PSA - DO NOT USE LECTRON ADAPTOR w/ Tesla Wall Charger on Rivian

[Electrified Outdoors]

I'm sorry this happened. At least they covered under warranty.

I like the Tesla wall connector for power sharing features. The J1772 model is great with the Rivian as it comes standard with a J1772 plug instead of the Tesla (NACS) plug.

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[HBDave]

We had two teslas alternating between a single charger for years. Finally upgraded to the new Tesla J1772 wall connector and installed two of them on a single 60 amp breaker. They power share perfectly and I use the Tesla adapter from the J1772 to charge my wife car nightly. Now we plug both in each night. The adapter that comes with the Tesla is pretty solid and we have not had any issues

 

[ohseedee]

I'm skeptical the issue was caused by the lectron. Did the service center examine the lectron adapter and note something specific on the adaptor that was problematic? If not, they are probably just making a simple assumption. There are enough people that have used it without issue that I doubt there is a design flaw with the adapter. I do have the 48 amp compact lectron adapter that I bought for a road tip, but have not actually used it yet.

Generally speaking, electrical adapters and extensions are dangerous and should be careful to never exceed the amp rating. I would likely bump down the amps a bit below the rated amps (48 in this case) for any adapters/extensions just to be safe. However, I'm not concerned when I eventually use this adapter at 48amps for short durations and slightly lower amps for longer durations. I'm also looking at eventually getting the lectron J1772 extension cable, but would likely bump it down to ~32 amps for over night charging when speeds are not needed.

Update:
Was just looking on Amazon and noticed a picture of the box states "ensure that the output is less than 48A." I'm surprised it doesn't say "less than or equal to 48A" which is it's stated rating. I'd reduce the amps when using this or any adapter...

 

[dixosw]

Another vote for the Tesla Tap Mini. UL listed and made in the USA. Worth the extra $200 to not fry a 90k truck.

Is the Tesla Tap Mini UL listed? I know the non-Mini Tesla Taps are but it's missing from the Mini product page (I think). Still, I appreciate it being made in the USA and agree about being good to pay extra to not fry the charger.

 

[tahoer1s]

From my experience -

The TeslaTap Mini is NOT UL rated/listed.

Despite all the positive reviews. I had a bad experience with the TeslaTap Mini. It was incredibly hard to plug in and remove from the Rivian. TeslaTap offered to modify it, but that seemed like it shouldn't be necessary, given the premium price.

The TeslaTap (regular) cable and handle IS UL rated, but the Tesla adapter section is NOT. Essentially, they are using an off-the-shelf handle and standard cable that are both UL listed/rated. But the custom Tesla adapter component is NOT UL rated.

The Lectron (1 piece) us unlikely UL rated. The Amazon listing says this - "Rest assured that the Lectron Tesla to J1772 adapter is safe and reliable, having undergone UL testing for your peace of mind"... but I can't find any other documentation or markings to support this. They are now using a SGS mark in their product images. More info needed there, but seemingly positive.

OP - What amperage were you charging out? I'd suggest lowering the max amperage via vehicle settings when using the Lectron adapter.

 

[rbr19870445]

I'm on a portable Tesla charger with the Lectron adapter. Ironically, I'm limited to 32A and it does charge the R1T rather slowly overnight but I've never noticed a heating issue

 

[Oldsmobile_Mike]

Just skimming the original post here but it seems your options were:

(1) Buy a Rivian wall charger, or

(2) Sell the Rivian and get another Tesla

Just going out on a limb, but #2 sounds a bit extreme, no? ??

 

[nukem384]

I don't believe Lectron products are UL listed because they are Chinese? I was doing research on them at one point, learned that, and will stay away from all their products for your exact issue. Crazy how they are so popular though even though they are kinda unsafe because of the sans UL listing.

