Advantages of Rivian Wall Charger?

[zymolysis]

IMO, other than it being a plug that provides power to charge the truck, the Rivian wall charger provides zero benefits - no information, no charging data, no history, no costing info, no features. Might as well be a brick on the wall. Get something else if you want data/features.

What's a good option that has the features of which you speak?

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[EVTrukHog]

Does the Rivian charger lock the cable in place when not charging? i.e. so while your gone someone can't pull into your driveway and use your charger without your permission.

Yes. Sorry - misunderstood your question. The Rivian charger does not lock into itself while not in use. Anyone could drive up and charge if you’re in an area where that might be a problem.

Once your vehicle is charging, the charger locks onto your vehicle until you stop the charge so that no one could remove the charger from your vehicle.

edited: clarification

 

[Smithery]

Future Rivians might have higher AC power acceptance rates, but that would likely be adopted along with a major revamp to an 800v system and a new bi-directional wall charger. I suspect that this won’t happen anytime soon, because for now they need to focus on delivering trucks without making major changes to things that aren’t failing.

Very unlikely.

Earlier Model S and Model X could L2 charge up to 80A, and they had the "High Powered Wall Connector" that supported that.

The difference between charging at 48A or 80A at home overnight was not a deal breaker for anyone.
Even with the 100kwh battery, where a drained battery can't charge overnight at 48A but could at 80A... Nobody cared.

The onboard charger was more expensive, the EVSE was more expensive, the installation of the EVSE was way more expensive... And almost nobody did it.
And for those who did, almost nobody *needed* it.

They no longer ship any cars that can L2 charge any faster than 48A, nor do they sell a wall charger that provides anymore than 48A.

The industry has kinda decided this is the upper end for L2 charging at home. And any more energy needs should be handled by at-work L2 charging, or making L3 charging as plentiful and easy as gas stations.

I don't think this'll change anytime soon, if ever.

 

[Smithery]

What's a good option that has the features of which you speak?

We have networked Wallbox Pulsar Pluses for the R1T and Model X.

We don't care about this data at all, but... the Wallbox app *does* track all of it.

As for the chargers themselves, they look nicer and take up less space than any other we've seen. We love them.

 

[zymolysis]

We have networked Wallbox Pulsar Pluses for the R1T and Model X.

We don't care about this data at all, but... the Wallbox app *does* track all of it.

As for the chargers themselves, they look nicer and take up less space than any other we've seen. We love them.

Thank you. My truck is due in Jan/Feb 2023, and I have the original ($500) pricing on the Rivian wall charger (I don't know what they are charging new customers). I just checked on the Wallbox 48A - it goes for $700. So, $200 more is hard to justify. Emporia has a $500 48A charger. I'll keep watching, to see if prices come down, or if any of these go on sale, and will try to get a better understanding of what benefits I might get. from a Wallbot (or other non-Rivian charger).

 

[dp351]

Very unlikely.

Earlier Model S and Model X could L2 charge up to 80A, and they had the "High Powered Wall Connector" that supported that.

The difference between charging at 48A or 80A at home overnight was not a deal breaker for anyone.
Even with the 100kwh battery, where a drained battery can't charge overnight at 48A but could at 80A... Nobody cared.

The onboard charger was more expensive, the EVSE was more expensive, the installation of the EVSE was way more expensive... And almost nobody did it.
And for those who did, almost nobody *needed* it.

They no longer ship any cars that can L2 charge any faster than 48A, nor do they sell a wall charger that provides anymore than 48A.

The industry has kinda decided this is the upper end for L2 charging at home. And any more energy needs should be handled by at-work L2 charging, or making L3 charging as plentiful and easy as gas stations.

I don't think this'll change anytime soon, if ever.

Thanks for this great explanation! All of this info makes the Rivian charger more appealing.

 

[SACDFJC]

Does the Rivian charger lock the cable in place when not charging? i.e. so while your gone someone can't pull into your driveway and use your charger without your permission.

No. The Rivian wall charger does not lock the cable in place when it's not in use. The plug simply clicks into the side of the charger when not in use. If the charger were mounted outside anyone would be able to drive up and plug in.

 

[Smithery]

Thank you. My truck is due in Jan/Feb 2023, and I have the original ($500) pricing on the Rivian wall charger (I don't know what they are charging new customers). I just checked on the Wallbox 48A - it goes for $700. So, $200 more is hard to justify. Emporia has a $500 48A charger. I'll keep watching, to see if prices come down, or if any of these go on sale, and will try to get a better understanding of what benefits I might get. from a Wallbot (or other non-Rivian charger).

There are lots of 48A capable chargers out there, at $500 and less... but many are big and/or ugly as sin.

