Kia Niro EV

Shefwedfan wrote: »

Does the Kona come with a granny charger cable? strange if it works and eNiro doesn't?

Mine did when I took delivery last January. I have used it on multiple occasions while visiting relatives. On those occasions, I'd let it charge as long as I could during the day (not leaving it plugged in overnight just as a precaution) so approx 10 to 12 hours typically during daytime. I have placed it inside a plastic bin liner when its been raining heavily (as the socket is a proper outside one and I did not want the actual charger unit to get wet in case it caused issues). Not had any problem at all with it & it has never even been hot or even warm anytime I have checked it during usage. Very strange that Kia would do this as I think the Kona & Kia are pretty similar in battery / drive train / charging ? I've not heard any reports so far on any of the Kona Owner Forums about problems with the Granny Charger..Hope that helps..If there really is a reliability or technical problem with the Granny Charger, Kia should get their finger out & sort it for customers & ensure they get a working / reliable set of cables with their new car.

The granny cable is generally for emergencies. Its a bit like a spare tyre, you might never use it but when you need it you need it!

The manufacturers dont provide spare tyres now either!

Having said that, I'd rather have the granny charger than not.... and a spare wheel too, which is why I bought one of those afterwards!

budgemook wrote: »

There's no spare wheel anymore??

Clarification... some cars have no spare wheel... I dont know if the eNiro does or not.

Obvious question - what happens if you get a flat?

KCross wrote: »

If they dont provide a spare they provide a can of goo that you squirt into the tyre to seal the puncture and then they also provide a cigarette lighter powered compressor to pump the wheel to get you to the tyre centre for a proper fix.

I've never used the goo but apparently it only works some of the time (depends on the nature/location of the puncture and it can wreck the tyre. No first hand experience of it though.

Personally, I'd rather a spare wheel than the goo so I bought a compatible wheel.

I've already begun the process of sourcing a space saver for the e Niro. The standard Niro wheels are 16" but the E Niro are 17". The master tech in the dealership reckons there might be problems with the ABS wheel speed sensor, as the space savers are a little smaller (3-4%) than the wheels fitted. But that probably means the ABS wouldn't work, not that the brakes wouldn't work. Also, the tyre pressure monitor obviously won't work.

As the speed is limited to 80kmh and the wheel is only to get you to a repair place, the above probably wouldn't matter much.

My leaf has spare wheel under boot. Also I was told that once you use that goo tire repair isn’t possible?

Did any other e Niro buyers get a chance to call their dealer today to ask about the granny charger?

budgemook wrote: »

Thinking about Niro PHEV now. Seems to be around 8000 cheaper and 0% finance available.

What are the main cons? Does anyone know the range of these before they switch to petrol?

I had one for a few days and I manged 30-35km on Battery. The drive isn't as smooth as the full electric as there petrol engine interrupts every now and again in hybrid mode or when accelerating hard in EV mode and the CVT gearbox is ok similar to Prius. The PHEV isn't as good looking as the BEV wheels are smaller and grill isn't great. Still it was fine, I'm not a hybrid fan so Wouldn't buy one myself. I got 3.5l/100km average over 3 days around 400km, that was fully charging overnight, so it economical if you do charge up.

Called my local dealer this morning who I'll be collecting mine from. Won't come with one - no reason given or any indication if this will change in the future. Would a regular granny charger work with it?

Silent Running wrote: »

Did any other e Niro buyers get a chance to call their dealer today to ask about the granny charger?

argolis wrote: »

I was told the same thing. The dealer said it was because of the risk of fires/bad wiring in older Irish houses related to using the granny charger with the eNiro specifically Makes no sense to me why it'd be any different from any other electric car. I guess you can buy one aftermarket and use it at your own risk. They seem to go for €300 or more though. Some more information why there's a risk would be useful.

Alternative explanations are that this is a gimmicky way to save on cost by not shipping with one or that it's a mistake by someone in the distribution chain that's being fudged.

I wonder are they also not shipping these granny cables in the UK, for example? I would imagine the network/house wiring is very similar.

I consider that a pretty crappy reason by Kia Ireland / The Dealer. So if you live in a house that 'isn't old' with 'wiring that isn't bad' - you are penalized and don't get a cable ? How the hell do they measure / define what an old house is - what year is the cut off point & how do they define what standards the wiring should meet? I'd say its just a way for Kia &/or The Dealer to give less for the same money - IMHO.

People have been using Granny Cables with EVs for years & I'm not aware of any notable / specific issues that have happened 'en mass' related to their housing wiring (generalizing here as I do appreciate there can potentially be a risk if you try constantly pull 13A load for huge number of consecutive hours from a regular wall socket).

I really smell BS by Kia / the Dealer on this... (will they start a new trend in the industry where others manufactures see what they are doing & start to give less for same money in future....).

I have a dedicated Zappi charger at my home but I'd be lost & annoyed without the Granny Cable that came with my Kona as I use it all the time when visiting my parents house almost 250KMs away. I stay with them & we travel together in their locality over a number of days, so its very handy being able to 'top up' at their house using the Granny Cable. Id be rightly annoyed to spend so much on a new EV & then separately have to fork out several hundred more for 'an optional extra Granny Cable' or 3rd Party Granny Cable.

Granny Charger itself - Its never even gotten warm when I've used it for 12 hours straight (& had it wrapped in a bin liner to protect the unit from rain) & their wall socket has appeared fine, no external signs of heat / damage. Granted its an external wall socket but never been any issue that I can see - I'd need to put my x-ray specs on though to check the wiring :-)

I'd be more accepting of this stance if it was more transparent & published formally on Kia Ireland website. Its hard to take them seriously where its just verbal.

As recently as June 12th 2019- the driving electric website states for the e-Niro "The car comes with a Type 2 public charging cable and a three-pin plug for use with a domestic socket"....I know this is not Kia Official but its typical of what would be reasonable to expect to get with the car & what I got with my Kona in January.

https://www.drivingelectric.com/kia/niro/e-niro/720/kia-e-niro-range-battery-charging


Surely the implication by Kia is this is not an e-Niro car or charger issue - but an Ireland house building/ wiring standards issue. If that really is the case, I guess we can expect all the other manufacturers to follow what they see Kia getting away with or will the likes of Hyundai still continue to supply the Granny Cable with their cars & not worry about the house wiring....Hmmmmm I wonder if I'll get a safety recall note to return my existing Granny Cable - doubt it?

Just peed off at the way the motor industry here treats Irish car buyers - no disrespect intended towards you for sharing the info you did etc.. ;-)

I recall that first LEAFs in Ireland also were arriving without granny cable and with explanation that ESB thought that wiring in some houses would not be able to safely handle charging. In UK granny cable was included.

I have a way around this. If I'm not getting theirs, they're not getting mine.

I got one with mine but I have the car a couple of months they haven't contacted me recalling the granny cable so definitely a strange one. The blind spot warning is also a very strange thing to strip out of the Irish model

Response I got from Kia on Twitter

Is a type2 cable for public charging supplied??