Tesla Wall Connector Installation Question for future proofing

[npa201]

Hi all,
I'm a total newb here but have a MYP on order for Feb. I'm intending to install a Tesla Wall Connector mostly because of looks and I like the simplicity of it. However, I'm not entirely sure I'm going to be a long-term Tesla owner. The MYP performance seems like a great daily driver for me to commute into NYC and deal w/ tunnel traffic given its size, height, and cost relative to the EV competition. But if my public transportations become more readily available (like they used to be before the pandemic and my bus lines ran frequently), the MYP may not be my ideal vehicle (I'd either go sportier like a Taycan but also have a Rivian R1S on order or maybe the Macan EV will be out).

So my understanding is if I install a Wall Connector I go 60amp. If in 2-3 years, I trade-in the MYP and go with a competitor, what happens then? I've seen there are adaptors that I attach the wall connector wire and then I'm good to go on these other cars? Or will I need to have an electrician come and uninstall the wall connector and put in a NEMA 14-50 outlet and then change the circuit breaker to 50amp? Just want to better understand if the Wall Connector is a bad idea. Thanks in advance.

 

[thecavalry]

You could either get an adapter, or replace the charger with a j1772 model of some kind/brand.

 

[npa201]

Got it. The price of my install is quite expensive given the placement of my circuit breaker and the garage being on opposite sides of the house (and I have a long house) so my quote for this is now at $2500 before the $500 tesla connector. I just want to make sure that this $3K investment in 2 years maybe costs me another ~$500 at most and not another $2000. By the sound of it, it seems like I should be good to go with the tesla connector. Thanks.

 

[Sophias_dad]

Hi all,
I'm a total newb here but have a MYP on order for Feb. I'm intending to install a Tesla Wall Connector mostly because of looks and I like the simplicity of it. However, I'm not entirely sure I'm going to be a long-term Tesla owner. The MYP performance seems like a great daily driver for me to commute into NYC and deal w/ tunnel traffic given its size, height, and cost relative to the EV competition. But if my public transportations become more readily available (like they used to be before the pandemic and my bus lines ran frequently), the MYP may not be my ideal vehicle (I'd either go sportier like a Taycan but also have a Rivian R1S on order or maybe the Macan EV will be out).

So my understanding is if I install a Wall Connector I go 60amp. If in 2-3 years, I trade-in the MYP and go with a competitor, what happens then? I've seen there are adaptors that I attach the wall connector wire and then I'm good to go on these other cars? Or will I need to have an electrician come and uninstall the wall connector and put in a NEMA 14-50 outlet and then change the circuit breaker to 50amp? Just want to better understand if the Wall Connector is a bad idea. Thanks in advance.

No, no no, a thousand times NO. 60 amp is the MAX not the REQUIREMENT. You can set a wall connector up with anything(well, in increments) from 15 to 60 amp breakers.

But yes, if you install with 60 today, as long as the electrician either runs wire/conduit that includes the neutral conductor(and caps instead of cutting it off), swapping to a 14-50 later is not a big deal. Note that its not GREAT, because the 14-50 itself will cost $50-100, the GFCI breaker that you'll need is another $100-$200, and so on. But at least you won't have to run a new wire.

 

[Sophias_dad]

A side note is that you might want to just go for the 14-50 right now and accept that you'll only get 32 amp charging out of the UMC, and get no fixed-charging device at all. Unless you take LOTS of roadtrips or absolutely need the extra 16 amps of charging(32->48), only keep the j1772 in the car, and you pretty much have everything you need.

 

[Sophias_dad]

If anything, I'd expect the 3 to be somewhat better than other cars at resisting hydroplaning because its around 25% heavier.

 

[Rocky_H]

Simple answer could be just put in a J1772 station now, and then in the future, you won't have to change anything at all.

Or the other simple answer is DON'T switch it to any kind of outlet in the future. Just remove the Tesla brand wall connector and swap a J1772 type of wall connector onto it. The reason there is because of the really annoying requirement that receptacles being used for EV charging must use a really expensive and hard-to-get GFCI breaker, while hard wired devices don't.

 

[npa201]

Thanks for all the input. I would only drive about 50-60 miles per day so perhaps I don't need the Tesla Connector. Is there a j1772 type wall connector that people are using today and justing the adaptor on it with the Tesla? Is that the most future proofed way of doing things?

 

[Sophias_dad]

Thanks for all the input. I would only drive about 50-60 miles per day so perhaps I don't need the Tesla Connector. Is there a j1772 type wall connector that people are using today and justing the adaptor on it with the Tesla? Is that the most future proofed way of doing things?

TBH, at 50-60 mi/day, the UMC plugged into a standard wall socket would work fine. If you happen to have a 20 amp 120V outlet, that's even better.

I'd just use the UMC with a 14-50 for now(if you even want to bother with the 14-50). Chances are good that j1772(and all other chargers) will become cheaper over time.

 

[bjhinkle]

If you like the Tesla wall charger looks, just use that. It works on any mode EV that accepts J1772 (excluding the e-Golf but that hardly counts).

 

[evnautilus]

If you like the Tesla wall charger looks, just use that. It works on any mode EV that accepts J1772 (excluding the e-Golf but that hardly counts).

