My car is charging slowly

Why is my charging power dropping? How much can the chargers actually charge? Why is my car charging slowly? Why is my car not charging at 11kw?

Charging speed can both increase and decrease, and there can be several reasons for this. Read more below.

Most charging boxes can deliver 11 kW. If you find that your car is charging slower than normal, it may be because your car only has one phase* or you are using a charging cable that only charges with one phase. The charging box will always offer the car the maximum possible power. If the car is charging on a single phase, it will draw 3.7 kW in an hour - if it's charging on all three phases, it can draw 11 kW in an hour (some as much as 22kW).

There can be several factors at play if the charging power of your electric car is reduced. This could be due to:

• Updating the car. 🚘 A dip in charging speed can be caused by an update in the car's software, which restarts the steering system.
• Voltage drop. ⬇ It can also be caused by the car experiencing a voltage drop in the power supply. This causes the car to reduce the power intake or stop charging altogether. Often the car will resume charging again afterwards.
• Multiple cars connected to the same installation. 🚗🚗 If you are charging on the public network, it may be because several cars are charging at the same time. They are sharing the power available at the location.
• Temperature. 🌡 Temperature can also affect charging. Especially in extreme cold or heat, some cars may reduce the charging speed to protect the battery. Some boxes also have a safety feature that reduces the power if it senses that the temperature is approaching its limits.
• 1-phase charging cable. 🔌 If you have a charging cable that only charges with 1 phase, you will experience a lower charging power than if you used a cable that can charge with all 3 phases. A 1-phase charging cable will lack the copper color in the bottom 2 holes of the cable. A 3-phase charging cable will have the copper color in all 3 holes. See the image below:
  
  
  

It can be quite frustrating when your car is charging at less than what it's capable of. Most often, it's for safety reasons that the charge speed drops, as cars always prioritises preserving battery life.

*When you charge with a single phase, either because of the cable or because of the car, you are only utilising one of three lanes for power. Therefore, it will take longer for the car to charge than if it utilised all 3 lanes. With 3-phase charging, you utilise all three lanes for power, which means you get maximum output from the amps available in the charger.

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