EV Owners Thread

[CXRAndy]

Talking of Tesla. My son received an update with specific day of delivery of his car, surprisingly to his house. Normally in the past, you had collect from a hub point, usually London.

 

[BoldonLad]

Out of interest - other EV owners, how many miles are you getting out of a set of tyres?

I just had a disastrous weekend. Parked up in M&S to get some food, and didn't see that there was a broken bottle at the back of the parking space. Thought nothing of it until I started driving home and got the tyre pressure indicator. Didn't realise what it was at first - but pulled over to find a flat tyre. I have breakdown as part of my lease so the AA came out and told me they couldn't re-inflate it as it was right down to the limit of being road legal after 17,000 miles. Had to pay for a 24/7 tyre jockey to come and put a new tyre on (£280 quid for a Three A budget tyre) as you can't even remove your own wheels on EVs I have learned (no jack or wrench supplied as standard). AA advised changing the other rear in the next couple of weeks.

Next day we had tickets for Peter Kay at the O2, so set off round the M25. Just as we are heading off on the A2 I get a tyre pressure warning. I get out, check the tyres and they seem OK so I assume it's just the pressure gauges being sensitive although I notice when I get back in that it's saying rear left (the other old tyre) and not rear right. Dropped the family at the O2, and took the car to Kwik Fit just to check. Puncture right on the edge of the tyre - so another new tyre. Health check on the car also finds the front tyre needs replacing and the tracking realigned. The other front is at 3mm and is OK for now.

So nearly £800 later and 3 new tyres, I'm wondering whether about 17,000 miles is usual?

Don’t know about the mileage expected, although if the rears are the driven wheels, and, given the acceleration of EVs I would have thought 17k ok?

I share your pain re punctures. Collected new car early November. Second day with 26 miles on clock, puncture. Very large nail/screw, tyre written off, £150 for mobile fitter to change it!

 

[BoldonLad]

Maybe me , I find driver assistance mildly annoying. I’ve got reverse sensors that scream even when I can see I’m clear . Lane assist which slams the brakes on when I move lanes , granted Ive maybe not signalled . This is in my Merc A Class. Maybe it’s a Merc thing but If I could permanently switch this stuff of I would ! It’s a distraction !

I have just acquired a new car with “driver aids”. Some I like, but, the “lane keeping assist” I hate. I have driven for almost 60 years, I don’t need electronics to enable me to drive in a straight line in the lane.

 

[albion]

No idea what you are talking about here.


Again, you seem to be rambling. The point of the thread - like the other car threads - was to have somewhere to discuss the problems and bonuses of EV driving, and compare notes with other EV owners, not to resurrect the other thread "Are we being forced to go EV".

As the article points out, the future of EVs is to get lighter, more efficient and to improve range and speed of charging. Because Tesla has driven uptake there is now a race to make things better, cheaper, lighter, quicker etc. If a company thinks a consumer wants something they will develop it.

It's all good news provided we can get clean energy to power them.

Evasive as usual and complete rubbish too. The SUV thread is far wider on this with plenty of big fat SUV ire.
You know exactly!

 

[BoldonLad]

They also keep insurance premiums down (relatively).

Bollocks. Changed cars recently from 2016 model without driver assist to new one with driver assist, premium went from £275 last year to £570 this year.

 

[Sallar55]

No idea what you are talking about here.


Again, you seem to be rambling. The point of the thread - like the other car threads - was to have somewhere to discuss the problems and bonuses of EV driving, and compare notes with other EV owners, not to resurrect the other thread "Are we being forced to go EV".

As the article points out, the future of EVs is to get lighter, more efficient and to improve range and speed of charging. Because Tesla has driven uptake there is now a race to make things better, cheaper, lighter, quicker etc. If a company thinks a consumer wants something they will develop it.

It's all good news provided we can get clean energy to power them.

No chance of that, people want all the goodies and that is extra weight. Tell me that electric cars will evolve into the size of the original mini .Safety features have a cost and that's turned most cars into bloated tin boxes.

 

[icowden]

No chance of that, people want all the goodies and that is extra weight. Tell me that electric cars will evolve into the size of the original mini .Safety features have a cost and that's turned most cars into bloated tin boxes.

If you read the article that Albion posted it suggests that manufacturers are working to make components lighter. The majority of size and weight is down to safety - side impact bars, crumple zones etc. Obviously the battery has some weight and that is also a development target.

 

[albion]

The 'mine is bigger than yours syndrone' means safety is all down to how deep your pockets are.
Sadly most EVs fit into that SUV category. Whilst the shape is safer,the sheer weight of them negates that, the longer range cars adding over half a tonne.

