(Un)Official Mitsubishi (Cypress, CA) L3 Scheduling Thread

[prberg]

Hi mwalsh,

I was thinking of trying to check out the Mitsubishi charging station tomorrow (Saturday). I don't have the L3 port so I was just hoping for a little L2 to help me with my trip down to Cypress. I read that the L3 is only M-F during business hours. Is there any chance of using the L2/L1 on weekends? Is the parking lot locked on the weekends or might we be able to use the facility?

If it's possible to get some L2 charge, I would be in the area probably around 3pm. Should I check in with the office staff, or will no one be there on Saturday?

thanks for organizing this and letting everyone know about this awesome resource. I wish there was something we could do to thank Mitsubishi.

-Peter

Is Cypress your final destination? Mitsubishi is in the city of Cypress. Anyhow, the L3 won't be available tomorrow, being Saturday. You should use the L2 though....I'm told that should be available. Failing that, there are the L2s at Cerritos Nissan...I don't think they'd turn you away from there. Confirm where you're heading and I'll give you some more options.

Well actually my in-laws live about 5 minutes from the Mitsubishi charging station. I was actually just looking for a reason to get out of the house and also to see where the charging station was. I might be a little low on charge and I usually just charge using L1 at their house, but it might come in handy to just get a little more charge using L2 since they live so close. We might take a short side trip, so the extra L2 charging could make sure we get back ok (and keep me from having to drive like a "slow EV" driver like some others warn against). I was thinking about this charging spot a few weeks ago when I was almost in trouble coming back from LAX a few weeks ago (thanks again Sparky!). I'm almost kicking myself for not getting the Chadamo port, although since we visit mostly on the weekends the L3 wouldn't do us much good in this case.

So this isn't a case of a real need, I guess I am more curious and wanted to know the in's and out's of the charging station in case I was really in a jam. I don't want to bother the Mitsubishi people, just figured I could check it out and gain a little extra L2 charging at the same time. Is there security people we would check in with on the weekend? Or should the L1/L2 be pretty much open to use?

thanks again,
Peter

 

[mwalsh]

So this isn't a case of a real need, I guess I am more curious and wanted to know the in's and out's of the charging station in case I was really in a jam. I don't want to bother the Mitsubishi people, just figured I could check it out and gain a little extra L2 charging at the same time. Is there security people we would check in with on the weekend? Or should the L1/L2 be pretty much open to use?

thanks again,
Peter

I'm not sure there is anyone there at all on weekends. However, you might want to walk around to the front of the building to see if there are any signs of life, and to proactively tell any security that does happen to be there what you're up to.

 

[prberg]

So this isn't a case of a real need, I guess I am more curious and wanted to know the in's and out's of the charging station in case I was really in a jam. I don't want to bother the Mitsubishi people, just figured I could check it out and gain a little extra L2 charging at the same time. Is there security people we would check in with on the weekend? Or should the L1/L2 be pretty much open to use?

thanks again,
Peter

I'm not sure there is anyone there at all on weekends. However, you might want to walk around to the front of the building to see if there are any signs of life, and to proactively tell any security that does happen to be there what you're up to.

Will do. I'll report back if I do end up stopping by tomorrow.

 

[prberg]

Update for all. I was able to swing by the Mitsubishi HQ on Saturday afternoon. The good news is that the L1 and L2 charging were on and available. I was able to get about 40 mins of L2 charge, which helped with our multi-stop trips on Saturday. Really a great resource and wish we could thank Mitsubishi somehow (I do mention the i to friends who are looking for an EV and want more options).

I did try to go to the front desk to check in, but the door was locked and no one was home. I did see a security guard and he gave me a wave, so seems like it's cool to charge on the weekend (the L3 was locked and off.. so that one is not an option on weekends).

One word of warning. When I plugged in the LEAF to their Eaton L2 EVSE, I got a red indicator on the unit and the LEAF did not start charging. I had hit the manual timer override switch in the LEAF but I wondered if it could be a timer issue. So I disabled the timer that I have set on the car, and then when I plugged in the car again, everything worked perfectly. So it would be best to disable the LEAF charging timer (if you have one set) before you plug into the Eaton L2 EVSE.

Also, the entrance to the parking lot is actually on the side road (Holder Street) which is on the East side of the complex. Does Nissan have any offices in the Los Angeles/Orange County area? Would be nice if they had a setup like this! The dealerships are good, but as we know they can be a hasstle as it's a fully functioning sales/service center and often busier than a business park (especially on the weekends).

Here's a few pictures.

Thanks Mitsubishi!
-Peter

 

[LBCev]

I just went by the Mitsubishi HQ this morning after dropping our daughter off to school. I had 18 miles in the "tank" and about a 12 mile trek so I thought it was a good time to try out the CHAdeMO that I've read so much about. I must say that Level 3 is the only way to fly! The folks at Mitsubishi were all just fantastic. I even had the opportunity to sit in a U.S. spec "i" and talk to their EV engineer about some of the features. I definitely plan on taking it for a drive at next month's Alt Car Expo 2011 in Santa Monica.

Thanks Mitsubishi!

