EV Discussion thread

JKenH

Europe prepares to introduce tariffs on Chinese electric cars

An EU investigation opened in October has allegedly found "sufficient evidence tending to show that imports of [electric cars] concerned from the [People's Republic of China] are being subsidised."

European regulators have taken their first steps towards tariffs on Chinese-made electric cars – both on newly-built examples, and retrospective fines on vehicles already on the road.

The EU has directed customs authorities to "register imports" of electric vehicles into the region from China so "if the necessary conditions are fulfilled", tariffs can be "levied retroactively" on cars already in Europe.

https://www.drive.com.au/news/europe-prepares-tariffs-on-chinese-electric-cars/

Reed_Richards

Grumpy_chap said:

JKenH said:

We were going to the airport, about 2.5 hours away, so of course had a deadline. To make sure the car was fully charged we set the timer to come on extra early, 11pm. (we use an overnight EV tariff).

In the morning the car hadn't charged.  It turns out we'd set it for 11pm Saturday, not Friday (rookie error).

I think, if that was me, and a critical journey to be made, I'd simply set the car to charge as soon as plugged in and sacrifice the cheap rate electricity for the comfort of knowing ready for the journey.
No different to when we were children and Dad would check everything on the car the day or a couple of days before, not something to be left and checked as setting off for the A303 traffic jam.

A few weeks ago I was planning to take my EV on it's first journey where I would need to charge it away from home in order to get back.  The usual car park for my destination had multiple chargers and I would be there long enough that even a slow charge would be fine.  I'm on the Eon NextDrive tariff which gives me 7 hours of cheap rate from midnight to 7 am.  But when I got up in the morning my car had failed to charge; something that has only happened once before.  I use a granny charger in conjunction with a Tapo P110 to program my charge time for the 7 hours of cheap rate and that night it had failed to work.  It had been a particularly cold night but there was nothing else out of the ordinary.

I had to choose between cutting it fine to get me to my destination with the charge I had, charging en route and arriving late or borrowing my OH's ICE car.  I chose the latter option but I have a lot of sympathy for anyone else who finds that their car has unaccountably failed to charge overnight.

silvercar

Reed_Richards said:

Grumpy_chap said:

JKenH said:

We were going to the airport, about 2.5 hours away, so of course had a deadline. To make sure the car was fully charged we set the timer to come on extra early, 11pm. (we use an overnight EV tariff).

In the morning the car hadn't charged.  It turns out we'd set it for 11pm Saturday, not Friday (rookie error).

I think, if that was me, and a critical journey to be made, I'd simply set the car to charge as soon as plugged in and sacrifice the cheap rate electricity for the comfort of knowing ready for the journey.
No different to when we were children and Dad would check everything on the car the day or a couple of days before, not something to be left and checked as setting off for the A303 traffic jam.

A few weeks ago I was planning to take my EV on it's first journey where I would need to charge it away from home in order to get back.  The usual car park for my destination had multiple chargers and I would be there long enough that even a slow charge would be fine.  I'm on the Eon NextDrive tariff which gives me 7 hours of cheap rate from midnight to 7 am.  But when I got up in the morning my car had failed to charge; something that has only happened once before.  I use a granny charger in conjunction with a Tapo P110 to program my charge time for the 7 hours of cheap rate and that night it had failed to work.  It had been a particularly cold night but there was nothing else out of the ordinary.

I had to choose between cutting it fine to get me to my destination with the charge I had, charging en route and arriving late or borrowing my OH's ICE car.  I chose the latter option but I have a lot of sympathy for anyone else who finds that their car has unaccountably failed to charge overnight.

ABC Always Be Charging.

Totally EV household and our back up plan is to always have enough charge to reach fast chargers from home.

When a long journey is planned, first one awake always checks that the car has charged overnight, if not we could charge it for a short time before we leave, enough to get to a fast or super charger.

michaels

Reed_Richards said:

Grumpy_chap said:

JKenH said:

We were going to the airport, about 2.5 hours away, so of course had a deadline. To make sure the car was fully charged we set the timer to come on extra early, 11pm. (we use an overnight EV tariff).

In the morning the car hadn't charged.  It turns out we'd set it for 11pm Saturday, not Friday (rookie error).

I think, if that was me, and a critical journey to be made, I'd simply set the car to charge as soon as plugged in and sacrifice the cheap rate electricity for the comfort of knowing ready for the journey.
No different to when we were children and Dad would check everything on the car the day or a couple of days before, not something to be left and checked as setting off for the A303 traffic jam.

A few weeks ago I was planning to take my EV on it's first journey where I would need to charge it away from home in order to get back.  The usual car park for my destination had multiple chargers and I would be there long enough that even a slow charge would be fine.  I'm on the Eon NextDrive tariff which gives me 7 hours of cheap rate from midnight to 7 am.  But when I got up in the morning my car had failed to charge; something that has only happened once before.  I use a granny charger in conjunction with a Tapo P110 to program my charge time for the 7 hours of cheap rate and that night it had failed to work.  It had been a particularly cold night but there was nothing else out of the ordinary.

I had to choose between cutting it fine to get me to my destination with the charge I had, charging en route and arriving late or borrowing my OH's ICE car.  I chose the latter option but I have a lot of sympathy for anyone else who finds that their car has unaccountably failed to charge overnight.

