Alta Fast charger

[Fod]

I am a little confused by all of this. First there are no public chargers, unless you count DC fast charging like the tesla supercharger, CHAdeMO or the DC combo plug. These are kind of like chargers in that the vehicle communicates with the permanently installed, land based charger, tells it what DC voltage and DC current it can accept, and then the equipment provides it. I am not sure about the Alta’s wiring and battery pack, but it doubt that it could accept the lowest level of current/power these devices can provide. These are high power (50-125kw) DC sources that would probably overwhelm our poor little Alta. Plugging into 50kw would give you a 6-7 minute charge time from completely empty. They do ramp the power and current down at the end of the charge cycle, so it may work, but they are not designed for this small a battery pack and you would need the vehicle communication equipment to tell the charger what to do.

J1772 equipment is not a charger, it is more appropriately called EV Support Equipment (EVSE). It is a source of power for the charger already installed in the vehicle. For safety it will not turn on until it is plugged into a vehicle, or a box that simulates a vehicle. Once it communicates with the vehicle, and finds the right signals, all it does is energize a large contactor to connect 120 Vac (Level 1) or 240 Vac (Level 2) to the box or vehicle. You can find the J1772 specs here on Wikipedia. J1772 should work fine with an SM that is enabled for 240Vac power, as long as you have a converter box that will accept the J1772 plug and tell the EVSE to close the contactor. Once the EVSE closes the contactor, it is just like plugging into a wall socket at home. The only issue would be that most public EVSEs are Level 2 (240 Vac) so you would need the firmware upgrade to enable that on a SM. The SM charger would still communicate with the Alta, just like it does when you charge at home, you would just be receiving power from the public EVSE instead of your house. Public EVSEs will do nothing for an EX or MX since it doesn’t have an onboard charger. To charge an EX or MX you would have to pack the charger with you (heavy).

I have installed J1772 on my 300ZX that I converted, and it is just a small board to provide the enable signal (about $50) and the J1772 female plug (about $100). It is easy to install and works good, but all it does is power the charger I have installed in my vehicle.

But look at post#54

 

[bluefxstc]

But look at post#54

I did and that is why I am confused. J1772 only provides power, just like plugging into any electrical socket at home. If you have a box that simulates a car and closes the contactor in a home or public EVSE, it should work just fine, assuming your charger can operate on 240 Vac if that is what is provided. The bike charger shouldn't care where it gets it's power. The charger communicates with the bike as normal, the only difference is instead of directly getting power from the wall, it is switched on by the EVSE and the box that simulates the car. I read post #54 and it didn't make sense to me, so as previously state, I'm confused.

 

[Fod]

I did and that is why I am confused. J1772 only provides power, just like plugging into any electrical socket at home. If you have a box that simulates a car and closes the contactor in a home or public EVSE, it should work just fine, assuming your charger can operate on 240 Vac if that is what is provided. The bike charger shouldn't care where it gets it's power. The charger communicates with the bike as normal, the only difference is instead of directly getting power from the wall, it is switched on by the EVSE and the box that simulates the car. I read post #54 and it didn't make sense to me, so as previously state, I'm confused.

Gotchya...I thought you were confused why some of us weren't just getting the adapter. You seem to know your chargers! Maybe alta can chime in and explain why.

 

[snydes]

Just shooting from the hip here, but it's possible Alta doesn't even realize there is a box that can adapt to this configuration, or there is some minor safety/liability issue that goes along with doing it that way in which case they wouldn't condone it's use. Or not.

 

[MattB]

Has anyone actually received their fast charger? I was forced to buy one with my MXR but they gave me the standard charger until the fast charger was available. I’ve asked my dealer several times but they seem to have no idea when chargers will ship.

 

[ecd]

The dealer I went to seemed to have a few fast chargers. I asked for a standard charger because there weren't 110v adapters readily available. My experience with that dealer was horrible though

 

[strider]

I did and that is why I am confused. J1772 only provides power, just like plugging into any electrical socket at home. If you have a box that simulates a car and closes the contactor in a home or public EVSE, it should work just fine, assuming your charger can operate on 240 Vac if that is what is provided. The bike charger shouldn't care where it gets it's power. The charger communicates with the bike as normal, the only difference is instead of directly getting power from the wall, it is switched on by the EVSE and the box that simulates the car. I read post #54 and it didn't make sense to me, so as previously state, I'm confused.

@Judaslefourbe was just saying that the Alta chargers don't comply w/ the J1772 signaling protocol. So you would need more than a plug adapter. You'd need something to generate the J1772 pilot signal, like you installed in your car.

I'm surprised they didn't make the SM charger J1772 as there are tons of EVSEs out there and it would also make it public-station compatible. Of course J1772 is only a N America thing so they'd need different plugs in the bike for different regions which would complicate manufacturing.... Aren't EVs fun!

 

[strider]

Yes it is, at least according to the nameplate data. I'd hoped for 14A / 1,700W at 120V, which would still be under the 15A limit of many 120V house circuits - but maybe they wanted to avoid having old and/or GFCI breakers trip out when running near max current.