 

[GotMyleaf]

The fast charger is a game changer for me. I have a 50 mile commute one-way with the Mitsubishi HQ between two of my destinations. I was able to gain 10kwh in 22 minutes which brought me to about 90%.
I plan to use it at least twice per week. Besides being fast, it's all solar powered! I hope that the setup is replicated all over the state as a viable replacement to gas stations.

Way to go Mitsubishi!

 

[GotMyleaf]

Plan B.
The fast charger wouldn't get past the safety check on my car and had 'fault' so I had to go to Plan B. My car had a warning light too but was gone after I shutdown/restarted. The folks at Mitsubishi offered their level 2, but I was on a schedule, so I rolled. Cerritos Nissan let me charge for about four hours while I watched a movie and hung out . I'll call them next week before I go to make sure the system is up.

 

[garygid]

Was it a problem within your LEAF, or a problem in the Eaton QC machine?

 

[GotMyleaf]

I think that the problem was with the charging station because the guys that were helping me said that the system had a problem the day before and we got the same error when plugging into an 'i.' Since that is the only functioning quick charger, I'll be there to try again this week and will know for sure.

 

[GotMyleaf]

The charger is back on-line and my car is fine. They just had to reset the charger by turning it off.

 

[azrael1234]

Has anybody been to Mitsubishi lately for quick charging? I went last Thursday at 3:30pm and the eaton was unlocked but was not on. I was bummed, as I got off work early for once and really wanted to try it.

The charger is back on-line and my car is fine. They just had to reset the charger by turning it off.

 

[mwalsh]

Has anybody been to Mitsubishi lately for quick charging? I went last Thursday at 3:30pm and the eaton was unlocked but was not on. I was bummed, as I got off work early for once and really wanted to try it.

It should have been available at that time of day. Did you go inside and ask at reception?

 

[azrael1234]

No, I just drove up and plugged in. does the receptionist need to turn it on? I had used the L2's before and they worked without having to tell anyone, so I figured it was the same.

Has anybody been to Mitsubishi lately for quick charging? I went last Thursday at 3:30pm and the eaton was unlocked but was not on. I was bummed, as I got off work early for once and really wanted to try it.

It should have been available at that time of day. Did you go inside and ask at reception?

 

[mwalsh]

No, I just drove up and plugged in. does the receptionist need to turn it on? I had used the L2's before and they worked without having to tell anyone, so I figured it was the same.

Well, what normally happens is that you show up and the unit is at least locked up. I don't remember it being turned off too, but that might be new. Or, it may be down entirely, so they figured why bother to lock it up.

In any event, yes, the procedure is normally that you show up; check in with reception; and then reception calls someone to come unlock the unit. The last time I was there, it was a young lady named Ida (though that's not how you actually spell her name, but that's how it's pronounced).

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=4691&start=98" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[malloryk]

A friend of mine used it on Friday night, she got there around 7:30. She didn't realize it was their headquarters, she thought she was going to a dealership. Anyway, she said that there was a lock on the gate but that it wasn't closed so she was able to get in. And then she couldn't figure out how to start it up and just started touching the panel and it came to life. She was down to one bar and it took her 52 minutes to get full. Not as quick as she was expecting, but a lot faster than L2 obviously.

 

[mwalsh]

A friend of mine used it on Friday night, she got there around 7:30. She didn't realize it was their headquarters, she thought she was going to a dealership. Anyway, she said that there was a lock on the gate but that it wasn't closed so she was able to get in. And then she couldn't figure out how to start it up and just started touching the panel and it came to life. She was down to one bar and it took her 52 minutes to get full. Not as quick as she was expecting, but a lot faster than L2 obviously.

Ah. Sleep mode, eh? So the good news is that it might be available all the time now. Or available all the time until they figure out that it's no longer locked?

There's a couple of ways we can go with this - I can follow up with my Mitsubishi contacts and see if they do indeed have it available all the time. Or we can leave well enough alone, in case it's a mistake. I think I'm inclined towards the latter, but it would also be horrible if someone came up/down there from afar, only to find it locked up again unexpectedly. Thoughts?

 

[malloryk]

There's a couple of ways we can go with this - I can follow up with my Mitsubishi contacts and see if they do indeed have it available all the time. Or we can leave well enough alone, in case it's a mistake. I think I'm inclined towards the latter, but it would also be horrible if someone came up/down there from afar, only to find it locked up again unexpectedly. Thoughts?

I would leave it alone. Hopefully the people who do know about it know to not expect it to be available 24/7.

 

[Spies]

She was down to one bar and it took her 52 minutes to get full. Not as quick as she was expecting, but a lot faster than L2 obviously.

If she went to 100% that sounds about the same as other reports I have read. Half the time spent getting to 80% and the other half getting to 100%

 

[TRONZ]

So we are going to Aquarium of the Pacific today in Long Beach. My plan is to stop by Mitsu HQ around 1:30-2:00 for an L3 on the way. If its all buggared then we can do a Plan B in Seal Beach. What is the latest status of the unit? Is it online?

 

[GotMyleaf]

The quick charger is down and has been since the 21st of Nov. Someone broke the handle somehow.
Cramping my style.