aegorenberg

I had the "220 volt" installation with the correct 40 amp circuit installed and the car would not charge. Electrician checked everything again and said wiring was correct but voltage from Southern California Edison is only 208 volts. Contacted Audi: They said that E-Tron is programmed not to accept 208 Volts. Asked SCE to provide the full 220 volts and they laughed in my face. They said 30% of all "220" is actually "208". Better check your voltage BEFORE getting this vehicle or you might not be able to charge at home.

KaDeTime

Who do you contact at Audi? The car will take 110v why it would not take 208v ?

Also would be interesting to see if it’s only ur house or the neighbors also and then check at night and see if voltage goes up. Normally however 220v is now 250v and to see its 208v that’s crazy. Regardless there is no way that the charger won’t run if not exactly 220v

Do you use a charger or just the plug?

aegorenberg

I spoke with Audi E-tron Customer Support. The car will charge with 110-120 volt (very slowly at 80 hours to max charge) OR much faster with 220 volt using the NEMA 14-50P YP-75L adapter (at 14 hours to max charge -- like overnight). They programmed a minimum voltage for the 220 volt charging and 208 volts is below that threshold, so the vehicle rejects it and will not charge. They said that they were not aware that in the US 220 volts is actually 208 volts. If you check cars like the Nissan Leaf, they will accept 208 volts because they were aware that 208 volts is common "220" actual voltage.

Tronification

That sucks royally! The US nominal voltage is 240V, not 220V, so your utility is even farther from what they're supposed to be providing.
Unless your utility is willing to do something about it, you should probably look into getting a voltage regulator ... which, for the required power, surely won't be cheap.

aegorenberg

I have 220 volt at my home, but I also installed the NEMA 14-50P at a remote office that is 180 miles from my house. That location has the 208 volt current and there is no fast charging there (check zip 93555). Had to stay two days to get enough charge to make it to a fast charger. I am sure that Audi will address this issue since it is a matter of programming the car, but It is definitely something of which any buyer should be aware when planning their move from ICE to electric. And 208 volts is a very common. "120/208 = three hot legs, all 120 to gnd and 208 between any two. It's the modern standard for 3 phase systems."

macwm

https://vollrath.com/Vollrath/Parts-...an-Voltage.htm

This is a pretty good description of all North American Voltages. Note the description of 208 volt: "208 volts is a specific voltage (not derived from 240 volts) which may be supplied to a commercial facility in addition or as an alternative to 240 volts. It is provided by the utility as 208 ±5% volts and should not be used interchangeably with 220 thru 240 volts."

I'm no electrician (I'm a surgeon) here in S.E. Pennsylvania. I'm using a JuiceBox 40 Pro plugged in to a properly wired (4 wire) NEMA 14-50 outlet protected by a 50 amp circuit breaker. According to the JuiceBox app, the power to the unit is anywhere from 242 to 238 volts while charging. No problems at all.

Tronification

Ha, I didn't know about the 208V spec, thanks for the reference!

In that case, I'm guessing something like this should take care of the OP's situation: https://www.larsonelectronics.com/pr...ondary-50-60hz

carkarl

Isn't 208v a common 3-phase power system in the US? You get three 120v legs that are 120 degrees out of phase instead of two 120v legs that are 180 degrees out of phase.

Jibsymalone

120/208 is derived from Wye configured transformers, which share a common neutral point. As stated this is a common commercial type of available voltage. You get 120v to ground from any of the phases, and then 208v between any two phases (which is 120 multiplied by the square root of 3 (1.73). 120*1.73 = 208).

120/240 is a three phase transformer configuration called a Delta configuration, which is used more in industrial, and older commercial systems.You read 240v between any two of the phases and this is usually has a center tapped winding to derive neutral and the desired 120v (if needed). One of the issues with utilities supplying a three-phase, center tapped, delta system is that you end up with two phases to ground reading 120v and a third "high" or "wild leg" reading around 208v to ground. Because of the high leg, the system can leave you with a third less available single pole 120v circuits available. In addition, someone not familiar with this system and wanting to install a new 120v circuit might confuse that deliberately left breaker space as a spare 120v circuit, use this to supply a 120v load and end up smoking/burning up whatever they might plug or wire in due to the higher voltage being delivered.

Most residential power in the US is derived using a split phase configuration much like the above, only with one center tapped winding being utilized to provide the 120/240 residential voltage used.

Hopefully this explained a little and clears up some confusion?

All of the above being said, I would be very surprised if Audi did indeed program its plug in units to not use 208v due to its prevalence in commercial settings, one of the larger segments starting to offer charge points for its customers/clients/employees convenience? I am not saying you are wrong, but I struggle to believe they would make a error like that.

Then again, I have been proven wrong many times in my life!

justsam

Are you talking residential service? As many have stated, the US Standard is 120/240. You would only find 208 in some 3 phase applications, and few residences are 3 phase. Do you have a voltmeter to measure any of your home receptacles, which should be 120 volts, plus or minus 5%.