that I had to make second stop later at a whole foods with NRG EVGO chargers to get home. I know the BMW charger was free, but why it only outputs 10kW/h I don't get, I'd rather pay $5 or $10 and get full speed and get home on time. A commenter on plugshare that this makes Tesla owners laugh at us VW e-Golf and BMW i3 drivers charging solutions even more is quite on point...

Skryll said:

miimura said:

BMW
-----
BMW i Fast Charger - 24kW - 60A DC Max - CCS connector only
also ChargePoint Express 100

http://www.bmwicharging.com/BMWiDCFastCharger
I previously heard a company name that made the BMW i Fast Charger and the ChargePoint Express 100 for those brands. I can't recall the name and a quick search did not find it.

Click to expand...

I just charged at the BMW mountain view DC fast charger that ChargePoint has listed as their ONLY SAE DC fast charger up here in northern california, and it does only output 10kW instead of the advertised 24kW which already is a far cry from the 50kW the ABB chargers from NRG EVGO could output. So instead of having my 80% charge in 20 minutes, I had to take a 45 minute walk and still be only so meagerly charged that I had to make second stop later at a whole foods with NRG EVGO chargers to get home. I know the BMW charger was free, but why it only outputs 10kW/h I don't get, I'd rather pay $5 or $10 and get full speed and get home on time. A commenter on plugshare that this makes Tesla owners laugh at us VW e-Golf and BMW i3 drivers charging solutions even more is quite on point...

Click to expand...

The Tesla owners can laugh all they wan't while I roll around on the extra $50,000 I have from not buying one.

Skryll said:

I just charged at the BMW mountain view DC fast charger that ChargePoint has listed as their ONLY SAE DC fast charger up here in northern california, and it does only output 10kW instead of the advertised 24kW which already is a far cry from the 50kW the ABB chargers from NRG EVGO could output. So instead of having my 80% charge in 20 minutes, I had to take a 45 minute walk and still be only so meagerly charged that I had to make second stop later at a whole foods with NRG EVGO chargers to get home. I know the BMW charger was free, but why it only outputs 10kW/h I don't get, I'd rather pay $5 or $10 and get full speed and get home on time. A commenter on plugshare that this makes Tesla owners laugh at us VW e-Golf and BMW i3 drivers charging solutions even more is quite on point...

Click to expand...

I have charged there too. The thing you have to realize is that the 24kW rating does not mean you will get 24kW. These chargers are current limited on the battery side. They can only put out 60A DC. It happens that the e-Golf has a relatively low battery voltage. When it is completely empty, I suspect that it's around 300VDC. Therefore, you will only get 18kW to start and probably never more than 20kW when full. However, this charger at the BMW facility in Mountain View has a history of reduced output. That is why you only saw about 10kW.

miimura said:

The Tesla owners can laugh all they wan't while I roll around on the extra $50,000 I have from not buying one.

Click to expand...

Ha! Seriously. Buy an e-Golf now, another one in 2018 with 140 mile range, and another one in 2021 with 220 mile range for the same cost.

PMC2015 said:

miimura said:

The Tesla owners can laugh all they wan't while I roll around on the extra $50,000 I have from not buying one.

Click to expand...

Ha! Seriously. Buy an e-Golf now, another one in 2018 with 140 mile range, and another one in 2021 with 220 mile range for the same cost.

Click to expand...

Honestly I'd rather then buy the tesla now and drive that instead of the eGolf. No offense, I love my egolf for the price it is at, but if thats your plan go for the 270 mile tesla today and drive it 7 years for a lot better experience along the whole timeline including automated cruise control that does the stop and go traffic for you, excellent planting with the four wheel drive, and sooner or later also more autonomous driving features that come as over the air update since the sensors are already pretty decent.

These 30 minute chargers are not good for the longevity of the battery life on the e-golfs due to the battery chemistry they decided to go with and it's thermal characteristics to prevent needing cooling devices for the battery while charging and discharging. VW strongly recommends long and slow charging with the e-Golf.

http://www.myvwegolf.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=496&start=10


http://www.autoblog.com/2014/03/31/vw-e-golf-will-not-have-active-cooling-system-lithium-battery/


In terms of the battery pack, the engineering goal was to develop a highly efficient system as opposed to one that focused on charge-time or capacity (like some of our competitors). In partnership with Panasonic, VW utilizes a lithium-ion cells designed for gentle charge and de-charge during use which helps to reduce heat and energy consumption often associated with cells designed for rapid charging and de-charging. Our engineers refer to them as "marathon cells."

Since I own my e-Golf, I guess I'll be sticking to using the TDI passat or TDI Touareg Sport for anything that requires more than 80 miles round trip, and keep the e-golf plugged in to Level 2 chargers at home or while shopping. An around town car is what the e-Golf is designed for, not long distance commuting and charging 2x a day for 3 hours each session, once at work and once at home.

