Most Type 2 electric vehicle charging cables are 5 meters long, but what if that’s not enough? What if you don’t park your vehicle that close to your wallbox? Well, there are ways around it, like the WAI Type 2 extension cable.
What is it?
Think of it like an extension lead but for your car. It adds another 5 meters of length to your charging setup by extending your existing Type 2 cable.
This can be far more practical than buying a 10 meter cable, as you’re likely to only need a longer cable at home. So it saves lugging around a big, heavy 10 meter Type 2 cable.
How?
You’ll find a Type 2 female socket on one end – just like the type on your wallbox. The other end is a male Type 2 – this goes into your car.
Plug your existing cable into your wallbox and the other end into the WAI Type 2 extension cable.
Altogether you’ll get 10 meters of EV charging goodness.
It’s rated for 32 amp and 22kW, so as long as your original cable can charge at those speeds, you can take advantage of quicker 3-phase charging.
What’s it like?
Just like the last WAI cable we tested, it looks and feels incredibly well made. The male connector is a one-piece white moulded affair; it’s solid, has a nice finish, and comes with a rubber bung to stop water from getting into it when stored.
The other end feels like it could fit into a wall. It has countersunk holes around the edge as if it should be mounted into something. A twist-off rubber cap sits nice and securely; it’s also tethered with a stainless steel keep wire, so you don’t lose it.
Where you plug the male end of your original cable has a raised edge to stop water ingress, and everything fits nice and snug.
There is a curious green/red section on the top side of the socket. I thought this would light up when charging, but it doesn’t seem to.
A thick rubber boot is jubilee clipped on to the rear of the socket, almost like a CV boot. It’s nicely flexible while feeling thick enough that it will last.
Around the back of the socket are a few blanking panels, and what seems to be a drain tube or breather? I guess this is in case water gets into it, or if you do decide to mount it into something?
For me, it’s not always practical to put the BMW i3 at the back of the drive, so the WAI Type 2 extension cable allows me to park another car that’s used less frequently at the back, or to leave a project vehicle there while I’m working on it.
In use, I’ve just placed the connector underneath the parked car to keep it out of the way and the rain. But it’s rated IP55, which is ‘Protected against dust limited ingress, no harmful deposits’ and ‘Protected against low-pressure jets of water from all directions, limited ingress permitted’, so it should easily be rainproof.
Where can I get one?
WAI cables are available at numerous places like Arnold Clark Autoparts and GSF Car Parts, but Amazon is probably the easiest and quickest way to get hold of one.
Priced from £219 currently, they aren’t cheap, but if it means you can charge at 7-22kW while at home, it can make or break EV ownership.
You can also opt for the cheaper, 16 AMP 3.7kW single phase extension cable which comes in at £150 – ideal for plug-in hybrids, but not for full EVs.
