Level 2 electric car charger went bad.

[Rick Potter]

I have a GE level 2 charger for my plug in hybrid Ford C-Max. Home Depot model...40 A/240V. It has been in service 3 or 4 years. We went to Texas for a week or so, and my Grand daughter Brit decided to use it to charge her Honda Insight.

Should have been fine, both cars take the same factory plug for 110V, and we have charged hers before on the 110 V Ford cables.

For some reason, maybe just coincidence, the 240V charger started out ok on hers then quit. When I got home, I turned off the breaker to the charger, thinking it might reset, and later hooked up my car to it. It tried, then quit all together.

There is power on both sides of the fuses inside the box, and that is as far as my electronic skills take me. Looked at a couple videos on YouTube, and it is beyond my skill set.

I cannot seem to find any one who works on these things.

Any suggestions on where to start? Dealer says no, GE is not interested. Too bad it is not the original cord, as that would be covered by my extended car warranty. I really do not want to buy a new one right now, because I will be getting a new plug in car in a year or so, and will probably need a larger one.

Any suggestions??

[Dan Hunkele]

Fork lifts use batteries and chargers. Give a local dealer a call. They never seem to turn down a job.

[Brian Elfert]

Won't a larger charger still work with your current car? With labor rates topping $100 an hour it doesn't take long to make it a better deal just to get a new one.

[Alex Zeller]

If you don't know electronics I would suggest searching for a place that can repair it. Other than that you would need to post a picture of what the inside looks like. But that would require you to be able to use a multi-meter and be comfortable working around a live circuit.

[Dan Friedrichs]

Any chance you bought it with a credit card that provides additional warranty protection (or warranty extension)?

The reality is, it's a piece of consumer-grade electronics - it is not intended to be serviceable in any way, and it would take a very skilled person to try and troubleshoot and fix it, which would likely cost more than just buying a new one.

Unfortunately, I think this is much like if you had a large flatscreen TV break....there's just no fixing it. Throw it away and buy a new one...

[Rick Potter]

You may have started something Dan. Your post reminded me that I have a repair insurance policy from Direct TV that covers all electronics in the home, including TV's, computers, tablets, etc.

It would be a hoot if the policy covers my electronic car charger. Probably not, but worth a try.

Thanks.

Other posts mention upgrading the unit to a newer higher capacity model that would cover any future purchase. I want to, but when we installed this one we put in a 40 circuit to the garage, and new ones require some rewiring for 50A or more.

Frankly, when we installed it I never thought I would live so long. My extended warranty on the '14 model covers everything on the care for another year and a half...April '23. I am now hoping that I make it through another round of new vehicles.

If we decide to upgrade it, I have a good electrician friend who has helped me out at a reasonable price for about 15 years. I am a lucky guy, and I am pretty sure the upgrade is the way we will go.

I am charging it currently (electrician humor) with my 120V setup that came with the car.

[Brian Elfert]

You can probably run a 50 amp charger on a 40 amp circuit just fine until the circuit can be upgraded.