Watt
Gear
What you actually need
In the order you need it. Skip step two and nothing else matters.
1. The generatorFive specs that decide whether it can charge a car at all.
2. A bonding plugUnder $30, and the difference between charging and a blinking red light.
3. The chargerLevel 2 selection criteria, solar surplus options, and open-source stacks.
4. Adapters & cordsShort and fat. Voltage sag causes most phantom faults.
How I choose what goes here
Anything marked What I use is hardware I own and run. Everything else is a specification to shop against, not a ranking I haven't earned. When I test something new, it gets added with measurements — and if something turns out to be bad, it stays on the page marked as bad.
The fastest way to waste money here is buying a generator before reading the sizing guide. Peak watts are marketing.
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