Hopelessly confused by power requirements of Porsche mobile charger

[fblm]

Stupidly my house has 120/208V power. My 4S is in a container mid-Atlantic so I have a few weeks to get everything in order . The first thing I see in the "Porsche Mobile Charger Connect" manual is that it is only to be used with one phase... hmm, ok so then I check in the "Porsche Wall Charger Connect" manual and on page 15 it clearly states the charger is a 1 phase device and shouldn't be connected to a 3 phase source before detailing how to connect it to a 3 phase source?!? Er ok. The wall charger is just a box with a mobile charger in it right?

Now, my garage has a 14/50 socket on a 50A breaker with L1 at 120V to N, L2 at 120V to N and L1 to L2 at 208V (so presumably 120degrees apart). Can I plug the Mobile charger into that with the appropriate 14/50 pigtail?

Appreciate there are several threads on the subject but I still can't find an answer. Also, "ask your electrician" down here in the Caribbean is, let's say, a bit hit and miss and will be a lot easier if I have a clue what I'm asking about first! Many thanks all.

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[F16HTON]

You can, as long as the pigtail has the X,Y,Z to X,Y,W lined up correctly. Is it possible to post a picture of your wall receptacle?

I think this may be the configuration you are looking for.

I read that in this type of situation, many will install a "buck boost" transformer to cover the 3 phase 208V power to single phase 240V power for slightly more efficient charging.

 

[Jhenson29]

I made a post, but I deleted it because I wanted to review the manual first, but I couldn’t find it. Does anyone know where the installation manual is online?

Edit: Never mind. I found it.

Edit 2: I thought I found it, but I didn’t. Still looking.

 

[fblm]

I made a post, but I deleted it because I wanted to review the manual first, but I couldn’t find it. Does anyone know where the installation manual is online?

Edit: Never mind. I found it.

Edit 2: I thought I found it, but I didn’t. Still looking.

Yeah they don't make it easy to find!

Porsche wall charger connect - operating and installation manual

 

[W1NGE]

PMCC is 22kW in UK. Hard to imagine USA is different. Single phase 240V is 7.4kW @ 32A. are you sure your PMCC is not the same i.e. can accommodate up to a 3 phase supply?

 

[fblm]

You can, as long as the pigtail has the X,Y,Z to X,Y,W lined up correctly. Is it possible to post a picture of your wall receptacle?

Thank you. Yes possibly. Would need to ensure my Neutral is earthed at the panel and possibly disconnect Neutral at the plug I think.

Earth top, L1, L2 either side and N at bottom. I already have the 14-50 "pigtale" to the charger. I guess I could do a continuity test to confirm where "XYZ" come out at the charger end...

 

[JimBob]

If your voltage measurements at the plug are as stated then the plug appears to be correctly wired and you are on a Wye 208 voltage system. You will need to set the dip switch on the charger to the Wye 208v position. Refer to the copy of the manual previously posted.

If you need an electrician, a commercial electrician maybe more suitable depending on the usual practice for residential wiring on your island.

 

[fblm]

If your voltage measurements at the plug are as stated then the plug appears to be correctly wired and you are on a Wye 208 voltage system. You will need to set the dip switch on the charger to the Wye 208v position. Refer to the copy of the manual previously posted.

If you need an electrician, a commercial electrician maybe more suitable depending on the usual practice for residential wiring on your island.

Thank you, I'll read the rest of the manual. Yes I (nervously) measured the voltages myself. I also checked the voltage between earth and Neutral was zero and checked continuity and they are connected so it does indeed look like the Wye configuration in the wall charger manual.

 

[Jhenson29]

Yeah they don't make it easy to find!

I kept trying to look up stuff for the mobile charger connect. I completely missed where you said “wall charger connect”manual. I should have gone back and reread your first post. Thanks.

 

[fblm]

You can, as long as the pigtail has the X,Y,Z to X,Y,W lined up correctly. Is it possible to post a picture of your wall receptacle?

...
I read that in this type of situation, many will install a "buck boost" transformer to cover the 3 phase 208V power to single phase 240V power for slightly more efficient charging.

Good news is the 14/50 pigtail does terminate the Neutral wire as per your Wye diagram. L1 comes out top right, L2 bottom right and earth central at the charger end... no idea if this is what the charger is expecting though. Plug it in and see if it melts I guess...

Not too worried about transforming to 240V. I only do about 20 miles a day.

 

[fblm]

I kept trying to look up stuff for the mobile charger connect. I completely missed where you said “wall charger connect”manual. I should have gone back and reread your first post. Thanks.

No you were right the first time. Even searching for wall charger connect manual I couldn't find it... have to add search term "208V" for Google to find the wall charger manual...

 

[Jhenson29]

Ok...redoing my deleted post now that I read through the manuals...

Disclaimer: I’m not a licensed electrician.

First, the wall charger connect is a different device. The is the upcoming 19.2kW charger from Porsche.

It does list 208V in its specs. It also gets hardwired which is why is had additional wiring information.

The mobile charger connect only lists 120/240. I would not connect it to 208 without getting confirmation from Porsche that it will run that way. My guess is that they’ll tell you no (else they would have spec’ed it that way).

I think it’s is an option to pull two phases to a 10kVA transformer and step it up to 240, but the primary side of the transformer will be drawing more than 40A and will need to be hardwired to a larger circuit. Honestly, that’s not super cheap and I’d probably just see if there are any 208V chargers available.

Regarding the 3-phase vs single phase, pulling any two phases from a 3-phase system is considered single phase.

 

[Jhenson29]

Something like this calls out 208/240.

https://www.evchargesolutions.com/PowerCharge-Energy-Connect-Residential-EV-Charger-p/e20swc.htm

 

[Jhenson29]

Interestingly, the PMC+ does list 208. So, I think they either messed up the PMCC manual or the extra PMCC electronics were not made for a 208 supply.

 

[fblm]

First, the wall charger connect is a different device. The is the upcoming 19.2kW charger from Porsche.
...

Ah. Well that's a bit of a spanner in the works and explains some of my confusion. However, THIS, Mobile charge connect manual says 208/240...

PMCC Manual

I guess there are now 2 Mobile Chargers? My car is coming new from the UK; no idea what charger it's coming with!

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