10 comments

1. Can a person recharge e/Golf directly through the DC port (directly under the AC input)
   first question….IOW’s can I feed the main batteries DC current DIRECTLY from a 200 watt array of two 120 Watt PV solar panels? If not what’s the minimum amps to wake up the (slow) charge?
   second question…. Would a 200 amp hour 12 Volt battery extend the car’s range plugged into the 12V outlet located to the right of rear door? If not, why not?
   third question… Does VW have plans to market larger capacity, faster charging, REPLACEMENT batteries, sometime in the future? (otherwise, current models will become almost worthless in a few years)
   fourth question.. Will VW market an all wheel drive e.Golf or hybrid as sold in Germany? MayI buy one in Canada?

   Love my e.golf. Age 82 I’ve owned a VW (or Porche) continuously since 1954. (seven vw’s including two TDI’s, a Mico Bus, 1957 Speedster and 1954 Porche Coup)
   Thanks, Robert Inget, Ashland Oregon

2. One more: How difficult would it be to DRAW DC current from the vehicle? A battery this size would be a godsend in a power outage. All a person would need, a proper sinewave inverter and a #10 extension cord. It’s frustrating during a daytime power outage, all that energy inaccessible just like my 8-KW grid-tie solar array. Once the grid goes away so does a person’s power. BTW , older batteries can be rebuilt for home use al la “Power-Wall”.

   Oh, a person can hook-up any used solar panels to the LOWER water heater element after disconnecting AC from lower thermostat. Works on the coldest, even cloudy days preheating icy cold water.
   Water heaters don’t know the difference between AC and DC .

3. I drive a Model S and decided to go solar three months ago. I worked with Johanna from Pick My Solar and she helped me through the entire process and made sure I got a large enough system for my car. All in all a really positive experience , didn’t feel like I was getting sold to. Check them out!

   1. Awesome – Thanks for sharing! How did you find out about PickMySolar?

4. I’m in the UK, so the set up maybe different. I’ve got a 1.4kw peak system facing due south. The outlander charges at 3kw. That means that in the summer, across the middle of the day, the solar will give me nearly half of the load, if nothing else is switched on in the house. Even in the summer, when I return home from work, the sun is too far round to produce any noticeable electricity. I maximise where I can, like waiting till Saturday rather than Friday night, if practical, to charge. Remember the value of the system is the max production at the sunniest time. Either side of midday the peak drops off rapidly. If the car is the major driver, maybe consider directing your panels off due south if you can, to increase morning or evening production, depending on your life style for charging. This will reduce the overall production, but if you have a sunny climate, maybe it’s negligible.
   Although you may get paid for producing the electricity, (depending where you are &c), you need to consider if the car will benefit from your installation, if that is one of the driving factors for getting it. You can now get L-ion batteries (small for their power), to attach to the system, allowing you to store the charge for later. An excellent idea if the house is empty most of the day anyway. We opted for a diversion to heat our water, so it doesn’t help charge the car, which came along later, but we use most of what we produce.

5. Peter Barnett, hope you don’t mind me asking, but how much was the cost of your installation? How many panels have been fitted? I know hardly anything about how effective solar panels are in the UK and I wonder how long it would take to recoup the cost. Given my age, I wonder if I would live long enough to see any benefit!

6. Does anyone know if and when Nissan’s “Car to Home’ battery storage system will be sold in the US or Canada?
   There must be some regulation forbidding sale here in US.
   Can a person buy such a grid tie system directly from Japan?

7. Hey all, I just have one solar panel charging one 12volt battery and an A/C inverter. Can I plug my Outlander PHEV into the inverter or is there just not enough power for it? Thanks.

   1. I’m not sure if there’s a lower limit of current that is required to charge your Outlander…. if it does work, it will just charge it very slowly – it’s what is referred to as a trickle charge. Your Outlander might just give a warning of not being plugged in or something like that

8. Solar City is now Tesla

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