Mercedes A-Class Forum banner
Cancel
Create thread New Garage Forums
Status
Not open for further replies.

The A250e (Hybrid) General Topic Part 1

1 reading
Jump to Latest
127K views 399 replies 34 participants last post by  veeeight  
A
#1 · (Edited)
I see there are a couple of people who have received their A250e's now - I have had mine for about a month and really enjoying it.

Has anyone had issues with charging rates? I have tried it on a 7kw point but it will only charge at 3.4kw.

EDIT - My car was supplied with a 3phase 16a cable, which is why I was seeing low rates. The car can do 7kw on a single or 3phase supply*
 
Save
Like Like
H
#3 ·
I've used Source London twice (Surrey Quays and Stratford Intl) - they advertise 7kw speeds but the Mercedes Me app showed a charge speed of 4.6kw. What is annoying is that they charge you by the minute and so it costs the customers more for a full charge (as you need to stay connected longer). I complained and both times they said that it must be idiosyncratic issues however I smell a scam and raised a formal complaint. If it happens again I will report them to someone.... (a regulator, the mayor's office?) I tried ESB EV Solutions (St THomas' Hospital, Waterloo) and their speeds were great (7kw).

Does the CCS socket open for anyone? My one is blocked/locked but Mercedes said a local dealer may be able to retrofit/activate it.
 
A
#4 ·
So I tried it today on a 22kw charger and it got to 6.9kw, still not the 7.4kw advertised.... I was considering getting a 7kw wallbox charger at home but there isn't much point if it won't actually charge at that rate.

As for CCS, it seems that they didn't end up putting it in for this model year, despite saying it was capable of DC charging in the original press release. However I did see someone say their dealer mentioned it was coming for the next model year though.
 
Save
Like Like
D
#5 ·
There's no DC charging mentioned in the latest UK brochure (July production model), but there is in the latest German brochure - only as a paid option however (and you have to pay for a 7.4kw AC charger too!). So perhaps it will be available as an option in December?
 
O
#7 ·
The 7.4kw transformer in the a250e is actually two 3.7kw transformers working in tandem. So a single phase charger (even if its 32A) wont give you 7.4kw. You need to charge from a 3-phase charger. The old B250e used all 3 phases which gave you 3.7kw * 3 = 11kw.
 
A
#8 · (Edited)
Wtf!?! Surely that can't be true, as Mercedes claim it will charge in 1.5hrs from a 7kw home wallbox which are only single phase.

EDIT - My car was supplied with a 3phase 16a cable, which is why I was seeing low rates. The car can do 7kw on a single or 3phase supply*
 
Save
Like Like
O
#9 · (Edited)
Really? Where do they claim that? I asked my dealer here in Norway before ordering a a250e. He said you needed a 3-phase charger (3*16A) to get full 7.4kw. So I have installed that. My A250e will arrive in 14 days...

Edit: From the UK ebrochure
Mercedes-Benz plug-in vehicle customers with off-street parking can benefit from the convenience and speed of charging at home by installing a BP Chargemaster Homecharge unit. The 7 kW BP Chargemaster Homecharge unit a full charge in under four hours – that’s three times faster than using a 13 A three-pin domestic plug.

Four hours is not 7.4kw charging.
 
A
#11 ·
Save
Like Like
A
#12 ·
I have just spoken to Mercedes UK customer services, they are looking into it and will hopefully email me some info to clear it up. I have also contacted BP Chargemaster to see if they can help. The situation is a little bit frustrating (along with the missing DC charging capability which they said at the launch), but if it does need 3 phase for the full 7.4kw, then I will save my money and stick with the granny charger.

On a different note, I am VERY impressed at the car's overtaking ability. I went down some single carriageway roads yesterday, making quite a few overtakes. The electric motor really makes a difference in these conditions, pull the left paddle to select optimal gear and then shoot off very quickly :D:D
 
H
#13 ·
I have an a250e and with a single phase (normal domestic supply) wall box (Pod-Point) the max charge is 7.4kw there will be some variance depending on the overall draw of your property at any time but we charge between 7 and 7.4kw. In the UK the a250e does not have DC charging, even though the articles on the web says it does it sadly does not and the online brochure is now updated to show that it does not. It takes between 1hr 40 to 2hrs to charge from empty. Obviously if you use the granny charger significantly longer. Hope this helps
 
