[Mikrt]

I'm considering buying a non-rapid 2020 135 gt line 50.
Could someone please confirm what the fastst charge speed is please?

I have looked here and online, but can't see for sure what the answer is.
TIA.

 

[AndrewC]

Without CCS it will charge on three-phase at a max of 22kW.

 

[Andy-Zoé-User]

22kw AC

 

[Rbrian]

It'll charge at 22kw, but only a few chargers support that. Home chargers are 7kw, unless you have 3 phase, which is rare in the UK. Many public chargers are also only 7kw, but some are 22kw - my local Tesco has 3 chargers, 7kw, 22kw, and 50kw CCS. If you're going to drive beyond the range regularly, get a CCS equipped car instead, it'll make long journeys manageable, with a 40 minute instead of 4 hour pitstop.

 

[Andy-Zoé-User]

it looks like a lot of the public infrastructure is leaning towards CCS DC Charging more than ever - so with that in mind , excuse the bruteness of this answer, but wouldn't it be crazy person who buys an EV these days (new or used) without the option of a CCS socket fitted on their next car?

 

[evbuyer2020]

I could understand the logic if a none CCS Zoe was a lot cheaper and you rarely drove further than the range so virtually all your charging was at home

 

[dparr59]

Have a look on ZapMap and use the filter to show AC & Speed 22kW
I can use AC43kW on my Zoe but found lately plenty of 22kW being installed by
MER , Connected Kerb ,Raw Charging .

I only need 2 hours on a 22kW charger to fill my Q90 ( 41kW battery )

but i found out that Osprey & Swarco are sometimes only 16kW and Gridserve some are only
11kW as each post share power if there is more than one socket at that location.
If the Gridserve AC 22kW socket is on a Rapid it will be 22kW.

If i was to buy another Zoe i would want CCS as its now the Rapid standard.

But I have drove over 68,000 miles over the last 5 years in my ZE40
plus the ZE 50 has a bigger battery !

Zapmap Filter with only 22kW chargers showing

 

[Mikrt]

Thanks for all the replies.

22kw is fine, I was afraid it was only 7kw.

Once I get it home, a 220 mile journey, I'll be OK, I have a 7kw wall-charger used on my lease Kona which is off-hire soon.

Zap-map shows quite a few 22kw along the route, so nowhere near as slow as I feared.

Appreciate the comment about CCS car, but I only use car locally, and have never used one for my Kona - it's only ever had 7kw.

Thanks again.

 

[Andy-Zoé-User]

I could understand the logic if a none CCS Zoe was a lot cheaper and you rarely drove further than the range so virtually all your charging was at home

Ah yeah I could see the logik too - if the non-CCS was a real bargaining chip, you know like if when the deal is being done "well by rights this Zoe should be a lot lot cheaper than it is because AC chargers are becoming a thing of the past on the public infrastructure and all new EV's these days have CCS charging as an option" so by rights it should be a lot cheaper ... whether it works like that in real life is a different story. When people tell me they are say buying a new ZE50 and should they consider getting one with CCS , I am like of course .... think about years down the line , when you want to sell it or trade it in, the more CCS becomes the norm for charging when on trips who is ging to want to buy a non CCS model? - even if only yourself are getting the Zoe for short trips or charging at home only ... see its all about what will hold its value more ... and who knows, at the moment people might say "oh its only being used as a second car , and we do all the big journeys in our other car which is petrol/diesel and we only ever charge at home and dont mind waiting long time for it to charge up" who is to know what happens in the future if you do want to do away with the ICE car and start travelling more and rely on the public charging infrastructure ... what are people going to do if they are replacing all the AC chargers over to DC CCS charging (which is already on a massive scale already!) - this is why I think I still hear that dealers are still selling brand new ZE50 these days actually without CCS charging as standard , which I think is crazy!

 

[X4dow]

the problem is that with 22kW, even though it seems that theres plenty of the zapmap, you will find often that half of them dont work, or been upgraded to units without AC charger plugs anymore, or zoe doesnt like due to lack of earth/grounding.

 

[Spike]

WattsUp app is useful for locating 22 or 43kW AC chargers (you can use either). Do be aware that some 22kW posts Gridserve have installed are actually only giving 11kW split between two sockets, even when only one car is charging. Zoe charging can be slow if the battery is cold, so its worth charging after a decent long run and when the SOC is fairly low. Also, 22kW AC is converted by the car to DC and there are losses, so you will only see a max of around 19kW DC actually going into the battery.

We had AC only Zoes for four years and managed perfectly well with them - its just 22kW charging can make longer journeys a bit challenging, as that only really enables charging at 70mph equivalent. I found driving at 63mph indicated was a sweet spot between travel time and energy efficiency.

As a mostly local use EV with home charging, it is an excellent car.

 

[Mikrt]

Well, thanks to having a rethink, I've decided to buy a different zoe.

It's a rapid with free delivery, so no worries about getting it home.

For my personal use, a non-rapid would be fine, but this thread has made me think about re-sale value.

