BMW 330e charging

MikeNewby

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A question for somebody with a better understanding of electrics than me.....I have a BMW 330e and am trying to work out if it would benefit me to get a dedicated charge point installed or just stick with the standard 3 pin plug method. The car has 3 settings on which it can be charged, 6A, 10A and 16A; I am using the 10A and a full charge takes about 5 hours, but I assume I could use the higher 16A with a dedicated charge point and hence reduce the charge time, albeit only slightly as the onboard charger is restricted to 3.7kw. However, would it be more cost effective to charge at lower power for longer, ie 6A running overnight for about 7 hours?
 
I suspect that the 16A provision is for mainland Europe where regular outlets can provide this amount of power. In the UK, domestic sockets max out at 13A so you are correct in using 10A of the three - more would simply pop the fuse in the plug - possibly not immediately - and could well stress your wiring.

It makes no difference in cost. You pay domestic power by kWh (units) which won't differ by speed. The only reason you might go "faster" (which would involve installing a dedicated circuit and outlet) would be if you had a smart meter and a tariff that gives a hugely reduced cost/unit over a limited period (such as 4 hours) overnight.
 
I suspect that the 16A provision is for mainland Europe where regular outlets can provide this amount of power. In the UK, domestic sockets max out at 13A so you are correct in using 10A of the three - more would simply pop the fuse in the plug - possibly not immediately - and could well stress your wiring.

It makes no difference in cost. You pay domestic power by kWh (units) which won't differ by speed. The only reason you might go "faster" (which would involve installing a dedicated circuit and outlet) would be if you had a smart meter and a tariff that gives a hugely reduced cost/unit over a limited period (such as 4 hours) overnight.
Thanks for this, clears it up!

Part of my reasoning for thinking about a charge point was to avail of the grant while it is still available, kind of playing the long game in case in 3/4 years time when my company car is renewed I go for full EV over PHEV, but I saw on another thread that somebody else's packed in after 6 years, so I think I'll just hold off for now. I might be better spending £150 on the additional cable (type 2 - type 2) that would allow charging at public points instead - typical BMW, everything costs extra!
 
the 16amp is for a dedicated type 2 wall unit outputting 3.7 kw.. Max the 330e can charge at

You can get most of the cost covered by the grant and its a lot tiedier and safer than running leads from the house, so personally I would get it. The grant covers upto £500 so you will probably have to add £100 or so, but not a bad investment, if you want to future proof in case you go full EV in the future get them to fit a 7.2kw 32amp one, its about the same price and will still charge the BMW at 3.7kw max but if you get a full EV in future you will benefit from 7.2kw charging.
 
You could be looking at higher costs once you include installation (labour and other materials: MCB in your consumer unit, 6mm twin+earth, conduit and saddles, etc). As usual it all depends on other factors as to if it's worthwhile proceeding and which charger to install. An Ohme charger is relatively inexpensive, the firmware is constantly updated and new features added. Ensure whichever choice you make that the charger is eligible for the OLEV grant on his list.

Another factor is your electricity tariff. I believe the average unit rate is still ~15p/kWh, but switching to a different tariff and charging overnight could see that as low as 5p/kWh. The tariff I'm thinking of (Octopus Go) only has a 4 hour window for this low rate, so you'd need the faster charger. If you charged with 100 units of electricity every week, then the installation cost could be covered inside a year and provide further savings thereafter/the more it is used.

I'd just do it! The extra convenience, faster charge rates, 32A charging if/when you do decide to change to a BEV, they're all worth the investment.
 
I've run a 530e for three years now just using the supplied cable plugged into an outdoor socket. It charges at 12A. No reliability issues.

You leave the car set to the maximum (16A) setting - the max charge rate with the granny cable is set by the cable (in my case 12A)

330e/530e fully charge within the Octopus Go time window no problem when on the granny.
 
@MikeNewby can I ask what the boot is like on your 330e, been struggling to see one in the flesh or get pictures. I believe the boot is fairly reduced due to battery.

im looking at the 330e as my next company car and if the space is restricted a bit I may look towards the estate
 
Hi all!

I have run a 330e for the last year or so and find it an excellent little car.

To start with I ran a long industrial extension lead out of my garage and charged using the supplied charger. It was always absolutely fine (I had set the charging in the car on maximum charge) with no blown fuses or anything.

I then switched to Ovo onto their EV tariff with Economy 7 and it came with a free charge point. It seems to charge around twice as fast as with the supplied charger. I had to buy a lead as it was just a plug point (standard type 2 to type 2 I think). I have set the charger to only charge overnight using my cheaper tariff (still about 10p/kWh though). There is also a booster button on the plug point so I can charge on demand and there is a neat app that allows me to do the boost remotely if I need to and keeps track of how much power I have used.

The boot is a little shallower than normal but I still find it quite large. I also have the foldable back seats which make a huge difference although the boot shelf is of course fixed which limits it a little bit.

Hope that helps!
Mark
 

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