Chris' New EV: a modern tale

ArthurMcB said:
Presumably 8 hours given the max a 3 pin can do is around 1800 w and 1 kw equates to about 7kms.
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I get 6kWs from my 3 pin plug, 4 hour window for ev charging rate so 24 kWh about 150 kms per night. That is usually adequate.

People tell me that they can only get 3 kWs from a plug. My plug is on an external wall and has its own circuit I.e. it is directly connected to the fuseboard so perhaps a little unusual.

I am not sure where you get 1800 W from, many domestic appliances draw more than that.
 
We keep comparing EV charging to petrol stations as if they’re equivalent, but that’s a fundamental mistake. With a fossil fuel car you must visit a petrol station every single time you need fuel. There’s no alternative. With an EV, anyone who has a driveway can charge at home. Many EV owners never need to use a public charger.

Talking about public chargers for these drivers is like saying there aren’t enough public taps for people who have running water in their house.

Public charging does matter specifically for two groups:

1. People without home charging
2. Long-distance travel

Those are separate problems that need targeted solutions. More and more apartment buildings, shopping centres, and workplaces have EV charging. EV range has increased significantly, some can do Dublin-Galway return on one charge, almost all new EVs can do it with 1 charge on the way back. Many EVs can route you directly to working chargers.

I haven't used a public charger in a long time but just looked it up and some do have contactless now, e.g. Applegreen.

DannyBoyD said:
Interesting that no one commented on non-EVs using charging points as parking spaces - my personal bug bear.
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This is very irritating and the punishment should be that they have to give up their petrol car and drive a 1st generation Nissan Leaf with 80km range for a month :p
 
cremeegg said:
I get 6kWs from my 3 pin plug, 4 hour window for ev charging rate so 24 kWh about 150 kms per night. That is usually adequate
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Sorry 2.3 kws is the absolute max draw for a standard 3 pin. Sounds like youve installed something else outaide your house. Would you not have been as well to install a proper charger.
 
arbitron said:
Public charging does matter specifically for two groups:

1. People without home charging
2. Long-distance travel
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But people who buy expensive cars shouldn’t be limited in terms of how they can use them.

Cars have always offered freedom but there’s not much freedom in being confined to driving locally.

It should be possible to drive anywhere in the country (it’s not even a large one, geographically) without the anxiety of wondering how and where you’re going to fill up. And the time needed (30 min) to get to 80% charge is another limiting factor that needs to be overcome.

Doubtless, EVs are the future and we’ll all succumb eventually but at the moment there’s a case of the emperor’s new clothes in terms of how they’re currently regarded by some.
 
DannyBoyD said:
You misunderstand.

Again, its the entire process of EV charging, including the requirement for apps, that I object to.
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I didn't misunderstand, I simply pointed out one of your reasons makes zero sense for someone happy to use a smartphone.
 
Salvadore said:
Cars have always offered freedom but there’s not much freedom in being confined to driving locally.
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What 'expensive' EV on offer today can't handle anything more than local commutes on a full charge?

I don't have an EV, but looking back at the 40k km I've put on my car in the last 18 months, there's only about 4 or 5 occasions that I would have had to rely on public charging if I had a mid-range or better EV.
 
Leo said:
only about 4 or 5 occasions that I would have had to rely on public charging
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And if you encountered the issues identified in the OP, 4 or 5 times a year, you'd be quite happy with that?

I find it quite funny that anyone would try and defend the current set up!
 
DannyBoyD said:
And if you encountered the issues identified in the OP, 4 or 5 times a year, you'd be quite happy with that?
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The chances of all the worst case scenarios happening as described are far longer than me winning the lottery!

How common do you think it is that someone connects to a public fast charger for 5 hours plus however long it takes them to get a coffee just to complete their journey? Or ever? What shiny EV are you talking about with that capacity? Most on the market will get you all you need in 30 minutes or less.

Again, can you answer the question on what EV you're suggesting that can't handle local commutes on a full charge?
 
Leo said:
what EV you're suggesting that can't handle local commutes on a full charge
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I'm confused.

The Original Post is clearly an allegory.

Why you want me to "prove" it's true is beyond me.

Why you want to defend the existing mish-mash of public charging is a real puzzle.

