GoodWe EV Charger Reviews

About GoodWe

Goodwe was founded in 2010 and produces solar inverters for households and large scale solar farms. They’ve been selling residential inverters in Australia for years and have earned a reputation for producing low cost but reliable products that provide value for money. They also make home batteries and a home EV charger – the Goodwe HCA. This comes in single-phase and 3-phase versions, has a short two year warranty, and can solar smart charge – but only when installed with a Goodwe home battery.

Australian Office

Goodwe has an Australian office in Melbourne. This can be useful not only because it provides a point of contact, but because it means Goodwe is directly responsible for both their warranty and obligations under Australian consumer law.

Power

Goodwe HCA EV chargers come in three different power capacities, with the two highest requiring 3-phase power. According to their datasheet, the maximum number of kilowatts (kW) of power they can supply is conveniently equal to the number in their name:

• GW7K-HCA single-phase 7kW
• GW11K-HCA 3-phase 11kW
• GW22K-HCA 3-phase 22kW

If your home has single-phase power you can only install a single-phase EV charger. But those with 3-phase power can install either. While Goodwe’s most powerful EV charger can supply 22kW, very few vehicles can accept this much. Most only charge at 11kW or less. Single-phase EV chargers can be cheaper to buy and install, so people who have 3-phase power sometimes decide to use them.

Solar Smart Charging With Goodwe Battery

An EV charger can solar smart charge if it can charge a vehicle using only surplus power from rooftop solar. Because this power normally only receives a low feed-in tariff, it’s usually the cheapest way to charge. Goodwe claims their HCA EV charger can do this, but only if it is installed with and connected to a Goodwe battery.

If your EV charger can’t solar only smart charge it will still use any available surplus power produced by rooftop solar first.  So if you don't have this feature, you won’t be stuck using only grid electricity to charge cars. The larger your solar system, the more likely it is to produce sufficient power to mostly charge your car from solar during the day.

6m Charging Cable

The Goodwe HCA comes with a 6m hardwired charging cable which is a little longer than the 5m most EV chargers come with. It also has a holder for wrapping the cable around built into the unit. This is a useful feature, but it’s also exactly the kind of thing little kids are going to grab and swing on, so keep this in mind when deciding how high to install it.

Location

The Ingress Protection rating is IP66. This means it can resist rain and be installed outside. Like all EV chargers, it can be mounted on a wall or a pole. It’s always a good idea to install EV chargers out of direct sunlight if possible, as heat is bad for electronics.

Temperature Range

Its operating temperature is from -30ºC to 50ºC. As no capital has yet had a 50ºC day, this is a good range for most of Australia. But note EV chargers will normally derate and reduce their power output as they approach maximum operating temperature and this could be an issue during heatwaves.

Price

The price depends on its maximum power output. You can expect them to cost around the following amounts:

• GW7K-HCA single-phase 7kW $850
• GW11K-HCA 3-phase 11kW $950
• GW22K-HCA 3-phase 22kW $1,100

Installation will add a considerable amount to the total cost. A simple straightforward installation may only cost a few hundred dollars but a complex installation can be considerably more. Getting a 3-phase charger, connecting it to a Goodwe battery, or not locating it near your switchboard will all increase the cost. Expect to pay over $600 for a typical installation and you may need to pay $800 to $1,000 or potentially more.

Short 2 Year Warranty

It only has a 2 year warranty. This is not very long, especially considering that Goodwe gives their residential solar inverters 10 years. But short warranties like this are not unusual for EV chargers. Hopefully, Goodwe will soon have enough confidence in its product to give it a significantly longer warranty. Note you are also protected by Australian Consumer Guarantees and these can apply after the warranty period has ended.

If you’re going to buy an EV charger I strongly recommend buying from an installer. This way they will be responsible for both the installation and the functioning of the device itself. If there are any problems they're obligated to fix them. If your installer is no longer around then you can contact Goodwe to make a warranty claim.

If you instead buy an EV charger yourself and then pay someone to install it and there is a problem, it’s possible to end up in a situation where the installer will blame the product while the manufacturer will blame the installer, leaving you stuck in the middle.

Recommendation

Goodwe has a reputation for making products that are good value for money, so I have no problem recommending the Goodwe HCA EV charger – despite its painfully short warranty period. If you have a Goodwe battery then it’s probably a no-brainer.