400V DC to 230V AC Inverter(Electric van)

Interesting topic this — been thinking about it myself after seeing a few electric van conversions popping up on the off-grid scene lately.

The e-Jumper (and similar electric base vehicles like the eSprinter) have these high-voltage DC tapping points specifically for converters and upfitters. Problem is, virtually all of Victron's inverter range is designed around 12V/24V/48V battery banks, not 400V HV systems. Their MultiPlus and Quattro units top out at 48V input, so they're a non-starter directly off the vehicle bus.

What you'd actually need is either:

• A DC-DC step-down converter to bring 400V down to 48V, then feed a Victron inverter — but you're adding losses at every stage and the cost stacks up quickly
• A purpose-built 400V DC input inverter — some industrial units exist but they're not cheap and you lose the nice Victron ecosystem integration
• Some EV upfitters are doing bespoke solutions using components from the likes of Victron + SMA combinations, but it's proper custom territory

I'd be curious whether anyone on here has actually tackled this practically. Seems like there's a genuine gap in the market for a well-engineered 400V HV DC → 230V AC inverter that plays nicely with van conversion setups.

Renogy and Fogstar are all over the 12/24/48V space but nobody seems to have cracked the EV-native solution yet.

Anyone running an electric base vehicle with a working AC system off the HV bus? What did you end up using?

Been down this rabbit hole with my boat setup, so let me add a bit of colour here.

The e-Jumper's 400V pack is essentially a glorified DC source — the trick is finding an inverter that'll accept high-voltage DC input rather than the usual 12/24/48V we're used to. Victron doesn't play in this space natively, which is maddening.

What some EV converters are actually doing is using the vehicle's own onboard charger/inverter architecture, or fitting a dedicated high-voltage DC-AC inverter — think industrial units from SMA or Victron's Quattro paired with a DC-DC step-down first.

The step-down route loses efficiency though — you're stacking conversion losses like pancakes.

Worth checking what @WelshSolar — has the e-Jumper got an accessible V2L (Vehicle-to-Load) output already baked in? Some newer platforms do, which sidesteps the whole problem beautifully. 🚐⚡

Really useful thread this. One thing worth flagging that I don't think's been mentioned yet — if you're tapping into the traction battery for inverter power, most manufacturers consider that a serious warranty voiding event, even if you're just monitoring voltage. Worth checking whether the vehicle is still under any kind of warranty before going near it.

Also worth considering a dedicated leisure battery bank charged from the traction pack via a proper DC-DC converter rather than inverting directly. Keeps your 230V AC system isolated, plays nicer with the BMS, and means you're not dragging your drive range down unpredictably. @WelshSolar @Kingy — has anyone looked at the Victron Orion-TR Smart for that intermediate step? Seems like a tidy solution for keeping the two systems properly separated.

From a pure electronics standpoint, what you're really after is a high-voltage DC-AC inverter — these exist in industrial/solar settings but aren't cheap or off-the-shelf for DIY.

The smarter route I've seen done properly:

• DC-DC converter stepping the 400V down to 48V (or 24V)
• Then a conventional Victron Multiplus doing the 230V AC conversion

Adds a conversion stage but means you're using proven, warrantied kit rather than bodging something around EV bus bars that'll void everything and potentially kill you.

Worth noting — touching 400V nominal pack (can spike higher) is genuinely lethal territory, not the usual 48V "be careful" stuff. HV interlock systems exist for a reason.

Anyone know if the e-Jumper CAN bus exposes pack state properly? That'd affect how you'd manage charge/discharge logic on the DC-DC side.

Good thread — lots of useful stuff here already.

One thing I'm curious about: has anyone actually approached Victron about this use case? Their MultiPlus range obviously tops out well below 400V input, but I wonder if their technical team have any guidance on interfacing with EV packs more generally.

Also, what's the situation with isolation? On my narrowboat I'm used to thinking carefully about galvanic isolation between DC and AC sides — presumably with 400V pack voltages that becomes even more critical from a safety standpoint?

@CaddyProject mentioned industrial inverters — are we talking three-phase units being run single-phase, or are there genuinely single-phase 400V DC input units available off the shelf in the UK? Struggling to find anything obvious from the usual suppliers.