Buy the Grizzl-E Classic if you want a charger that cannot be abandoned by its software - an aluminum UL Type 4 box, output set on an internal selector, and nothing to sign into. Buy the Autel MaxiCharger if scheduling, per-session energy data and single-amp current control are worth real money to you, which they are on a time-of-use electricity rate. On the thing most buyers think they are comparing - charging speed - there is nothing to choose between them. Both are 40-amp units delivering 9.6 kW at 240 volts, both on a 25-foot J1772 cable, both offered with a NEMA 14-50 or 6-50 plug or hardwired. The specification sheets differ in exactly four places that matter, and all four are about ownership rather than charging.
The published specifications, side by side
| Grizzl-E Classic | Autel MaxiCharger AC Elite Home 40A |
|---|
| Output | 40A (marketed as 10 kW; 9.6 kW at 240V) | 9.6 kW at 240V / 40A |
| Adjustable to | 32A, 24A, 16A - fixed steps | 6A-40A in the app |
| Connector | Type 1 (SAE J1772), 25 ft | SAE J1772, 25 ft (7.5 m) |
| Install options | NEMA 14-50 or NEMA 6-50 plug | NEMA 14-50, NEMA 6-50 or hardwired |
| Enclosure | Aluminum, UL Type 4 indoor/outdoor | NEMA 4 |
| Connectivity | None - "No Internet Connection" | Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, OpenADR 2.0b |
| Safety listing | UL E510712, Energy Star | UL 2594, UL 2231-1, UL 2231-2, CSA C22.2, Energy Star |
| Temperature range | -22F to 122F | Not quoted on the spec sheet we read |
| Weight | 22.05 lbs | Lighter - not quoted here |
| Warranty | 3 or 5 years, selectable | 36 months |
1. The app, which is the real decision
Grizzl-E publishes "No Internet Connection" in the smart-function row of its own spec table. That is not an omission, it is the product: no account, no cloud dependency, nothing that stops working when a server is retired or a company is sold. For a device expected to hang on a wall for a decade, that has a long and underrated payoff - it is the argument our no-Wi-Fi ranking makes at length.
Autel goes the other way, with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, app scheduling, per-session energy reporting and OpenADR 2.0b for utility demand-response programs. Here is the honest test for whether that is worth the premium: are you on a time-of-use electricity rate? If yes, scheduling moves real money every month and the app pays for itself. If you are on a flat rate, it buys you a graph. Our off-peak charging page is where to check that before you choose.
One point in Autel's favor that is easy to miss: it carries Bluetooth as well as Wi-Fi. Garage Wi-Fi is frequently terrible, and a charger that can still be configured over Bluetooth when the signal drops is a materially better experience than one that cannot - a recurring theme in when a charger will not connect to Wi-Fi.
2. How you dial the current down
Both units can be set below their maximum, which is what lets one charger fit whatever circuit a load calculation allows. The methods are not equivalent.
Grizzl-E publishes three fixed lower settings: 32A, 24A and 16A, selected inside the unit at installation. That covers the standard circuit sizes - a 40-amp breaker gives 32 amps, a 30-amp gives 24 - and once set it is set. Autel publishes a continuous 6A to 40A range adjusted in the app, which is finer-grained and changeable from the sofa. Finer control genuinely matters in two cases: solar-surplus matching, where the useful range starts at the J1772 minimum of about 6 amps, and shared-circuit situations where you want an odd number. Otherwise the fixed steps land exactly where real breakers are.
3. The enclosure, and a retail claim that did not survive checking
Both are in the Type 4 class: Grizzl-E publishes a UL Type 4 indoor/outdoor rating on an aluminum enclosure, and Autel's spec sheet publishes NEMA 4. Neither is a 4X, so neither carries the corrosion claim - if you are on the coast, the 48-amp Grizzl-E Ultimate, with its cast-aluminum IP67 / Type 4X enclosure, is the unit in this family to look at instead.
Worth flagging because it is exactly the kind of thing that decides a purchase on bad information: retail listings for the Autel 40A circulate a NEMA 4X claim that Autel's own spec sheet does not support- the sheet says NEMA 4. The 4X figure appears to belong to the AC Lite 50A, a different model. Check the manufacturer's datasheet, not the product page you are buying from; our NEMA vs IP guide explains why that single letter is not a rounding difference.
Where Grizzl-E has a clear documented edge is cold: it publishes an operating range of -22F to 122F. If your charger lives outside through real winters, a published low-temperature limit beats an unstated one, and our cold-weather ranking is built on exactly those figures.
4. Weight, warranty and price
The Grizzl-E weighs 22 lbs. That is a lot of charger, and it cuts both ways: it is why the thing feels indestructible, and it is why you want the mounting into something structural rather than drywall anchors. The Autel is the lighter unit and the easier one-person hang.
On warranty, Grizzl-E offers a three- or five-yearchoice against Autel's 36 months - so they are level at the base, and Grizzl-E can be bought with more. On price, the Grizzl-E Classic has consistently been the cheaper of the two in this registry, which makes the comparison awkward for the Autel: it is the more expensive unit, and the extra money buys software rather than charging.
What is identical, and therefore not worth arguing about
- Charging speed.40 amps is 40 amps. On a 50-amp circuit both deliver 9.6 kW, and the car's onboard charger will often be the real limit anyway - most EVs cap at 7.2 to 11.5 kW. See what amp charger do I need.
- Cable reach. Both 25 feet, which is the long end of the market.
- The circuit. Both want a 50-amp breaker for 40-amp output, because the NEC sizes a continuous load at 125 percent. That circuit will cost more than the difference between these two chargers.
- Plug flexibility. Both publish 14-50 and 6-50 options, which is unusually accommodating - handy if your garage has a 6-50 welder outlet.
The verdict
- Flat electricity rate, charger lives outside, you want to forget it exists: Grizzl-E Classic. Cheaper, tougher, nothing to log into, published cold rating.
- Time-of-use rate, or you want per-session cost data: Autel MaxiCharger. The app earns its keep, and Bluetooth saves you when garage Wi-Fi does not.
- You need 48 amps, hardwired, in the toughest case: Grizzl-E Ultimate - the 4X enclosure and the amperage both step up.
- You have a car that can take 19.2 kW and a panel that allows it: Autel MaxiCharger 80A, and read best chargers for a Lucid Air first, because the circuit is the hard part.