I have had all of these things happen at one time or another (as have many EV owners) and some times more than once.

The non-EVs parking happens everywhere.
 
Danny bought a cheap EV without thinking or researching. He was blinded by some salesman's patter. He didn't even know the model he was buying. It was an EV and it was cheap - that was good enough for him. He lives in an apartment so can't charge at home. He works from home or on the road so can't charge at work. He didn't check if an EV was suitable for his driving habits of going long distances across back roads with not an EV in sight. His new car does not allow fast charging. So he has to wait 5 hours for his car to charge and regrets not buying one which charges up to 80% in 30 minutes. Since the introduction of smart phones, he has refused to upgrade his trusty old Nokia as he did not want Google to be following him around the backroads of Ireland. . No one told him that he would need a smart phone to charge his car. When he complained to the car salesman, the salesman shrugged his shoulders and said that he was probably the only person in Ireland with an EV but no smart phone.

His friend, Leo was buying a new car at the same time. Leo checked out the options and decided one was not for him. He lives in an apartment so couldn't charge at home. He goes long distances and never takes breaks for lunch or to use the bathroom. He bought a petrol car. "Maybe next time I change if I am living in a house with a drive. And by then, the charging infrastructure will have improved. And I will be older so may need more toilet breaks on long journeys."

Arthur also did his research. He does 80% of his mileage around town. He has a driveway. His longest journey would be an occasional trip to Cork which he can do on one charge but if he stops for lunch or a break, he tops up his car back to 80% in the 20 minutes it takes. He loves smart phones. And while the upfront cost was higher, the running costs are a lot cheaper. And even if the car is fully charged, he can "pretend" charge in the EV spots which are often the only parking spaces available. During the recent power cuts, his neighbours all called round as he was the only one on the street with electricity in the house run off his car battery.

Arthur can't understand why everyone doesn't have an EV, and a smart phone.
 
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Brendan Burgess said:
And even if the car is fully charged, he can "pretend" charge in the EV spots which are often the only parking spaces available.
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Meanwhile, Brendan who recently bought an EV rocks up to the same location for a bathroom break only to discover that he can neither charge his car nor park it anywhere to allow him spend a penny.

As he crosses his legs in agony, he realises that range anxiety can take many forms. To distract himself, he considers the many toilet options within a 10km radius - if only he could be sure he’d make it…..
 
Purple said:
Careful now or that could also be used for anyone parking illegally.
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And is that not a good thing, "Illegally" parking is still illegal and should be ticketed

Personally given the advancements of tech like Ai and Photoshop, I'm beginning to question what I see in photos and film
So I wouldn't be in favour of a random strangers photo resulting in a parking fine for an individual who may or may not have parked illegally
 
Cervelo said:
And is that not a good thing, "Illegally" parking is still illegal and should be ticketed
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It's more than a bit big brother-ish.

Cervelo said:
Personally given the advancements of tech like Ai and Photoshop, I'm beginning to question what I see in photos and film
So I wouldn't be in favour of a random strangers photo resulting in a parking fine for an individual who may or may not have parked illegally
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I agree.
 
We might get an influx of persecuted EV drivers from the UK after today's budget...

www.bbc.com

Electric vehicle owners to face pay-per-mile tax

Drivers of electric cars will pay a road charge of 3p per mile, while plug-in hybrid drivers will pay 1.5p per mile from April 2028.
www.bbc.com www.bbc.com

A new tax for electric and hybrid vehicles has been announced by the chancellor in the Budget.

From April 2028, electric car drivers will pay a road charge of 3p per mile, while plug-in hybrid drivers will pay 1.5p per mile, with the rates going up each year with inflation.

The new tax is about "half the fuel duty rate paid by drivers of petrol cars", according to the government's independent forecaster, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).
 
Howth Head said:
A new tax for electric and hybrid vehicles has been announced by the chancellor in the Budget.

From April 2028, electric car drivers will pay a road charge of 3p per mile, while plug-in hybrid drivers will pay 1.5p per mile, with the rates going up each year with inflation.

The new tax is about "half the fuel duty rate paid by drivers of petrol cars", according to the government's independent forecaster, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).
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£300 for a EV driver who does 10,000 miles a year. Not exactly devastating.
 
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