2012 Owner's Manual says 4.8 kVA charging ???

Please help me resolve the apparent inconsistency in these lines from page 9-4 of the 2012 Leaf Owner's Manual:

Maximum rated current 12A (AC120V), 18A (AC240V)
Maximum power consumption 1.4kVA (AC120V), 4.8 kVA (AC240V)

Click to expand...

Does it really have a 4.8 kVA charger? (So many folks insist that it's 3.8kVA)
Can it really take 18 amps at 240 volts? (Many insist that max is 16 amps)

What am I missing?

That is maximum power consumption, not charge rate. There are the pumps and fans, and heater and A/C that can also run while it is charging. As such, the actual consumption of electricity will always be higher than the charge rate.

BostonLance said:

Please help me resolve the apparent inconsistency in these lines from page 9-4 of the 2012 Leaf Owner's Manual:

Maximum rated current 12A (AC120V), 18A (AC240V)
Maximum power consumption 1.4kVA (AC120V), 4.8 kVA (AC240V)

Click to expand...

Does it really have a 4.8 kVA charger? (So many folks insist that it's 3.8kVA)
Can it really take 18 amps at 240 volts? (Many insist that max is 16 amps)

What am I missing?

Click to expand...

The spec is wrong. 3.3kw charger 3.8kw max draw with loads. Not 4.8kw

Apparently no way to delete a post on this forum :?
Anyway I thought my '12 would charge @16a on either 120v or 240v but it's only @208-240v, 120v is slightly <12a. No idea where they got 18a @240v :?
Oh and my amp readings are input to the EVSE, I have no way to measure input to the actual battery which of course would be less due to losses in the charger etc.
OK I think I figured out the delete post thing. Apparently one cannot delete a post after someone else has made a post after it.

jjeff said:

Apparently no way to delete a post on this forum :?

Click to expand...

No but a mod can delete any post for you, no big deal, you can report your own post and we'll see it.


On topic:

I have an openEVSE and can feed more than 16 amp to the 2012 SL I have and it doesn't change the charge rate vs just choosing 16 amps.

I'd just assume the manual has a typo.

Thanks for the replies.

I'll just accept that my User's Guide has two typos and proceed to set up my newly acquired Level 2 charger for 240 volts 16 amps.

BostonLance said:

Please help me resolve the apparent inconsistency in these lines from page 9-4 of the 2012 Leaf Owner's Manual:

Maximum rated current 12A (AC120V), 18A (AC240V)
Maximum power consumption 1.4kVA (AC120V), 4.8 kVA (AC240V)

Click to expand...

Does it really have a 4.8 kVA charger? (So many folks insist that it's 3.8kVA)
Can it really take 18 amps at 240 volts? (Many insist that max is 16 amps)

What am I missing?

Click to expand...

The vehicle will Consume more electricity (up to the maximum rating), due to other loads (pumps, fans, A/C, heater), but the actual amount used to Charge the battery is going to be less than the maximum rating.

Also, it has not been mentioned that kVA and kW are different measurements. http://www.rapidtables.com/calc/electric/kva-to-kw-calculator.htm

Configure the EVSE to provide the maximum amount possible. The vehicle tells the EVSE how much to actually send over the cable (up to the maximum it can use), based on the amount the EVSE says it can actually provide for use.

BostonLance said:

Thanks for the replies.

I'll just accept that my User's Guide has two typos and proceed to set up my newly acquired Level 2 charger for 240 volts 16 amps.

Click to expand...

You can set the EVSE up for whatever amps your wall socket or wiring/breaker circuit can support. Doesn't matter if it is setup for 16 or 30 or 100 the car doesn't care.