Charger FAQ/Explanation

[Babalouie]

Thanks to @borski

1) The Lucid “charger” is the Wunderbox charger that is built into the car. However, you’ll hear “charger” overused to mean EVSE because EVSE is so much more annoying to say.

2) EVSE is “Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment.” It is the generic term for the device that regulates the charging, typically third party. For example, Electrify America has lots of EVSEs all around the country. You may hear them called “charging stations”; same idea. There are also home EVSEs you can install, which are the ones like Wallbox pulsar plus, JuiceBox, Chargepoint, etc. *Technically*, the cable the Lucid comes with is also an EVSE, just a relatively dumb one.

3) the Lucid comes with a charging cable (or basic EVSE) in the trunk. It can be used to plug into any NEMA 14-50 outlet (where it will charge at 40 amps) or a 110v outlet (where it will trickle charge *extremely* slowly).

4) the reason to install a home EVSE is two-fold: a) if you hardwire it, it can charge at 48A on a 60A circuit (which is faster than the 40A you’d get on a 50A circuit), and b) you can schedule charging and control it remotely. If you have “time of use” pricing from your utility, the latter point is important so you don’t have to manage plugging in or unplugging manually. You do not *have* to hardwire a third party EVSE and can just plug it into a 14-50. If you do, you don’t get the extra speed but still get the charging automation.

5) if you install an EVSE, you can leave the charging cable or mobile EVSE in the trunk and use it for road trips or emergencies.

6) the Lucid Wallbox EVSE is not out yet, but we are expecting it this month or next month. It will be able to support 80A charging on a 100A circuit (assuming your wiring supports it), and will eventually support V2H (or vehicle 2 home) backup, but not at launch.

7) the charging cable the Lucid is supplied with will work just fine if you have a 14-50 and is all you need; however, be aware that most residential 14-50 outlets are not made for constant plugging and unplugging and are likely to wear out over time. You can install an industrial 14-50 outlet, but those are a bit more expensive.

I installed an industrial 14-50 outlet in my garage and bought a 2nd Lucid charging cable. I keep one plugged in to the 14-50 outlet in my garage with the cable hung on a hook. I plug in when I arrive home. I keep the 2nd Lucid charging cable in my trunk (one never knows).

I typically have the charge limit set to 80% unless I’m going on a 100+ mile trip then I’ll charge it to 90 or 95% and leave the next morning. I don’t let the car sit charged higher than 80%.

Lucid has told me if the car is sitting in my garage at 80% charge, when it drops to 75% the car will wake up on its own and charge back up to 80% - I have not verified that. If I open the Lucid app on my phone, charging starts - if I’m below 80% it charges up to the 80% limit, else charging starts and stops very quickly.

 

[DeaneG]

You can certainly share a singe charging station between several EVs. But we find it more convenient to have a charging station located next to the charging port of each EV in the garage. That way, we can charge independently and there is no need to plan ahead, shuffle cars, or have any friction or worry over the process.

You could install one 50 amp or 60 amp circuit and use two power-sharing charging stations like Tesla's Universal Wall Connector or another unit. But if you have panel space and power available, I'd just run two separate circuits with 50 amp or 60 amp breakers and hardwire both charging stations for better safety and charging speed.

We have a ChargePoint Home Flex hardwired on an older 40 amp circuit for my wife's EV (on a left over circuit from 2011 Leaf days), and a Lucid Home Charging Station hardwired on a 60 amp circuit (left over from a 2018 Tesla Model 3). If I were to do it again, I'd have installed a second ChargePoint instead of Lucid's charging station, as the cord is lighter and more flexible, the connector a little nicer, and I only had a 60-amp circuit available anyway, which the ChargePoint can make full use of.

 

[openball]

Good question. Any charger will charge any car with a compatible plug. They are pretty much all the same thing with different software and appearances. For example, I have a JuiceBox that I use to charge my Jaguar and my Lucid with no problems in either car. I know the general consensus here on the forum is that hardwired is more predictable than having an outlet, but I went the opposite way. I had my electrician install a 50 amp circuit with an appropriate industrial level NEMA 15-40 outlet. That way I can plug-in a 40 amp charger. If the charger needs to be replaced, I can simply unplug it and plug in a new one. You may wish to have a higher amperage outlet installed if you plan to use a faster charger, but for me 40 amps is plenty for overnight charging.

I was about to respond with the same recommendation. After having an EV for a few months now, and waiting on a second, I should have added a second outlet. I believe you will need two chargers if you have two or more working adults using your cars

 

[Bobby]

I was about to respond with the same recommendation. After having an EV for a few months now, and waiting on a second, I should have added a second outlet. I believe you will need two chargers if you have two or more working adults using your cars

My wife and I share the single charger. The Lucid’s range is so much higher than her car so she usually parks in that garage spot.

 

[openball]

My wife and I share the single charger. The Lucid’s range is so much higher than her car so she usually parks in that garage spot.

I will try this for a while. I'm planning for the Gravity, I drive a lot and have the habit of plugging in every day, my wife is routine work and back, so I guess we can share one, until we can't

 

[emoylv]

I have a 3-car garage so I installed an Autel 40A to cover the two-car bay. I checked to ensure the length of the Autel charge cable was sufficient. For the single-bay, I installed a 14-50R receptacle so I can use the Lucid mobile charger in case I wanted to park the Lucid there. I'm sorta future-proofing: If my next car requires the NACS port, I can either plug the new charge cable (presumably it comes with the new vehicle) into the 14-50R, or remove the receptacle and hard-wire an NACS-compatible EVSE in.

 

[Volund]

I feel like the EU solution to have the charging station mounted to the ceiling and having the cable hang down allows you to charge in multiple places without shifting around.

