RAV4 PHEV Charging Point Install

[nlee]

Awaiting delivery of my PHEV and meanwhile looking at boring stuff like a home wall charger and EV tariffs. Any current owners had any joy with getting a charging point installed with the EVHS £350 grant? I've contacted an installer today and they cannot progress the grant application because it isn't listed as an eligible vehicle. It must be due to being a new model because it meets the emission limits but the list has been updated 3 times since the beginning of August and it's still not there.

[Cyker]

Does that still exist? I thought they cut all grants except for pure EV's now?

 

[ernieb]

I’ve been looking since February and also surprised that the Toyota PHEV is still not listed.  Not sure who is responsible maybe Toyota have not submitted it for approval?  I’m happy using a Masterplug 240v mains external box as it easily chargers the car overnight.

[nlee]

You can only get grants towards the purchase of the car for a pure EV but you can get the grant towards installing a "smart" home charging point for a PHEV as well, if it is below 50g/km CO2, so long as you meet other criteria like off-street parking, listed installer, approved charger, etc. The specific model has to be on the list though an the manufacturer has to apply to add it.

[FROSTYBALLS]

Raise a query with Customer Relations @Toyota GB.

[nlee]

16 minutes ago, ernieb said:

I’ve been looking since February and also surprised that the Toyota PHEV is still not listed.  Not sure who is responsible maybe Toyota have not submitted it for approval?  I’m happy using a Masterplug 240v mains external box as it easily chargers the car overnight.

Yeah, I'll probably do that for now, I have an external weatherproof socket for the 3 pin plug. It was just that I'm looking at going on a EV energy tariff and they only tend to have a 4-5 hour cheap rate window. It's probably still worth scheduling the charge to get half a full charge at 5p/Kwh.

[Cyker]

26 minutes ago, nlee said:

You can only get grants towards the purchase of the car for a pure EV but you can get the grant towards installing a "smart" home charging point for a PHEV as well, if it is below 50g/km CO2, so long as you meet other criteria like off-street parking, listed installer, approved charger, etc. The specific model has to be on the list though an the manufacturer has to apply to add it.

Ahhh I see! That's good to know!

Alas I think by the time I get anything that can be plugged in that grant will be long gone (I'm over 10 years late for the hybrid grant as it is  )

 

[ernieb]

This is what I fitted works well,

 

https://www.screwfix.com/p/masterplug-mode-2-charger-1-port-2-3kw-mode-2-uk-3-pin-plug-mode-2-domestic-ev-charging-station/512gv

[ernieb]

The Toyota PHEV is 22g/km CO2 so should qualify, other PHEV’s which are listed have a higher CO2 but under the 50g/km.

[Sealiedog]

I suspect it may be cheaper to buy one and get a local electrician to fit it. 6 years ago I got one free of charge for my Outlander with the grant that was available then. There was a local company where I lived in Devon who told me what the government was paying was way over the top. 

[Nick72]

Got a massive grant July time last year. Mate who owns a big leccy firm sorted it. Project EV 7.4kW charger. A pain to set up. Such a faff and a krypton factor race against time on the App front cus it creates a temporary Wifi hotspot you got to connect to for like 30 secs and set things up so it runs off home wifi thereafter. But, once done it's not a bad app and the wall charger box looks ok. Lit up at night. My wife thinks it looks like a phone box on the house but then again she didn't want us getting a tethered unit because she said that looks like a big hosepipe reel on the house. Can't win.

[ernieb]

7 hours ago, Nick72 said:

Got a massive grant July time last year. Mate who owns a big leccy firm sorted it. Project EV 7.4kW charger. A pain to set up. Such a faff and a krypton factor race against time on the App front cus it creates a temporary Wifi hotspot you got to connect to for like 30 secs and set things up so it runs off home wifi thereafter. But, once done it's not a bad app and the wall charger box looks ok. Lit up at night. My wife thinks it looks like a phone box on the house but then again she didn't want us getting a tethered unit because she said that looks like a big hosepipe reel on the house. Can't win.

Having the faster charge capability right now could be useful if you wanted to turn the car around and run on EV to save some fuel.  They are expensive with and without the grants, not that the Toyota PHEV is on the grant list, a bit more competition is needed to drive the costs down.

[ernieb]

10 hours ago, Nick72 said:

Got a massive grant July time last year. Mate who owns a big leccy firm sorted it. Project EV 7.4kW charger. A pain to set up. Such a faff and a krypton factor race against time on the App front cus it creates a temporary Wifi hotspot you got to connect to for like 30 secs and set things up so it runs off home wifi thereafter. But, once done it's not a bad app and the wall charger box looks ok. Lit up at night. My wife thinks it looks like a phone box on the house but then again she didn't want us getting a tethered unit because she said that looks like a big hosepipe reel on the house. Can't win.