That said, I'm not sure if you know, but Tesla actually makes a J1772 wall charger. Same speed as the normal wall charger and Rivian charger. Why not buy that instead of buying a Rivian wall charger? It's cheaper, and then you can charge both cars either stock or with your included J1772 to Tesla adapter that came with your Tesla? If you don't have the J1772 to Tesla adapter, you can also get that at the Tesla web site. You can also buy the Tesla J1772 wall charger from Amazon or Best Buy. Looks like the Tesla store is out right now, so Amazon and Best Buy have them ready to go. Amazon is basically directly from Tesla anyway, so same thing as Tesla and faster at this point. Some Best Buy's actually have the physical units on their store shelves too. You might be able to go in today and pick one up.

https://shop.tesla.com/product/j1772-wall-connector
https://www.amazon.com/Tesla-J1772-Wall-Connector-Electric/dp/B0BWSKSTG6
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/tesla-...er-up-to-48a-24-black/6527755.p?skuId=6527755

 

[NoGoingBack]

Honestly after reading through all this it seems like his best option is buy the gen 3 Tesla charger with the j1772 connector and set them up to power share. Didn’t even know that was a thing with the Tesla chargers. Makes wiring two simple and way cheaper then having to add another circuit.

 

[Millertimr]

The Tesla does have an adapter and this is would probably be the easiest, but not sure what the charging speeds would be. The Tesla WC will do 44 mph on the Model Y and with two EVs, we definitely need the best charging we can get. I'll definitely look into the Emporia. Thanks!

Emporia is great for what it's worth, cheap and reliable!

 

[Hilbe]

I would imagine a lot of people using this setup out there without issue. I would error on a single faulty Lectron adapter before saying they are all bad in this configuration.

 

[CaseyH]

Yeah, Rivian blaming the lectron adapter is BS IMO. The vehicle should have protections in place to prevent damage. Further to this there should be no way for a damaged Rivian to kill another charging cable as you described.

This reminds me of those few times the Rivian's got welded to EA charging cables. This all points to the Rivian on-board charging setup not having enough protections in place.

With that, I use the same lectron adapter with a Tesla wall charger and my Polestar 2. Have been daily charging for almost a year now and have had zero problems. I have only ever removed the connector 2 or 3 times though and it sounds like you may have been removing your connector more frequently. I could see this wearing the connectors over time and if there is not a perfect fit between the pins in the cable it could lead to excessive resistance which could generate enough heat to melt things. But again, the vehicle should have sensors and systems in place to detect this and shutdown charging before damage occurs.

In the end, getting two of the Tesla Wall Chargers (one of each connector type) and setting up in a power sharing setup sounds like the best way forward IMO.

 

[Horseytime]

I have a Gen 1 Tesla Charger and use a Lectron, yet I always reduce to 38 amps. I haven't had any issues. My teslatap mini just one day stopped working, and past return time. Haven't had any issues with the Lectron and it doesn't get hot by any means. Again, I reduce the amperage in the truck, as I have no urgent charging needs.

 

[HBDave]

I'm not tracking this new Tesla J1772 wall connector. Does Tesla actually make a J1772 charging cable? Does your wife drive the Model X or the R1T?

https://shop.tesla.com/product/j1772-wall-connector

She drives the X and mine is R1S. She is debating her next car so we installed two of the J1772 chargers so we have options outside Tesla. you can install multiple on one 60 amp breaker to power share

 

[Stack]

I'm skeptical the issue was caused by the lectron. Did the service center examine the lectron adapter and note something specific on the adaptor that was problematic? If not, they are probably just making a simple assumption. There are enough people that have used it without issue that I doubt there is a design flaw with the adapter. I do have the 48 amp compact lectron adapter that I bought for a road tip, but have not actually used it yet.

Generally speaking, electrical adapters and extensions are dangerous and should be careful to never exceed the amp rating. I would likely bump down the amps a bit below the rated amps (48 in this case) for any adapters/extensions just to be safe. However, I'm not concerned when I eventually use this adapter at 48amps for short durations and slightly lower amps for longer durations. I'm also looking at eventually getting the lectron J1772 extension cable, but would likely bump it down to ~32 amps for over night charging when speeds are not needed.

Update:
Was just looking on Amazon and noticed a picture of the box states "ensure that the output is less than 48A." I'm surprised it doesn't say "less than or equal to 48A" which is it's stated rating. I'd reduce the amps when using this or any adapter...

Yes, the tech inspected the adapter and the charger (he use to work for Tesla). Charger was fine, but the adaptor had a tarnished color to it and and the ohms doubled when adding the Lectron adapter showing the increased resistance.

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