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MTOman
Member
I totally agree with this. We live in a sea of gadgets, not having anywhere to plug them in is a real bummer. Let's hope they're added in the future!
smorgasbord
Active Member
Using inverters in Tesla cars (Roadster and Model S) is somewhat problematic. Model X is probably the same.
With 90kWh of battery, people might try to use an inverter to make the car a backup power source for their house.
Johan
Ex got M3 in the divorce, waiting for EU Model Y!
The 12V battery is under dimensioned already... Even as the contractors to big battery is engaged you're still going to step down from ~400V DC to 12V DC and then (through your home installed inverter) up from 12V DC to 120V AC. The 12V system is not made for big loads.
Tesla could of course have created a separate 120V (230V in EU and other civilized parts of the world) AC inverter hooked to the big battery up to the tasks. But going through the 12V system becomes a bottle neck.
mspohr
Well-Known Member
People might try to do all kinds of stupid things and there is no cure for stupidity.
I believe the subject of this post is having an inverter to power relatively small loads (up to a few hundred watts) for camping, etc.
This can easily be done with the existing 12v plugs, wiring under the dash or direct wire to the "jumper terminals" under the nosecone and is trivial.
As for powering your house, that could theoretically be possible and it could conceivably be done some day by Tesla installing a large inverter wired directly to the 400v battery... but that is a different application and Tesla has not decided to to that (yet). It could be part of a Powerwall/ solar panel/ inverter package someday as there are lots of marketing (not technical) issues that need to be addressed.
I'm pretty sure you can operate an inverter all day long from a Tesla S, running a few hundred Watts, continuously.
Actually, several days long... without being connected at the charge port.
Regardless of the dimension (capacity) of the 12V, it will be recharged as needed by the big pack.
I don't see the problem in that, or what would be problematic about it: the inverter would work, right?
Actually, several days long... without being connected at the charge port.
Regardless of the dimension (capacity) of the 12V, it will be recharged as needed by the big pack.
I don't see the problem in that, or what would be problematic about it: the inverter would work, right?
Johan
Ex got M3 in the divorce, waiting for EU Model Y!
When the car shuts off the contactors between the 12V battery and big battery disengange mechanically. So you'd have to find a way to keep the car "on" continously. Also the real point of having a dedicated inverter on an S/X would be not to run stuff a "a few hundred watts" (which in a 120V system would be something like 2-4 amps) but to be able to run heavier stuff that needs thousands of watts. If you're just going to charge a laptop or something then just use the 12V socket in the cabin.
Gizmotoy
Active Member
Besides the number and location, I assumed that's why people wanted Tesla to handle the inverter instead of plugging their own into the 12V outlet. Clearly pulling directly from the HV battery provides more options that running everything through the 12V motorcycle battery, but also more complexity.
And that's the right answer for most applications. There are $20 12V adapters for just about everything. Why waste the energy going from DC to AC then back to DC when you can go straight in from the 12V. There are exceptions, of course, such as if you want to power your own rock band from the traction battery. Separately, I would love to see more 12V outlets scattered throughout both the S and the X.
Using your own inverter isn't as good because the 12v cigarette plug only puts out 15A at 12v, so 180 watts, and most cigarette adapter plug inverters will only allow you to output 100 watts through the cigarette adapter since it is truly crappy way to get 12v (it was never designed for proper power transfer).
To run a tv at a tailgate, you'll want about 500 watts capability (I know, Tvs use less than that, but I've yet to run across an inverter than actually runs at rated output).
Pulling from the tesla 12v battery system isn't problematic as Tesla engages the big battery through a DC-DC converter to keep it topped up. But yeah, a more elegant engineered solution that actually pulled directly from the big battery would have been better, hence my thought that Tesla missed an opportunity to be awesome.
To run a tv at a tailgate, you'll want about 500 watts capability (I know, Tvs use less than that, but I've yet to run across an inverter than actually runs at rated output).
Pulling from the tesla 12v battery system isn't problematic as Tesla engages the big battery through a DC-DC converter to keep it topped up. But yeah, a more elegant engineered solution that actually pulled directly from the big battery would have been better, hence my thought that Tesla missed an opportunity to be awesome.
Well, how many 12v sockets did Tesla provide then? Oh, only one at the front? Hmmm, not very user friendly. Also, 12v sockets are horrible - there is no proper standard for them, so any two plug/receptacles could work well, or have intermittent connections. Intermittent power is not fun.
nwdiver
Well-Known Member
Cyclone
Cyclonic Member ((.oO))
mspohr
Well-Known Member
Only if your time is worth nothing.
Drive to SuperCharger and charge your car - 1 hour plus travel time and get $10.00 worth of electricity... you earn about $7.50 an hour
OR
Get a minimum wage job - $7.50 an hour
Bangor Bob
Member
I use a 1000W inverter wired to my Volt's 12V battery for when the power goes out, which living halfway up a mountain happens quite often. The Volt can supply up to about 150A on the DC/DC converter. Works great, once the traction pack has exhausted the ~10kWh it can hold the gas motor will start cycling on and off. All the EV/PHEV manufacturers are missing a trick by not including 120V outlets and a beefy inverter.
That said, Nissan did develop something that connects to the traction pack and can provide emergency AC power.
BTW, I'm on a quest for a reasonably priced 12V to 240V split-phase inverter, 1.5kW with a 3kW surge should do nicely. That and a generator kit would actually power the entire house during an outage, aside from the well pump and the heat pump. Pop me a PM if you know of one...
That said, Nissan did develop something that connects to the traction pack and can provide emergency AC power.
BTW, I'm on a quest for a reasonably priced 12V to 240V split-phase inverter, 1.5kW with a 3kW surge should do nicely. That and a generator kit would actually power the entire house during an outage, aside from the well pump and the heat pump. Pop me a PM if you know of one...
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M67v
I just work here
Canuck
Well-Known Member
I agree it should have one but having one in my 2008 Tahoe Hybrid, I have rarely used it. Still, it's nice to have, plus 2 cigarette sockets front and back. For such high tech vehicles, they seem to forget techies need power outlets!
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