Interesting as I see that Screwfix are now selling a range of the EV Project products including the No earth required version. I’m going to have a good look at that version.

[nlee]

12 hours ago, Nick72 said:

Got a massive grant July time last year. Mate who owns a big leccy firm sorted it. Project EV 7.4kW charger. A pain to set up. Such a faff and a krypton factor race against time on the App front cus it creates a temporary Wifi hotspot you got to connect to for like 30 secs and set things up so it runs off home wifi thereafter. But, once done it's not a bad app and the wall charger box looks ok. Lit up at night. My wife thinks it looks like a phone box on the house but then again she didn't want us getting a tethered unit because she said that looks like a big hosepipe reel on the house. Can't win.

I was looking at getting the Hypervolt Home 2.0 installer. A little bit more expensive than the baseline wall boxes but not as much as some the premium models. It looks quite tidy, even though it's tethered. The cable wraps around it and is nearly hidden. The flashy LED lights are not for me but the brightness can be set in the app or turned off. I did a fair bit of research and it comes with excellent reviews for both the unit an the customer service.

@ernieb You're right, they are still expensive even with the grant. The payback is longer with a PHEV because we're likely to use less KW per annum than a full BEV. With the ability to fully charge in the off peak window on an EV tariff at 5p/kWh v's around 25p/kWh (as it's getting these days) it's around a 18 month payback for me.

[Nick72]

6 hours ago, ernieb said:

Having the faster charge capability right now could be useful if you wanted to turn the car around and run on EV to save some fuel.  They are expensive with and without the grants, not that the Toyota PHEV is on the grant list, a bit more competition is needed to drive the costs down.

Cost me 350 quid for everything. Would have needed an external plug socket anyway so figured I might as well create the upgrade path to full EV at the same time.

[Nick72]

2 hours ago, ernieb said:

Interesting as I see that Screwfix are now selling a range of the EV Project products including the No earth required version. I’m going to have a good look at that version.

I have a no earth version. Project EV. Straightforward installation as where I wanted it was 1m from our consumer unit which I upgraded for other reasons a couple of months prior.

[ernieb]

15 minutes ago, Nick72 said:

I have a no earth version. Project EV. Straightforward installation as where I wanted it was 1m from our consumer unit which I upgraded for other reasons a couple of months prior.

Did you install yourself or get an electrician to do it, it looks pretty straightforward to be honest.

[Devon Aygo]

Toyota have teamed with Centrica for their EV wall plug offers https://www.localheroes.com/evchargers/uk/toyota

[ernieb]

42 minutes ago, Devon Aygo said:

Toyota have teamed with Centrica for their EV wall plug offers https://www.localheroes.com/evchargers/uk/toyota

Wow, over £1000 with installation, VAT but all subject to survey for a 7.4Kwh charger including the grant over £1350 without.

I’d read that Toyota were developing a 22KwH charger on their own design?

[Nick72]

5 hours ago, ernieb said:

Did you install yourself or get an electrician to do it, it looks pretty straightforward to be honest.

Leccy but only cus my mate said he would sort all the grant paperwork out etc. Took about an hour. Not complicated. 

[Nick72]

17 minutes ago, ernieb said:

Wow, over £1000 with installation, VAT but all subject to survey for a 7.4Kwh charger including the grant over £1350 without.

I’d read that Toyota were developing a 22KwH charger on their own design?

Robbery.

[ernieb]

11 minutes ago, Nick72 said:

Leccy but only cus my mate said he would sort all the grant paperwork out etc. Took about an hour. Not complicated. 

Cheers, good friend to have sorting out all the details.

[Nick72]

20 hours ago, ernieb said:

Cheers, good friend to have sorting out all the details.

There were pages and pages of complicated forms but as he had done a few he said he would sort it so I only needed to skim through and sign.

[nlee]

21 hours ago, ernieb said:

Wow, over £1000 with installation, VAT but all subject to survey for a 7.4Kwh charger including the grant over £1350 without.

I’d read that Toyota were developing a 22KwH charger on their own design?

The RAV4 wouldn't benefit from the 22kW either way due to the on board charger being less than 7kW. If, down the line you wanted a full electric that could charge at 22kw, your house would have to have a 3-phase supply.

[ernieb]

Nigel, my house has only a 48A single phase I put so it’s all somewhat out of the question. I’m happy enough with my 240v 10A charger as it easily charges the RAV’s Battery over night.