Whilst better batteries can improve weight, on the move battery changes and/or ultra fast 20C charging is the way forwards.
With a lot of luck,the current generation of SUV like EVs will be semi obsolete in 5 years. The other solution would be a small commuter battery with long range swaps available for the occasions when distance driving is required.
That though is near unworkable, high end tech stuff seldom gives you a sniff of DIY access.

I appreciate though,that electric vehicle buying is helping a heck of lot towards pollution reduction and thus climate change reduction too.

 

[icowden]

The 'mine is bigger than yours syndrone' means safety is all down to how deep your pockets are.

Nope.

Sadly most EVs fit into that SUV category.

Also nope.

Whilst the shape is safer,the sheer weight of them negates that, the longer range cars adding over half a tonne.

Again nope. They aren't much heavier than their ICE counterparts but have a *lot* more safety tech.

Whilst better batteries can improve weight, on the move battery changes and/or ultra fast 20C charging is the way forwards.

Yet another nope and what does 20C charging even mean? Rate of charge is improving with batteries capable of taking 350kw as an input. Density will improve that will reduce mass, use of precious metals and reduce charging time.

With a lot of luck,the current generation of SUV like EVs will be semi obsolete in 5 years.

It's like talking to Mystic Meg. The current generation are the next generation of second hand cars. Fleets are the biggest input into the second hand market. I have no doubt that in 3 years time someone will ne enjoying my ID4 at a fraction of the cost of a new one.

I appreciate though,that electric vehicle buying is helping a heck of lot towards pollution reduction and thus climate change reduction too.

On this we can agree.

 

[Tenkaykev]

The current generation are the next generation of second hand cars. Fleets are the biggest input into the second hand market. I have no doubt that in 3 years time someone will ne enjoying my ID4 at a fraction of the cost of a new one.

I think there will be a buoyant market in second ( or third) hand EV's. Especially if they are compatible with V2G. At the right price they would make an excellent Home Battery solution.

 

[roubaixtuesday]

I think there will be a buoyant market in second ( or third) hand EV's. Especially if they are compatible with V2G. At the right price they would make an excellent Home Battery solution.

AIUI almost none are V2G compatible at the moment. DOn't know why this isn't being progressed.

 

[albion]

Sadly, none marketing facts disagree with you, icowden.
Theres dozens of weight headlines, many unusual click baity ones too.

C is charge rate per hour. So a 1C charge takes 1 hour and the recommended safest 0.2C takes 5 hours to fully charge. Essential to understand if you want to protect your battery. It seems to be, currently, only Lithiumn Titanate batteries really get close to a 20C 5 minute full charge.

 

[BoldonLad]

Sadly, nine marketing facts disagree with you, icowden.
Theres dozens of weight headlines, many unusual click baity ones too.

C is charge rate per hour. 1C 1 hour and the recommended safest 0.2C takes 5 hours to fully charge. Essential to understand if you want to protect your battery. It seems to be, currently, only Lithiumn Titanate batteries really get close to a 20C 5 minute full charge.

Out of passing interest, do you drive an EV, and/or own/lease/ have use of an EV ?

I don’t do any of above by the way. I do drive a hybrid. 😊 (it is not an SUV).

 

[icowden]

Sadly, nine marketing facts disagree with you, icowden.
Theres dozens of weight headlines, many unusual click baity ones too.

Feel free to bring them up on NACA. Happy to debate with you over there. Actual facts regarding weight:-

On average, an EV weighs 200-300kg more than a petrol car because of the weight of the battery and electric motors. However, a large petrol or diesel car weighs more than an average-sized EV. The average EV battery weighs 450kg. The average diesel engine about 200kg plus about 50kg of fuel.

A KIA EV6 AWD is 150kg heavier than a BMW 440iX Gran Coupe. My Renault Grand Scenic was about 1400kg whereas my ID4 is around 2000kg. The Range Rovers popular with other parents at my daughter's school 2700kg. The hybrid RAV4 my BiL drives is about 1700kg.

EVs tend to be a little bit heavier.

 

[albion]

Nope, stopped driving due to health. Health has returned, of sorts but am certain my next EV will be a mobility type one, as many years down the road as I can manage. Finances are fantastic without a car though I do miss it.

If anyone tries the same, makes sure you buy a big bike trailer. It removes many of the none car ownership problems.
My work and personal interests have always been heavily into science and technology. Geek by nature.

I pray they have got the regulations sorted properly so that Chinese Micro type EV becomes legal, 4mph sounds a nightmare. It hardly gets one past the corner shop.