My first EV will be Air GT this summer (I hope). I've tried to research & understand charging knowing that the Lucid wall charger isn't yet available and I need something in the interim. Can some of you "experts" confirm the following for me: If I install a NEMA 14-50 outlet, plug a Level 2 cable/cord into that outlet with a J1772 EV charging connector at the end, I should be able to use that to charge my car. Is that right? (Hey ... don't laugh ... it's taken me some time to figure this out!) Hoping eventually that the Lucid app will allow timing of charge to be set although I know I can purchase a wall mounted charger to do that as well. Just trying to understand the basics and "bare minimum" needed first. Thanks for any comments/advice.
First EV - Simple charging understanding
- Thread starter NPN
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if you install that outlet with a 50amp breaker, you can actually just plug in the cord that will come with the car. You do not need to buy anything else unless you want “smart charging”.
I'll add to this, if you haven't done the run yet, you could run the 100amp line and step it down to a 14-50 plug if you are leaning towards getting the Lucid Home Charger. This will future proof your connection for later at least on that end.
Agree to both of the previous comments. Things to note - make sure you have a 50 amp breaker on the NEMA14-50 plug. that will allow you to pull at 40 amps (80% of the breaker). That is the most you can draw without hardwiring, so just plug in and charge. That 40 amp draw @ 240 V will add 9.6 kW per hour into the battery. The Lucid GT battery is 112 kW so you can do the math on how long it takes at different battery percentages. In a NEMA14-50 plug, you don't want to plug/unplug a lot, just keep your EVSE (Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment, or the "charger" that you plug into the wall) plugged.
A third party EVSE can give you smart features, like charging from 12-6am or whenever the rates are the lowest. The car software does not allow you to do that yet. The mobile EVSE that comes with the car does not. I have a ChargePoint Flex for our Nissan Leaf. It can pull up to 50 amps (but requires hardwiring to get that rate) or will pull 40 amps if plugged into a 50 amp circuit. There are others where you can look at reviews (google - "state of charge tom moloughney")
If buying a third party EVSE, look at the amps it can pull. You want something that can do at least 40 amps. Anything lower will result in lower charge rates even though the car can go faster.
The Lucid Home charger will allow you to pull 80 amps or add 19.2 kw in an hour which is the most the GT will be able to pull in a level 2 charging session. That is twice as fast as any EVSE that you plug into a NEMA14-50 plug. But it needs to be hardwired into a 100 amp circuit. It is overkill for charging speed, likely be 2x the cost of the third party EVSEs, but offers bi-directional charging (vehicle to house with the right switches) and will future proof your garage.
Hope this helps!
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Thanks. This is very helpful. I appreciate it.
Thank you. This is helpful.
Thank you very much.
