Why don't portable, emergency 10KWh chargers exist yet?

[Rogue Synapse]

is towing any EV with all four wheels planted even a good idea? what if the vehicles were traveling at highway speeds? it's also kind of surprising that the nanny controls in the Tesla didn't prevent all of that from happening (force it in to neutral, etc).

Nope, of course it's not a good idea. But the video is a fun experiment to show it's within the realm of possibility, and Tesla's software/traction control/etc doesn't stop it. The reason that towing EVs with wheels on the ground is a terrible idea is due to the traction motors being engaged and interacting with the battery when the car is off, but in this case the car was in drive, being steered by a human, and apparently to the car it's like driving down a big downhill grade and charging.

 

[Jedi2155]

There is this company I found awhile ago....haven't checked in with them for long time because they didn't have the product out yet.

Portable Electric Vehicle Charger | Eliminating Range Anxiety | SparkCharge

edit: seems they are still not selling to individual owners yet, just partners.

These also cost about $10,000 for a set.....

 

[hmmwv]

Mobile charging vans from NIO is pretty widespread in China, Tesla owners get charge from them all the time. Funny thing is since the vans themselves are BEV sometimes to reach more remote areas NIO will flatbed the vans to those locations.

 

[Kevy Baby]

Portable, truck mounted welders typically consist of a generator and an arc welder (powered by the generator). I've seen these generators with 14-50 outlets. I realize there is a bit more to electricity than volts and amps, but I wonder if you could plug into the generator for a bit of charge. But one drawback is how long the truck would have to sit there with you for even 20-30 miles of added range.

I get 26-27 miles per hour charge on my 14-50. So, about an hour

 

[cstork]

It's probably faster for them just to tow the car in question to a charging station.

You can't tow a Tesla. You have to put it on a flat bed by someone who knows what they are doing. A 10KWh fast charge should take 5 minutes.

 

[cstork]

Doesn't Tesla have mobile chargers to supplement supercharged when they're clogged.

Using battery specs of Panasonic cells used in Teslas, 10kwh capacity would be around 50kg, plus controls, packaging, etc, maybe 100kg total.

The powerwall holds 13kwh and weighs 100kg or so. It's not the largest or heaviest thing to carry around

Yes, exactly. Cheaper, lighter, faster than a generator.

 

[Jedi2155]

People also need to keep in mind that as most of the proposed non-generator (battery systems), unless the battery is large you can't pull or push much more power than the capacity of the pack.

In battery designing this is usually called the C rate and you don't want to draw more than 1-3 C continuously for very long or you're going to severely hurt the cells.

 

[p-f-g]

In Switzerland, the TCS (association like AAA) offers this service.

 

[run-the-joules]

You can't tow a Tesla. You have to put it on a flat bed by someone who knows what they are doing. A 10KWh fast charge should take 5 minutes.

I use “tow” as a generic for “move a vehicle on the road with another vehicle”. Sue me.

 

[smatthew]

You can't tow a Tesla. You have to put it on a flat bed by someone who knows what they are doing. A 10KWh fast charge should take 5 minutes.

You know that the only fast chargers out there that can charge at the rate you quoted are superchargers? 10kWh in 5 minutes = 120kW charge rate.

 

[yerEVan]

I use “tow” as a generic for “move a vehicle on the road with another vehicle”. Sue me.

I represent the TWA. Tow Watchers of America. We have officially filed a suit against your brazen use of our most cherished word.

I hope you learn, in the future, to be more careful. This hurts me more than you.

 

[p-f-g]

More details :

The battery has a capacity of 12 kWh and the charging power is 11 kW.

 

[webbah]

You know that the only fast chargers out there that can charge at the rate you quoted are superchargers? 10kWh in 5 minutes = 120kW charge rate.

Not true at all. Ionity chargers often charge faster than SuperChargers here in Europe! I can pull 200 kW or more from Ionity.

 

[smatthew]

Not true at all. Ionity chargers often charge faster than SuperChargers here in Europe! I can pull 200 kW or more from Ionity.

Yes, but this thread is about portable emergency chargers. No way you will get a 120kW charge rate from a portable emergency charger. Even Tesla's semi truck portable charger only charges at 72kw......

 

[cstork]

You know that the only fast chargers out there that can charge at the rate you quoted are superchargers? 10kWh in 5 minutes = 120kW charge rate.

Good point. Perhaps not 10kWh in 5 minutes, but 10-15 minutes should work (40-60 kW). I note that the Tesla 75 kWh battery can deliver 430 kW of power.

 

[smatthew]

No way you're getting that fast of a charge from a mobile battery. Spark figures a 20kW charge rate.

 

[user212_nr]

You need to be very careful with your EV so that you do not "run out of gas". I know it can happen to anyone, but in many ways there is no excuse for it.

Turn off the HVAC and slow down, don't put yourself 50 miles out from a supercharger with 50 miles range.

In case you mess up, there is no need for an expensive truck to make things easier for you.

 

[thatgeekinit]

I'd imagine that the economics just favor flatbed tow trucks over any kind of charging truck. Flatbeds can tow any car, not just EVs. The cost of a truck, driver, and their time is the same either way. The difference between the marginal diesel usage to tow you to a supercharger vs to sit there and charge you enough to get their on your own is not enough to justify a dedicated charging vehicle versus a general purpose tow truck. Eventually the tow trucks will also be EVs but it still doesn't really change that towing you back to a SC, is the same or lower cost than charging you in place once the time-value of the truck and its driver are taken into account. This calculation gets even more favorable to towing as SCs fill in and 3rd party DC charging with standardized connectors become more common.