I assume replacement is a long way off, but I was wondering if there’s a lifespan for the Tesla Mobile Connector. Mine stays in the garage plugged into a 240V receptacle, plugged into the car only a couple times an week, and it will only be unplugged when I take it on road trips a couple times a year. Just curious if the mobile connector will outlast my ownership (hopefully 7-10 years).
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DQOTD: Has Anyone Worn Out/Replaced a Tesla Mobile Connector?
- Thread starter Midpack
- Start date
I've wondered also since mine is treated exactly the same as yours and I bought it used. I'm tempted to buy a spare when I see them for $150-$180.
ucmndd
Well-Known Member
I still have my Gen1 from 2016 and it works great. It has had many many megawatt-hours run through it.
I'm still using my original mobile charging cable from March 2014. It's been my everyday charging solution in the garage ever since, for almost 10 years now. I sometimes will take it with me a couple of times a year on trips, but it mostly just stays plugged in and hanging on the wall.
I will mention this, though, about extending the life of charging equipment. Running at their maximum level can make them pretty warm, and the daily hot/cold cycles expands and contracts metals, so that's some build up of long term stress on connections and such in the electronics. So turning down the amps a little bit from their maximum rated level will keep them a little bit cooler and likely extend the life of them because there's less daily temperature swing.
I will mention this, though, about extending the life of charging equipment. Running at their maximum level can make them pretty warm, and the daily hot/cold cycles expands and contracts metals, so that's some build up of long term stress on connections and such in the electronics. So turning down the amps a little bit from their maximum rated level will keep them a little bit cooler and likely extend the life of them because there's less daily temperature swing.
Which limit are you talking about, the connector or the circuit? I home charge at 32A on a 50A circuit, so I am far below the circuit limit. Are you saying run below 32A? I am interested in extending the life of my setup, and I have plenty of time to charge longer if it is really a factor.
No, not the circuit. That already has a good limit set by NEC restrictions.
Yeah, that's what I mean. The connector has a maximum rating of 32A, and running it flat out at max level every time can get it kind of hot. (Picture running your car engine at redline RPMs all the time) The expanding and contracting from heat is especially an issue for electronics, where you have different metals connected and soldered together. And they expand and contract at different rates, so they can have stress and metal fatigue over time. So computers can have that problem too, where a solder connection on a circuit board breaks because of a lot of cycles of getting hot and cold. My old Tesla charge cable can do 40A, but I've kept it down at 31A for daily use to keep it cooler, and for what you mentioned--it doesn't matter to me if it takes 4 hour or 5 hours to fill up while I'm asleep.
davewill
Active Member
The cord and handle are subject to wear. I've worn out a J1772 cord (it developed a break close to the handle). I also had one J1772 handle burn up because of a bad connection inside.
It pays to handle the cord gently. Avoid stepping on it or running it over. The big thing it to avoid twisting the cable too much. This happens when you keep turning it in the same direction when you coil and uncoil it. For example, you take it off the wall and turn the right to plug in, then when you unplug it, you turn to the right again. Each time twisting it one full rotation. Or you take several loops off the wall then just pull the cord straight without letting the handle rotate to untwist the coard as you do it.
You can tell because the cord keeps getting harder to put back on the wall and has tight loops in it. I take the time each time to take the twists out of the cord as I put it up. I just wish my wife and son would follow suit.
It pays to handle the cord gently. Avoid stepping on it or running it over. The big thing it to avoid twisting the cable too much. This happens when you keep turning it in the same direction when you coil and uncoil it. For example, you take it off the wall and turn the right to plug in, then when you unplug it, you turn to the right again. Each time twisting it one full rotation. Or you take several loops off the wall then just pull the cord straight without letting the handle rotate to untwist the coard as you do it.
You can tell because the cord keeps getting harder to put back on the wall and has tight loops in it. I take the time each time to take the twists out of the cord as I put it up. I just wish my wife and son would follow suit.
NeverGoingBack
De-ICEd
My original MC started throwing a red T fault a couple months ago. Figured out it was the 5-15 adaptor that went bad for some reason. Got a new one.
We have been using the provided Gen2 Mobile Connector with our 2018 Model 3 for all our at home charging. The car has about 48,000 miles now and is approaching 6 years old in April. I don't see any signs of wear and we run it at the full 32 amps almost all the time. The only exception was when I was playing with Charge on Solar which reduces the car's charge rate to match the solar output.
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