TDINutz said:

These 30 minute chargers are not good for the longevity of the battery life on the e-golfs due to the battery chemistry they decided to go with and it's thermal characteristics to prevent needing cooling devices for the battery while charging and discharging. VW strongly recommends long and slow charging with the e-Golf.

http://www.myvwegolf.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=496&start=10


http://www.autoblog.com/2014/03/31/vw-e-golf-will-not-have-active-cooling-system-lithium-battery/


In terms of the battery pack, the engineering goal was to develop a highly efficient system as opposed to one that focused on charge-time or capacity (like some of our competitors). In partnership with Panasonic, VW utilizes a lithium-ion cells designed for gentle charge and de-charge during use which helps to reduce heat and energy consumption often associated with cells designed for rapid charging and de-charging. Our engineers refer to them as "marathon cells."

Since I own my e-Golf, I guess I'll be sticking to using the TDI passat or TDI Touareg Sport for anything that requires more than 80 miles round trip, and keep the e-golf plugged in to Level 2 chargers at home or while shopping. An around town car is what the e-Golf is designed for, not long distance commuting and charging 2x a day for 3 hours each session, once at work and once at home.

Click to expand...

You are of course entitled to your opinion and I don't blame you for wanting to baby the battery since you purchased the car outright. However, I see no problem at all with one or two fast charges per day to double or quadruple the usable range of the car. This would increase the usability of the car from a 40 mile radius to 150 mile radius. Of course, my opinion may be colored by the fact that we are certain to return the car at the end of our 3 year lease.

Also, keep in mind that VW has characterized the battery very well and will slow down the fast charger to avoid damaging the battery when there is heat accumulating in the cells.

miimura said:

TDINutz said:

These 30 minute chargers are not good for the longevity of the battery life on the e-golfs due to the battery chemistry they decided to go with and it's thermal characteristics to prevent needing cooling devices for the battery while charging and discharging. VW strongly recommends long and slow charging with the e-Golf.

http://www.myvwegolf.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=496&start=10


http://www.autoblog.com/2014/03/31/vw-e-golf-will-not-have-active-cooling-system-lithium-battery/


In terms of the battery pack, the engineering goal was to develop a highly efficient system as opposed to one that focused on charge-time or capacity (like some of our competitors). In partnership with Panasonic, VW utilizes a lithium-ion cells designed for gentle charge and de-charge during use which helps to reduce heat and energy consumption often associated with cells designed for rapid charging and de-charging. Our engineers refer to them as "marathon cells."


Since I own my e-Golf, I guess I'll be sticking to using the TDI passat or TDI Touareg Sport for anything that requires more than 80 miles round trip, and keep the e-golf plugged in to Level 2 chargers at home or while shopping. An around town car is what the e-Golf is designed for, not long distance commuting and charging 2x a day for 3 hours each session, once at work and once at home.

Click to expand...

You are of course entitled to your opinion and I don't blame you for wanting to baby the battery since you purchased the car outright. However, I see no problem at all with one or two fast charges per day to double or quadruple the usable range of the car. This would increase the usability of the car from a 40 mile radius to 150 mile radius. Of course, my opinion may be colored by the fact that we are certain to return the car at the end of our 3 year lease.

Also, keep in mind that VW has characterized the battery very well and will slow down the fast charger to avoid damaging the battery when there is heat accumulating in the cells.

Click to expand...

Yep, and another reason that why, as a contractor, I don't bid on work on rental properties either, no pride in ownership. Sorry, nothing personal, but it is what it is. What a renter sees as "acceptable" would make a building code inspectors head spin on anything electrical.

FWIW, you might want to find the time to read the owners manual, for a better appreciation of do's and don'ts. They expressly comment about not doing back to back level 3 "rapid charging" charging, and request that one level 3 charging be tempered and followed by one or two Level 2 charging sessions.

TDINutz said:

FWIW, you might want to find the time to read the owners manual, for a better appreciation of do's and don'ts. They expressly comment about not doing back to back level 3 charging, and request that one level 3 charging be tempered and followed by one or two Level 2 charging sessions.

Click to expand...

I am familiar. However, this can still make for a nice weekend trip in your e-Golf to a destination 150 miles away. One fast charge on a Friday evening or Saturday morning, L1 or L2 charging at the destination, and one fast charge on the way home on Sunday. That is totally reasonable and within the VW recommendations. You don't need to be tethered only to your home charging.

miimura said:

TDINutz said:

FWIW, you might want to find the time to read the owners manual, for a better appreciation of do's and don'ts. They expressly comment about not doing back to back level 3 charging, and request that one level 3 charging be tempered and followed by one or two Level 2 charging sessions.

Click to expand...

I am familiar. However, this can still make for a nice weekend trip in your e-Golf to a destination 150 miles away. One fast charge on a Friday evening or Saturday morning, L1 or L2 charging at the destination, and one fast charge on the way home on Sunday. That is totally reasonable and within the VW recommendations. You don't need to be tethered only to your home charging.

Click to expand...

Agreed, whole heartedly, as you know the design limitations, and are more well versed than most... I just don't want people to get the idea that tethering up to a level 3 fast charger for 20 or 30 minutes for a high speed 80 to90% SOC is "normal" usage, it is the exception, rather than the rule. Do it once in a while, not regularly. Infrequently, would be the best suggestion.