Mitsubishi And AeroVironment Take Out The Hassles Of Home Charging

AeroVironment is a leader in the electric charging station world. Whereas Coulomb Technologies started from the 110V world, moving up to 220V and beyond, AeroVironment has had the reverse path. You might not have heard much from this company but chances are it has effected you, one way or another.

Technically Speaking. By now you should be aware that an electric car needs to be recharged in order to move. Sounds silly, but according to the latest Tesla Roadster “brick” hoopla, it seems some Roadster owners neglected to keep their cars charged, despite being told to do so. If you can simply plug in your electric vehicle, EV to a regular 110V wall socket, the recharging process will be painfully slow. Enters the exciting world of the home electric charging stations. In order to do this you must have a qualified electrician come in and make sure your home is equipped to handle this. Make the necessary adjustement, get new circuit breakers and usually bring in a residential 220V line to your home, like the ones used for clothes dryers. This usually involves asking your city for a permit and even though the procedure has been streamlined over the years, thanks to car makers and charging station companies, it takles a long time and can be a painful experience. Why aren’t homes running on a more efficient 220V system is another debate.

Charging Stations. In this field, there are a few manufacturers you can turn to, the afore mentioned AeroVironment, Coulomb Technologies, Blink and a few others. While most started with the humble 110V and moved on up, AeroVironment started with industrial strength charging stations and worked their way down. AeroVironment provides much of the electricity equipment for airports, especially when it comes to the charging stations for airplanes.

The Big Deal, Mitsubishi & AeroVironment. At some point, EV makers need to partner with an electric recharge station maker in order to make the EV driving experience a good one. Mitsubishi chose AeroVironment and the terms are very enticing. Not only will AeroVironment supply the installation and warranty to i drivers, they will also take care of waiving the fee for on-site consultation to customers who placed their pre-orders online for the Mitsubishi i.

What this means is that the Mitsubishi & AeroVironment solution provides a nifty turnkey solution. You will get the company’s EVSE-RS Level 2 electric vehicle charging system, which includes a permit acquisition, the installation, the all-important customer training, as well as a 24/7 customer service. And if this wasn’t enough, the company even throws in a three-year warranty on both parts and installation labor. Mitsubishi is also waiving the $99.99 on-site consultation fee for the first 2,000 customers who will pre-order its I before April 19 of this year.

In other words, you will have a Level 2 home charging station using a 240-volt line that will fully recharge your depleted Mitsubishi i battery pack in about 7 hours, should you choose to run it down this way. As if this wasn’t good enough, AeroVironment’s not only throws in its basic charging solution Level 1 and Level 2, but also its "smart" fast charging DC system that can completely charge an empty Mitsubishi i lithium-ion battery pack to 80% in less than 30 minutes. This is something that comes in handy at some point in any EV driver’s life.

This deal is a big one for potential EV buyer. Installing an electric charging station and getting the permits can be a daunting task. This venture between both companies takes away the hassles of the obligatory analysis of your current electrical wiring capacity. It also takes care of recommending the right charging station, as well as its placement in the best way for your particular needs. Finally, it takes care of the entire breakdown of what needs to happen in order to own an EV at home. The installation of an electric charging system, as well as its associated costs. AeroVironment's will secure the necessary permits, whether you buy or rent. This is an important task, especially when taking into account both electrical and building requirements within your community.

As we move forward, more and more EV makers are associating themselves with charging station manufacturers. The sweet spot and hopefully that which should close the deal is having the right partnership to take away the hard work of setting up a home charging infrastructure. Thankfully Mitsubishi and AeroVironment have taken a great step forward in that direction, affording future i drivers a pleasant experience with their recharging needs.