2022 Kia EV6 GT-Line Long-Term Update | Charging on the cheap

One of the key benefits to electric car ownership is the ability to charge it at home, but that's an arduous process if you don't have your own Level 2 charging setup. As we noted (to some social media controversy) when it arrived, our 2022 Kia EV6 GT-Line AWD didn't even come with a standard 110/120-volt charging cable. As some rushed to point out, that omission is largely irrelevant to those who are already familiar with the current EV ecosystem, but it's easy to relate to those who find it puzzling that a vehicle that requires plugging in doesn't ship with the requisite plug. What is this, a premium smartphone?

But here's the thing: Charging a pure EV on a standard three-prong outlet is painfully useless at best. If you're looking at long-term EV ownership, you want an at-home Level 2 setup — one that can deliver a solid 30-40 amps on 220/240V AC. Sounds expensive, right? It's not, actually. All you need is an electrician, a few inches of bare wall in a convenient parking location and a charging cord of your choice.

Yep, just a cord. While there are far more robust options on the market, there's no need to dive that deep into the complexities of charging equipment. Hardwired setups have their advantages, but they're costly and no more future-proof than a far-less-expensive NEMA 14-50 to J1772 (the standard Level 2 plug) cable. If you've done much RVing or trailering, NEMA 14-50 is probably familiar to you. That's the big, honkin' 50-amp (hence the 50 in "14-50") service outlet you'd use to plug in your Winnebago. RV, meet EV.

I learned all of this myself recently after purchasing a new (to me) home in the Metro Detroit 'burbs. My semi-detached garage came with only the very basics for an older workshop. If you're lucky, you've already got a subpanel (or a main panel close by) and adequate headroom in your main feed to allow for expansion, because you're going to need a hefty new dual-pole breaker to supply your NEMA 14-50 outlet. What you see above is the easiest, most direct way to do this: an outlet attached almost directly to the panel. Provided you have a nearby service panel, a setup like this can be thrown together for just a couple hundred bucks.