WE find those tapos can get temperamental if used for high current for prolonged periods  will be interested to se if this failure becomes more frequent, have also used a few other brands that all seem to die within 12 months), also any power cut can throw out our smart switches sometimes even when the power is back on by the time they are scheduled to switch.

shinytop

michaels said:

Reed_Richards said:

Grumpy_chap said:

JKenH said:

We were going to the airport, about 2.5 hours away, so of course had a deadline. To make sure the car was fully charged we set the timer to come on extra early, 11pm. (we use an overnight EV tariff).

In the morning the car hadn't charged.  It turns out we'd set it for 11pm Saturday, not Friday (rookie error).

I think, if that was me, and a critical journey to be made, I'd simply set the car to charge as soon as plugged in and sacrifice the cheap rate electricity for the comfort of knowing ready for the journey.
No different to when we were children and Dad would check everything on the car the day or a couple of days before, not something to be left and checked as setting off for the A303 traffic jam.

A few weeks ago I was planning to take my EV on it's first journey where I would need to charge it away from home in order to get back.  The usual car park for my destination had multiple chargers and I would be there long enough that even a slow charge would be fine.  I'm on the Eon NextDrive tariff which gives me 7 hours of cheap rate from midnight to 7 am.  But when I got up in the morning my car had failed to charge; something that has only happened once before.  I use a granny charger in conjunction with a Tapo P110 to program my charge time for the 7 hours of cheap rate and that night it had failed to work.  It had been a particularly cold night but there was nothing else out of the ordinary.

I had to choose between cutting it fine to get me to my destination with the charge I had, charging en route and arriving late or borrowing my OH's ICE car.  I chose the latter option but I have a lot of sympathy for anyone else who finds that their car has unaccountably failed to charge overnight.

WE find those tapos can get temperamental if used for high current for prolonged periods  will be interested to se if this failure becomes more frequent, have also used a few other brands that all seem to die within 12 months), also any power cut can throw out our smart switches sometimes even when the power is back on by the time they are scheduled to switch.

How about one of these?

Grumpy_chap

I always thought that timer switches and the like are generally not rated for switching maximum 13A loads.  It typically says as much with regard to heaters.  Are granny chargers not also a maximum load?

EricMears

Grumpy_chap said:

I always thought that timer switches and the like are generally not rated for switching maximum 13A loads.  It typically says as much with regard to heaters.  Are granny chargers not also a maximum load?

Most 'granny chargers' run at 10amps (approx 2.3kW).  Simple timer switches probably wouldn't like that but a specialist 'immersion heater timer' would be rated for 3kW so fine for this application.

JKenH

Concerning video about the lack of HEVRA garages prepared to undertake anything much beyond servicing and minor repairs. EVM bought a Zoe as a “content” car and it had problems and no one local was prepared to repair it. It seems the problem is more widespread than we might realise. EVM is an enthusiast and apologised for the negative content of the video but he says this is not something that should be swept under the carpet.

Who’s going to repair my electric car?

https://youtu.be/K6SsNZvD3D8?si=WliyxpQi4SDqLxmI

Reed_Richards

shinytop said:

How about one of these?

I tried to run a recirculation pump from an electromechanical timer and found it to be hugely unreliable; in my experience the electronic ones are much better.  I have another Tapo P110 running a dehumidifier that we use for laundry but which I run every night during the cheap EV rate time.  That is just audible from the bedroom and has never yet failed to run, that I have noticed.   

JKenH

This is the first time I’ve seen this reported so wonder how common it is. I nearly always drove my Leaf, but the one time I travelled as a passenger in a Tesla, I did feel queasy. Similar to when I played a driving game on PlayStation. I was fine while driving but watching on a big screen could make me feel sick. Some people are more prone to car sickness than others but worth asking your family how they feel travelling in an EV. 

‘I need a solution fast’: Electric car owners complain of motion sickness

"Since [buying] the Tesla, [my dog] throws up in it almost every time. Already messing up my carpets but such is life. It is city driving, but again not new to her. I've been trying to drive smoothly but still doesn't seem to help,"

The research also provided insight into why electric cars may make you motion sick, and it actually comes down to their lack of sound.

"Average illness ratings were significantly lower for the condition that contained informative auditory cues, as compared to the condition without informative cues. This knowledge, i.e. that auditory signals can improve anticipation of motion, could be of importance in reducing carsickness in domains such as that of autonomous vehicles," the paper found. 

A key factor that needs to be considered is the lack of engine noise in EVs. Our bodies are accustomed to riding in internal combustion vehicles, so the lack of noise and vibration in an EV can actually throw your balance off. 

Another of the main contributors to carsickness in an EV is something called regenerative braking – a system in electric cars that generates force through the resistance while off the throttle to help charge the battery and add some extra range. This regenerative braking can often feel more aggressive and happen more frequently than conventional braking, particularly in stop-start traffic.

EVs also have a lot more torque and a more linear acceleration compared to their internal combustion counterparts. This means that those who aren't used to the immediate power and heavy acceleration associated with electric cars will often anticipate a lot less acceleration than usual, causing the body to get confused. 

https://www.drive.com.au/caradvice/motion-sickness-electric-cars/