Wanted: MC120 charging cable

[Stuart]

Does anyone have a MC120 charging cable they'd be willing to sell? I expect there must be some people who have both a 70A HPC installed, and the MC240 travel cable, and don't anticipate ever using the MC120 cable. (I'd also consider buying an MC240, but I assume anyone who has one of those wouldn't have bought it in the first place if they didn't want it.)

 

[doug]

Or you can also just buy it from Tesla for 600 bucks.

Tesla Motors - charging

 

[johnr]

Or you can also just buy it from Tesla for 600 bucks.

Tesla Motors - charging

600 bucks for an extension cord??? I can understand a fair markup ... but this couldn't have cost more than $50 to make...

 

[TEG]

Hmm. The MC120 cable is a nice color match to DaveD's Roadster!

 

[DaveD]

So does the Yellow Jacket extension cord that I carry along with the MC120.

 

[vfx]

600 bucks for an extension cord??? I can understand a fair markup ... but this couldn't have cost more than $50 to make...

A MilSpec (Military Specification) connector like this one appears to be, could easily run several hundred dollars alone.
The reason that the Military pays 1,000 dollars for a hammer etc. is that they will put a sometimes ridiculous amount of criteria (Specifications) for a supplier to meet on products to ensure soldier safety and no-loose scenarios in battle.

Something like the connector might be required work perfectly wherever a soldier might be stationed -withstanding freezing temperatures below 100 and above 300 degrees, add to that a crazy amount of duty cycles and high impact/crush requirements often in those same temp extremes. The suppliers of military contracts have to make them out of exotic materials, do insane counts of duty-cycle testing, and then sell then in low volumes. This all makes costs stratospherically high. On the good side, we in the private sector get some very nice products developed for "free" by the Military and NASA.

Now add to the connector price any consumer cable required federal testing by bodies like UL (Underwriters Labratory) and sales in the few thousand. That makes the price pretty high. They originally promised the car would come with a cable with a lot of adapters to plug in anywhere but besides dropping that, a few months ago they bumped up the price on everything when auto industry veterans they hired told them about where to make profits.
Oh, and you cannot drive the car without one so they can stick it to you.

 

[johnr]

Thanks vfx for the explanation. I doubt the cable is military-spec, but I've heard UL charges a pretty hefty fee for their testing and for a small production of a proprietary cable they'd have to pass along that cost. Still seems much higher than it has to be though. Of course when put in perspective it's insignificant - for a $100k car a $600 cable is nothing.

 

[vfx]

Thanks vfx for the explanation. I doubt the cable is military-spec, .

Yeah, cable, even MilSpec cable is pretty easily aquired and is not too unreasonably priced since they sell by by the mile and the "quantity" part of pricing has been met.

It's just that plug that goes in the car. Can anyone who has one post the manufacture info here? Maybe we can find a supplier.