Isn't the J1772 -> Tesla adapter much cheaper/easier (it actually comes with the car), than the Tesla -> J1772 adapter? Seems to me like the easiest thing is to get a standard J1772 EVSE and just leave the Tesla adapter on it.

 

[Sophias_dad]

Isn't the J1772 -> Tesla adapter much cheaper/easier (it actually comes with the car), than the Tesla -> J1772 adapter? Seems to me like the easiest thing is to get a standard J1772 EVSE and just leave the Tesla adapter on it.

Yes

 

[ocshellback]

Thanks for all the input. I would only drive about 50-60 miles per day so perhaps I don't need the Tesla Connector. Is there a j1772 type wall connector that people are using today and justing the adaptor on it with the Tesla? Is that the most future proofed way of doing things?

I have both the Charge Point Home Flex and the Tesla Gen 3 charger hardwired on separate 60 amp circuits. I would get the Charge Point or other j1772 and have it hardwired with 60 amp breaker. Then you'll be good to go for any future EV. For my M3, I prefer to use the Tesla charger as I don't have to use an adapter and you can press the button on the handle to open the charge port. Even though I can charge my M3 at the 48 miles per hour range, I frequently lower it through the app so it doesn't charge as fast and thus uses less electricity (I have solar and try to charge at the peak of the day). I like the option of being able to charge at full speed if needed. You can also consider the NEMA 14-50 hardwired receptacle so you can use the portable 32 amp Tesla charger. I have that as well in case the hard wired ones dies.

 

[P3dStealth]

I have the chargepoint and it can charge anything. The Tesla comes with an adapter.

That said I don't need it. I would have been fine with a 14-50 outlet and the mobile connector.

I commute over 120miles round trip. I leave the charger at 32amps anyway.

 

[dogmodes]

If you can I’d get a couple quotes, it’s not uncommon for one to be $1000 cheaper for the exact same thing. What is your electrician installing for $2500? Is he putting a sub panel in or just a single outlet? In your case if you’re thinking years down the line and it’s a PIA, I’m wondering if maybe over installing it now might not be a better choice. Assuming he quoted you to run a copper line to the charger and no sub panel, I would think maybe running Aluminum (1/3 the cost but can’t be run directly to charger, charger needs copper) and putting a 100Amp subpanel in might make more sense. Then a short copper feed to charger. For instance in 5 years vehicle to Grid may be more of a thing and having a 100Amp service may be needed I think Ford is doing a 80amp charger for theirs. Or if you have 2 electric cars then you can easily cover 2 charging stations, etc.

Also I’m a big fan of going with j1772 chargers and not the tesla for future use, but the tesla charger is the sexiest for sure. Make sure you check to see if your local power company has a rebate program. They may dictate what type of charger has to be used.

 

[npa201]

The quote shows:
-Install 50 amp feeder wire from main electrical panel to new outlet for Tesla charger. We have freed up a significant amount of the main electrical panel due to a kitchen remodel that went entirely to a new panel. It seems if i really care about minimizing my charge time, I should tell them to update it to 60amp if I use the Tesla Connector. I'd have to go and measure but if I'd have to guess we are talking about 120-130 feet of copper.
-Install load shedding module on new circuit to prevent overload of generator (we have a whole house generator)
-Install one outlet for charging unit or direct wire Tesla wall charging unit
-Install conduit around garage to the location of new charger (about 40 feet as it will run up garage wall, across the garage ceiling, and then down other side).
-Install and supply new breakers for circuit in electrical panel.

I have no idea how much this actual cost breaks down to. However, I recently had them install a bunch of smart switches in my house (probably a good 30 or so) and it required rewiring in my house and for about 6 hours of work with two electricians the labor portion (so not the wire) came down to about $165/hr which I assume is pretty fair for the NYC metro area. In addition, I looked up the switches which could be purchased from a build.com and effectively they sold it to me at the same cost as build.com or a big box store. So I don't assume I'm getting major discounts here but it it didn't seem like they were ripping me off. Or am I wrong here?

Thanks all for the additional info. If we are indeed heading towards an EV world, I have to assume our next car may also potentially go EV (particularly if some of these cars can actually hit 400+ range). So I may have to ask electrician about whether I've future proofed this enough and bring up some of your suggestions.

 

[Ron J.]

Another option is to install a J1772 EV charger now and use a J1772-to-Tesla adapter (comes with car and $50 for extra one from Tesla store) with your upcoming Tesla MY then you can use it without the adapter for charging non-Tesla EVs. I ended up installing a ChargePoint Home Flex charger and hardwired it on a 60amp circuit and it can provide the same 48 amp max. charging rate as the Tesla wall charger. I wanted to be able to use the same charger with a MY and also with a plug-in hybrid EV. An EV charger that plugs in to a 14-50 or 6-50 outlet is limited to a charging rate of no more than 40 amps (using the max. 50 amp circuit breaker for those types of outlets). So if you want max. charging rate for a level 2 charger then the charger needs to support a max. 48 amp. charge rate and be hard wired on a 60 amp circuit (this requires 6 gauge wiring from the breaker box to the charger). Note most J1772 chargers are limited to either 32 amp or 40 amps and only a few support the same 48 amp charging rate as the Tesla wall charger.