I am not an electrician, but I believe that code states that you can only run at 80% of breaker rating for continuous load. So 15A - 20% = 12A.

 

[snydes]

Has anyone actually received their fast charger? I was forced to buy one with my MXR but they gave me the standard charger until the fast charger was available. I’ve asked my dealer several times but they seem to have no idea when chargers will ship.

I've been holding this one in as long as I could (rant alert)...

Allegedly there is a "waiting list". Now I think it was awesome that Alta gave us standard chargers (2.7kW) since they couldn't deliver the bikes with the rapid chargers (3.3kW) that we wanted (and paid for). I could also appreciate if there were other open orders of bikes soon to be delivered that required 3.3kW chargers which Alta would put us on hold for while they fill those orders (so they don't continue to give out free 2.7kW chargers). However, it certainly sounds like there are dealers that are now sitting on 3.3kW chargers for bikes they don't have sold, and there are quite a few guys on here who are still waiting on their 3.3kW charger that they paid for.

@ElectroBraap was one of the first guys in the country to get an MXR and last time I checked he still didn't have his charger. I don't know how this waiting list works, but it sounds to me like it has been lost.

@Judaslefourbe we love you buddy, but you guys need to handle this one better.

 

[Judaslefourbe]

@Judaslefourbe we love you buddy, but you guys need to handle this one better.

I'll pass on the message. And I appreciate the love.

 

[Judaslefourbe]

Hi all. Anybody who has not received their R charger yet, please send me a PM with your name and address, the date of the purchase and the dealer's name please. I'll see what I can do.

 

[rtf]

Hi all. Anybody who has not received their R charger yet, please send me a PM with your name and address, the date of the purchase and the dealer's name please. I'll see what I can do.

This is service and another reason why I'll be buying an Alta.

 

[ElectroBraap]

I've been holding this one in as long as I could (rant alert)...

Allegedly there is a "waiting list". Now I think it was awesome that Alta gave us standard chargers (2.7kW) since they couldn't deliver the bikes with the rapid chargers (3.3kW) that we wanted (and paid for). I could also appreciate if there were other open orders of bikes soon to be delivered that required 3.3kW chargers which Alta would put us on hold for while they fill those orders (so they don't continue to give out free 2.7kW chargers). However, it certainly sounds like there are dealers that are now sitting on 3.3kW chargers for bikes they don't have sold, and there are quite a few guys on here who are still waiting on their 3.3kW charger that they paid for.

@ElectroBraap was one of the first guys in the country to get an MXR and last time I checked he still didn't have his charger. I don't know how this waiting list works, but it sounds to me like it has been lost.

@Judaslefourbe we love you buddy, but you guys need to handle this one better.

Totally true and totally agree. Thanks for remembering me! I am really disappointed about this and have been really patient and diligent about not publicly ranting... I really think we all need to be made a priority.

-Electro

 

[MattB]

Ktm Wold called me today with good news!!! Faster charging = more riding! Thank you Judaslefourbe if you had an influence in making it happen!

 

[rayivers]

A quick note about the fast charger case - there's a round air vent next to the handle center that opens CCW. When I first checked my charger out at HVMC it was impossible to open - I was about to ask for a small crowbar ! - but luckily I noticed this vent first (thought it was a lock or latch), turned it, there was a loud hiss and the case opened right up.

 

[ElectroBraap]

CONGRATS! It looks so sexy.... I am so jealous... Lord Help Me! I need some MILK!

 

[Duncan]

My fast charger worked the 1st time, charged to 100%, then I went for a short ride, came back home, plugged it in and it did not work, got "error 103" on dash.

At that point I was thinking maybe it doesn't like to initiate charging if nearly fully charged.

Went riding, pounded out 25 miles of single track, came home and the charger worked fine.

Called my Alta rep and he stated that I need to have firmware updated at the dealer, will take only 10 min.

 

[ElectroBraap]

My fast charger worked the 1st time, charged to 100%, then I went for a short ride, came back home, plugged it in and it did not work, got "error 103" on dash.

At that point I was thinking maybe it doesn't like to initiate charging if nearly fully charged.

Went riding, pounded out 25 miles of single track, came home and the charger worked fine.

Called my Alta rep and he stated that I need to have firmware updated at the dealer, will take only 10 min.

Uh oh. Didn't this exact thing happen to someone else?

 

[Judaslefourbe]

Hi,
For those you sent me a note, I will be able to spend some time on this when I get back in the office (I am travelling in Europe at the moment). I apologize for the delay.

IMPORTANT: when picking up your R charger, please make sure to bring your bike so your dealer can update the FW on your bike. We noticed all chargers were not born equal so that update will help remove a lot of false positive errors.

 

[Judaslefourbe]

Hi everyone,
A quick update on the chargers: we received a batch of them and are hopeful we will be able to take care of all the back-orders within the next few weeks.