A
#14 · (Edited)
I have had a response from Mercedes UK, who concurs with Ole's info that you need 2/3 phase to get the full 7.4kw... but now hooperg has conflicting info :unsure:

EDIT - My car was supplied with a 3phase 16a cable, which is why I was seeing low rates. The car can do 7kw on a single or 3phase supply*
 
Save
Like Like
#17 ·
On a slight tangent, I don't have an EV, but know a bit about the wall chargers and installation. My favoured charger is the Zappi, purely from a safety point, it has clever safety features to BS7671 Amendment 1, in the case of an installation in a PME supply.

On a UK Single Phase supply, it is a 32A or 7.4kW charger (assuming 230V).

What fuse should I use in the meter cupboard?

zappi has a control system that regulates the charging load. Therefore, according to the NEN 1010, it is possible to count with a lower co-ordinate factor. zappi ensures that the charging power is lower when there is more load in the house. The charging station can therefore be fused at a higher...
www.zappi.info www.zappi.info
 
H
#19 ·
Yes the majority of UK homes are Single phase. Three phase is available and some larger homes have it and commercial premises but 90%+ of homes are single phase by default with a 100amp main fuse (some older houses only have 60amp) As we move forward to an EV future this will be interesting as homes have more than one EV car that need charging overnight Then 3 phase will become more relevant. For example I had a quote from our power distribution company to upgrade from single to 3 phase and it was circa £5000. Obviously with three phase you can then leverage 22kw charging at home as long as car and charger support it.
 
#21 ·
^ It will be quite sometime, and at huge cost, to upgrade UK homes to 3 phase.

There are products on the market that offer a halfway house solution (eg Garo Priority board/switch/relays) that will switch from one charger or shower, to another charger automatically so as not to overload the incomer, or a very modern Zappi 2 charger, that monitors via a CT the load and modulates the charge accodingly, and won't overload even if you have 2 electric showers and 2 EV chargers.

REVIEWED - Zappi 2 - The electric vehicle charger which doesn't need an earth rod

We lift the lid on a new smart electric vehicle charger which doesn't need an earth rod when connected to TNCS (PME) supplies.
www.efixx.co.uk www.efixx.co.uk

Very soon, we will see wall mounted chargers with 2 outlets, fed from a single phase supply, but with internal circuitry to monitor and modulate between the 2 outlets so that both EV's will be fully charged overnight, or you can assign a priority etc. It's unlikely that you'll frequently need both EV's charged to 100% at the full 7.4kW for both!

Store Products | Enphase

store.clippercreek.com store.clippercreek.com
 
H
#22 ·
It absolutely is and it depends on where the 3 phase is located in the street to bring to your house it’s completely dependant on the amount of works required etc however this is not required for most and for the a250e you only need a standard 7.4kw wall box charger as it won’t charge any faster and only has a small battery anyway a full capscity it only stores around 10.4kw and with the OLEV grant that’s circa £500 depending on which Wallbox you choose. My Pod-Point cost me £549.
 
F
#25 ·
How can you tell if you have phase 3 already. The guy who lives behind me has a Tesla S. I’ll have to ask him what he does at some point. I never realised there was so much to it I thought it was just a plug upgrade that was needed and perhaps a higher fuse In the garage fuse box.
 
Save
Like Like
H
#27 ·
I think we may have got slightly off topic. The original question was basically does the a250e support charging at 7.4kw in the UK the answer is Yes it will
To get this level of charge at home you will need a standard Wallbox installed which you can get for circa £500 via the OLEV grant. The car will charge in approximately 2hours on this connection.
If you don’t want to do this then just plug it in on the 3 pin plug and it will charge slower around 5 hours or so.
The UK version of the a250e does not support rapid DC charging. If you decide to go for a home Wallbox they will do a mini survey anyway and advise on costs etc so there really no risk.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
You have insufficient privileges to reply here.
Mercedes A-Class Forum
posts
208K
members
29K
Since
2012
We're a forum community dedicated to the Mercedes-Benz A Class . Come join the discussion on performance upgrades, accessories, troubleshooting, maintenance and more!
Full Forum Listing
Explore Our Forums
W176 A45 W177 General W176 General Newbies W177 A45 & A45s