Wonder if anyone would try that lol

 

[Bill55]

Paired with wall mount garage door openers would be a great solution to charge either multiple bays or cars with charge ports in different locations.

 

[BACamster]

Paired with wall mount garage door openers would be a great solution to charge either multiple bays or cars with charge ports in different locations.

It is a good idea for part of the country that doesn't experience earthquake.

 

[hellolucid]

an excellent article from Ars which explains the different methods of testing EV range. i believe Lucid uses the two-cycle test for its range calculation. one interesting fact i learned is that automakers can adjust the results from the two-cycle test by a factor (>= 0.7x). from my experience, it appears that Lucid chose a different number than 0.7 to come up with their estimate.

Before the highway number is plugged in, though, it is reduced. The EPA takes the HFEDS number and multiplies it by 0.7. That's meant to account for aggressive driving and HVAC use. The EPA says that most automakers use this factor for their figures, but it's one place where automakers can tweak their figures.

 

[Adnillien]

an excellent article from Ars which explains the different methods of testing EV range. i believe Lucid uses the two-cycle test for its range calculation. one interesting fact i learned is that automakers can adjust the results from the two-cycle test by a factor (>= 0.7x). from my experience, it appears that Lucid chose a different number than 0.7 to come up with their estimate.

Lucid uses the 5 cycle test.

 

[hellolucid]

Lucid uses the 5 cycle test.

you're correct but that's interesting. from the article it seems like 5 cycle test is meant to better simulate real driving so how come the estimates from 5 cycle tests are more optimistic

US06 is a high-speed, high-acceleration test. It simulates an 8.01-mile (12.89-km) route and takes 596 seconds to complete. The top speed is 80.3 mph (129.23 km/h), and the average is 48.4 mph (77.89 km/h). Vehicles are required to accelerate to the test's varying speeds more quickly than in the HFEDS, using more energy. It’s meant to better simulate real driving.

SC03 is the air conditioning test. It is a 596-second test simulating a 3.6-mile (5.79-km) route. The top speed is 54.8 mph (88.19 km/h), and the average is 21.6 mph (34.76 km/h). This test is much like a shortened version of the UDDS, with the addition of air conditioning.

The last drive cycle is the Cold FTP. It's an exact copy of the UDDS listed above, but the ambient temperature must be −7.0 ± 1.7° C at the start of the test, with an average of −7.0 ± 2.8°C during the test. Instantaneous temperature temperatures may be above −4.0° C or below −9.0° C, but not for more than three minutes at a time during the test. At no time may the ambient temperatures be below −12.0° C or above −1.0° C.

 

[hydbob]

you're correct but that's interesting. from the article it seems like 5 cycle test is meant to better simulate real driving so how come the estimates from 5 cycle tests are more optimistic

This test has a top speed of 59.9 mph (96.4 km/h) and an average of 48.3 mph (77.73 km/h), and it takes 765 seconds to complete.

 

[Miami]

Thanks to @borski

3) the Lucid comes with a charging cable (or basic EVSE) in the trunk. It can be used to plug into any NEMA 14-50 outlet (where it will charge at 40 amps) or a 110v outlet (where it will trickle charge *extremely* slowly).

Thanks as always for all of the helpful information here. I believe the answer to my question is yes, but, given the potential damage if I’m wrong, I wanted to confirm that it’s okay to plug my Lucid into a standard 50 amp outlet at an RV park. I believe they’re standard NEMA 14-50 outlets.

 

[Adnillien]

Thanks as always for all of the helpful information here. I believe the answer to my question is yes, but, given the potential damage if I’m wrong, I wanted to confirm that it’s okay to plug my Lucid into a standard 50 amp outlet at an RV park. I believe they’re standard NEMA 14-50 outlets.

The Air will charge just fine from the RV park NEMA 14-50 outlet.

 

[borski]

Thanks as always for all of the helpful information here. I believe the answer to my question is yes, but, given the potential damage if I’m wrong, I wanted to confirm that it’s okay to plug my Lucid into a standard 50 amp outlet at an RV park. I believe they’re standard NEMA 14-50 outlets.

No problem

 

[dwpena]

I bought this:

TeslaTap MINI 80 AMP

Was planning to use it in my last trip but Calif decided to have a heat wave so I didn't get to try it out, driving an ICE instead.

Have you used this yet and what has been your experience? Any potential warranty issues to consider?

 

[EVCar]

Have you used this yet and what has been your experience? Any potential warranty issues to consider?

Actually not.
Others on the forum have.
I wouldn’t worry much about the warranty issue. It’s more like a CYA thing for them to say.

 

[Bunnylebowski]

Have you used this yet and what has been your experience? Any potential warranty issues to consider?

I’ve used a refurbished one from the previous generation which IMO gets stuck on the Tesla end too easily. Mine charged to 74% on a Tesla destination charger then the Tesla charger errored out, not the car. . My first Tesla Tap mini 80 amp broke off its plastic ground pin cover inside the Lucid charge port! I had to remove it with needle nose pliers. Needless to say I sent it back and asked for a refund. Instead of refunding me they sent me a new one, and that’s the one that was difficult to remove from the Tesla and but it eventually detached after I pulled on it very hard after holding the buttons as instructed and stepping on the Tesla cable with my foot. Many others have used the Mini80 amp without trouble…but not me.

 

[rmenon17]

The power outlet on my wall is only compatible with a Nema 6-50R plug and the one Lucid comes with is 14-50. Am I able to use the Nema 6-50 adapter that i have for my Tesla, attach it to the Lucid charger and then charge? Lucid says they believe 14-50 is the more reliable and commonly adopted version and does not have a 6-50 adapter. Any tips/ advice from fellow owners with the same issue would be highly appreciated.