Clipper Creek Level 2 charger deal.

[iDriver]

I know we've recently had a pretty large influx of new i-MiEV owners showing up, so I figured I'd share this bit of news. Looks like Clipper Creek is offering a "March Madness" sale
http://stores.intuitwebsites.com/ClipperCreekInc/StoreFront.bok

 

[JoeS]

Question for iMiEV owners of the Clipper Creek EVSE: has the compatibility issue been fixed and does it work perfectly with the Remote?

 

[Lithim]

Regarding the Clipper Creek Level 2 charger:

Received a notice from Mitsubishi today titled: Customer Satisfaction Campaign SC-13-001. Notice dated February, 2013.

It is for vehicles built from 10/28/2011 thru 9/20/2012

It specifically relates to "The current internal software programming for the EV-ECU is incompatible with the Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment charger produced by Clipper Creek."

Hope this helps.

Silver, ES with Quick charge. Houston

 

[benswing]

I certainly hope they will have an update to fix this.

 

[EVolutionEVS]

The issue has been fix in the IMiEV to resolve the compatibility problem.
But you will probably need to visit your Mitsubishi dealer to have the vehicle software updated.

 

[benswing]

Just got the same note as Lithim, and further down on the page it states that you can go to your dealer and they can do a download to fix it. Should have checked my mail first...

Update should take about half an hour.

 

[JoeS]

Most of us by now are aware of the Clipper Creek compatibility software update. My question specifically is for iMiEV owners of the Clipper Creek EVSE: does the L2 EVSE work perfectly (i.e., every time) with the Remote - both in setting the timers and climate controls without a single 'error'?

 

[iDriver]

JoeS, I've received the same letter just 3 days ago. I had already had the update applied during my annual maintenance, so I assume they just sent it to everyone, regardless.

As for the update and it's effects, as of right now i'm plugged into a Clipper Creek. I tried operating the Remote while sitting in the car, and it SEEMS to work just fine. I can send multiple commands, basically just push as many buttons as I want, and no scary Yellow :!: over a car light on the dash.

I'll keep trying it throughout the day, just to get more data points, but so far so good. If only my Wattstation was working so well...

 

[JoeS]

iDriver, thank you for your update. Good to know for those interested in the very good discount presently being offered by Clipper Creek. I don't suppose the Wattstation issue has been fixed with the Clipper Creek fix? With my L2 SPX Xpress, I randomly get errors using the Remote when setting charge times or pre-heat/pre-cool - sometimes they 'take' immediately, sometimes they 'take' on the second or third button-push, and sometimes no amount of button-pushing does any good. This is in contrast with the Mitsu L1 EVSE which works perfectly every time.

 

[jennrod12]

Joe,

I have the same issue with having to "send" my command more than once, usually. This has not changed with the Clipper Creek upgrade (I have an Avcon charger, fwiw).

Jenn

 

[iDriver]

Ok, I used my lunch break to do some testing and even took some video footage of it.

Clipper Creeks seem to work fine withe Remote after patch. (Now to figure out what the hell is going on with my Wattstation! :x )

First Video isn't great quality, it's a dark parking garage at my office, car was charging for about 2hours before began to test.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3KXZEA7spk

Second Video is better, outdoors and brighter. 20 min on charger before testing begins.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fjIJA0btEc

 

[danpatgal]

I'm seriously considering the Clipper Creek Level 2, since I returned my Schneider (Gen 1) due to intermittent drop outs. Of course, I'd hate to just repeat the problems. And I have considered the EVSE upgrade as the most cost effective option ... but don't like the idea of packing it up each time I might want to charge on the go and also if it breaks, I lose it, or it's stolen I have no backup way to charge.

I like that the Clipper Creek is small and portable, but I'm a little worried about a software fix: is it actually fixed after the update from Mitsubishi? Does anyone know exactly what they're fixing? Are there other problems with it? Has anyone had to deal with their customer service? (I was well served by Schneider, so I actually might buy their Gen2 EVLink - since I liked everything else about it.)

 

[aarond12]

I pulled the trigger (pun intended) and got one of the L2 chargers today. Why the change of heart? After yesterday's long journey (as the wife's ICE car was out of commission), I charged my i-MiEV via 8A L1 charging overnight... and it still wasn't finished charging this morning. I started my journey to work 3 bars down (starting from 2 bars). Granted, my journey to work is very short (18 miles round trip) but it was still a little disheartening to wake up and find my i-MiEV still charging this morning.