Thanks again 👍🏻

 

[dparr59]

If the 22kW chargers are installed & earthed correctly then using a Zoe is not a problem.
Plus I add 7kW & 22kW chargers to the Plugshare Map and send new charger sites info to Zapmap nearly every week .
so i know there is plenty around if your looking for them.

All 22kW MER , Connected Kerb , Raw Charging , Geniepoint chargers work without a problem on my ( the most fussy of Zoe's )
Some Tesco 7kW & 22kW Podpoint chargers can be a pain especially if it not rained for weeks.

MER have taken over replaced and installed new chargers at sites that would not work on my car but now do.
Below comments : Cross Lane Hospital , Scarborough )

Before June 2019

Now Sept 2022

Mine also killed the 22kW stand alone post at the new Gridserve Forecourt last year May 2022 ( See below )
Lucky i charged up at the Lidl ( price was cheaper too ) next door before i tried the Gridserve 22kW chargers out.

 

[dparr59]

Trip to South wales May 2019
234 miles no problem & lucky for me dragon charging had installed lots of
22kW chargers around the coast of south wales.
Used the charger below without a problem to my surprise 👍

National Trust Martins Haven
Ward Smithies Farms,
Marloes, HAVERFORDWEST, SA62 3BJ

 

[Andy-Zoé-User]

Trip to South wales May 2019
234 miles no problem & lucky for me dragon charging had installed lots of
22kW chargers around the coast of south wales.

err 2019 ... we are in 2023 now and that was just one part of the land ... its only going to get worse with more AC chargers being replaced with DC chargers on the infrastructure - then what are people going to do when they go on a long journey with their AC Zoe and pull up to DC chargers?

 

[dparr59]

err 2019 ... we are in 2023 now and that was just one part of the land ... its only going to get worse with more AC chargers being replaced with DC chargers on the infrastructure - then what are people going to do when they go on a long journey with their AC Zoe and pull up to DC chargers?

The photo was to show even on a old Charger the Zoe can still Charge if it's installed correctly.

In England , Scotland and Wales anyway lots of AC 22kW being installed and they are cheaper to install then a Rapid plus the power supply in this part of the country for Rapids needed to be upgraded is slow and that can take months.

I have owned the Zoe for 5 years from new and have seen twice as many AC 22kW chargers being installed now than five years ago.
I should know i input plenty into Plugshare & sent information to Zapmap nearly every week.

Rapids are good if your in a hurry but if I am stopping at a location for over 90 mins then i don't need a rapid.

Some drivers can be waiting 30 minutes in a queue or more at some Rapid locations at motorways services before they even start a charge.

Rapid charging Needs to improve and be more reliable.
If you want a fast reliable hassle free charge anywhere in the UK at the moment best to buy a Tesla.

 

[idiotzoo]

As the owner of a non-ccs Zoe, it depends where you are to some extent and the use case of the car. As a second car that won’t need to cover long distances often, if at all, can be a great buy. Also some areas have plenty of 3 phase chargers… however there is a trend towards installing chargers like the tritium units that don’t offer AC at all. In GB many of the AC points advertised as 22kW cannot provide that. Haven’t checked for a while but Gridserve advertised 22kW points that were only providing 10kW in reality due to grid constraints and there were no plans to change this. Osprey chargers always had AC sockets that tended to be 16kW tops.

 

[Rooster-x]

As an ex Zoe owner it was the lack of AC charging that pushed me to getting a CCS capable Megane, as @dparr59 has mentioned some of the Gridserve posts only do 11kW and the Osprey 16kW. The final straw for me was that when Gridserve introduced dual charging, if I was lucky enough to get on a charger, along came a fat eTron and stole my charge via the CCS!

Fortunately after much e-mails between myself a Gridserve, they have now fixed this charge stealing problem and now the charge is shared equally, but it was too late for me as I had already ordered a new car.

Still rate the Zoe very highly, it was much more efficient than my Megane and was a great car, just needed CCS.

 

[Spike]

Still rate the Zoe very highly, it was much more efficient than my Megane and was a great car, just needed CCS.

Ohh, can you expand on this please? I'd understood that the new motor in the Megane was supposedly much more efficient than the Zoe.. I don't see the Zoe as particularly efficient at highway speeds, ours uses around 25% more energy than our (dual motor) Model 3 on the motorway for example.

 

[Rooster-x]

The Megane's Eco mode is the same as the Zoe's normal mode so it just burns more power if you have a heavy foot like me. No heatpump means it burns more electric preheating the cabin, although the Zoe was freezing cold in Eco mode, the Megane is toasty warm. 20" wheels on the Megane vs 16" on the Zoe, plus about 300Kg heavier than the Zoe its not going to be as efficient. This time of year my Zoe was getting 3.5mpkWh, the Megane is only doing 3mpKwh and sometimes worse on short journeys, 2.5mpKwh.

But it drives nicer and has better bells and whistles so I'm keeping it, plus it can pre-heat the battery for faster charging unlike the Zoe that could only pre-heat the battery before setting off to increase range.

Model 3 will always be better at Motorway speeds with is better aerodynamics.