5-20 charging speed

[Tha_Ape]

I have a 16A 240V charger (on a 6-20 outlet) that I use on my Prius Prime. I'm using it on my Tesla while I wait for my 6-50 adapter to show up. It charges the Tesla at 14-15mi/hr. Divide that in half. 7 to 7.5mi/hr.

I even debated whether or not that was good enough. It probably is, but I hate having to take that adapter on and off every time I want to swap charging each car. Plus for $35 its not exactly breaking the bank.

 

[TomServo]

I got a solid 7 mph on a 5-20 outlet while visiting our SIL/dau over the Independence Day weekend. It never wavered.

 

[alekaras]

I got a solid 7 mph on a 5-20 outlet while visiting our SIL/dau over the Independence Day weekend. It never wavered.

Wow, that's way over the 4 mph that I've seen most people posting, as well as what the Tesla shop advertises. Do you have a newer model MY? Could the charging be more efficient on newer models?

 

[jsight]

Wow, that's way over the 4 mph that I've seen most people posting, as well as what the Tesla shop advertises. Do you have a newer model MY? Could the charging be more efficient on newer models?

7 sounds a tad high to me, but I don't think in terms of miles added so I could be wrong. You should get almost exactly 2% per hour unless the temperature is very low.

 

[Sophias_dad]

7 sounds a tad high to me, but I don't think in terms of miles added so I could be wrong. You should get almost exactly 2% per hour unless the temperature is very low.

You can get 5 on a 5-15. 5-20 should be 33% more than that, so 6.65 rounded up to 7. (ya, I'm ignoring any rounding that went into the 5)

Thinking of it a different way, 16 amps times 120 volts is 1920w, so 1920wh per hour, divided by 259 wh/mile is 7.4 miles per hour.

 

[TomServo]

Wow, that's way over the 4 mph that I've seen most people posting, as well as what the Tesla shop advertises. Do you have a newer model MY? Could the charging be more efficient on newer models?

No, wish I had taken a photo, didn’t think it was anything special.

 

[heyitsme]

Does model Y come with 5-20 adapter already or do I need to purchase one?

 

[jcanoe]

Does model Y come with 5-20 adapter already or do I need to purchase one?

The Tesla vehicles currently come with the 5-15 power plug adapter. If you want to use the 5-20 adapter you have to purchase it separately ($35.)

 

[Tha_Ape]

Does model Y come with 5-20 adapter already or do I need to purchase one?

You can likely use the 5-15 and just plug it into a 5-20 with something like this too...

Nema 5-20P Power Extension Cord, [UL CUL Listed] Heavy Duty 12AWG Nema 5-20P to 5-20R Extension Power Cable,20Amp T Blade Male to Female Cable,1ft - - Amazon.com

Nema 5-20P Power Extension Cord, [UL CUL Listed] Heavy Duty 12AWG Nema 5-20P to 5-20R Extension Power Cable,20Amp T Blade Male to Female Cable,1ft - - Amazon.com

www.amazon.com

 

[Rocky_H]

You can likely use the 5-15 and just plug it into a 5-20 with something like this too...

No one would need that, though for just plugging into an outlet. All of the 5-20 outlets in homes are not just 5-20 only. They are always built with the "T" shaped slot, so they are backward compatible to take either 5-15 or 5-20 plugs.

The only potential kind of use for that is if you have a 5-20 only kind of extension cord that you need to connect to something else.

 

[jsight]

You can likely use the 5-15 and just plug it into a 5-20 with something like this too...

Nema 5-20P Power Extension Cord, [UL CUL Listed] Heavy Duty 12AWG Nema 5-20P to 5-20R Extension Power Cable,20Amp T Blade Male to Female Cable,1ft - - Amazon.com

Nema 5-20P Power Extension Cord, [UL CUL Listed] Heavy Duty 12AWG Nema 5-20P to 5-20R Extension Power Cable,20Amp T Blade Male to Female Cable,1ft - - Amazon.com

www.amazon.com

You can always use a 5-15 in the 5-20 outlet, the problem is that the Tesla charger will not pull 16 amps if you are using the 5-15 pigtail. You have to get the 5-20 pigtail (or some other adapter that tells the car more current is possible) for the car to do that.

 

[Jeremy3292]

My M3 pulled consistently 8 miles an hour today FYI. House is newer, 2012 construction, so good wiring I assume. Was on a GFCI outlet too

 

[Tha_Ape]

My M3 pulled consistently 8 miles an hour today FYI. House is newer, 2012 construction, so good wiring I assume. Was on a GFCI outlet too

Youre getting 16A so you must be on a better outlet, most are 12A. 16A x 120V = 1920 W... I'm gonna use rough numbers because i'm lazy...

350mi on a 80kWh battery means ~4mi/kWh you're charging at about 2kW, so yea, 8mi/hr is about right.

 

[Jeremy3292]

Youre getting 16A so you must be on a better outlet, most are 12A. 16A x 120V = 1920 W... I'm gonna use rough numbers because i'm lazy...

350mi on a 80kWh battery means ~4mi/kWh you're charging at about 2kW, so yea, 8mi/hr is about right.

I find it interesting that Tesla massively under shoots the miles per hour on their charging speed for outlets chart. Says maximum of 4 mph for an M3 and I’m getting double that lol.

 

[TomServo]

This is the outlet I use at my SIL home, get 7 mph. After an inspection we opted not to change it out. The original owner of his house had it installed.

We will be visiting over Christmas so this will come in handy keeping the car charged and conditioned while parked outside for that week.

 

[ATPMSD]

If you will need an extension cord, be sure it is of sufficient size:

For up to 50' you need 12-guage
up to 75' 10-guage
up to 100' 8-guage

 

[jcanoe]

If you will need an extension cord, be sure it is of sufficient size:

For up to 50' you need 12-guage
up to 75' 10-guage
up to 100' 8-guage

A 14 gauge extension cord would be fine for up to 50 ft and 15 amps.

A 12 gauge extension cord would be fine for up to 100 ft and 15 amps.

(10 gauge is generally the largest size wire you can find in a 120V extension cord.)

Never use a 16 gauge extension cord for charging an EV. Always use the shortest length extension cord that will reach.

Extension Cord Size Chart - Understanding Wire Gauge and Amps

 

[ATPMSD]

A 14 gauge extension cord would be fine for up to 50 ft and 15 amps.

Agree, but based on the photo and prior comments, this appears to be a 20-amp circuit

 

[ATPMSD]

Based on a 5% voltage drop allowance, instead of 3%, for 20-amps you can use:

For up to 50' you need 14-guage
up to 75' 12-guage
up to 100' 10-gauge

Probably more reasonable.

 

[jcanoe]

Based on a 5% voltage drop allowance, instead of 3%, for 20-amps you can use:

For up to 50' you need 14-guage
up to 75' 12-guage
up to 100' 10-gauge

Probably more reasonable.

Agreed. When charging using a 20A circuit the Tesla vehicle would never exceed 16A.