Dealership/V2L query

[lmjg4t]

Hi, so I purchased an MG4 and in the deal breakdown the dealership agreed to supply me a V2L cable. I asked for the official one to be included, but they said it’s something they don’t stock, and cannot order from MG. Instead, they promised the cable would be ‘purchased from an approved supplier specifically made for the MG4’. The cable has arrived and looks like something off AliExpress and nothing like the official one!

I’ve asked the dealership for confirmation of the order they placed so I can see where the cable is from, but they keep ignoring my requests.

Am I going to damage any appliances, or the car, by using a knock off cable? Is there an ‘approved supplier’ for the MG4 cables if they can’t order them direct, and if so which cable should it be?

TIA!

 

[Coulomb]

Am I going to damage any appliances, or the car, by using a knock off cable?

I very highly doubt it. There is only one electrical component in there (a resistor), and all it does is to tell the car that this is not an EVSE ("charger") being plugged in, so it's safe to enable V2L mode. Other than that, it's just an adapter, connecting the type 2 pins to a general purpose outlet socket.

If there's a cable between the type 2 and the GPO, unless the copper is too thin for the rated current of 15 A, there isn't much that could go wrong. Even the cheapest appliances seem to have reasonable power cords.

As for the presence or absence of an RCD, I'm not convinced that they do anything to enhance safety.

In short, I don't think you need to worry.

However, I'm surprised to hear that the dealer couldn't order the genuine cable from MG. It sounds like they wanted to fulfil your need for as little money as possible.

 

[Jomarkh]

The car can supply about 3kW if the correct cable is used.
It has a resistor in it that tells the car what current to offer the load.
There are a few threads on V2L just use the search bar.

 

[Rolfe]

I've been using a £25 one off eBay, including with a standard 3 kW kettle, with no issues at all. However if they promised you an MG one they should honour that, or at least a close equivalent.

 

[ReintjeWA]

I wouldn't worry about the cable, but I would worry a bit about your dealer. My dealer got it in from MG within two weeks (and for Perth WA that's actually a quick delivery, full stop.) So for them to say they can't get them smells like a big load of BS to me.