Easier solution would be to switch to the European method of charging where the vehicle owner carries the charging cord and plug it into the charging receptacle.

 

Those would last about 1 use around here then they'd simply disappear. Anything not bolted down disappears - even things that are bolted down disappear.

I suspect the port is on the left side here because that's what you walk past as you get into the vehicle. Having to walk clear around to the other side and mess with plugging in or unplugging would generate some complaints. Since these are only hybrids, PHEVs at best, I don't usually see it worth my time to find a place to plug in and charge just for 20 miles of battery.
It may be inconvenient "out there" but it's far far more convenient on the left side at home.

 

Driving home today, thru a touristy part of town .. I notice they had set up on street designated parking spots for green vehicles with chargers. There was a fellow Wrangler 4xe, with a fully stretched charger cable over the hood from the sidewalk charger station. It was one of those with an arm to hold the extra cable up and bungee cord to retract it back. It looked like the charger plug was able about to snap out too..

Which got me thinking, would it make more sense to have the charge port on the passenger side? Then as you parallel park, the port would be closer to charger stations on the sidewalk.

Is there actually anything on the passenger side cowel, useable space to mod it into a second charge port? Perhaps the UK variant of the 4xe has it flipped, so the port housing part is flipped too?

Amazon does have extension cable and not cheap. Here's an example of an J1772 Extension Cable.

 

20' is a bit overkill for an extension, isn't it? And very limiting at only 40 amps capacity - worthless for a full EV and just barely adequate for a 4xe.
5 to 10 feet would be more realistic for an extension. Where would you need an extra 20 feet?

 

And very limiting at only 40 amps capacity - worthless for a full EV and just barely adequate for a 4xe.

Most full evs don't charge any faster than that on lvl 2 anyway. At 40 amps, you're at the peak of what any evse that gets plugged in can support, which is the vast majority of level 2 units at home.

 

Level 2 like I have can go up to 50 amps. Several EVs can charge at 48 amps. The highest for level 2 is 88 amps.
So with that in mind, I hard wired mine and can set it to 50 amps to charge an EV that will take level 2 48 amp levels.
Emporia and others can put out 50 amps.

 

Level 2 like I have can go up to 50 amps. Several EVs can charge at 48 amps. The highest for level 2 is 88 amps.
So with that in mind, I hard wired mine and can set it to 50 amps to charge an EV that will take level 2 48 amp levels.
Emporia and others can put out 50 amps.

Yes, there are exceptions to the rule, but for most people purchasing a level 2 evse for home use for their ev, they're plugging in to a 6-50 or 14-50 outlet where 40 amps is the most they're going to get. I'm all for picking an evse capable of more and hardwiring it, but that's not what most evs are getting. I'd hardly consider 40 amps useless for an ev when the overwhelming majority of people get by just fine with that or less every day with their evs.

 

Hmm, most street parking in my area is all at a slant. So I haven't had that issue. That being said, I'd think a charger port on each side would be a good solution for Jeep to consider. I'm not sure about an after market kit, but if it hasn't been made yet, you might have a great business idea!

 

I use the tow hooks to take the tension off the cable, then plug in.

If I have to come around the back of the Wrangler I use the spare to secure the cable, then plug in, this way the tension isn't on the plug.

 

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Just coming back from Europe, most on street chargers would have you bring your own charger cable. One end specific to your car make, the other standardized to fit the charger station. It’s a good system, no more dealing with charge stations with too short cables or broken ones at that. Saw a few cars using a bike chain to prevent cable theft.

 

Europe has many things done well or even better than here in US, but their "carry your own cable" approach is not one of those. It's idiotic, inconvenient, and only adds to negative perception of EVs.

Having ports on both side would be golden, but manufacturers would come up with 101 reasons it can't be done (read: cost we'd like to avoid).

 

The charging port belongs on the driver side, it makes no sense to move it to the passenger side just for the niche scenario of streetside charging stations, which is something I've never actually even seen before. Many EVs (Nissan Leaf for example) have the charging port in the front grill, which would also work, but it's not an option for most PHEVs that still have a traditional radiator. Dual charging ports on both sides would also be an option but it just adds complication and expense for not a lot of benefit. We could've had gas caps on both sides of our vehicles for decades now but there's a reason we still don't have that.

 

... We could've had gas caps on both sides of our vehicles for decades now but there's a reason we still don't have that.

And this reason is what, exactly?

 

I vote this topic as the most worthless to have wasted time reading on the site…no hate intended.

 

It's worthless until you in a situation where you're in a EV towing something. Superchargers have thick and short cables, so if it's on a wrong side, and you need a quick charge to continue your road trip, you're f##d.

The above doesn't really matter for 4xe and most 'civil' EVs now, but with trucks and SUVs going fully electric, it will be an issue, until the charging stations become as wide spread and approachable as the current gas stations.

 

Super chargers are usually in parking lots, therefore if the charge port is on the "wrong" side, then just back in, but there is the issue of a lot of drivers not knowing how to maneuver into a parking spot.