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[remmie]

here's another picture where you can also see the accessory cable on the front of the bike (blue wire with white label on the far right of the picture)

[Crissa]

All Zeros come with a cable, and nearly all L2 stations on Amazon come with a cable.  So it still sounds like a 'local' problem.  Most stations near me at L2 stations and they all have cables, even the ones out on the street.

I know the dealer I went to is unique, since it's literally the closest one to Zero, but they do have SR/Fs with the Premium packages in stock.  They just started getting them at the beginning of September. https://www.sjbmw.com/New-Inventory-2020-Zero-Motorcycle-Scooter-Zero-SR-F-Premium-San-Jose-BMW-7758395?ref=list

-Crissa

[Auriga]

Crissa it is not the same in Europe. European SR/Fs don't come with a chargingcable, and to use public stations they often need to buy a cable as well. There was a thread about this a while back, and the justification I heard is there are too many European plugs to stock one.

 You are correct for the US though

[remmie]

Crissa it is not the same in Europe. European SR/Fs don't come with a chargingcable, and to use public stations they often need to buy a cable as well. There was a thread about this a while back, and the justification I heard is there are too many European plugs to stock one.

 You are correct for the US though

Yes, unfortunately this is the case in Europe. So we have to have 2 different cables, both of which we have to buy separately.

The only exceptions are the really FAST chargers which can supply up to 43kW AC (3 phase 63Amps). These are often combined with a chademo and CCS connection. Usually all three connections have a cable attached to the charging station.

Downside is that these FAST chargers are quite expensive (up to or even over 1 euro per kWh) while the standard 3 phase AC charging stations are normally around 0,35 euro per kWh. Second and for some even more important downside of the FAST chargers is that they are outnumbered at least 10:1 or even 20:1 compared to the vast amount of 11 or 22 kW AC charging stations without a cable.

[bigmadf]

Hello

I ordered my SR/F in June and it was delivered in August. So guess what...I had more than plenty of time to look around for charging solutions and figure out what was needed. For home use I already have a L2 charging solution (3phase 16A 400V) with two charging points OpenWB - OpenSource Wallbox.
Now with a lot of googling I found out what was said before. Each 3kW onboard charger is connected to a distinct phase and the charge tank is connected to phase 3 on L2 charging stations. This brought me to the conclusion, that I absolutely wanted a short, highly flexible and high quality Type2 cable which can fit in the storage compartment. In my opinion 3m length is sufficient. I did not find anything right away. In order to ensure being able to charge anywhere I would also need a L1 charging solution. This would only have to support 230V/ 13A max. Regular outlets in Switzerland can not handle more Power than 3kW for longer periods of time.
So I checked the manufacturers offers --> no good. Too expensive, cable oversized, heavy and not flexible.

Finally I turned to Chinese manufacturers. Got 3 offers and settled with Khons. I got in contact, made clear what I was looking for and they built to order exactly what I needed (L1 charger with 230V/13A max and a Swiss T13 plug and a 3m flexible 3p Type2 cable). Awesome contact, fast delivery, fair prices ($174 for L1 charger, $76 for Type2 cable,$42 for shipping) awesome quality and TüV certified.

My Zero dealer (Country Road) in Alpnach now has the connections and orders larger quantities of the set for his customers. Get in touch if you would like to know about experiences and maybe want to order from him.

Regards,
Matt

[enaef]

Thanks Matt (bigmadf) for this information.
Your solution looks definitively cheaper than what I'm thinking about now:
https://www.juice-technology.com/juice-booster?lang=en

However, I'm still not sure what I want. Robustness of this booster-solution outdoor, all the adapters available (for house- but also industrial-plugs) as well as extension cables  are interesting, for a heavy price however.
As I wrote earlyer, I'm thinking of charging at home on a T-25 Socket (3x400V 16A) which would allow me about 9kW if I got a charge tank.
One important factor is, as you wrote, the space it will take. With a charging tank I guess I would need at least a top-case to take my charging solution with me.

[bigmadf]

Hey

Why do you think you need to charge high speed at home? In my opinion 3kW charging is more than sufficient for home charging. In Switzerland there are Level 2 charging stations literally everywhere. I also tried to get a mobile charging solution which is highly flexible in terms of sockets and power....believe me, this is totally overrated. I always only carry the Type2 cable with me. At home I use my callbox but if I did not have a wallbox, the charger with 3kW would be more than sufficient for me.