I care about how my charger looks and how much space it takes up.
Plus we needed 2 with circuit sharing, and Wallbox is tops for that (hardwired over a dedicated line, no networks or wifi to rely on)

If the data you'd get from a Wallbox is important to you, then $200 shouldn't be hard to justify over the lifetime of the charger (which should be a decade+... Your R1T and next EV after that, etc)

But... Everyone's budgets are their own!

 

[Jac]

It is worth checking to see if your electricity provider offers any incentives for certain model EVSE installations. Here in Connecticut, both electric utilities offer EVSE installation incentives. In 2022, United Illuminating offers $500 toward purchase price of several EVSE models and another $500 to offset the electrician expense to wire and install. Rivian’s EVSE isn’t on the list of eligible EVSEs, so I got a Juicebox 48.

 

[johstacy]

No. The Rivian wall charger does not lock the cable in place when it's not in use. The plug simply clicks into the side of the charger when not in use. If the charger were mounted outside anyone would be able to drive up and plug in.

Thank you for the information someone else said yes but maybe they didn't know what I meant. Well that kinda sucks the only way to work around that would be to have a smart breaker and do some sort of home automation to shut that thing off when no one is near the house

 

[rhumbliner]

Easy - 70A breaker, with at least 6AWG copper wiring.

Sure, it’s easy to install a new breaker but running new wiring is not so easy and something most homeowners wouldn’t/shouldn’t attempt. You’re a perfect example of this. A 70-amp circuit requires 4 AWG NM-B wire, not 6 AWG.

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[Smithery]

Thank you for the information someone else said yes but maybe they didn't know what I meant. Well that kinda sucks the only way to work around that would be to have a smart breaker and do some sort of home automation to shut that thing off when no one is near the house

Out of curiosity, do you have a driveway? And presumably the charger would be mounted on the house up at the top of the driveway?

People parking on random driveways to plug in to random EVSEs is... simply not a thing that happens anywhere.

And if someone did park on your driveway to charge and you discovered it, have them towed at their expense.

 

[johstacy]

Out of curiosity, do you have a driveway? And presumably the charger would be mounted on the house up at the top of the driveway?

People parking on random driveways to plug in to random EVSEs is... simply not a thing that happens anywhere.

And if someone did park on your driveway to charge and you discovered it, have them towed at their expense.

Normally if I lived in a city or town I would agree with you but I don't. I do live in a small town but it is a town where people recreate at. Thousands pass through every day and on the weekends 10x that come to the area and I have seen some crazy stuff happen. So yes I have come home and someone was parked in my driveway. However because of where I am and the lack of charging facilities and the visibility of my house from the main thoroughfare it is possible that someone would see that charger and want to use it if they are in a bad way for power and just trying to get to the next charger (not saying I wouldn't help but ask don't just take). So I have two options one is to put it in the garage or put it outside the garage. My wife parks in the garage during the winters and I usually park outside I thought about putting it outside as that would be easier for me however I would need to be able to secure it in some form to prevent someone from using it.

 

[zymolysis]

Sure, it’s easy to install a new breaker but running new wiring is not so easy and something most homeowners wouldn’t/shouldn’t attempt. You’re a perfect example of this. A 70-amp circuit requires 4 AWG NM-B wire, not 6 AWG.

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First, I said "at least 6AWG copper wiring."
Second, you are wrong - it doesn't have to be NM-B at all.
By the chart which you so graciously supplied, 6AWG THHN copper wire is rated to 75A. It has to be in conduit, of course, but I would run it in conduit. I might choose to run 4AWG, depending on on other factors.
Third, I am not trying to be his electrician or contractor, just to give him the simplest answer to his question. And my answer was accurate.
You're a good example why *some* people shouldn't be involved in forums. And I am a perfect example of someone who can and has run wiring.

 

[zymolysis]

Normally if I lived in a city or town I would agree with you but I don't. I do live in a small town but it is a town where people recreate at. Thousands pass through every day and on the weekends 10x that come to the area and I have seen some crazy stuff happen. So yes I have come home and someone was parked in my driveway. However because of where I am and the lack of charging facilities and the visibility of my house from the main thoroughfare it is possible that someone would see that charger and want to use it if they are in a bad way for power and just trying to get to the next charger (not saying I wouldn't help but ask don't just take). So I have two options one is to put it in the garage or put it outside the garage. My wife parks in the garage during the winters and I usually park outside I thought about putting it outside as that would be easier for me however I would need to be able to secure it in some form to prevent someone from using it.

Install a disconnect box with a lever switch inside the garage (in between the electrical panel and the EV charger). Leave it with the lever in the off position when your car isn't in the driveway.

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