Cheap L2 EVSE by converting the 2013-14 Nissan L1 EVSE - $25

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nedfunnell said:
I am also an engineer, so I feel qualified to add my voice to the technical discussion...
Bottom line: I believe that this modification is safe when carried out by qualified persons. You know who you are. If in doubt, spend the dough on EVSEupgrade.

Very well done. Thanks.
 
What would I have to further modify on the 120V side of this to get it to boost the amperage? Would it be possible to replace or reprogram the EVSE microprocessor?
 
Bump

Still working well? Looking at doing this myself, found the instructables DIY and then a link here from a comment.

Thanks!

--Marcus
 
Yes working very well still no problems.. about 12K miles on my car after almost 15 months. I am guessing I have charged it at least 250 times with this modified EVSE. I do have free charging at my work also. Never had any issue I have charged the car full up from just about 12% battery to 100% too ... several times and no problems at all. very Safe .... and absolutely doable.

Cheers!!
 
Make sure you follow all the instructions well .. double check all connections and don't hesitate to PM me if you need any additional help and guidance. Cheers!
 
Is there anything fundamentally different about the 2013-14 L1 charger compared to the bulkier 2011-12 charger? This mod should be just as doable in both cases, right?
 
Take a look at these.. one of them should be appropriate for your older EVSE

http://www.instructables.com/id/EVSE-CONVERTING-A-LEVEL-1-12AMP-TO-A-LEVEL-2-12-AM/

http://www.instructables.com/id/EVSE-LEVEL-1-TO-LEVEL-2-20/

http://www.instructables.com/id/313CONVERTING-A-2013-LEAF-LEVEL-1-12AMP-CHARGER-TO/

What I did here is Version 3 equivalent..

Good luck
 
Those first two links are dangerous mods that are nothing like the mod in the third link. NOBODY should be doing the first two. They simply manually switch in 240v, skipping the EVSE altogether. Even if the hokey connection and quick manual switch works, the car will be unable to disconnect the power if an error occurs.
 
Hi,

I just bought a Ford Fusion Energi PHEV without an EVSE, so I bought a Nissan EVSE (Gen 3) on ebay, with the intent of modifying it to charge using 240V. Last week I picked up a Ford 120V EVSE, so it was time to modify the Nissan. I followed your instructions, using a 33k Ohm resistor and when I was finished I plugged it into my dryer outlet and... I got a flashing fault LED! Time to go back and verify all of the connections. Everything looked good, so I removed the resistor and plugged in the yellow wires from the old power cable. Plugged the cord into the dryer outlet and -- success! So what is going on here? I measured the impedance of the yellow wire circuit at 16k Ohms (in line with what some others have reported). Next, what if I double up my resistors to bring the impedance down to 16.5k Ohms? I gang a couple of resistors and put the multimeter on it and -- 1.6K Ohms. Whaat?? I check the resistor package - "3.3K Ohms." Nooooo!!! Off to Radio Shack to get the right resistors. I decided to pick up the 22k Ohm resistors in lieu of the 33k Ohm ones, as 22k Ohms was closer to the 16k Ohms that I measured from the yellow cable. This time after I put in the new resistor and plugged the modded EVSE into the 240V dryer outlet, I got a steady green "Ready" light and all was good! I've alredy used it twice to top off my car and it seems to be working perfectly, and twice as fast as before. Thank you for your original post!
 
wmcbrine said:
You still have a Radio Shack?
Heh. I know a few near me closed down but it seems like it was more than I expected per https://www.radioshack.com/apps/store-locator. Only 2 remain in my city of almost 1 million.
 
I am sorry to say this, but how do supposedly intelligent people make homemade modifications for a 240 volt connection and take a chance with F>>>ing up a $30K car? Spend a little money and buy the right (already tested by electrical companies) charger... Quick and easy...
 
powersurge said:
I am sorry to say this,
Maybe don't say it then?

but how do supposedly intelligent people make homemade modifications for a 240 volt connection and take a chance with F>>>ing up a $30K car? Spend a little money and buy the right (already tested by electrical companies) charger... Quick and easy...

Electricity is not magic, if someone has the knowledge and skills, then I say go for it. It is the way of the shadetree mechanic for decades. I haven't gone to a mechanic for anything other than a free recall in about 20 years (and I am not a mechanic and have done pretty extensive work on my cars). EVSE is just an extension of a car, so it is easy to see how it is being serviced/modified by owners that have the knowledge and skill to do so. Calling people's intelligence into question because they choose to work on their own vehicles/accessories is uncalled for.
 
Hmmm... Some are intelligent enough not to touch it... And... some are intelligent enough to touch it. So, in that same token.... some are stupid enough to touch it... And some are stupid enough not to do it. It depends completely on your perception and also possible outcome. ;)
 
powersurge said:
I am sorry to say this, but how do supposedly intelligent people make homemade modifications for a 240 volt connection and take a chance with F>>>ing up a $30K car? Spend a little money and buy the right (already tested by electrical companies) charger... Quick and easy...

Kind of hard to listen to someone talk about the intelligence of others when they don't know the difference between a charger and a EVSE. This thread isn't about modifying the LEAFs charger...
 
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