Greets

[enaef]

Matt
As I'm not a home-owner but live in a rented flat I have no space where I can park the bike for a long time and charge it at the same time. I got a bike-parking-space opposit of the house where I live. There however I can't charge.
I'll have to ask the renters of the next house where I live, if I can park my bike in front of their house, while im charging it by a cable leading through a window of my flat. May sound crazy but what shall I do.
This all is necessary of course only if the owner of the house where I live is not willing to install a wall-box.
Of course, there is still the option to charge it at a public charging station, some 500-600m away from where I live (IF it's available and working). Well, I come home from work, have to charge, and then catch the bike when it is full ... hm ....

I'm checking my options ... And I have time till next spring ...

However, thanks Matt for your challenging comments, they are very welcome. I want to make sound decisions ....

[bigmadf]

Hey

well, I see your problem. In my opinion it is essential for an EV owner to have a possibility to charge at (or close to) home (overnight). When using regular sockets in Europe with an extension cord you need to make sure, that high quality cables are used and that you do not charge with max amperage of the socket. In Switzerland I recommend using not more than 10A with a regular T13 socket when using an extension cord.

I am sure you will find a suitable solution.

[enaef]

Juice Booster 2 only uses 80% of capacity for long time charging.
The adapters are coded, the amount of power is regulated automatically. Adapters with home-plugs monitor temperature in the plug itself (this was introduced just these months as far as I know). If the plug gets too hot in case of bad wiring for example, charging is being paused until temperature is back down enought to restart charging. It does this three times, then it quits charging definitively.
Extension cables are available for the juice booster itself (https://www.juice-technology.com/juice-booster?lang=en)
If I'm going this way I plan to use the T25-Socket anyway (3x400V 16A).
So, I should be on the secure side - for a heavy price though ...

We will see ...

[Zelidar]

... Now with a lot of googling I found out what was said before. Each 3kW onboard charger is connected to a distinct phase and the charge tank is connected to phase 3 on L2 charging stations. This brought me to the conclusion, that I absolutely wanted a short, highly flexible and high quality Type2 cable which can fit in the storage compartment. In my opinion 3m length is sufficient....

Interesting!
This is also what I have done the past few weeks and I came to the same conclusion: for the SR/F the cables sold for electric cars today are way too long and heavy to be used with motorcycles (2 phases unused and too many amps for an EVSE application). I specified the EVSE boxed cable which I also ordered in China to be 0.5 meter instead of 5 meter. In all the situations I found myself during my test rides, this was long enough. If I need longer, then I'll just extend the other side.
Thank you for reporting your experience on this
Zaid

[Zelidar]

In all cases thus far (see attached pictures) I could have the EVSE box right next to the Mennekes connector. I had it mostly hanging on the handlebars of the bike, thus my idea that 0.5 meter would be sufficient.

[peterwarm]

Interesting Thread.

Ive just got an premium SR/F and have made some 170 mile journeys on it.  Whats immediately obvious:

I need the chargetank, even though this seem to be reported as only having 11.6 kW input on 22kW stations.  iTS SO BORING waiting around service stations for 90 minutes.  So this should cut it to under an hour, and as there are a subset of UK motorway service stations with tethered cables, I dont need to carry a three phase type 2 cable.

BUT then with a chargtank theres no room for my 13A  to type 2 cable.  I need this at the end point to charge overnight before coming back. Speed not an issue here.


Im wondering if its possible to have a more compact version of this cable that will fit under the seat (silly tray removed), but the supplied cable is very large, although has inbuilt RCD protection.  Length isnt a problem,e, I can blag an extension most places. I could carry a small 13A RCD to use on any extension I borrow, that wouldnt take up much room.

anyone else with this dilemma?

Oh and the rack I ordered is on long delivery from Zero - my dealer says he has 3 on order for months, so the cable would have to go in the backpack with my clothes....
And maybe it would be better to get a third party charger and speed up the charge rate some more?

Happy biking! pete

[Crilly]

Harley’s Livewire charging cable is smaller and shorter than Zero’s SR/F cable.

[Zelidar]

Im wondering if its possible to have a more compact version of this cable that will fit under the seat (silly tray removed), but the supplied cable is very large, although has inbuilt RCD protection.  Length isnt a problem,e, I can blag an extension most places. I could carry a small 13A RCD to use on any extension I borrow, that wouldnt take up much room. Anyone else with this dilemma?

This guy did a great DYI job squeezing all the electronics inside that Mennekes bulky plastic body but as far as I know there is nothing on the market yet. Also, it was a prototype in need of a couple of revisions  .
https://youtu.be/HV3468LmIiQ?t=1051