I bought a 2015 Nissan Leaf in Canada. It comes with a level 1 charger. I thought this would be fine for our use since there’s plenty of time overnight to recharge to make up for the light daily commuting usage. The problem is the owner’s manual says level 1 charging is only for emergency use. A level 2 charger is considered a normal charger and this is not just recommended but required. However, Nissan doesn’t sell the charger or installation. The Nissan salesman recommends a dedicated 30 amp 240 volt service which isn’t quite enough for a charger capable of keeping up with the onboard 6.6kw charger. Nobody can tell me why the level 1 charger supplied with the vehicle is not for regular use and worse than that nobody seems to able to sell me a charging station that uses a 30 amp dedicated service in Canada. Why does the charging station supply the onboard charger? Seems like an extra unnecessary step.
What i have learned is that the level 1 charger has higher distortion especially at low charge rates. Its actually the onboard charger that doesn’t like the lower charge rates. The charging efficiency is much lower than a level 2 charger. I wonder why Nissan doesn’t just make an onboard charger that is more efficient at lower charge rates. What’s wrong with trickle charging Li-ion batteries in principle?
The best anyone has been able to do is refer me to this forum where apparently good information is available but from what I can tell you guys are building your own electric cars. I don’t want to make a career out of trying to emulate Elon Musk. I just want to say goodbye to the IC engine once and for all (as much as possible one step at a time etc) . What a ridiculous engineering contraption designed solely around the guiding principle that decomposed dinosaurs are the cheapest and easiest energy source on the planet as long as we ignore the long term implications. Going electric makes me feel smart. Its empowering. Its the long overdue future. I want to support companies like Nissan developing electric cars but they are their worst enemies when they obfuscate the truth which is that you need to spend an extra couple of thousand dollars on an installed charging station sucker. Its just like my business, solar energy, where we (not me personally) tell people what they want to hear, trick them, and extract their money and justify it all in the name of business or saving the world. Electric cars are a technology and technology doesn’t move forward with obfuscation. I shouldn’t have to resort to this forum to get basic technical answers about charging technology.