I think I will convert the Clipper Creek charger to have a standard 240V plug on the end like the EVSEUpgrade people do. I don't want to modify my charger as I am leasing my vehicle.

 

[DonDakin]

I also went for the clipper creek deal in March.

Bought the unit thru sun country highway which re-badges it here in Canada.

Most of the time L1 does the job for me but it's nice to be able to drain the battery deeply and then get it back to a usable range in a few hours rather then over night. It really helps more on the weekends with use ability.

I had the clipper creek update done but the remote is not working the same way as with the L1 charger. lot's of fooling around to make it work. There is a pattern but I just don't have it at my finger tips. Before the update I saw the same type of problems with the public chargers from Hydro-Quebec and from add energie.

I would say that the clipper creek update did not work for me. I will contact Mitsu to make sure that they really did the software update.

I'm still happy with the faster charge times but it would be nice if the remote worked as it does on the L1 charger.

If anyone can shed any light on this that would be great.

Don......

 

[danpatgal]

I also purchased the Clipper Creek, and have had intermittent stopping of the charging (with yellow error on dash twice that I've noticed) with no restart; I did not have a full charge in the morning. For me this is a continuation of my level 2 EVSE woes, as started way back with the Schneider EVLink last Fall:

http://myimiev.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=5026

I've now used three different chargers on two different 240v outlets, all have stopped without going full and all have had some issue with the remote; though I've not done a lot with the latest Clipper Creek since the weather has been more mild.

I seem to recall reading somewhere that with a solar array (I have 6.72kw of PV on my roof) there is more "noise" (not sure what that means) in our AC supply as compared to a normal home. And that perhaps this has something to do with it. Does anyone else with solar and a level 2 EVSE have this kind of problem and/or know how to diagnose why this might be a problem? I've never had a problem on level 1, so it seems odd/inconsistent that a 120v AC line wouldn't have the issue while a 240v AC line would.

Of course, perhaps this is all a red herring and there is some problem with my iMiev that is more sensitive to the higher charging voltage.

 

[aarond12]

"Noise" in an AC line means the sine wave-like fluctuation of your AC is not very "smooth". Certain inverters don't do a great job of taking DC (from the solar array) and converting it into perfect sine wave AC.

We'll see if I have any problems with this new EVSE. I don't have solar -- maybe someday.

 

[jaraczs]

Dantpalgal,
Try charging after sunset when there is no power generation. I have 4.1 kW DC solar on my roof and never experienced any problems, although my typical charging occurs at night (have net metering). I use exclusively upgraded EVSE at home, mostly at 120V. The only problem I had was when attempting to use the remote while charging at 240V - charging will stop and re-plugging is required to resume charging. However, when fully charged, the remote can be used to set and use the climate control.

More information in this thread:
http://myimiev.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=198&start=20

If you have problems charging with three different chargers, something might be wrong with the car not EVSE's, you should take it to the dealer.

 

[danpatgal]

Try charging after sunset when there is no power generation.

I have noticed that I have the most issues while the inverter is active - during the day. So, I'm not sure how to verify or correct that. As we get into the summer months, I'll have to see how prevalent this problem becomes (and maybe use a timer as a workaround).

 

[camiev]

Here is what on the site:


Note to EV owners and soon-to-be owners: Your Vehicle Acceptance Rate will probably determine what type of electric vehicle charging station you will choose to install in your home. Depending on your vehicle’s needs, some stations will be overkill and make no difference in the time it takes to charge your vehicle. Other charging stations won’t be enough to charge overnight, so you will want to take some time to get know your vehicle and your individual charging needs. That way, you can choose the station that best fits your needs throughhttp://www.clippercreek.com/products.html and click “Buy Now” to purchase it from our online store!

What MiEV charge acceptance rate? Where do I find that info?
thanks

 

[Don]

What MiEV charge acceptance rate? Where do I find that info?
thanks

The onboard charger can draw 3300 watts max, so the largest load that will present to the EVSE is 3300/240 which is 13.75 amps. Buying a 30 amp EVSE is way overkill, while a 20 amp unit would be minor overkill

Now you understand why an upgraded OEM EVSE (which can do 240 @ 13 amps) is just about ideal - In terms of size, cost, portability and even power, since it's capable of 95% or more of what the charger can do

Don